Um Sang-hyun
Um Sang-hyun is a South Korean voice actor who began his career by joining Educational Broadcasting System's voice acting division in 1998.
Before making his debut as a voice actor, he used to work in theaters, including performing his roles as a Japanese assassinator and a royal servant in a 1997 South Korean musical The Last Empress and working as the assistant director for South Korean musicals Gaeddongi and Moskito the same year. In 1992, he also appeared in a South Korean independent film Opening the Closed School Gates.
After his exclusive work at EBS, Um has been a freelancer since 2001. In the early 2000s, he came to prominence after voicing Kira Yamato on the Korean dub of Mobile Suit Gundam SEED. Since then, Um has dubbed a number of television animation series such as Chrono Crusade, Digimon Frontier, Fullmetal Alchemist, InuYasha and School Rumble. As a result of his popularity among children audiences, the voice actor won a 2012 Nickelodeon Korea Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie. He became the recipient of the award for his role as Po in , gaining 3,121 votes, which is about 38% of the entire poll.
Although having been highly active as a freelancer for more than a decade, Um is also still one of the main voice actors representing EBS. He is best known for his voicing Calcifer on the Korean dub of a Studio Ghibli animation Howl's Moving Castle, L Lawliet on the Korean dub of a Japanese television animation series Death Note, Po on the Korean dub of the DreamWorks Animation film series Kung Fu Panda and, even more recently, Poli on a South Korean animated children's television series Robocar Poli.
Career
Voice acting
TV animation dubbing
A
- Arthur
- * Mr. Ratburn
- Astro Boy
- * Shibugaki
- * Sokka
B
- '
- * Kevin Levin
- '
- * Kevin Levin
- '
- * Kevin Levin
- '
- * Hyoma
- Big Windup!
- * Yuuichirou Tajima
- Blood+
- * Akihiro Okamura
- * Karl Fei-Ong/The Phantom
- * Kai Miyagusuku
- * Nathan Mahler
C
- Chloe's Closet
- * Lovely Carrot
- Chobits
- * Hiromu Shinbo
- Chrono Crusade
- * Chrono
- Chuggington
- * Dunbar
- * Emery
- * Speedy McAllister
- Cosmic Quantum Ray
- * Quantum Ray
- Cross Game
- * Ko Kitamura
- Curious George
- * Bill
D
- Death Note
- * L. Lawliet
- Detective Conan
- * Yuuichi Sakuraba on the episode "The Bay of Revenge"
- Digimon Frontier
- * Cerberumon
- * Koji Minamoto
- * Superstarmon
- * Yutaka Himi
- Dora the Explorer
- * Backpack
- * Santa on the episode ""
- * Swiper the Fox
- Dr. Slump
- * Taro Soramame
- Dragon
- * Alligator
- Dude, That's My Ghost!
- * Billy Joe Cobra
F
- The Fairly OddParents
- * Anti-Cosmo
- * Chip Skylark III
- * Cosmo
- * Denzel Quincy Crocker
- Franklin and Friends
- * Fox
- * Mr. Heron
- * Mr. Turtle
- Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu
- * Masatami Hyuga
- Fullmetal Alchemist
- * Envy
- * Jean Havoc
- * Solf J. Kimblee
- * Tim Marcoh
G
- Garfield
- * Garfield
- Geronimo Stilton
- * Benjamin Stilton
- Go! Anpanman
- * Shokupanman
H
- Hunter × Hunter
- * Milluki Zoldyck
I
- I'm Gonna Be an Angel!
- * Yuusuke Kamoshita
- InuYasha
- * Koga
K
- Kung Fu Dino Posse
- * Kane
- * Po
L
- *
- *
- *
- Little Battlers eXperience
- * Daiki Sendo
- Love in Love
- * Keitaro Urashima
M
- Marsupilami
- * Marsupilami
- The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
- * Kyon
- MetaJets
- * Zachary Kim
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
- * Kira Yamato
- My Bride Is a Mermaid
- * Nagasumi Michishio
N
- Ninja Hattori-kun
- * Shishimaru
O
- Oh My Goddess!
