What will Weekly Dolpin bring you this week?

💚Editor Young-Cheol: Modern and contemporary history of Korea: 'Spring in Seoul'📽

💗Editor Lily: “K-pop experience" events going on these days

💜Editor Jin-Joung:  'K-pop's worst contract violation', Fantasy Boys Yoo Jun-won loses his trial

💙Editor Ki-Young: 2023 Year-End Music Festivals Lineup Part 1🏆

🔥 Hot Article 🔥 Is K-pop the only thing to promote in Korea?

1) In November, the so-called off-season for movies, “Seoul's Spring” is bringing audiences to theaters with great dynamism. It crossed the 2 million mark in its first six days of release, raising hopes for a 10 million-seller movie. Spring in Seoul is a movie set in the late 1970s during the December 12th’s military uprising. The movie is producing sighs in theaters because the story is a historical disclosure, but audiences are praising Jung Woo-sung and Hwang Jung-min for their performances and excellent direction, calling it a "must-see" for Koreans. As interest in Korea's modern and contemporary history grows, what are some of the other Korean movies with a modern and contemporary history theme? Let's take a look at them in chronological order.

"Dongju: The portrait of a Poet”  which tells the story of Yoon Dong-ju, a poet and independence activist during the Japanese occupation, and his cousin Song Mong-kyu, an independence activist. The film is a cross between Yoon Dong-ju's memories of the past while he was behind prison bars, and is intentionally shot in black and white to match the bleakness of the times. The best moments of the movie come from Yoon's narration in the middle of the movie. "It's a shame that poetry is so easy to write when life is so hard to live," says Yun Dong-joo, who has spent his life regretting. How about watching a movie about his struggles between his "shame" of fighting just through poetry instead of armed fight?

After the Incheon landing in November 1950, the People’s Army was defeated and fled, and the National Army advanced. Would you believe that in the middle of the Korean War there was a village that had nothing to do with the war? “Welcome to Dongmakgol" is a movie that was created out of this wild imagination. It went viral with its fairy-tale production and heartwarming story, becoming a huge hit with 8 million viewers. The movie shows soldiers who were divided into enemy and ally groups outside, uniting in Dongmakgol, and ultimately conveys the message that the reason soldiers fight in wars is to protect innocents and peace, not ideology. Isn't "Welcome to Dongmakgol" a film that makes the brutality of war more visible because it is heart-warming?

 If you're curious about what happened just before "Seoul Spring," the first mentioned movie, this one's for you. It's about the assassination of former President Park Chung-hee on October 26th, 1979, and although it didn't reach 5 million cumulative viewers due to the downturn in the theater market caused by the rapid reappearance of COVID-19 in 2020, it was well received by audiences and ranked first at the box office among movies released in 2020. In addition to the Fraser Report, Kim Hyung-wook's disappearance, and the October 26th incident, it is recommended that you learn about the May 16th military coup, the Third Amendment, the October Revolution, Korea Gate, Kim Young-sam's expulsion, and the Busan–Masan Uprising to better understand the movie!

There are many movies about the May 18th Uprising, including the 10-million-selling "Taxi Driver," "Splendid Vacation" and "Mint Candy," but today I would like to recommend "Scout". "Scout" is a movie set in Gwangju 10 days before the May 18th Uprising. The movie follows the main character, Ho Chang, as he tries to scout Sun Dong-yeol, a player at Gwangju High School at the time. At first glance, it looks like a baseball movie, but it is characterized by its social criticism and portrayal of tragic history through everyday life. The date before 5.18 is constantly shown in subtitles, and a young Jong-beom playing baseball by himself is shown with a tank passing by behind him. The 5.18 Uprising was distorted by the new junta as a "communist uprising," and for a time "Gwangju" was considered a forbidden word. However, on November 24th, 1995, a special law was announced, and the city was able to regain its honor. Why not watch this movie and see how the lives of the people of Gwangju who fought for democracy have changed?

