Here and Now

Men's Folio’s August 2024 digital cover star Teo Yoo, who was invited to Singapore by The Glenrothes, believes the past and future do not matter as much as the present.

-  Asaph Low

We all have a moment in our lives when something happened and changed its course forever. It could be a choice for some, fate for others — or even happenstance. For South Korean actor Teo Yoo, many would point to his breakout portrayal as Hae Sung in Celine Song’s directorial film debut Past Lives alongside Greta Lee and John Magaro, that altered his career trajectory — one for the better, lest we forget to mention. Prior to Past Lives, many would not have known of Yoo (we hold our hands up for falling into this category, too). However, for Yoo, that moment came very much earlier in his life. Born and raised in Cologne, Germany, Yoo’s parents babysat him with a videotape of an animated film.

“I was five years old, and my parents showed me Nobody’s Boy: Remi about a child performer in the streets of France and his master, Vitalis, based on Hector Malot’s 1978 novel Sans Famille,” recalled Yoo. “It showed me that acting is an honourable profession with the highest noble standards.” Yoo later enrolled in acting school, first at the Lee Strasberg Theater and Film Institute, New York, and later at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, London. “I don’t believe that there was one specific lesson that was dear to me,” said Yoo when we quizzed him about the biggest lessons he held close to him throughout his acting career.

“I believe my work is an accumulation of the experiences I have had. But if there is one thing I’d say you cannot learn, it’s the obsession about the work and the never-ending curiosity.”