 |
| The teaser for upcoming documentary, "j-hope IN THE BOX" / Courtesy of Big Hit Music |
'j-hope IN THE BOX' documentary coming to Disney+ on Feb. 17
By Dong Sun-hwa
A host of documentaries about K-pop will be released on different over-the-top (OTT) platforms this year, giving a sneak peek into the behind-the-scenes stories of the music industry and its singers.
The U.S.-streaming platform, Disney+, is poised to unveil two documentaries revolving around K-pop juggernaut BTS ― "BTS Monuments: Beyond the Star" and "j-hope IN THE BOX." The former will feature all seven members, showing how they have grown to become one of the biggest boy groups in the world. Its release date is unknown for now. The latter will only bring to the fore member j-hope, who dropped his first solo album, "Jack in the Box" last July. It will come out on Feb. 17, presenting how the 28-year-old prepared for his solo project.
Disney+ also plans to release "NCT 127: The Lost Boys," starring high-profile boy group NCT 127. Although details are still being kept under wraps, it will share an up-close look at the members during their recent world tour. The group wrapped up its second world tour titled, "Neo City: the Link" in January, attracting some 700,000 concertgoers across the globe.
 |
| The poster for the documentary, "Super Junior: The Last Man Standing" / Courtesy of Disney+ |
Domestic streaming service, Watcha, also unveiled "Fill in the Blank," a documentary featuring four prominent K-pop stars: OH MY GIRL's Hyojung, The Boyz' Q, ATEEZ's Wooyoung and Le Sserafim's Chaewon, in January. The program sheds light on their personal stories, delving deeper into the lives of each singer.
On Jan. 26, the first episode of the "K-pop Generation" docu-series hit Tving, a local streaming platform operated by entertainment behemoth CJ ENM. It explores almost everything about the K-pop industry ranging from its definition to history, bringing in singers of all generations ― including H.O.T.'s Kangta, SHINee's Minho and IVE's Jang Won-young ― and industry insiders to discuss K-pop from diverse standpoints.
 |
| Scenes from the documentary, "K-pop Generation" / Courtesy of Tving |
In the past, K-pop documentaries like, "MMM_Where Are We Now" (2022) and "Blackpink: Light Up the Sky" (2020) ― which star girl groups MAMAMOO and BLACKPINK, respectively ― were popular options for those itching to learn more about their stars and the world they live in. They are currently available on Wavve and Netflix, respectively.
The collaboration of OTT platforms and K-pop is believed to be a win-win for both. For the former, K-pop is an effective tool to draw younger audiences and for the latter, a documentary can be used to record its history and highlight significant incidents.
"We decided to create 'K-pop Generation' to view K-pop from a cultural perspective, focusing on different phenomena and incidents linked to the music industry," Jung Hyung-jin, the producer of the documentary said during a recent media interview.
![[REVIEW] 'The ODD Of LOVE' concert: Taeyeon shows why she is among K-pop's top vocalists](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/e385d0918b054c1286a1cfaa3142439e.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] 'One Day Off' star Lee Na-young, director on creating subtle, feel-good series](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/796618f56a44402eabe81fe4530ab988.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