In 1987, an indispensable event in Korean democracy took place. The movie "1987" deals with the torture and murder of Park Jong-cheol, which was the catalyst for the June Democratic Uprising that led to the constitutional reform of the direct presidential system. The film was praised as both an artistic and box office success, drawing 7.2 million viewers. In particular, the film takes great care to ensure authenticity, so as not to denigrate the efforts of the activists at the time. The overall atmosphere is dark and grim, so you need to prepare your mind before watching it, but after watching it, you will feel a strong emotion in your heart!

 “K-pop experience" events going on these days🎤

With the recent increase in pop-up stores targeting "fandom," experiential spaces are emerging where fans can participate directly. In particular, there are now offline events where K-pop fans can experience auditions and concert venues in person!

There is an event for K-pop fans in Songpa-gu, the center of K-culture, where many of Korea's leading performance venues are located.

This is the "K-Pop Legacy Tour at Olympic Park," a collaboration between Songpa-gu, the "K-Pop Capital of Korea," and the Korea Sports Promotion Organization.

Olympic Park, the mecca of K-pop, is famous for its top performance facility, the KSPO DOME, as well as the Olympic Sculpture Park, Lake 88 and Jangmi Plaza, which are representative places in Songpa-gu where nature and city come together.

Through this event, visitors can experience a special tour of the KSPO DOME, the waiting room of the Olympic Hall, and other facilities in the Olympic Park, as well as the main attractions of the Seoul Olympics.

Starting with a tour of the main attractions of the Seoul Olympics in the Peace Gate Square area of the Olympic Park, guests will have the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of the K-pop stars and tour the interior facilities, including the waiting room of the Olympic Hall, on a VIP route to reminisce about their precious memories and dreams!

The event will take place on December 18th at 3pm for two hours and 20 participants will be recruited online from November 24th to December 4th. All K-pop fans who have special memories of Olympic Park, such as attending a concert, are eligible to apply. If you don't have an official fan club cheering stick, fan club merchandise will be accepted, so why not give it a try?

On the day of the event, a photo zone will be set up to welcome fans to their K-pop dream location, and all participants will receive specially produced Songpa merchandise, so you won't want to miss out.

 Hi Hat Corporation recently announced the opening of Korea's first pop-up audition experience by posting a poster with a video of "Hi hat Global Audition Pop-up Chapter 1" on its official YouTube and SNS channels.

The pop-up audition was designed to provide an opportunity for aspiring idols to challenge themselves and for the general public who are new to idol culture to discover new dreams.

In particular, the experience booths are organized to give a preview of what it will be like after the debut.

As the first agency to offer an audition experience, there is a lot of interest from talents who want to take on their first challenge. HiHeart's first global audition is expected to revolutionize not only the music industry, but also the audition world.

Hi hat's first pop-up global audition will be held in Hongdae, Mapo-gu, Seoul from December 8 to 10 from 11am to 8pm.

Online pre-registration for those born after 2000 will be open from November 26th at 8am to December 6th at 11:59pm. If you have an idol in your life, don't miss out!

 On July 26th, MLD Entertainment also opened an audition center in partnership with Kidzania Seoul, the “first children's theme park.”

Located on the 3rd floor of Kidzania Seoul in Jamsil, the Audition Center is a dream space for children to become idol trainees with MLD Entertainment's expertise in training K-pop idols.

At the opening ceremony of the Audition Center, idol groups Lapillus and HORI7ON visited Kidzania and performed to celebrate the opening of the new experience center.

Children who visit the Audition Center can first do some simple stretching exercises and then learn to dance to "Who's next" by MLD Entertainment's representative girl group and global new idol, Lapillus. They not only learn the choreography from the artists themselves, but also practice their stage gestures and facial expressions to learn the qualities of an idol.

To make the audition more realistic, parents are invited to watch the dance at the end of each rehearsal so that the children can practice the choreography with their friends and develop teamwork, which is an essential skill for an idol group.

