‘Under Fifteen’ production team “We feel sorry for the shock and hurt of the contestants… We will do our best” [Full text]

The production team of ‘Under Fifteen’ has stated their position regarding the controversy over the sexual objectification of children. However, rather than apologizing or explaining the concerns about sexual objectification, the production team raised their voices, saying that the contestants were hurt. They also asked that viewers confirm and evaluate the passion of the young contestants and the sincerity of the production team through the teaser video for the main episode that will be uploaded soon.

‘Under Fifteen’, which will be aired for the first time on the 31st, is a K-pop prodigy discovery project and a 5th generation girl group training audition comprised of contestants 15 years of age or younger, as the program name suggests.

However, controversy has arisen due to the recently released photos and videos of ‘Under Fifteen’ showing some of the young contestants wearing heavy makeup or revealing outfits and performing mature performances that do not match their age. In particular, five of the participants were born in 2016, making them 8-9 years old.

The participants‘ photos had barcodes printed on them, as if they were products, raising concerns and criticisms of the ‘sexual commercialization’ of minors. The criticism was even greater in connection with the recent controversy surrounding actor Kim Soo-hyun’s alleged affair with a minor.

Regarding this, MBN stated on the 21st, “Regarding the new program ‘Under Fifteen’, we are taking the concerns of all walks of life in our society very seriously,” and “We will comprehensively review the details of the program, including whether or not to air it, and will announce our position soon.”

The production crew of ‘Under Fifteen’ also shared their position. They explained the purpose of the ‘Under Fifteen’ audition, emphasizing that they conducted the program with the consent of the participants‘ own participation and their guardians. They also stated that they had been strictly following the recording guidelines to protect the minor participants. They explained that the costumes and styling were decided after active discussion with the participants’ guardians, and that the guardians and the production crew also provided constant care. They added that the recording schedule also guaranteed the right to learn and that unreasonable schedules were excluded.

The production crew of ‘Under Fifteen’ asserted, “It is a very unfortunate and regrettable situation that the young participants of ‘Under Fifteen’ as well as their guardians are suffering extreme shock and hurt due to various controversies that have arisen even before the first broadcast has been released,” and expressed the passion and will of the participants.

They plan to soon upload a teaser video related to the main episode through the official YouTube channel of “‘Crea Studio’. We are confident that you will be able to confirm the passion of the young participants and the sincerity of the production team, so please watch the video yourself and evaluate it,” he said.

Lastly, “‘Under Fifteen’ is a program that supports and accompanies the dreams of the participants, so the production team earnestly hopes that the sweat and effort that the participants have put in for over 6 months will not be in vain, and we will put in more meticulous effort in production to avoid any controversy in the future,” he said.


Full text of the ‘Under Fifteen’ production team’s official position

Hello, this is the production team of ‘Under Fifteen’.

We would like to share our position regarding the recent ‘Under Fifteen’ controversy.

‘Under Fifteen’ opened the door of opportunity wide to the alpha generation who decided on their path as idols early on. This is a K-POP audition. As the status of K-POP rises, the age of the participants who dream of becoming idols is getting younger, and this program was launched to support children to gain practical experience and grow on the actual stage.

All of the ‘Under Fifteen’ participants are valuable talents who applied for the program after confirming their own participation and with the consent of their guardians, and the production team strictly followed the recording compliance guidelines to protect the minor participants during filming. The production team decided on the costumes and styling through an active discussion process with the participants‘ guardians, and the practice time was also kept to a maximum of 35 hours during the recording week, and the guardians and production team picked up the participants from the practice room and provided constant care.

If there was a possibility that filming would be extended late into the night in accordance with the Popular Culture and Arts Industry Development Act during the weekday recording (if the next day was not a school holiday), the schedule was adjusted by setting up another filming day. For general elementary and middle school students, we have excluded any difficult schedules that could cause disruption in order to ensure their right to education.

However, it is very regrettable and unfortunate that various controversies have arisen before the first broadcast has even been released, causing extreme shock and hurt to everyone from the young participants of ‘Under Fifteen’ to their guardians.

Despite their young age, the participants of ‘Under Fifteen’ are more serious and sincere than anyone else in decorating the stage with a burning passion to achieve their dream of becoming a K-POP idol leading the world. In particular, the overseas participants have also been doing their best in filming since the global local preliminary round held last summer until now to achieve their dreams.

Accordingly, the production team plans to upload a teaser video related to the main episode through the official YouTube channel of ‘Crea Studio’ soon. We are confident that you will be able to confirm the passion of the young participants and the sincerity of the production team, so please check the video yourself and evaluate it.

‘Under Fifteen’ is a program that supports and accompanies the participants’ dreams, so the production team earnestly hopes that the sweat and effort the participants have put in for over 6 months will not be in vain, and we will put in more meticulous efforts in production to avoid any controversy in the future.

Thank you for watching ‘Under Fifteen’.

Jeong Hee-yeon, Donga.com Reporter shine2562@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.