Twenty-five-year-old actress Go A-ra has spent over a decade in the public eye, starting with the teen TV drama “Sharp” in 2003. Despite her more than 12 years in the industry and her fame, Go has a relatively short filmography: seven TV shows and six films. 

Although Go has recently appeared on a number of television shows, most memorably hit drama “Reply 1994,” she had been away from the big screen for four years when she returned in December with Kim Dai-seung‘s romance period piece “The Magician.” At a cafe in Seoul on Wednesday, she told reporters that she was now eager to pick up the pace.

“After I started college, I focused my energy mostly on school, so I didn’t have much time to work,” she said, also mentioning that she spent some time in Japan earlier in her career.

Still, Go says that she has no regrets.

“It‘s all a process, and I have a lot of work laid out for me,” Go said. “I’m still young, so I have to prepare myself for what‘s ahead. I think it’s a bit early to have regrets.”

It was clear that despite her long time in the limelight, Go saw herself as largely a blank slate -- and widening her spectrum to build a solid filmography was a priority. 

“After ‘Reply 1994’ I started receiving a lot of scripts for different kinds of characters. It‘s a lot of fun reading through them, especially as a young actress who wants to try diverse roles,” she said. “That was why I chose ’The Magician.‘”

“A lot of people told me that they couldn’t see me in a period piece,” she said, saying that fortunately, the fantastical romance element of the film afforded her a bit of stylistic continuity.

In “The Magician” Go plays Cheong-myeong, a girl of humble origins who is suddenly named a princess and carried off to China when China requests a Joseon princess to marry its prince. 

“The story is loosely based on real events,” Go said. “I felt that Cheong-myeong’s emotions represented the painful history of our country at that time, and that her pain would be amplified by the beautiful visuals of the film.”

Her next film “Phantom Detective,” which is set to open later this year, also has her playing a young woman in unusual circumstances: Go is set to play a CEO, someone with immense power despite her young age in the Korea of the 1970s-’80s.

“From now on, I’m going to study and look for ways to express myself in more varied ways, both in appearance and character,” she said. Noting that someone had told her that her pretty face might limit her character options, Go added with a laugh, “I think that the way I look, I could actually create more impact if I play a villain.”

According to Go, her ultimate goal is to be like a chameleon, absorbing the roles that are given to her and being able to change her style with each new work.

Go is planning to return to TV screens this year with a new drama, to be officially announced in mid-January. 

Her latest film “The Magician” opened in theaters on Dec. 30.

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)