Carmen Soo (Soo Wai Ming in Chinese) is a Malaysian Chinese model and actress. Carmen is 75 percent Chinese (since her father is pure Chinese) and 25 percent British (her mother is half-Chinese and half-British). She was born on 1977 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Management. Carmen can speak Malay, Cantonese, and English fluently. While in the Philippines, she also finds time to learn Tagalog to help her television acting career. Apart from being an actress and a model, she was a part owner of a boutique located in Bangsar named ‘Kushi’.
Carmen’s modeling career brought her all over Asia which she started at age 17 and moved to Hongkong at 20. But because her petite size is not fit for catwalk modelling, most of her shoots are for print and TV commercials. She is the spokesperson for Longines, an international watch brand, alongside Malaysian theatre personality Paula Malai Ali. Carmen is also the Brand Ambassador of Uniqlo Malaysia and the spokesperson of Celcom together with Singaporean singer, JJ Lin. She was also the cover model for local magazines like V Mag, New Tide GLAM, New Man, and Nu You. Some of her commercials also include Biore (TV), Diamond & Platinum (Print), Pantene (TV), and Petit Monde Philippine Clothing Line (Print).
As an actress, she proved her worth both in films and on stage. In 1999 she appeared as an extra in Gorgeous, a Jackie Chan movie alongside Shu Qi. She was also a part of Aaron Kwok’s musical special.
Carmen Soo was introduced to Filipino viewers when she starred in a soap opera Kahit Isang Saglit (in collaboration with Malaysia’s Double Vision).The said teleserye was aired in the Philippines, Malaysia, and TFC channels worldwide. It also starred Jericho Rosales, Christopher de Leon, and Cristine Reyes. Kahit Isang Saglit earned an International Emmy Award nomination.
She also worked with Christian Bautista in a 4part series of Your Song entitled Beautiful Girl. The said TV series was shot between Malaysia and the Philippines. Carmen is the only Malaysian actress to have starred in a Filipino TV program. In April 2010, she also became a part of noontime variety show, Wowowee. She co-hosted the said program alongside Kelly Misa, Jed Montero, Isabelle Abiera, RR Enriquez, Valerie Concepcion, Mariel Rodriguez and Pokwang.
Carmen Soo was one of the lead actors in The Hunter 3D, South East Asia’s first 3D film. She also did HBO Asia’s Dead Mine, a movie which tells about how the legend of Yamashita’s Gold lures a treasure hunter and his group deep into the Indonesian jungle.Carmen can also be seen in 2013 movie, Ghost Child. The movie was about a widower (Chen Han Wei) who brought home a mysterious woman (Carmen Soo) and started experiencing strange happenings in his household.
Among the movies Carmen took part in are: Gorgeous; Visits: Hungry Ghosts; Baik Punya Cilok; The 3rd Generation; Days of the Torquoise Sky; Sayang You Can Dance; Tenement 2; My Spy; Mein Herz in Malaysia; The Hunter 3D; Dead Mine; The Borneo Incident; Alagwa (Breakaway); Double; Ghost Child; and Shuffle. She also does stage plays such as The Girl From Ipoh and Rose, Rose I Love You.
She also appeared in television programs in Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines. Among them are: Ghost; Kahit Isang Saglit; Kurus; Ghost 2; Maalaala Mo Kaya: Videoke; Showtime; Wowowee; 5 Star Specials: Si Paco at ang Prinsesa; Your Song Presents: Beautiful Girl; The Pupil; Maurice Lacroix Follow Your Conviction Private Sessions; Ang Asawa Kong Japeks; The Pupil 2; The Apartment: Style Edition; OMG!; and Code of Law. Carmen was also 2006 Malaysian Film Festival’s Most Promising Actress.
