Recently, a Korean live action drama adaptation of The iDOLM@STER was announced. Although it shares its name with the series, it is described as having completely new characters and an original story, with only the main theme of The iDOLM@STER tying it back to the original. Auditions were accepted from girls all over the world, as long as they were able to speak Korean.

For more information on the project, check out the press release on the official site.

The first round of auditions has ended, and 37 girls were selected for the next round, which involves voting by the fans. On may 14th, the top 20 from the fan voting process will be selected to work on the project. After this audition, there will be intense training six days a week until September, when filming will begin. The show is expected to air in early 2017. Vote for your favourites by liking their audition videos on the official YouTube channel and their pictures on the official Instagram account.

You should check out every girl’s auditions on your own, but here are a few that stand out and are currently in the top 5 in terms of popularity.

#3) 김소희 (Kim So-hee)

So-hee is by far the most popular contestant. At the time of this writing, her YouTube video has more than 3 times the views of the current second place, Coco. She has close to 100 thousand followers on her Instagram account and has previous experience as a performer. You cancheck out a small compilation video of some of her work here. Be careful not to get her confused with the Maxim model who shares her name!

#5) 다빈 (Dabeen)

Despite her professional quality audition video, Googling her name does not reveal any public history of work in show business. Perhaps Korean fans have been able to find out more info through discussions online. If you know something about her, let us know in the comments!

#7) 코코 (Coco)

Coco started a two person music unit with her partner Sori (#20) in January. They have original songs and also cover several idol anime songs in cosplay, including Cinderella Girls, Love Live!, and Aikatsu! You can check out their original music channel and their anime cover channel on YouTube. They are the only contestants so far to demonstrate a strong interest in iM@S outside of the audition. Coco is also proficient in English.

#19) 테라모토 유키카 (寺本來可/Teramoto Yukika)

Although there are several Japanese contestants, Teramoto Yukika stands out due to her work as a seiyuu in anime, including minor roles in Dog Days and Seitokai Yakuindomo. She’s been in the business for at least seven years and acted in and sang the opening for the live action show, Chocomimi.

#20) 소리 (Sori)

The counterpart to Coco. While Coco is strong in English, Sori speaks seemingly fluent Japanese, as evidenced by the recording of her trip to the 3rd Anniversary Cinderella Girls live.