# Shin Si-ah
**Shin Si-ah** (신시아; hanja 申始雅; born 1998) is a South Korean actress whose English name is Cynthia. She made her screen debut in a 2018 web drama and rose to prominence as the lead of the 2022 film *The Witch: Part 2. The Other One*, winning a casting call in which more than 1,400 candidates competed.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) • [2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1998, South Korea; hangul 신시아, nickname Cynthia[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) |
| Education | Theater and film department, Hanyang University; took a leave of absence to film her debut feature[3](https://www.korseries.com/shin-si-a-profile/) • [2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106) |
| First screen work | Web drama *My Darling Boyfriend* (2018–2019) as Go-eun; short film *Prasad* (2019) as Do-hwa[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) |
| Lead debut | *The Witch: Part 2. The Other One* (2022), selected from more than 1,400 auditionees[2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106) |
| Early awards | 2022 Asia Model Awards Best New Actor; 2022 BIFF Marie Claire Asia Star Awards Rising Star Award[3](https://www.korseries.com/shin-si-a-profile/) |
| First TV drama | *Resident Playbook* (tvN, 2025) as Pyo Nam-kyung, in 12 episodes[4](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/20250625/interview-shin-si-a-ive-fallen-in-love-with-acting-itself) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) |
| Agency | Management SOOP since 9 June 2025; previous contract with Andmark ended in May 2025[5](https://www.soompi.com/article/1750583wpp/shin-si-ah-signs-with-new-agency) |
| Upcoming | *Grand Galaxy Hotel* (2026) and Netflix's *No Crushing Allowed* (2027), in which she plays So Ran[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) |
## Background
Shin Si-ah studied in a theater and film department at [Hanyang University](https://www.edgepedia.org/hanyang-university) and entered auditions while still a student; after passing the audition for her first feature film, she took a leave of absence for the shoot. In interviews she has described finding a first love for acting in musicals: she became fascinated with the musical *Carmen* in high school, attending performances several times a week, and decided in her final year of high school to become an actress.[3](https://www.korseries.com/shin-si-a-profile/) • [2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106) • [6](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/461957)
Her first on-screen work was in web dramas. She played Go-eun in *My Darling Boyfriend* (2018–2019) and followed it with short film work, including the role of Do-hwa in *Prasad* (2019).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) A Korean profile describes her acting path as beginning in 2018 with the web drama *My Love The Dog Boyfriend*, followed by more web dramas and short films.[3](https://www.korseries.com/shin-si-a-profile/)
One database, Cine21, lists her date of birth as 1999 rather than 1998; the 1998 date appears in her IMDb, AsianWiki, and TMDB profiles.[7](https://cine21.com/db/person/info/?person_id=116349) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) • [8](https://asianwiki.com/Shin_Shi-A)
## Breakthrough with The Witch: Part 2
Her film lead debut came through a large-scale audition. Park Hoon-jung, who wrote and directed *The Witch: Part 2. The Other One* (2022), a sequel sharing the world of his 2018 violent action film *The Witch*, needed a new actress for an unnamed girl who becomes the sequel's protagonist. A Japanese interview published at the film's release reports that she was selected from 1,408 applicants.[2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106) She said at the time that films giving lead roles to newcomers were uncommon in Korea and that few actresses her age were cast as leads.[2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106)
In the film she appears alongside [Kim Da-mi](https://www.edgepedia.org/kim-da-mi) and [Park Eun-bin](https://www.edgepedia.org/park-eun-bin). She has said that, as in the film where Park's character looks after the girl, Park Eun-bin looked after her on set, which helped her concentrate on the role in her first feature shoot.[2](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106) The performance brought her two 2022 prizes: the Best New Actor Award at the Asia Model Awards and the Rising Star Award at the BIFF Marie Claire Asia Star Awards, both for this film.[3](https://www.korseries.com/shin-si-a-profile/)
