It would be a stretch to say that digital content creator Alan Chikin Chow is bigger than Elvis Presley.
Then again, according to the King’s memorable album title from 1959, 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can’t Be Wrong.
But Chow has more than 57 million subscribers on YouTube alone and more than 75 million across all platforms, logging a cumulative average of 2 billion — that’s billion, with a B — views every month.
When we first spoke with Chow two years ago, during his first trip to VidCon in Anaheim, he was already a formidable presence in the online space, fueled largely by TikTok videos spotlighting his sweet, silly, occasionally subversive persona. Since then, he has earned the distinction of becoming the world’s most watched creator of YouTube Shorts — the platform’s addictive videos with a running of time of less than one minute.
But he has built an even larger following through his first long-form series, Alan’s Universe, a candy-colored, high school-set mash-up of teen flicks, rom-coms, horror thrillers, pop musicals and every other youth genre of note. Although Chow is the centerpiece, he is joined by a winning stock company of costars, including Haven Everly, Chelsea Sik, Michelle Park and Michael Bow, who have also become celebrities thanks to the enormous popularity of Chow’s videos.
What distinguishes Chow’s work from that of many other online creators is its combination of a clear creative vision and elevated production values — perhaps most vividly the meticulous attention to detail in the wardrobe, production design, hairstyling, makeup and other crafts. He says they shoot Alan’s Universe with a 25-person crew, and it shows.
His team’s punctiliousness has become even more essential due to the increase of YouTube viewing on televisions. The big screen is less forgiving than the comparatively tiny screens of mobile phones and tablets, so Chow, like his friend and fellow creator Kinigra Deon — who was also a panelist at VidCon this year — has upped his game to ensure that his videos look and sound as good as possible on TV. Toward that end, he recently leased a 10,000-square-foot space in Burbank as a home base for his production.
When we spoke with Chow in late June, he was as upbeat — and ambitious — as ever. In addition to expanding his already prodigious video output now that he’ll have his own studio, he was intrigued by the possibility of partnering with a retail brand on clothing inspired by Alan’s Universe and even contemplating a foray into music after audiences went wild when he and his castmates performed original songs on the VidCon stage.
Television Academy: I first spoke with you two years ago, at your first VidCon. It feels like you've come a long way in a short span of time since then.
Alan Chikin Chow: Oh, my gosh, it’s been amazing. Since then, I've become the number-one YouTube Shorts creator in the world. I now have over 75 million followers across platforms, about 2 billion views per month, and started a long-form drama series on my channel called Alan's Universe. And I just signed a lease on a 10,000-square-foot space in Burbank, right next to Nickelodeon Animation Studios, that we're going to use as our studio warehouse for filming. It feels like being a new generation of creator — a creator studio, really.
Your comedy shorts have been huge for a long time. Making a long-form drama feels like a significant step.
We've been doing it for a year now. It's so much fun, and it really feels like we're doing film and TV stories on YouTube. Our series is getting 10 to 30 million views per episode, which, if you think about it from Nielsen TV standards, is insane. And they're 20-minute episodes, just like normal TV. It's shot with a 25-person crew. So, it really does feel like: What’s the difference between what we're making and television?
I saw you on a panel today, and one of the takeaways was what you said a moment ago: It doesn’t feel like there are boundaries anymore. Where do you go from here?
I think the next step is the studio — we just signed the lease this week. We’re going to be building sets, building out all our film production crews to use the studio space effectively. And we have a couple of other high-level goals. We want to partner with a high fashion brand for our school uniforms. We have amazing custom-made school uniforms. We do it literally for just the aesthetics of the show. But why not partner with Abercrombie and Fitch, or even Target, to make a licensed line? Also, we performed some original songs yesterday here at VidCon, and it was amazing. The crowd was insane. So now, I'm like, “Should we do touring?”
YouTube is known for working closely with prominent creators. What has that experience been like for you?
YouTube has been an incredible partner to help build connections with brands. For example, last week, I was at the Cannes Lions Festival to speak on behalf of the platform at panels. And they set us up with meetings with all different types of brands like L'Oréal, Urban Decay, Procter & Gamble. So, YouTube has been an amazing resource. We're talking right now because of YouTube.
Something that I've been hearing a lot about while I've been here is the increase of YouTube viewing on televisions rather than on phones and iPads and browsers. That has been a big difference-maker for content.
Yeah, I just spoke with Kinigra Deon about this. I’ve always viewed my drama series as making a TV show on YouTube. And it's really cool to see that reflected in the viewership.
On the panel this afternoon, it was interesting to hear you and the other creators talking about tailoring production values to the content you’re making at the time. For instance, you may not want a short to feel too polished and professional compared to your series, which has high production values. You're very technically sophisticated. It was a different perspective from most people’s perception of a YouTuber.
I think the details about the types of cameras we use, the types of lighting we use, really just goes to show that creators are very, very intentional about being authentic. For example, Adam Rose, who was on the panel, makes content that’s supposed to feel like it was just captured randomly, and he's reacting to some user-generated content on the platform.
Whereas my drama series is supposed to look like Netflix. It's supposed to look like the Disney Channel for the next generation. So, for that, we do use a 25-person crew. We light every shot. We treat it like a TV series. I think there's a very clear distinction.
It might seem like some creators are making content that's lo-fi, for example, as J.T. Casey was saying on the panel. But if someone is a successful creator, I can guarantee you that they are doing it for a reason. If it's just a one-off video, I don't know. But if they have over 10 million followers, they know what they're doing.
When we spoke before, you had a disciplined approach to your patterns for posting content and keeping a schedule. What’s your model now as you've gotten bigger?
I still post once a day for short-form videos. And then we post one episode of the long-form drama every two weeks. We stick to that schedule, but I want to increase it.
Do you have a line producer or somebody who's keeping track of everything necessary to get things done?
Yeah. I have a line producer, and our content is scheduled out by about a month and a half to two months. The long-form episodes take about a month and a half from writing to shooting to editing to posting.
As I'm speaking to you now, we’ve shot three new episodes of the long-form series. And I would say about 80 shorts, which is crazy. But that's how far out we’ve shot.
Your shorts are huge, but I'm particularly interested in the expansion of your series and how things progress with long-form.
Yeah, I think it's ironic. Because I'm the number-one shorts creator, people are always prone to go watch the shorts. But it's actually the long-form that's changing the game.
You're still a young guy with a lot of room to grow and develop. Where do you want to go in the future?
My vision is to create a multifaceted media company with successful arms in multiple industries: digital, film, television, licensing, podcasting.
So, in a perfect world, Alan's Universe occupies many different universes. And we are omnipresent. Because as we spoke about in our panel, YouTube creators have the ability to be more present across multiple forms of media. We're really drivers of culture.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
