Tina Jung is an award-winning Korean-Canadian actor, writer, and producer. With both parents being actors, Tina was inspired to pursue a career in this field for as long as she could remember. She starred in every play at school and community theatre and danced for over 10 years learning jazz, tap, and ballet. She later graduated with a BFA from the Acting Conservatory at York University.
She is a recipient of the Performing Arts Award and Award in Acting from York University, as well as the Sandra Oh Acting Award through the Korean Canadian Scholarship Foundation. Tina made the transition to television and film landing her first on-screen role in FX’s Man Seeking Women and has never looked back since. She now stars as the lead character in the feature film Queen of the Morning Calm, which was set to screen at the 2020 Canadian Film Fest. Due to COVID-19, please check out the Canadian Film Festival’s website for further news. Nevertheless, we had the pleasure of speaking to Tina about the film and her career in general.
Hi Tina, Thank you for granting the interview. Congratulations on your career so far. How did you get into acting?
I’ve always been a performer as a kid. I would create sketches, recreate a scene from a movie, choreograph dance routines and put together a show during the week and perform for my family on weekends. My parents inspired me to become an actor because they were both actors in South Korea before we immigrated to Canada. My whole family knew I would end up in this field and I think they would have been more surprised if I went a different route. They’ve been incredibly supportive since day one. I enrolled in every drama camp, community theatre, talent shows, and school play growing up and that eventually led me to apply for York University where I got into the Acting Conservatory program. Upon graduating, I made the transition into television and film and went on to do various projects like Suits, Kim’s Convenience, In Contempt, The Good Witch, Carter, Make It Pop, and No Sleep ‘Till Christmas.
You have an upcoming recurring role in the award-winning series Second Jen. Please tell us more about the role and what we should expect in the upcoming third season.
I play a character named Vicky, she is the successful cousin of Jen that always one-ups her in everything. She is a famous social media influencer with over 10 million followers and lives a lavish life that almost seems unreal to the eyes of Jen. Vicky casually holds an MBA from Harvard, she spends her time traveling the world and hanging out with celebrities and the British royal family. She’s an outrageous, colorful character, who is also loveable and endearing and you can’t help but like her as soon as you meet her. I had a blast playing this character and I can’t wait to share it with the audience!
You co-wrote, co-produced, and starred in the short film Meeting Mommy which has screened in notable film festivals including Reelworld Film Festival and Reel Asian Film. Please share your experience of working on this project.
Meeting Mommy was the first short film that I had co-written and co-produced through the Young Emerging Artists Assembly (YEAA) program through ACTRA. It was an eye-opening experience where I got to learn a lot about the process that happens behind the camera. Up until this time, I’ve only been in front of the camera but to get a chance to create an idea, craft up a world, write a script, and produce a work of my own was an extremely rewarding process. Meeting Mommy had its first premiere at the ReelWorld Film Festival and then it made its rounds at other various film festivals like the Reel Asian Film Festival and the Oxford Film Festival. It also made it to the semi-finals for the NBCUniversal Film Festival. Meeting Mommy is featured on the Wong Fu channel on YouTube, which now has massed over half a million views.
You have amassed a significant body of work including roles on Suits, In Contempt, and Kim’s convenience. What have been your career highlights and why?
I think being able to play different characters on different projects are all career highlights for me. Nothing outshines one or the other, I’m just grateful to be able to do what I do and to wear as many shoes as possible. The whole process of playing a new character and getting to explore their world is what I find charming about my career so to get the opportunity to play someone new every time, each experience is a highlight for me.
Your latest project is the feature film Queen of the Morning Calm. Please tell us more about the film and what viewers can expect from it.
Queen of the Morning Calm is a heartfelt mother-daughter story about escaping toxic cycles of poverty and abuse. The film follows the story of Debra, a young immigrant sex worker who finds herself stuck in a lifestyle that is impossible to escape from. She puts herself and her happiness last trying to save everyone else around her. Through her journey of self-healing and finding her voice, she realizes that she needs to put herself first in order to save herself and her daughter. It’s a story of emancipation, a story of hope, a story of self-love and gaining the courage to find her worth in a world that turned its back on her – all the while learning to be a more nurturing mother in the process.
Do you have anything else in the pipeline we can look forward to?
I have an exciting project in the works at the moment that begins shooting this month. I can’t share much about it because it’s currently a secret and hasn’t been announced yet, but stay tuned!
So where can we keep up to date with your activities?
Instagram: @tina_jung
Twitter: @tinayjung
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Just watched Meeting Mommy. Wow. Beautiful and touching.