A style of video editing that some have likened to a form of visual poetry is appearing more frequently on some «For You» pages on TikTok. The style, intended to evoke strong, often unnamed feelings in viewers, has been dubbed «CoreCore».
The «CoreCore» TikToks juxtapose images and videos from various media, such as memes, headlines, movie and TV clips, and set them with emotional and moving musical scores. Videos, which sometimes focus on one topic, can be used as an art form of displaying social commentary. urban dictionary describes “CoreCore” as “A kind of deconstructed art. Basically invoking emotions from a series of (visual) clips in which you develop your own meaning. Corecore content is introspective.”
For example, a popular «CoreCore» video which aims to depict the female experience juxtaposes various TikToks clips of girls and women describing their flaws with a clip of actress Margot Robbie’s crying face from the film “I, Tonya”. Later in the video, clips of men criticizing women appear, followed by headlines about women. All of this is set to the quiet piano song “Wyomingby Elias Fox.
The term «CoreCore» appeared on Tumblr in 2020. On TikTok, its use as a hashtag dates back to July 2022. But the video phenomenon seems to have grown in recent weeks: As of Friday, the hashtag «#CoreCore» it had over 322.6 million views.
Still, the creator of the trend is unknown.
Some on TikTok point to a video collage from user @masonoelle from January 2021 as the first prominent example of the form on the platform. It features images of melting Arctic sea ice over the course of 35 years, influencer Charli D’Amelio, the horror film «American Psycho» and people shopping. The caption does not include the hashtag «CoreCore».
But many credit content creator John Rising, who goes by @high queries on the platform, as the father of “CoreCore”. Rising, 40, who began experimenting with the art style in May 2021, said he wanted to take his viewers «on a short journey using only scenes from current and vintage media, film, television, and the world of entertainment.» ‘art'».
Rising does not consider himself an artist, nor even the creator of this type of video art; he credits Korean-American mixed-media artist Nam June Paik for that. However, he said that he loves to help expose others, especially young adults, to new art forms on TikTok.
«If I can take images, sound and music and show it to you, the viewer, with a theme or message that you feel after watching it, then I feel like I’ve accomplished something,» Rising said in an email to NBC News. . “And I genuinely find a joy in the creative process of making them…it seems to have become somewhat cathartic for me and also now with viewers. So that’s wonderful.»
Some of those who have made «CoreCore» videos say they believe the term itself reflects how «meta» the internet has become.
«I think this is a natural progression of generations growing up through different stages of the internet and getting more and more meta about it over time,» TikTok creator Rob Dezendorf, 29, said of the style of edition.
The name «CoreCore» is also a play on how many online niches describe themselves as something: «core». For example, someone who loves Disney might be described as «DisneyCore,» or someone who is obsessed with ceramic frogs might be described as «FrogCore.» So «CoreCore», kind of a cyclical term, is, in a way, a joke. There are also other editing styles that take a «core» suffix on TikTok.
Ashling Sugrue, TikTok content creator, said the popularity of «CoreCore» videos also shows how people’s editing styles have matured. The editing culture on TikTok has continued to thrive as content creators increasingly post edits on their favorite celebrities, TV shows, influencers, bands, and more. «CoreCore» video edits seem to be a perfect niche style alongside these other edit videos.
The platform is «starting to establish itself, so people are putting more effort into their videos,» Sugrue said, jokingly adding, «Not me though.»
Sugrue said that what she likes about the «CoreCore» videos is that they are meditative and slower than the typical fast-paced TikTok.
The videos «also feel very cathartic, because I think a lot of us feel like our existence is weird or dissonant right now, and the ‘corecore’ videos are like, ‘Yeah, yeah,'» Sugrue said.
Sugrue recently posted a video to TikTok asking people to share what they liked about the trend. Responses varied, but many described finding a sense of unity and community through videos that focus on difficult topics.
«I think corecore is so popular right now because we can all relate to suffering in some way, especially as of late,» one user replied. «It makes people feel seen.»
Another wrote, «corecore makes people feel like they’re not alone with strong feelings when they exist in a world that constantly tries to make them believe otherwise.»
Others wrote that they weren’t familiar with «CoreCore» until Sugrue posed the question, suggesting that the genre of videos hasn’t quite gone mainstream yet.