According to the results of the "Students' Desired Occupations" survey released by the Ministry of Education on November 27, 2023, singers and actors/models are in the top 10, so the demand for K-pop idol jobs is expected to increase day by day with the globalization of K-pop.

Let's look forward to more K-pop experience events to satisfy our idol interests!

Yoo Jun Won, who withdrew from Fantasy Boys, has lost his exclusive contract dispute.

On April 24th, the 21st Civil Division of the Seoul Western District Court denied Yoo Jun Won's request for an injunction against Funky Studio, the production company of MBC's "Boy's Fantasy - After School Excitement" (hereinafter "Boy's Fantasy").

As a result of the ruling, Junwon Yoo will have to pay Funky Studio's legal fees and other litigation costs. 

The court found that most of the contents of the contract submitted by Funky Studio were in accordance with the standard exclusive contract, 

The court found that most of the terms of Funky Studio's contract were consistent with a standard exclusive contract and that the terms pointed out by Yoo were not particularly unfair.

Furthermore, there was no evidence that Funky Studio made unreasonable demands on Yoo Jun Won or that the demands reached the point of undermining trust.

Yoo Jun Won is a core member of the group that finished first in the MBC Idol survival audition, Boy Fantasy. 

He was supposed to be the center of Fantasy Boys, but before his debut he suddenly filed an injunction to suspend the validity of his exclusive contract.

At the time of Yoo Jun Won's departure, there was an ongoing contract dispute between the agency Attrakt and the members of Fifty Fifty. 

As a result, Yoo Jun Won's lawsuit was also in the public eye, and there were many people who initially supported him.

However, unlike other idols who often file lawsuits at the end of their contracts, Yoo Jun Won was the first to file a lawsuit before his official debut.

 When Yoo Jun Won finally lost, his production company Funky Studio filed a lawsuit against him for 3 billion won in damages. 

The "No. 1" member was immediately reduced to the ugly ducky.

The members of Fantasy Boys also suffered huge losses. 

Idols are all about their image, and they were labeled as a 'member defection group' and a 'lawsuit group' even before their debut.

The court's decision shows that Yoo Jun Won was too greedy. 

It is inevitable that there will be differences in popularity between members of a group. 

But is it really equal treatment to discriminate based on popularity? 

People in a team shouldn't compete with each other, but should work together towards the same goal. 

Too much is bad as too little It is  said. . 

Yoo Jun Won has just set one of the worst precedents in the music industry.

The Melon Music Awards (MMA) kicks off its year-end communication with Korea's first dedicated K-pop Inspire Arena.

The MMA is an authoritative awards show based on Mellon's extensive music listening data and the largest K-pop festival in Korea, and has expanded its influence each year.

With the theme "K-POP CHANGES THE WORLD", MMA2023 is all about the great power of music to unite the world, and this year's event will feature some of the biggest artists in the K-Pop scene.

Top boy groups such as Boy's Next Door, Zero Base One and Riize, who are among the most prominent newcomers this year, SHINee, who will be making their first appearance at MMA 2023 in over a decade, and NCT DREAM, who will be making their first appearance on the lineup, are all confirmed to perform at MMA 2023. In addition, girl groups that have captured the hearts of the public such as AESPA, IVE, New jeans, STAYC, and KISS OF LIFE will also take the stage.

This year's ceremony is expected to shed new light on the influence of K-pop with the addition of new and revamped major categories such as 'Millions TOP10' and 'Best Music Style Award'.

For the first time, the "Millions TOP10" will feature the top 30 "Millions Albums" (albums with more than 1 million streams in 24 hours) in the Melon Hall of Fame, and the top 10 will be determined by fan voting.

The existing "Best Music Style Award" will be revamped to recognize "masterpieces" that contribute to the diversity of pop culture by revealing the artist's own genre and style, and will be selected by a panel of music experts and fan votes.

MMA2023 will be held at the Incheon Inspire Arena on December 2nd, starting at 5pm. In addition to the Mellon app and website, the event will be broadcast live in Korea on Wavve and in Japan on ABEMA TV.

