Written by: Mikayla Coleman

In an ever changing and expanding digital space of content creation, the video essay has become a staple genre on video-sharing websites such as Youtube. 

A video essay is an essay in video form that aims to persuade, educate or critique and analyze a specific topic, theme, person or thesis. This open-ended definition leaves a lot of freedom for creators to artistically express themselves and their opinions in a unique way that can be as academic or as casual as one desires. 

Use this list as a jumping off point for getting into the diverse, fascinating and passionate world of video essays on Youtube.

Ro Rambdin — Ro Rambdin is a 20 year old Tiktok and Youtube influencer from Seattle, Washington who creates incisive commentary videos on a wide variety of subjects pertaining to present and past youth-cultural events. 

• “Do We Need S*x Scenes? – Penn Badgley and Intimacy in Media” 
• “Elon Musk and Grimes: A Retrospective” 
• “Chick Tracts: An American Tragedy” 

Philosophy Tube — Created in 2013 by Abigail Thorn, a British content creator and playwright. , Philosophy Tube seeks to provide free lessons in philosophy after the 2012 increase of tuition in the United Kingdom. Thorn’s videos are inquisitive, hilariously scripted and visually interesting with different elaborate costumes and sets to match each video’s contents. Thorn has also documented their story of coming out as transgender and uses their platform to advocate for better health care and treatment of transgender people around the globe. 

• “The Rich Have Their Own Ethics: Effective Altruism & the Crypto Crash (ft. F1nn5ter)”

• “I Emailed My Doctor 133 Times: The Crisis In the British Healthcare System”

• “Capital Punishment (& Prison Abolition) | Philosophy Tube”

Mina Le — Mina Le is a Vietnamese-American content creator whose work focuses on modern and historical culture of fashion and film. Le’s unique style dominates her videos, making the viewing experience not only intellectually stimulating, but incredibly visually appealing.  

• “THE CULT OF CLEANLINESS” 

• “‘toxic’ femininity: what’s up with girlbloggers, female manipulators, and femcels?”

• “WHY EVERYTHING IS SO UGLY: The Curse of Modernism” 

Izzzyzzz — Internet personality Izzzyzzz, or simply Izzy, is a New Zealand-based video essayist who creates videos on modern and historical internet culture, pertaining mostly to childhood nostalgia. Izzy lightheartedly uses a combination of both subjects to deep dive into niche experiences of growing up while internet usage became more accessible, allowing viewers to be once again immersed in the fun and often-times clunky experiences of early 2000’s computer games and internet culture. 

• “Exploring the Lore of Purble Place” 
• “The Horror of Anti-Piracy Screens” 
• “A Deep Dive into Animal Crossing” 

The Leftist Cooks — Formerly named “The Leftist Cook,” The Leftist Cooks is a collaborative Youtube channel between Irish creators Neil Farrell and Sarah Oeffler focusing primarily on leftist topics, including but not limited to LGBT+ and gender issues, workplace conditions and personal near-death experiences. 

• “This is Not a Video Essay” 
• “Polyamory and the Family” 
• “Capitalism and the Body” 

Contact the author at howleditor@wou.edu