Private Project

MONGLY SYNDROME: K-POP ODD COUPLE

Sweet teen Maylee has two left feet and is tone deaf, but nothing stops her K-Pop dream! With support from her spritely, outta-this-worldly, MONGLY idol coach named TangTang, Maylee chases the chance to study at an elite pop idol school. Ignoring convention, TangTang trains Maylee in the art of overcoming obstacles, from stage fright to backstage rivalry. The two form an unlikely alliance whose mettle nearly breaks from all kinds of conflicts: big, small, and earth-shattering! The greatest challenge, though, might be the eventual unstringing of a mysterious puppet master; otherwise, a Maylee and MONGLY swan song seems inevitable.

  • Jin Choi
    Director
    Z-SQUAD, TUC-TAK MAN, SPACE COPS, HIGGLY TOWN HEROES, STITCH!
  • Jin Choi
    Writer
  • Jin Choi
    Producer
  • Marlene Sharp
    Producer
    SONIC BOOM, Z-SQUAD
  • ENPIX
    Animation
    MIRACULOUS: NEW YORK, TUC-TAK MAN, SPACE COPS
  • JungEun An
    Localization Management
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Music Video, Short, Television
  • Genres:
    Musical, CGI, Cartoon, Korean, K-Pop, Hallyu, Anime
  • Runtime:
    6 minutes 37 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 19, 2024
  • Country of Origin:
    North Korea
  • Country of Filming:
    North Korea
  • Language:
    Korean
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Los Angeles Shorts International Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    July 28, 2024
    North American premiere
    Official Selection
  • La Femme International Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    October 27, 2024
    Official Selection
Distribution Information
  • ENPIX
    Distributor
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Jin Choi

When Jin Choi arrived in San Francisco (from Seoul) to study animation, he had only an inkling of his career path. Over twenty years later, the esteemed Academy of Art BFA and MA Computer Art graduate and auteur has bragging rights to a global shift in the entire entertainment industry.

Consider Jin Choi to be the first splish-splash of K-Wave (also known as Hallyu). Years prior to Psy’s tuneful rap GANGNAM STYLE, Jin returned to Korea (from the Bay Area) and maintained an actual ‘toon studio in the ultra cool Gangnam district. From there, he and his Enemes Animation crew collaborated with Disney on STITCH! and HIGGLYTOWN HEROES, with Nickelodeon on BUBBLE GUPPIES, with Ralph Farquhar and Matty Rich on DA JAMMIES, with Milky Cartoon on MIDNIGHT HORROR SCHOOL, and on other TV, film, and game titles from/with multiple clients. Fun fact: One of Jin’s earliest jobs was art director and executive producer for music icon MC Hammer’s videos.

Not prone to napping, Jin has pursued a successful side hustle as content creator, director, writer, executive producer, and toy inventor. The first of these undertakings - Z-SQUAD (2008) - still streams on Amazon Prime and Tubi services, plus it remains a staple of the Nelvana/Corus Entertainment catalogue. His 100+ episode pre-school series and associated playthings (Jin invented the master toy line) TUC-TAK MAN (2018) shattered records when it completed a successful Korea run and then sold to Chinese media giant iQiYi for a seven figure sum. The series is now an iQiYi exclusive and is in production for additional full-length episodes. His next series SPACE COPS (2022) manifested multi-generational fans across Asia for two seasons thus far.

Jin continues to break boundaries with his production company ENPIX and its newest original CGI opus: MONGLY SYNDROME: K-POP ODD COUPLE. Korean broadcaster EBS has scheduled the animated, music-driven sitcom for a much-anticipated 2025 debut.

Throughout his professional life, Jin Choi has remained an entertainment industry awardee extraordinaire! His honors are from (nearly) everywhere, including the Korean government’s Star Project competition, Cartoons on the Bay, AniBoom, the Asian Television Awards, and KIDS FIRST! Film Fest.

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Director Statement

My list of favorite things is short: art, animation, and toys. The best of the best is a combination of all three! I am thankful for a career that allows me to share these passions with kids: my own children and kids at heart everywhere.