The Asia Artist Awards, the global No. 1 awards show that took the Japanese archipelago by storm last year, is coming to the Philippines this December 14th.

Hosted by Star News and co-presented by the Asia Artist Awards Organizing Committee, TONZ Entertainment, and PULP Live World, '2023 AAA' promises to be a festival of Asian stars and class. Not only will fans be able to meet the movie, drama, and K-pop stars who shined in the past year, but they are also excited to see the festival grow even bigger this year.

The 2023 Asia Artist Awards IN PHILIPPINES ("2023 AAA") will be held at the PHILIPPINE ARENA, a massive venue with a capacity of over 50,000 people. The Philippine Arena is the world's largest dome venue, listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, and this year, BLACKPINK, TXT, and TWICE chose the venue for their world tour.

Held for the first time in 2016, the 'Asia Artist Awards' is the first integrated awards ceremony in Korea that awards actors and singers together. True to its Asian name, it has attracted a lot of attention every year, with stars from Asia and beyond, especially last year, when it was held offline for the first time in three years at Nihon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya, Japan, with global artists attending and heating up the stage, showing the power of the No. 1 global award ceremony.

This year's 2023 AAA will also feature a number of popular singers.

Akdong Musician, NewJeans, Le Sserafim, Boy Next Door, NMIXX, Zero Base One, Stray Kids, The Boys, ITZY, Kwon EunB, One team, Kim Jaejoong, Dindin, Lee Youngji, Dreamcatcher, KARD, Ash Island, Yao Chen, StayC, Kepler, Tempest, Lapillus, Seventeen, Bu Seoksoon, SB19, OneEarth, Kingdom, Activio, Lun8, Whibe, Horizon, and more are expected to attend, adding to the excitement.

The list of actors and singers is just as impressive.

Kim Sun Ho, Kim Se Jung, Kim Young Dae, Moon Ga Young, Moon Sang Min, Moon Sang Min, Soo Ho, Andongoo, Ahn Hyo Seop, Yoo Yeon Ho, Lee Dong Hwi, Lee Eun Sam, Lee Jun Young, Lee Jun Hyuk, Lee Jun Ho, Jae Chan, Jung Sung Il, Cha Ju Young, and DANIEL PADILLA, KATHRYN BERNARDO, MELAI CANTIVEROS-FRANCISCO, and SAKAGUCHI KENTARO have shared that they will be attending the ceremony.

There's a lot of excitement about the Filipino groups that will be performing in their hometown, especially since it's in the Philippines: SB19, the self-proclaimed "pioneers of P-pop (Filipino pop)" who rewrote the history of pop in Southeast Asia, and HORI7ON, who came out of the Korean-Philippine joint idol debut survival program Dream Maker.

Since the awards are being held in the Philippines, we hope that Filipino groups who have gone through the K-pop training system will be able to spread the word about K-pop in their homeland!

Busan, South Korea, has lost its bid to host World Expo 2030. On the afternoon of the 28th, Busan received 29 votes out of a total of 165 cast at the 173rd General Assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in Paris, France. The Expo bid went to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which received 119 votes, more than two-thirds of the total. The government had hoped for an upset until just before the vote, but expressed disappointment and regret at losing by a much larger margin than expected. 

Korea's final PT video, which was released before the vote, was also heavily criticized. The video started off with PSY's hit song Gangnam Style. Then famous K-pop stars such as Psy, Kim Junsu, Taemin and Zero Base One, as well as actor Lee Jung-jae, appeared one after another to call for votes. It was a far cry from Saudi Arabia's final PT video, which emphasized nature, life and climate action. The video received a cool response from social media users. Many commented that the video's editing and concept were cheesy, and that they didn't even know the purpose of the video. "I thought the Expo was in Gangnam. When is it Gangnam Style?" and "I don't know if this is an Expo recruitment video or a promotional video for an entertainment award ceremony.”