ALPHA DRIVE ONE’s Sangwon Let Fans Choose His Photoshoot

ALPHA DRIVE ONE’s Sangwon is handing part of the creative process over to his fans.

Sangwon will star in the August edition of Mnet Plus’ FANS’ CHOICE FACE, following IVE’s Liz, who launched the fan-participation project in July. The program allows fans to vote on photoshoot concepts and contribute ideas that are incorporated into the shooting cue sheet.

For Sangwon’s edition, however, the process became especially competitive. The voting between his proposed concepts was reportedly so close that the production ultimately decided to make use of both ideas. And judging from the preview, Sangwon himself was more than happy to make the shoot even more ambitious.

Fans effectively became Sangwon’s editors

The basic idea behind FANS’ CHOICE FACE is simple: instead of showing fans a completed magazine shoot, Mnet Plus lets them influence it before the cameras start rolling.

For Sangwon’s edition, ALLYZ were asked to vote among concepts personally selected by him and fill out parts of the shooting plan. Mnet Plus promoted the event by telling fans they could become Sangwon’s “pictorial director.”

That makes the final images the result of three different creative forces: the production team, Sangwon and his fandom. The August teaser summarizes the idea neatly: “The concept you chose comes to life.”

Sangwon had plenty of ideas of his own

The preview also shows that Sangwon was not interested in simply standing in front of the camera and following instructions.

When discussion turned to the competing concepts, he suggested using both. He also proposed shooting beyond the chroma-key setup and experimented with ideas such as light entering through a window.

The result appears to be closer to a collaborative editorial session than a traditional idol photoshoot.

That fits Sangwon particularly well. His ALPHA DRIVE ONE members have previously singled him out for his fashion sense, with Junseo saying he often asks Sangwon for fashion advice.

His visuals have already become a major part of his popularity

Sangwon has also built a strong reputation among fans for his visuals.

Earlier this year, he ranked first in UPICK’s “Best Position Match – Visual” vote after competing against other male idols, earning him a promotional billboard at Times Square in Seoul.

That makes a fan-designed editorial project a natural next step. Rather than simply asking whether Sangwon photographs well, FANS’ CHOICE FACE asks something more interesting:

What version of Sangwon do his own fans most want to see?

IVE’s Liz started the project

Sangwon is only the second idol to participate in the format.

IVE’s Liz became the first FANS’ CHOICE FACE star in July, completing a shoot based on a concept selected through fan voting. Her episode ranged from natural styling to more mysterious visuals, demonstrating how much the fan-selected concept could influence the final result.

Sangwon now takes over for August, while LE SSERAFIM’s Kim Chaewon is set to follow as the September featured artist.

The format could become particularly appealing to K-pop fandoms because it turns something fans normally only consume an idol photoshoot into something they can help build.

Sangwon’s FANS’ CHOICE FACE content begins releasing on August 24 at 5 p.m. KST, with additional content following on August 25 through Mnet Plus.

The episode will also air on Mnet on August 27 at 7:50 p.m. KST.