## Return to the screen in 2025
Between *The Witch: Part 2* and her next roles lay a gap of roughly three years, which she has described as a period of waiting; she has said she used the time to build habits she called the "ribbon project" and to regain a positive mindset.[9](https://v.daum.net/v/xouIoE0CrK) • [10](https://v.daum.net/v/20250525000102546)
Her first television drama was *Resident Playbook* (언젠가는 슬기로울 전공의생활), a spin-off of *Hospital Playlist* broadcast on tvN in 2025, in which she played Pyo Nam-kyung, a first-year obstetrics and gynecology resident. To prepare for her first doctor role she shadowed at hospitals, visited residents' lounges, and asked her grandfather, a retired internist, to explain medical jargon.[4](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/20250625/interview-shin-si-a-ive-fallen-in-love-with-acting-itself) The drama aired 12 episodes, and she also sang on its OST, a song she said carried a message of comfort that matched what she wanted to convey.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) • [6](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/461957)
Two films followed in 2025. In *[The Old Woman with the Knife](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-old-woman-with-the-knife)* (파과), adapted from the novel of the same name, she played the young Hornclaw, showing the character in both innocence and coldness; for the role she learned boxing and built her strength.[5](https://www.soompi.com/article/1750583wpp/shin-si-ah-signs-with-new-agency) • [9](https://v.daum.net/v/xouIoE0CrK) In *Even If This Love Disappears from the World Tonight* (오늘 밤, 세계에서 이 사랑이 사라진다 해도), a film adaptation of a Japanese work about a high school girl with anterograde amnesia, she played Han Seo-yoon.[8](https://asianwiki.com/Shin_Shi-A) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/)
On 9 June 2025, Management SOOP, the agency whose roster includes [Gong Yoo](https://www.edgepedia.org/gong-yoo), Jeon Do-yeon, and Suzy, confirmed that she had joined it; her contract with her previous agency, Andmark, had ended the previous month.[5](https://www.soompi.com/article/1750583wpp/shin-si-ah-signs-with-new-agency)
## Upcoming projects
Her scheduled work continues in series television. She is filming *Grand Galaxy Hotel*, the new project from the [Hong sisters](https://www.edgepedia.org/hong-sisters), in the role of Go Sang-soon, and is set to play So Ran, the romantic lead opposite Moon Sang-min, in the Netflix coming-of-age romance *No Crushing Allowed*, written by [Lee Na-eun](https://www.edgepedia.org/lee-na-eun); production was reported as scheduled to begin in September 2026 for a late-2027 release.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/) • [11](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/news/)
## References
1. [Shin Si-ah, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/)
2. [『THE WITCH／魔⼥ ー増殖ー』1400人超から抜擢された新星シン・シアのインタビュー, SCREEN ONLINE (Kindaieigasha), 26 May 2023](https://screenonline.jp/_ct/17631106)
3. [ส่องประวัติ ผลงาน ของ ชินชีอา (Shin Si A), Korseries, 21 September 2023](https://www.korseries.com/shin-si-a-profile/)
4. [Shin Si-a: 'I've fallen in love with acting itself', The Korea Times, 25 June 2025](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/20250625/interview-shin-si-a-ive-fallen-in-love-with-acting-itself)
5. [Shin Si Ah Signs With New Agency, Soompi, 9 June 2025](https://www.soompi.com/article/1750583wpp/shin-si-ah-signs-with-new-agency)
6. [신시아 "뮤지컬 무대 오르긴 아직 부족, 더 갈고닦을 것" [인터뷰M], iMBC 연예뉴스, 22 May 2025](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/461957)
7. [신시아 SHIN Sia, Cine21 person database](https://cine21.com/db/person/info/?person_id=116349)
8. [Shin Shi-A, AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/Shin_Shi-A)
9. [신시아, '눈물로 푼 마녀리본, 이젠 현실긍정 표남경'(종합), ET인터뷰 via Daum, May 2025](https://v.daum.net/v/xouIoE0CrK)
10. [신시아, 본격적으로 시작되는 '슬기로운 연기 생활', The Fact via Daum, 25 May 2025](https://v.daum.net/v/20250525000102546)
11. [Netflix High School K-Drama 'No Crushing Allowed': Cast, Plot Details & Expected Release Date, Variety Film + TV via IMDb News, 1 June 2026](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12048547/news/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of East and Southeast Asia › South Korean actors, 2000s onward › Surnames M to S*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license