SELECTED WORK · 2026
Who is watching,
and why?
I'm Soobin. I create stories and visual identities, and I'm curious about what makes people connect.
Explore my work ↓Public Relations and Advertising · USC Annenberg applicant
01 / CONTENT & AUDIENCE
A question behind
the view count.
My friend and I thought we were onto something when one TikTok reached 300,000 views. Another reached 10,000. The choreography and outfits were similar, so I wanted to understand who was watching, and why.
As brands including Lewkin discovered us and offered partnerships, that curiosity grew. I wanted to look beyond how a clip appeared and learn how audiences actually responded.
Individual-post views reported in my statement. These are reach observations, not a controlled comparison or engagement rate.
SCHOOL PUBLICITY / EDITING
Make the audience
part of the story.
As an editor in my school publicity club, I experimented with humor, quick cuts and questions like “What's your favorite pregame music?” My first Instagram Reel reached 30,000 views.
When later videos underperformed, I began noting how format and content changed audience response.
30K views: self-reported in my supplied statement.
“What's your favorite
pregame music?”A small question can reveal the person behind the performance.
02 / BRAND STORYTELLING
PINK BUG.
Room to be yourself.
Growing up with Korean and American cultural influences made me curious about how one symbol can hold different meanings. I began with a ladybug and the idea of luck.
For me, luck is the possibility of becoming the person I want to be. I paired the tenderness I associate with pink with a creature some people instinctively avoid.
Why do we welcome some appearances and judge others so quickly?
AUDIENCE
Gen Z peers exploring identity and belonging; community visitors encountering the products.
MESSAGE
You deserve respect as you are, and room to grow into who you want to become.
VISUAL LANGUAGE
Pink, dots, antennae and translucent layers: shared elements with different expressions.
FROM SYMBOL TO EVERYDAY OBJECT
Carry a little luck.
I explored how PINK BUG could move from a drawing into a recognizable visual identity and product surface. Dots can repeat while the feelings behind them remain different.
Yayoi Kusama's dots and repetition informed my exploration. My focus is on difference within repetition, expressed through identity and emotion.
Artistic influence; no collaboration or endorsement is implied.
BRAND IN THE COMMUNITY
From a screen
to a conversation.
I brought the brand into direct selling at the Naegok-dong Community Center event. Products and the display created a starting point for explaining the story face to face.
The brand website, pinkbug.kr ↗, gives the story and products an online home.
Product planning and business records
The project ledger tracks unit costs, selling prices, inventory and sales entries. Its saved preview currently records zero sales quantity and zero actual revenue. Expected revenue and expected profit are planning figures, not achieved sales. The event participation and direct-selling activity are documented separately.
03 / PERSONAL FILM & PERSPECTIVE
Love, in action.
A portrait of family, care and participation in 60 seconds.
WHAT MY EXPERIENCE TAUGHT ME
My dad's disability did not change the love and support he gave me. What challenged me was how other people sometimes interpreted our family through pity.
In a conversation with a friend, I reacted defensively to what I heard as an assumption about our lives. As we kept talking, I recognized that I had made assumptions about her intentions, too.
I want to influence perspectives by listening as carefully as I speak, one conversation at a time.
60-second film supplied as a finished asset. Production roles are described in the project credits below.
ABOUT / ACADEMIC DIRECTION
I want to create.
I want to understand.
I want to listen.
Through RISD summer study, school publicity and PINK BUG, I began connecting visual storytelling with audience response.
I want to study Public Relations and Advertising to connect audience research, strategic writing and campaign planning. I want to understand how people decide what to watch, what to remember and whom to trust.
Read my full portfolio ↗Project credits & sources
Original character drawings and the personal brand concept: Soobin Shin. TikTok content: co-created with a friend. School publicity: editing and format exploration, as described in my statement. Website development and product-production support are not claimed as solo work.
English adaptation, portfolio writing, layout and document preparation used AI/editorial assistance. The 60-second personal film was supplied as a finished asset; its production roles have not been independently established. Visual materials include original drawings and pattern graphics, with actual-event stills extracted from Pink_Bug_Event.mp4. View counts are self-reported in my statement. No unsupported sales totals or audience-effectiveness claims are included.