20 of the Best K-Pop Teasers
Korean artists’ best short films, trailers, and other videos outside of the typical music video format!
Check out the “Current Best Storytellers in K-Pop” list here, then read on to see which one-off projects are also worth watching!
#20: MINNIE, “[HER] Commentary Film”: A trailer with much more to read into than it first seems! Read more here!
#19: YUQI, “[YUQ1] Concept Trailer”: A bridge between the pre-release single’s sunny music video and the main track’s horror-movie-inspired one, with a swift shift from calm to creepy! Read more here!
#18: BSS, “How is your youth?”: Rousing speeches about everyone deserving to always feel youthful! Read more here!
#17: CIX, “‘Hello, Strange Place’ Story Film” series: An unflinching assessment of current youth culture and mental health.
#16: FIFTY FIFTY, “PERFECT CRIME” series: A quirky caper in which the wannabe spies’ empathy repeatedly threatens their chances!
#15: MONSTA X, “‘FANTASIA X’ Trailer” series: An intriguing reminder of some key Easter eggs and character traits. Check out this “cheat sheet” if you’re a paying subscriber!
#14: TAEYONG, “Choose T or Y : TAEYONG ‘SHALALA’ Track Film”: A playful take on the “red pill or blue pill” concept, which served as a nice hint for what was to come with the main music video without giving too much away. (“SHALALA” was also about “This or that?” questions, but in the format of cosplay!) Read more here and here, and check out this “cheat sheet” if you’re a paying subscriber!
#13: QWER, “Short Musical Movie”: A story in which viewers get immediately emotionally invested, rooting for the members’ success both in relationships and as a new band.
#12: ATEEZ, “ZERO : FEVER Part.1 ‘Diary Film’ Official Video”: A look at the internal world of each character that courts curiosity about how the “dimension [that is] split into eight pieces]” will come back together. Check out this “cheat sheet” if you’re a paying subscriber!
#11: PURPLE KISS, “Debut Trailer” series: An attention-earning glimpse at each member’s potential for both solid solo careers and an electric, made-to-last group legacy.
#10: U-KNOW, “‘NEXUS’ | Reality Show”: An action-packed, high-speed mini-movie that draws heavily from movies like The Matrix but adds very fit-for-the-2020s twists! Read more here, and check out this “cheat sheet” if you’re a paying subscriber!
#9: Moon Byul, “C.I.T.T (Cheese in the Trap)” series: Playing both a lovestruck student and tutorial host “Dr. Moon Byul,” she offers comically awful advice for wooing a crush! Read more here!
#8: SUNMI, “Who is STRANGER” series: A delightfully silly Frankenstein-inspired story that subtly offers serious takeaways regarding self-awareness and the stories people tell themselves. Read more here!
#7: KANGDANIEL, REALIEZ “Original Synopsis” video and “WASTELAND Music Sequence”: A profound reflection on redemption and purpose, supported by striking visuals. Read more here!
#6: LEECHANGSUB, “33”: A short film that follows the lifetime of a relationship, from animosity to anticlimactic casualness that neither of them would have any other way. Read more here!
#5: B.I, “TO DIE FOR” mini-series: A story with very different takeaways depending on the video-viewing order and how much the track list order is also taken into consideration. Further muddying the waters is a frequent blurring between flashbacks and present-day plots. Read more here!
#4: BamBam, Sour & Sweet highlight medley: BamBam walks listeners and viewers through the journey of the album, with a well-done weaving between 2D and 4D scenes, symbolic color changes, and other moves that speak to his artistic agility. Read more here!
#3: JxW, “Full Story of ‘THIS MAN’” and “Director’s Note”: An intriguing short film with the central tension stemming from one person valuing dreams over reality and the other vice versa. Read more here!
#2: Zior Park, “WHERE DOES SASQUATCH LIVE?”: A wholeheartedly over-the-top, color-saturated spectacle reminiscent of children’s television shows. Beneath all the bright colors and eye-popping theatrics, though, are stories in which the cosplay and plots address the most human of emotions. Read more here!
#1: DPR IAN, “OFFICIAL MITO MOVIE”: An immersive short film that expertly walks the line between showing and telling. The audience learns who “MITO” is but can still have their doubts, and they learn what details to keep their eyes on in future videos without knowing what purposes those details will serve. Read more here and here, and check out this “cheat sheet” if you’re a paying subscriber!