Actress Ko Ah-ra Hopes to Inspire Viewers to Chase Dreams

After playing the role of a pole vaulter in "Pacemaker", which opened in theaters recently, Ko Ah-ra appears as the teen breadwinner of a dysfunctional American family in the upcoming movie "Papa - Movie", set to open on Feb. 2.

In the film, the 22-year-old plays a girl who overcomes conflicts with her stepfather in order to protect the family of orphaned children from different ethnic backgrounds, before eventually breaking into show business.

"I did heavy workouts and learned English, singing, dancing and even guitar while I was filming these two movies", Ko said. "I started learning English when I was five, which helped a lot".

Even though it has been 10 years since Ko made her debut, most people still remember her as the main character in the KBS teen drama "Sharp". She landed that role right after winning an audition with the talent management agency SM Entertainment.

"If I didn't take the audition for the talent agency when I was in junior high school, I would probably be preparing to become a news presenter", she said.

"I started dreaming about being an anchor since I watched the TV soap 'All About Eve', which dealt with the world of news reporting".

She said she became more proactive at school after watching the soap, pushing herself to excel not only in her studies, but also in extracurricular activities.

"It means a lot to me to accurately portray characters as an actress", Ko said. "I would like to inspire viewers so they become interested in new worlds, and start to have dreams and set goals just like I did".