Randall Duk Kim, an Asian-American actor of Korean and Chinese descent, lends his voice as Ancient Master Oogway in the newly released full length, 3-D animation feature "Kung Fu Panda". The movie was released in theaters across the US on June 6, 2008, and during the first weekend of its release, ranked number one at the North American box office.
In the film, Master Oogway is a 1000-year-old tortoise Kung Fu master who appoints the main character Po the panda, as the Dragon Warrior. Master Oogway supports Po and inspires his student Shifu to teach the panda to fight the evil warrior Tai Lung. Along with Kim, many movie stars lent their voices to the movie, including Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, and Angelina Jolie.
A seasoned theatre actor in the realm of theatre, Kim had spent 20 years crafting his art on the stage. In 1994, he began to appear in small roles on television as well as films. His resume includes the role of Uncle Lau in three episodes of the short-lived TV series "Thief", Dr. Crab in the film "Memoirs of a Geisha", but it was his role as the Keymaker in 2003's "Matrix Reloaded" that gained him recognition.
Kim is scheduled to appear in the upcoming movie "Dragonball" as Grandpa Gohan and "Ninja Assasin" as the Tattoo Master. Both films are set to be released in 2009.
Other Koreans involved in the production of Kung Fu Panda alongside Randall Duk Kim include cinematographer Yong Duk Juhn and story artist Jennifer Yuh.
By Shin Eun-young
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English 
US$5 off (order min. US$5)
