G.C.F in Budapest

Y'all, we haven't had a Golden Closet Film in four years. You don't know how excited I was when they played this as the intermission at his showcase today. (And they uploaded it so damn fast, literally an hour after the concert ended!) That having been said, I now have so many questions. Why is there a giant rainbow-coloured Hello Kitty doll on his couch? Why does he have two motorcycle helmets? Does he always travel with full-size toiletries and throw them all out after his trip or does he bring them back home? What are they eating at 4:43? 

And also, if you told me two years ago that this man would be strutting around topless all the time, I would never have believed you because BigHit was always very careful about censoring BTS' naked body parts. Well, Jungkook is clearly making up for all those years now. He really said, FREE THE NIPPLE. (And also filmed a gratuitous shower scene, which I really appreciated, thank you, JK.)

G.C.F in Helsinki

Jungkook just posted his 7th short film, literally less than an hour after finishing up at the KBS Song Festival. It's his first Golden Closet Film of 2019, just over a year after he posted his last one. As expected, it's an incredibly aesthetically pleasing video featuring extremely aesthetically pleasing men in a very aesthetically pleasing city. Not that BTS' 2020 Winter Package needed any more marketing, but if that's what it takes to get Jungkook to create videos again, I'm all for it. (I mean, I already pre-ordered it yesterday. Didn't even need to see previews. Doesn't BigHit know that ARMYs will follow BTS blindly?) I just love seeing how Kookie sees the world, somehow finding the beauty and humour in both happiness and melancholy at the same time. Absolutely love the Talos song that he featured in it, too. But most of all, I love how Kookie had to fully pause the video to apologize for Jimin, Hobi, and Jin play fighting instead of posing like models. Kookie knows that no matter how good they look in photos and videos and whatever else they release, this is the Bangtan we know and love. 💜

G.C.F 3J @ 2018 MMA Practice

A lovely surprise from Kookie this early morning! I thought we'd maybe get a Bangtan Bomb for the behind the scenes of the (beautiful, striking, remarkable) intro to "IDOL" at the Melon Music Awards, but Kookie made an entire G.C.F for it, showing not just the hard work behind the danceline's opening act at the MMA, but also Alex Lustig's incredibly fitting song "No Pressure," and some cool new editing techniques.

G.C.F in Tokyo

Happy one year anniversary to G.C.F in Tokyo, the video that launched Kookie's film projects and remains my favourite to this day.

G.C.F in Newark (VHS Ver.)

Jungkook dropped a new Golden Closet Film last week, something totally different from his previous works. Kookie had mentioned in his V Live last month that he didn't bring any filming gear with him on tour, so I wasn't expecting any G.C.F projects at all for at least the next few months, but I think this might have been the result of missing working on a film project. This particular one is actually filmed like a vlog, probably using his phone or a point-and-shoot camera, and edited in a '90s VHS film style, capturing a day in the life of Jungkook when BTS is on tour. In that aforementioned V Live, Jungkook pondered aloud how ARMYs' days went, what we did on a day-to-day basis, and it seems like he was inspired by that train of thought. I don't think we've ever seen this kind of point of view from any member of BTS before, and it's interesting to see that their jobs are still jobs and they still have to treat them as such. They're not 9-to-5 or Monday to Friday, and obviously there's that whole fame factor, but they go through long days and hard work just like the rest of us. This video shows the contrast between the glitz and glam of their public persona and the normalcy and mundane routines of their private lives and how they intertwine with each other. I think Jungkook is just trying to show their fans that, despite their celebrity, they are normal people, too, maybe almost painfully so.

Also, while the title is "G.C.F in Newark," there are actually scenes from Hamilton as well (one for sure is at 6:15; the tablecloth in the back has the logo of Core Entertainment, which is the entertainment powerhouse that handled all of BTS' shows in Hamilton last month — they even responded to their little appearance in G.C.F here), so it likely features footage from all their days in Hamilton and Newark. Either way, clips from both dates of the BTS concerts I went to (September 23 in Hamilton and September 29 in Newark) are featured here, so watching this makes me feel nostalgic. And it's only been a week.

G.C.F in Saipan

Jungkook has spoiled us yet again with the release of his latest Golden Closet Film today — the second one this month. This being a G.C.F, we already know that it's a beautifully shot, beautifully edited, aesthetic piece — I've talked about my appreciation for JK's filmmaking here — but what's interesting here is the song choice, and thus, the story that JK is trying to tell. With his preview of this G.C.F almost a month ago, we knew that he was going to be using John.K's "Best of Me" (an excellent song with a beautiful sentiment), but what's interesting is the context now that we are given the whole video. The song made more sense in the preview, as it was only focused on Jimin. But G.C.F in Saipan actually features all the members of BTS, making the song choice a little odd. And as we know, JK is very careful when picking out the music for his videos, being particular about the flow, lyrics, and meaning of a song, making the outcome of this film even stranger.

