Sharon Au is moving on from Paris to a new chapter in Seoul

Former local actress-host Sharon Au is embarking on yet another adventure – with plans to spend more time in Seoul – about eight years after moving from Singapore to Paris in search of change.

Sharing photos on Sept 24 from a photo shoot with South Korean fashion brand L’H.A.S., she wrote on Instagram: “Seoul, it seems, has plans for me.”

The 51-year-old said: “These photographs with L’H.A.S. mark the beginning of something new. I don’t quite know where it will lead yet. Perhaps that is the point.”

Work has been taking her to Seoul more frequently since August, and she expects to spend more time there, she told The Straits Times on Sept 25.

“Paris remains my base,” she pointed out and added: “Seoul, however, seems increasingly determined to keep me coming back.”

However, she did not give details about her work in the South Korean capital.

She was recently featured in L’H.A.S Impactor’s Sights editorial series, which spotlights various “impactors” and creatives across different fields.

In an interview with the brand, she said her sense of curiosity has led her into various fields such as media, publishing and fashion.

In 2005, Au took a break from her career in entertainment to pursue undergraduate studies at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan.

She moved to Paris in 2018 and worked as an investment director in a private equity firm before quitting the job in 2022.

Au returned to the screen in Cendol (2025) playing an interior designer who comes back to Singapore and reminisces how much she, her former boyfriend and the city have changed over the years. The short film, which premiered at the 36th Singapore International Film Festival, was helmed by Chinese actor-turned-director Qi Yuwu, who is married to Singaporean actress Joanne Peh.

Of her “new beginning” in Seoul, Au wrote in her Instagram post: “There is freedom in not knowing. In making mistakes, asking stupid questions, and discovering versions of yourself you haven’t met yet.

“We have more to lose, and more pride to protect. Which is exactly why I want to keep doing it. So here I am again.

“Paris is still home. But Seoul is where I get to be a beginner again: A new language and culture.”

Au told ST that her social media post was about embracing life as a “beginner” – immersing herself in a new culture and being open to new creative opportunities.

On Sept 27, she elaborated in another Instagram post: “I’ve been thinking about why, at this stage of my life, I still want to learn a new language, work somewhere unfamiliar, and risk making a complete fool of myself.

“And actually, the reason doesn’t matter. Just do it for yourself.

“People will inspire us. A conversation can plant an idea. A song, or a Korean drama, can send us somewhere. Even an infatuation can open the door to a world we never knew we wanted to enter.

“And however we arrive there, somewhere along the way, we have to make it our own.

“That’s one of the great joys of being alive. Start again simply because there is still so much you haven’t tried.”

She added: “People may inspire a chapter. But I still get to write the book. And I intend mine to have quite a few more unforgettable stories.”

This article was originally published in The Straits Times.