19:47Investigating North Korea's Most Disturbing Border Town
Save referenceCuriosity Gap
Almost nobody gets to visit North Korea, so a close look at it is rare. These pink flats look ordinary, but the text asks if anyone lives there. He's filming from across the river and can't tell either, so you click to find out.
'Investigating' makes it sound like he's uncovering something rather than sightseeing, and 'Disturbing' warns you the answer to the thumbnail's question won't be comfortable.
Without the flag, the pink flats could be anywhere, so the flag and its arrow tell you whose they are at a glance, and his face says he went himself.
When you film somewhere your audience can't go, anchor the place with one symbol they'll recognise, like a flag, and point it at the thing that looks off. Put the doubt as a short question in the thumbnail.
Show a place they can't visit, then doubt what it looks like.
Apply this pattern to your next video.
Bring the reference into a packaging brief, then decide what your title and thumbnail should each communicate.