- * Keiichi Morisato
- One Piece
- * Wanze
- Ouran High School Host Club
- * Hikaru Hitachiin
P
- The Penguins of Madagascar
- * Mort
- *
- *
- Planet of the Beast King
- * The adult Thor
- Please! Psammea-don
- * Cyril
- Play Ball
- * Takao Taniguchi
- The Prince of Tennis: Another Story
- * Bunta Marui
- * Genichiro Sanada
- * Katsuo Mizuno
- * Rin Hirakoba
- * Yushi Oshitari
- * Wakashi Hiyoshi
R
- Regular Show
- * Muscle Man
- * Pops Maellard
- Robocar Poli
- * Grandpa Musty
- * Poli
- * Terry
- The Rose of Versailles
- * André Grandier
- '
- * Yahiko Myojin
- '
- * Himura Kenshin
S
- School Rumble
- * Kyousuke Imadori
- Shaman King
- * Horohoro
- Shōnen Onmyōji
- * Abe no Narachika
- * Fujiwara no Toshitsugu
- * Suzaku
- * Taijō
- SonicX
- * Sonic the Hedgehog
- SpongeBob SquarePants
- * Barnacle Boy
- * DoodleBob
- Sunako, You're Needed
- * Ranmaru Morii
T
- Tayo the Little Bus
- * Pat
- * Rogi
- * Shine
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
- * Michelangelo
- Thomas & Friends
- * Edward the Blue Engine
- * Gordon the Big Engine
- * James the Red Engine
- * Percy the Small Engine
- * Toby the Tram Engine
- * Victor
- Tickety Toc
- * Hopparoo
- Time Travel Tondekeman
- * Hayato Shindou
- Tokyo Mew Mew
- * Blue Knight
- * Deep Blue
- * Masaya Aoyama
- * Pie
- '
- *
- *
- *
- *
- *
- *
- * One of the Vehicons on the episode ""
- '
- * Syaoran |Syaoran
V
- VeggieTales
- * Bob the Tomato
W
- Watership Down
- * Campion
- * Hawkbit
- We Were There
- * Motoharu Yano
- Whistle!
- * Kō Kazamatsuri
- * Santa Yamaguchi
- * Teppei Koiwa
- The Wild Thornberrys
- * Darwin
X
- xxxHolic
- * Kimihiro Watanuki
Y
- YooHoo & Friends
- * Pookee
- * Roodee
- Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters
- * Yugi Mutou
Animated movie dubbing
2000s
2010s
Film dubbing
A
- Anne of Green Gables
- * Jonathan Crombie as Gilbert Blythe
- The Avengers
- * Tom Hiddleston as Loki
B
- Batman Begins
- * Larry Holden as Carl Finch
- * Nathan Keyes as Kevin Levin
C
- * Shia LaBeouf as Max Petroni
- Crimson Tide
- * Danny Nucci as Petty Officer Danny Rivetti
D
- Deep Impact
- * Jon Favreau as Dr. Gus Partenza
E
- Eloise at Christmastime
- * Rick Roberts as Brooks
- Engine Sentai Go-onger vs. Gekiranger
- * Birca
- * Hant Jō
- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- * Elijah Wood as Patrick Wertz
F
- Face/Off
- * Alessandro Nivola as Pollux Troy
H
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- * Sean Biggerstaff as Oliver Wood
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- * Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- * Sean Biggerstaff as Oliver Wood
I
- The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
- * Verne Troyer as Percy
L
- Little Nicky
- * Allen Covert as Todd
- * Billy Boyd as Pippin
- Lost in Translation
- * Giovanni Ribisi as John
O
- Ocean's Twelve
- * Vincent Cassel as Baron François Toulour/The Night Fox
- Once Upon a Time in Mexico
- * Mickey Rourke as Billy Chambers
P
- The Patriot
- * Gregory Smith as Thomas Martin
- * Jay Arlen Jones as Occam
- Pearl Harbor
- * William Lee Scott as First Lieutenant Billy Thompson
- Pinocchio
- * Leonardo
- The Polar Express
- * Eddie Deezen as the Know-It-All Kid
- * Tom Hanks as Santa Claus
- Power Rangers Magic Force the Movie: The Bride of Infershia
- * Smoky the Magical Cat
R
- Racing Stripes
- * Frankie Muniz as Stripes
- Right on Track
- * Derek Boone as Todd
S
- '
- * Seth Green as Patrick Wisely
- Searching for David's Heart
- * Ricky Ullman as Sam
- '
- * Alan Cumming as Fegan Floop
- * Robert Vito as Rez
T
- The Three Investigators and the Secret of Skeleton Island
- * Nick Price as Pete Crenshaw
- Top Gun
- * John Stockwell as LT Bill "Cougar" Cortell
- * Whip Hubley as LT Rick "Hollywood" Neven
- * Rainn Wilson as Professor R. A. Colan
- * Tom Kenny as Wheelie
W
- War of the Worlds
- * Justin Chatwin as Robbie Ferrier
- The Whole Ten Yards
- * Matthew Perry as Dr. Nicholas "Oz" Ozeransky
Foreign TV show dubbing
B
- Blue's Clues
- * Steven Burns as Steve
C
- Cosby
- * Doug E. Doug as Griffin Vesey
D
- Dinotopia
- * Tyron Leitso as Karl Scott
E
- Engine Sentai Go-onger
- * Masahiro Usui as Hant Jō
- Everwood
- * Chris Pratt as Bright Abbott
H
- * Burgess Abernethy as
- Heroes
- * James Kyson Lee as Ando Masahashi
- House
- * Scott Foley as Hank Wiggen on the episode "Sports Medicine"
L
- The Legend of Bruce Lee
- * Lin Yumiao as Ah Lin
M
- Masked Rider Decade
- * Tetsuya Makita as Arata
- Masked Rider Kabuto
- * Yuuki Sato as Arata Kagami
- Masked Rider W
- * Renn Kiriyama as Shotaro Hidari
N
- Numb3rs
- * Colin Hanks as Dr. Marshall Penfield on the episode "Convergence"
