The Cork Bros on the Future of Storytelling, One Vertical Frame at a Time

The first thing I asked The Cork Bros during a recent interview was, “When is the next episode coming out? I need to watch it now!” I was referring, of course, to Mama’s House, the creative duo’s 72-episode vertical micro-drama — a masterclass in short-form storytelling about three estranged sisters brought together by their mother’s death. The promise of secrets being revealed had me instantly hooked.

UPDATE: On September 8, 2026, the Cork Bros announced that Mama’s House has secured distribution with micro drama app, Shortee. “Moses Lassite and his team at Shortee are building something spectacular with their app that not only houses quality micro dramas, but also games to keep users on the app,” said Andres and Michelangelo in a shared statement. Mama’s House season one launches on Shortee app at the end of September.

What makes this story compelling, beyond the fact that the show was shot in just four days on a Fujifilm GFX Eterna 55? For me, it’s the compressed timeline and in-house writing, directing, producing, shooting, and editing. Those choices make Mama’s House a benchmark for any vertical that comes after it. Here are the highlights from my conversation with the creators, Michelangelo Corkrum and Andres McCorkle, aka The Cork Bros.

From Commercial Creators to Short-Form Storytellers

The second thing I asked the pair was whether they are real brothers. The answer was no, but they’ve known each other so long and are so close that they might as well be. Their story is an interesting one: two commercial photographers and videographers who deliberately walked away from safe client work to bet on a storytelling format most people were dismissing.

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