30-year-old SuChin Pak (born August 15, 1976) is a MTV News correspondent. Joining the MTV News team in 2001, she became the first Asian face of MTV and has covered events like the MTV Video Music Awards, MTV Movie Awards, and the Sundance Film Festival.SuChin was born in Seoul, Korea and moved to Union City, California when she was five years old. She attended the University of California, Berkeley (GO BEARS!) and majored in political science while holding a job as the youngest television host for PBS’ “Newton’s Apple.”

SuChin has interviewed celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Justin Timberlake, Diddy, George Lucas, Ice-T, Billy Idol, Mary J. Blige, and Britney Spears.

SuChin is more than “just” a television host, playing a huge role in MTV’s 2004 Choose or Lose campaign which urged young people in the U.S. to vote. She also contributed segments to coverage of the aftermath of September 11 for MTV News. In May 2004, her news series titled “My Life (Translated)” aired on MTV. “My Life (Translated)” examined the difficulties of growing up as a multicultural American kid, focusing a large part on her own life and her struggles in bridging gaps between standard Korean customs/culture and American ways.

In 2007, SuChin appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and talked about how she has struggled with beauty issues, in particular the standard Asian definitions of beauty. She mentioned her epicanthal folds (which result in the absence of eye creases in Asians), and explains why having an eye crease is an important facial feature to Asians. You can see a summary of her interview here.

Personal note: I grew up watching SuChin on TRL with Carson Daly! I think she is a great role model for young people. That she graduated from UC Berkeley while working a time-consuming television host job shows that she is hardworking, and a look at any of her interviews with celebrities will show that she is very charismatic and enthusiastic about her job. She always appears cheerful on television, and she is also using her name to promote good causes. She became successful off of her smarts, not her looks – even though I think she has both. Furthermore, I love her style!

More photos of SuChin:

SuChin Pak on the web:
SuChin Pak @ mtv.com
Suchin Pak @ mtv.com (official “My Life (Translated)” page)
SuChin Pak @ imdb.com
SuChin Pak @ flickr.com (SuChin’s flickr page)
SuChin Pak @ myspace.com

Rush Hour 3, starring Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan, opened in theaters in the U.S. yesterday, August 10. Reviews in periodicals like The New York Times, Newsweek and Entertainment Weekly have all said the movie is a complete flop, describing the film as “grimly unfunny,” or overly reliant on recycled material.

In spite of the poor reviews, two things one can look forward to in Rush Hour 3 are Japanese actress Youki Kudoh (pictured above) and Chinese actress Zhang Jingchu.On Youki:

(at the premiere of Rush Hour 3)

Youki last appeared in the films Memoirs of a Geisha as Pumpkin and in Snow Falling on Cedars as Hatsue Miyamoto. At 20-years-old, Youki received the Best Actress Award for her role in War and Youth, becoming the youngest person in her country to receive the award. This role also won her Best Actress awards from the Japan Film Critics, Hochi Film Festival, and the 34th Blue Ribbon Award.

On Zhang:

(at the premiere of Rush Hour 3)

Zhang won the Best New Performer Award at the 11th China Broadcast, Film and TV Huabiao Awards for her role in Huayao Bride in Shangrila in 2005, and was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 2006 for her role in Seven Swords. Recently TIME Asia Magazine has named her one of “Asia’s Heroes,” lauding her passion and zeal for acting. The article can be found here. Rush Hour 3 is Zhang’s first American movie.

In Rush Hour 3, Youki plays Jasmine (not quite sure what she does, but she starts throwing knives at Jackie Chan in the trailer) and Zhang Jingchu plays Soo Yung, the daughter of Consul Han who was murdered in Rush Hour. Below is the trailer for the movie, where you can see some clips of Youki, but unfortunately Zhang managed to not get featured:

Youki Kudoh, Zhang Jingchu on the web:
Youki Kudoh and Zhang Jingchu @ rushhourmovie.com (movie website)
Youki Kudoh and Zhang Jingchu @ asianpopcorn.com
Youki Kudoh @ youkikudoh.net (official website)
Youki Kudoh @ imdb.com
Zhang Jingchu @ imdb.com
Zhang Jingchu @ time.com