P
- Power Rangers Magic Force
- * Smoky the Magical Cat
- * Tetsuya
- * Titan
- Prison Break
- * Lane Garrison as Tweener
T
- Tales from the Neverending Story
- * Robert Crooks as Tartus
- Taylor's DNA
- * Nicolas Dunn as Hector Garcia
- *
- Tweenies
- * Milo
W
- Worst Best Friends
- * Andrew S. Gilbert as Mr. Thesaurus
Narrations
- The Best Cooking Secrets
- Culture & Art 36.5
- D'Factory
- Friday Night Theater
- FUN FUN Board Games
- Janghak Quiz
- Star Track
- TV Scoop! Surprising World
- tvN eNEWS
- The UCC Scientific Expedition
- The World of My Friends
Commercial film dubbing
A
- Ahngook Pharmaceutical
- * The pollack on the commercial "Tobicom-S"
- Aurora World
- * Poli on the commercial "Robocar Poli Action Toy "
- * Poli on the commercial "Robocar Poli Rag Doll "
B
- Binggrae
- * The commander on the commercial "Binggrae Samanco: The Revenge of Samanco "
C
- CJ E&M
- * Po on the trailer for Superstar K3
F
- FedEx
- * The black guy on the commercial "Zombie Outbreak"
G
- GS Caltex
- * Shinbbori on the commercial "The Good-Hearted Oil Stories "
H
- HP Pavilion
- * Shaun White on the commercial "The Computer Is Personal Again"
I
- IBK
- * Oscar on the commercial "IBK Salary Account "
K
- Kellogg's Frosted Flakes
- * Tony the Tiger
- KOBACO
L
- The Lego Group
- * Narration for the "Lego Ninjago" commercials
- LG Electronics
- * Narration for the commercial "XCanvas David"
- LG Telecom
- * The squid alien on the commercial "Mikey Meets an Alien "
M
- Meritz
- * Tata on the "Meritz Merry Dolls " commercials
S
- Shinhan Card
- * Two guys on the early part of the commercial "Shinhan LOVE Card"
- SKY
- * Narration for the commercial "SKY Hush"
- Sonokong
- * Narration for the commercial "Fruity Robo "
T
- Tous Les Jours
- * Poli on the commercial "Tous Les Jours Robocar Poli Cake"
Z
- Zambus Korea
- * Narration for the commercial "Chuggington Die-Cast Toys"
Video game dubbing
0-9
- * Mitchell
B
- Blade & Soul
- * Go-bong
- * In-doo-ra
C
- City of Mist
- * Kwon Hyeon-seok
- * Shin Ho-jin
D
- Diablo III
- * Male Wizard
- Dota 2
- * Viper
G
- Grand Chase
- * Ercnard Sieghart
H
- * Buck
K
- Key of Heaven
- * Eigen
- *
- Kingdom Under Fire II
- * Glen
L
- League of Legends
- * Garen
- * Rammus
- '
- * Legolas
- Lost Odyssey
- * Tolten
- '
- *Baek Gi
M
- * Ases
- MapleStory
- * Battle Mage
- * Dual Blade
- * Mechanic
- * Cadena
- * Mr. Hazard
- * Carlisle
- * Havoc
S
- Star Project Online
- * Sebastian Leon von Valencia
- Steambot Chronicles
- * Vanilla R. Beans
T
- Tales of Destiny 2
- * Kyle Dunamis
- '
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken 5
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- '
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken 6
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken Revolution
- * Hwoarang
- Tekken Tag Tournament 2
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Unlimited
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken Tag Tournament 2: Wii U Edition
- * Hwoarang, Baek Doo San
- Tekken 7
- * Hwoarang
- Tekken 7: Fated Retribution
- *Hwoarang
W
- World of Warcraft
- * Anduin Llane Wrynn
Drama CD
- Sound of Prince
- * Roe
TV appearances
1990s
2000s
2010s
Stage appearance
Stage directing
Film appearance
Awards
Nickelodeon Korea Kids' Choice Awards
Miscellaneous facts
- Although born in 1971, he looks younger than his actual age, and that is why many fans of Um tend to call him 상현소년 meaning "The Boy Named Sang-hyun", or its shortened form, 상현손.
- Um Tae-jun, the son of Um, also has worked as a voice actor, participating in dubbing of various television shows for children, including Blue's Clues, Dora the Explorer, Team Umizoomi, and Tickety Toc. He recently voiced young Mike on the Korean dub of Pixar animated film Monsters University.
- Um also sang some theme songs of his works, such as the opening theme for ', and "Clumsy Love ", the ending theme for the third season of Chobits.
- In the South Korean version of the 2012 KCAs, a new award called "Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie " was featured along with "Favorite TV Actor/Actress ". In the following year, however, the former was excluded from the show, and thus Um currently remains the first and only recipient ever to win that category.
- As of October 2013, the total number of tickets sold for animated films which Um has participated in dubbing is about 38 million.
- The ending title for the Korean dub of ' is based upon a video shot by Goo Ja-hyeong, who dubbed Megatron on the show. The title aired only when the first season of the show ended. In this video, Um appears for a moment, with a scene in which is running.