For all intents and purposes, John.K's "Best of Me" is a love song, about two people who drifted apart and came back together, succumbing to their feelings for each other. The lyrics of the bridge are literally, "I don't wanna lie no more / I don't wanna hide no more / What I found in you is so real / I don't wanna hide no more / I don't wanna lie no more / Now that I found you." However, this bridge always coincides with scenes of Jimin. Jimin is also the only member that has close up shots in this film, one of which features the most happy, most genuine smile I have ever seen in the history of all BTS content. Technically, JK features all six members in this film, but it's clear that Jimin is the main model here. In total, Jimin takes up about 1/3 of the entire film length. It's almost as if JK was going in one direction, just driven by his passion and his muse, and then changed course at the last minute (the "2018 Summer Package" text at the end drives the point home that this G.C.F is partially promotional), making the final narrative somewhat messy and non-sensical. So all I can really conclude from G.C.F in Saipan is: Jeon Jungkook's technical skills in filming, editing, and colour grading have improved vastly. And he is also totally in love with Park Jimin.

G.C.F in USA

Jungkook has blessed us today with another beautifully shot, beautifully edited G.C.F. However, G.C.F in Tokyo and G.C.F in Osaka seem more intentional, created with a specific artistic vision and narrative in mind, and a clear, true message that JK wanted to share with the world; this latest Golden Closet Film seems to serve the audience more than the creator. G.C.F. in USA marks the first time that all of BTS has appeared together in Jungkook's side project; you can see the love and comfort between all the members —  and that in itself is a beautiful thing — but there is a lack of passion and storytelling here as compared to the other two films, which are far more personal. I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with this, but it does seem that JK was filming these scenes for the sake of filming; it's a little more reserved and restricted, and serves as more of a nostalgic behind-the-scenes video for BTS.

G.C.F in USA is filled with these fleeting moments of happiness, but the lyrics of the song are contradicting the visuals, which alludes to some sort of depression or anxiety that JK isn't ready to reveal. Judging from the song choice and lyrics ("When We Were Young" by Lost Kings), it seems that JK is at odds with his own feelings. He's so amazed at what he and his members have achieved as a group, having broken all these records in such a short amount of time, and feels so lucky and fortunate that sometimes his life doesn't feel real; but with all these accomplishments comes a huge, crushing burden and a crippling fear of failure, and he just wants to stop time and go back to simpler days when they weren't as successful but were far less worried. Without this specific song, however, it would just be a well-edited BTS travelogue, which makes me think that he prepared this for their fans more than for himself. (Although this proves that JK uses an incredible amount of thought when choosing the song for his films, especially ones that aren't in his native tongue.)

Each G.C.F has its own merits, of course, and while Tokyo is still my favourite, I do appreciate that each short film has its own theme and emotional attachment. I love that Jungkook can so beautifully capture his youth and the dynamics between him (the director) and his main subjects (one or more of his hyungs/members). One thing that you can always count on these videos for is an artistic eye for filming, muted colour filters that create a wistful mood, sharp and seamless editing skills, and an incredibly apt song choice. If Jungkook ever decides to give up on music, he could very well become an accomplished film director. I just hope he doesn't give up his passion for storytelling.

G.C.F in Osaka

This was released yesterday and I've already watched it like, 12 times. Love the song (Loote's "Your Side of the Bed") but it's an interesting choice for this video that features both Jimin and Tae. Jungkook's first G.C.F in Tokyo with Jimin was definitely more intimate. It's not really a travelogue, it's more like a love letter in video form. Using Troye Sivan's "There For You" was a very intentional and blatant choice for the narrative in G.C.F in Tokyo. Whether Jungkook intended on his G.C.Fs to convey his own emotions/thoughts/feelings or if they're just being used to tell a story, using "Your Side of the Bed" changes the original narrative either way from G.C.F in Tokyo. It might have been used to direct the storyline of the G.C.F series ("Since you left, it's one, two, three / Now he's coming in close to me / I can't sleep, 'cause he's where you're supposed to be" — this song is about a breakup; the ex has now been replaced with a new person, but there's regret and longing in it) or we're all just looking too deeply into this and Jungkook just really likes this song and it fit with the mood of the scenes. We will never know.