Winter: Hello! I'm Winter, the Lead PD of the Tappytoon Studio (tt studio) Webtoon PD Team. I'll be representing the team to introduce us today. Nice to meet you!
Our Webtoon PD team works within the studio team that makes Tappytoon Original series, and we're a department of production PDs who are in charge of each title.
Q1. Could you introduce the tt studio Webtoon PD Team? Our team is made up of five PDs: Taylor, Carly, Emma, Lua, and myself! I'm the Lead PD, but everyone takes full ownership and leads their assigned series with such great responsibility. In that sense, you could say we're an all-star team gathered with the representatives of Tappytoon Original series!
Q2. For those who might not know, what exactly does a Webtoon PD do? A Webtoon PD is responsible for the very beginning to the very end of creating a webtoon! We do everything from discovering and planning IPs (Intellectual Properties) to be made into webtoons, to scouting artists, editing manuscripts, and carefully managing hiatus schedules. We also constantly check data like series revenue, distribution strategies, and market trends. Basically, we participate in every single step except for the actual drawing process. In a nutshell, we pave the entire road from a series' birth to the moment it meets the readers!
Q3. What is tt studio's production philosophy and the PD's role? Instead of just chasing short-term trends, tt studio focuses on making series that global readers can also go crazy for. To make a series loved in the global market, a PD's planning skills and market understanding are super important. So, we try our best to read the flow of not just the webtoon market, but all content like movies, dramas, variety shows, and social media so we don't miss any trends. Maximizing the creator's creativity through planning based on this thorough analysis and catering to global tastes is our goal and our pride as Webtoon PDs!
Q4. I'm curious about the team's collaboration culture and production process! We have a weekly meeting every Tuesday! We share our work plans and any issues, brainstorming better solutions together. We especially hold a 'production meeting' every week to share our thoughts on each other's proposals or manuscripts. Since episodes 1 to 3 are the core chapters that determine reader inflow, we become 'one team' and actively exchange feedback. Through this process, we prevent a series from getting stuck in just one PD's personal taste, and we feel our teamwork getting even stronger as we rely on each other.
Q5. How are the series assigned to each PD? Currently, each PD handles around 5 series. The number gets adjusted depending on completions or new project timelines, but we try to keep it within a reasonable range to maintain quality. When assigning a series, we comprehensively consider the PD's willingness, capabilities, and resources. Especially for new projects, since we each lead from the IP discovery and planning stages, there's a culture of 'winning' the series you want and feel confident about! This passion and proactiveness directly lead to the series' quality.
Q6. What do you think is the core competency of a Webtoon PD? The most important thing is definitely "the curiosity and ambition to make the most fun thing in the world." Understanding trends and communication skills are essential, but the root of all those skills ultimately comes from the passion of "I want to make something fun!" I believe that only when the PD feels it's fun can a series be born that both the creator and the readers can truly enjoy.
Q7. What is your most memorable Tappytoon series?
Taylor: I love them all, but the most memorable one is <All for My Dearest Juliet>. It's memorable because both the studio production team artists and the freelance artists worked so hard together on it. Please give lots of love and attention to the upcoming Season 3! :)
Carly: All series are precious and memorable, but <Black Chains>, the first series I launched after joining Tappytoon, is probably the most memorable for me :> The art and story have so many attractive points, but it's also because it was my very first RoFan (Romance Fantasy) project...! We went through a lot of trial and error, and both the artist and I grew a lot through it, so I'm so attached to it that it sometimes even appears in my dreams. The finale is coming up soon, so please show it lots of love and interest until the end!
Q8. Any memorable feedback you've received from global readers?
Taylor: <To My Husband's Mistress> is already in its 3rd season! When I see the heartfelt reviews full of rich emotional expressions from our global readers, it feels even fresher and more touching than reviews in my mother tongue. The feedback showing love and support for the female lead is the most memorable for me.
Carly: It's <Bullet Time>, which showed probably the hottest reaction on social media among all Tappytoon series! Knowing that the global readers felt the exact same emotions I did when I first planned the series—like the alluring beauty of Felix's character...(lol) and the slightly bold and unique world-building—made me so incredibly proud. I hope readers will continue to support the two characters, Seven and Felix, through all the events they'll overcome together until the very end!
Q9. What kind of series do you want to make at Tappytoon in the future?
Emma: I joined last year because I was drawn to the direction of female-oriented fantasy that Tappytoon pursues. My goal is to harmoniously weave my personal tastes with popular commercial keywords. Specifically, I'd love to make a mythology-based romance fantasy, a growth-oriented female lead narrative, and an "enemies-to-lovers" romance with deep emotional lines if I get the chance!
Lua: My coworkers often tell me, "Lua has a very mainstream sense!" and I want to use this strength to create a massive hit that readers can deeply immerse themselves in. From classic romance to highly stimulating romance, and even romance dramas with Korean elements like <K-Pop Demon Hunters>, I want to provide a wide range of joy to Tappytoon readers!
[Bonus stage] The Webtoon PD Team's 'Webtoons of a Lifetime'!
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Winter: I always say <No Home> is my life's webtoon! I think it's a highly perfected masterpiece because it contains the most ethical and beautiful story while also completely nailing the commercial fun points. I always bawl my eyes out whenever I read it, so I can only read it at home... Among Tappytoon series, <How To Reject My Obsessive Ex-Husband> is my favorite! And the upcoming <50 Ways to Break Off My Engagement With the Psychopathic Mastermind> launching soon from tt studio is also definitely going to be a favorite of mine. (^^)
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Taylor: I highly recommend <The Mistress Runs Away>! Rather than flashy settings or provocative developments, the biggest charm of this series is how it pushes the cracks in the main characters' relationship and the weight of their choices all the way to the end. I highly recommend it not only to romance lovers but also to anyone looking for a deep, character-driven story.
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Carly: I often think of <Cheese in the Trap>, the pioneer and representative work of thriller romance, as my life's work! Because of this mega-hit series, I also got the desire to try my hand at the thriller romance genre someday! I also really love the action fantasy series <The Ember Knight> on Tappytoon.
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Emma: I really loved <The Setting Sun, the Dazzling Eyes>. I really love stories that have a commercial direction but also feature various characters clashing and breaking with different goals within a massive world. I also really enjoyed <Denma>, <Jeongnyeon>, <Identical Daughter>, and <The Moon that Rises in the Day>. I hope you also enjoy tt studio's brand new series <Saved by the Powerless Little Lady> that launched on February 7th lol (shameless plug)!
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Lua: My favorites are <Olgami (Trapped)> and <Strange and Beautiful>. They are works that add thriller and fantasy genres, respectively, to my favorite genre, romance. Among our tt studio works, I enjoyed <To My Husband's Mistress> the most!