Cracking the code to YouTube Shorts
Jan 15, 2026 [[read-time]] minute read
How can a creator captivate an audience in less than 3 minutes? Here are three APAC creators who aren’t just creating Shorts, they are innovating, setting trends and building powerful connections with their audiences. See how these creators are using YouTube Shorts and how you can too!
Kooleen
Can you tell us about yourself and your channel?
Hi, I’m Kooleen and I’m a Filipino digital artist who does drawing tutorials. I started with long-form videos, then tried my hand at YouTube Shorts and my channel took off!
How do you decide which trends to jump on?
Any trend can be hijacked if you’re creative enough! For example, back in 2023, Barbenheimer was huge. So, I made a drawing tutorial on how to draw Barbie—but the twist at the end was that the final result is Oppenheimer in a Barbie wig. The trick is to never let your viewers know your next move so that they’d never get tired of watching your videos.
What are the specific tactics you use within your Shorts to create a sense of belonging and community within your audience?
My most famous one is probably “juicy lips.” Every time I draw a character, I add extra volume to their lips; then I say my iconic line: “juicy lips.” The joke got so big that I ended up making merch. It's definitely become an inside joke in my community.
MostTechy
Can you tell us about yourself and your channel?
I’m Yash Tiwari, the creator behind MostTechy, a channel that breaks down tech in a fun, fast, and relatable way. Today, the channel has grown to over 4 billion views, with Shorts becoming a big part of our identity.
What tactics do you use to create belonging and community?
We use highly relatable characters that feel like real people from Indian households.
We also show everyday dynamics like big brother vs little brother rivalry and friends debating tech — all of which spark a feeling of familiarity and nostalgia.
Andrea
Can you tell us about yourself and your channel?
I’m Andrea, I’m a skit content creator based in the Philippines. I honestly just enjoy dressing up and pretending to be different characters inspired by my favorite books, movies and shows.
How do you create a sense of community within your audience?
I’ve created different characters that have distinct personalities and I like to think that my community knows them well enough that they can already tell how the skit is going to play out. When there’s a trend that my audience thinks suits one of my characters, they really put in the effort to bring it to my attention so that I can make that specific content for them.
Do you find greater success with Shorts that are part of a mini-series or Shorts that are entirely self-contained?
I’ve posted quite a few mini series on my channel and they’ve done well especially when it’s about my character, Agent Red. I used to just post Agent Red as a separate character but I thought it would be a great idea to put Agent Red with one of my personal favorite characters, the Faerie who is just unhinged and a ray of sunshine. Since then they’ve just been an inseparable duo on my channel and one of the most requested pieces of content.