The life and death of “The SM Box” through the careers of Super Junior, f(x), SHINee, TVXQ!, and more. 

A hallmark of SM Entertainment’s early set design is commonly referred to as “The SM Box”. This box set was an empty room that often had lights on the ceiling and walls. In the earlier days of SM Entertainment, videos were focused almost solely on dancing, and videos with a plot were few and far between. While many have deemed the box sets “boring” and “plain,” regardless of your opinion, these sets are a major part of music video history. Box sets are not unique to SM Entertainment, nor are they unique to K-Pop, however many of the “SM Boxes” have their own distinct look. Their sets sometimes looked interchangeable between artists, as if SHINee’s “Everybody” could have taken place in the set of the opening scene of “Rum Pum Pum Pum” by f(x).

K-Pop was built on choreography being a main selling point, especially in a company like SM Entertainment. There were no distractions in the room to take your attention away from the group, and the geometric shapes and lights on the walls were simple yet sophisticated. Had many of these videos been filmed with three plain white walls instead, it would not only be repetitive but wouldn't bring the music video to life. The sets complimented the members’ outfits and the themes of the videos and songs, bringing everything together without breaking the bank. 

Super Junior’s iconic “Mr. Simple” utilizes two sets for its dance scenes, interrupted only by solo shots of each member singing to the camera. 

One of the most well-known uses of the box set comes from f(x)’s “Electric Shock” released in 2012.

Around 2014-2015 there was a shift. EXO’s “CALL ME BABY” takes a notably different approach than their earlier videos with far more camera movements and transitions, not to mention the difference in sets. 

It is theorized that the shift is a result of the success of Red Velvet’s debut music video “Happiness” in August 2014. The video was directed by Kim Sungwook who went on to work with SHINee’s TAEMIN, BIGBANG’s Taeyang, and BTS.

However, another August 2014 release by Super Junior points to the notion that SM was already heading in more of a plot-driven direction.

By 2015, there were no more box sets to be found in Super Juniors videos, with the use of the box coming to a close.

f(x)’s boxless “Red Light” music video was released a month before “Happiness,” however the impact of the video was not as strong as “Happiness,” leaving people to believe that SM’s decision to retire the box sets was motivated by the success of Red Velvet’s debut.

Kim’s work with TAEMIN in August of 2014 also kept with the classic “SM Box” scenes but didn’t rely on them as heavily as in older videos. 

There is a complete shift from TAEMIN’s first music video “Danger” to his release the following year, “Press Your Number,” a plot-filled video with dance scenes spliced in. 

SHINee broke out of the box nearly a year after other SM Entertainment groups in “View” which takes place outside, a previous rarity for obvious reasons. Although there was a shift in set design for their Korean music videos, the box remained a staple in SHINee’s Japanese releases until nearly 2017. 

Nowadays, SM Entertainment employs a wide array of techniques in their artists’ music videos with visual effects and complex set designs and utilizes story-telling with plot-driven videos rather than choreography-focused ones.