Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born

낙안읍성 전라남도 순천시 낙안면 충민길 30

Nagan Eupseong in Nagan-myeon, Suncheon, South Jeolla Province. A folk village where a Joseon-era fortress wall and thatched houses survive in their original form, it stood in for the 1950s Mokpo streets of Jeong-nyeon's hometown and the family scenes of her childhood. Walking along the earthen stone walls, you feel the roots and traditional spirit of the girl who dreamed of becoming a singer. Its scenery shifts with the seasons, and from atop the wall the whole village opens up at a glance.

가천다랭이마을 경상남도 남해군 남면 홍현리

Gacheon Darangi Village in Hyeonhyeon-ri, Nam-myeon, Namhae, South Gyeongsang Province. A scenic spot where more than a hundred terraced rice paddies climb in tiers toward the sea, it hosted the scene where Jeong-nyeon hones her craft, learning song and dance from her senior Mun Ok-gyeong. The layering of the Namhae sea and the stepped paddies offers a lyricism quite unlike the gukgeuk stage. The village lanes are steep, so wear comfortable shoes; the site is loveliest when the spring rapeseed blooms and the autumn rice turns golden.

상족암군립공원 경상남도 고성군 하이면 덕명리

Sangjokam Provincial Park in Deokmyeong-ri, Ha-i-myeon, Goseong, South Gyeongsang Province. A southern-coast landmark where dinosaur footprint fossils and layered tidal rocks meet the waves, it hosted the scene where Jeong-nyeon's mother, Seo Yong-rye, once a celebrated singer under the name Chae Gong-seon, sings a passage of Chuwolmanjung by the shore at dawn. The regret of a woman who hid her identity and gave up her art lingers deeply, carried on the sound of the waves. Check the tide table and go at low tide to walk the rock shelf in full.

선교장 강원특별자치도 강릉시 운정길 63

Seongyojang in Unjeong-dong, Gangneung, Gangwon State. A national folk cultural property where the residence of a late-Joseon noble family has been preserved for more than three hundred years, it appears in the drama as a hanok setting steeped in the mood of the 1950s. The dignity of the old house, with its Hwallaejeong pavilion pond, pine grove and broad wooden-floored halls, overlaps naturally with the refinement of a distinguished gukgeuk house. Take your time across the wide grounds, perhaps adding a hanbok rental or a traditional experience.

순천드라마촬영장 전라남도 순천시 비례골길 24

Suncheon Drama Filming Set stands in for the Mokpo theatre district that Jeong-nyeon visits after Mun Ok-gyeong hands her an invitation to 'Jamyeonggo'. Korea's largest open set recreates a provincial town and a hillside quarter spanning the 1950s to the 1980s, so the shopfronts with their old signage and the narrow alley stairways remain just as the period scenes left them. The grounds climb and drop across a slope, so comfortable shoes help, and from the upper lanes of the hillside quarter the whole set falls into a single frame.

청산도 전라남도 완도군 청산면

Cheongsando Island plays Jeong-nyeon's home village, the Mokpo house of the story. Her house on a slope where the sea meets the hills, and the path she runs across the fields to meet Mun Ok-gyeong, the prince of the Maeran troupe, were filmed on this island. It is reached only by ferry from Wando port, and the island has long been known for the stone-walled lanes of the film 'Seopyeonje', so both works can be traced on one visit.

낭도 천선대 전라남도 여수시 화정면 낭도리 499-24

Cheonseondae on Nangdo Island in Yeosu is the shore where Jeong-nyeon dives in after the record of 'Chuwolmanjeong' is thrown into the sea. The scenes of her diving for shellfish after leaving the troupe with a ruined voice, and of Heo Yeong-seo coming to bring her back, were shot on the same rock shelf. You park at the Nangdo Dulle-gil trail lot and walk in, and the rocks are reachable only at low tide, so check the tide table before setting out.

호랑가시나무언덕 게스트하우스 광주광역시 남구 제중로47번길 20

Horanggasinamu Hill Guesthouse in Gwangju's Yangnim-dong appears as the home of Patricia, the teacher Jeong-nyeon turns to after she is cast out of the Maeran troupe over a misunderstanding and sets out to become a singer. It is a red-brick house of about eighty years, built as a missionary residence and still holding its original form. The house sits inside the Yangnim-dong modern history and culture village, so the neighbouring missionary houses and old lanes can be walked in the same loop, and because the building still operates as lodging, visitors take it in mainly from the garden and the exterior.

경남도민의집 경상남도 창원시 성산구 외동반림로248번길 36

Gyeongnam Provincial Residents' House in Changwon appears as the home of Heo Yeong-seo's mother. Used as the residence of the South Gyeongsang governor from 1984, it was opened to the public in September 2022 as a cultural complex, and its tended garden and broad lawns supply the air of a wealthy family's mansion. It borders a residential quarter of central Changwon, so access is easy, and the main house and garden can be walked slowly while matching them against the drama's scenes.

함양 일두고택 경상남도 함양군 지곡면 개평길 50-13

Ildu Historic House in Gaepyeong Hanok Village, Hamyang, appears as the home of Seo Hye-rang, known in the story as Ae-sin. It is the principal old house among some sixty traditional hanok remaining in a village with five centuries of history, the head house of the Joseon scholar Jeong Yeo-chang, whose pen name was Ildu, and it is designated a national folk cultural property. Rather than seeing the one house alone, walk the village lanes lined with earthen walls, where the period texture the drama borrowed comes through more clearly.

합천영상테마파크 경상남도 합천군 용주면 합천호수로 757

Hapcheon Image Theme Park is where the 'Pastel' tearoom, which Jeong-nyeon staffs in place of her friend Ju-ran, and the 1950s street scenes were filmed. Korea's largest open set for period work recreates urban scenery from the 1920s through the 1980s, with an old downtown avenue and rows of shop signs running end to end. It sits by the edge of Hapcheon Lake and is easier to reach by car than by public transport, and since the set is large it helps to take the tearoom alleys and the main avenue as separate loops.