Hwaetbul-Je, SeoulTech’s festival hosted by Club Union was held from May 18 to 19. As the host organizer, the union put on various events such as the singing stage for students, club booths, and performances by invited artists. Haha and FT Island were the festival’s guest artists. To look inside the festival, The SeoulTech interviewed Suyeon Jeon, the union’s president.

42nd Club Union

Q. Could you please introduce the 42nd Club Union and tell us a bit about its name, “Danji?”



A. The name of 42nd Club Union “Danji” is a reference to how we see the many clubs as “neighbors” working well together. As SeoulTech’s central students governing body, we make every effort for the unity and progress of clubs.

Q. What is the concept of this festival?

A. The concept of Hwaetbul-Je is SeoulTech trapped in 1988, which is a story we created. The idea is the Dangun, the 42nd Club Union’s mascot, pressed a camera button by mistake and suddenly SeoulTech was trapped in loss time, 1988.

Q. Is there something we should focus to specifically in this festival?

A. It is the games based on the festival’s theme. We prepared a game where students have to collect film-shaped stickers scattered around game booths, the Central Club “Madang Project” booths, and university experience booths in order to come back to the present. There are also a number of events on the dirt field to enjoy.

Q. Some areas, including Hyanghak-ro, are restricted because of construction. Were there any difficulties preparing the festival?

A, Overall control of Hyanghak-ro and the lack of space due to construction on dirt fields were the biggest dilemma in planning the festival. We thought about how we should form spaces, and new ideas came up. One idea was to use the car road near Dasan Hall and Boongeobang Pond, which added something to the festival that hadn’t been seen before.

Q. Please feel free to say anything you want to SeoulTech members on behalf of the Club Union.

A, We have prepared many traditional snacks, events that suit the concept of going back to 1988. We will be happy if many SeoulTech members participate and enjoy the festival. Even though the campus looks unsettled due to construction, we did our best to make the most out of it. So we hope people can get into the spirit of the festival.

The SeoulTech booth

To promote SeoulTech’s English newspaper and interact with SeoulTech staff and students, The SeoulTech ran a booth at this festival. Part of this involved a tongue-twister game. Participants tried to speak sentences that are hard to pronounce as fast as they can. Many people enjoyed the game, and rankings and prizes added to the fun. The SeoulTech also made a brief interview with SeoulTech members to share their thoughts about The SeoulTech. The survey asked participants whether they were aware of The SeoulTech. If they were not, they were also asked why. A total of 39 people, including both Korean and international students, participated in the interviews. When asked about The SeoulTech, the majority of respondents said that they were aware of it but had not read it. The second most common response was that participants were unaware of the English newspaper at all, with many stating that they did not know where to find it. Along with the interviews, people gave opinions that SeoulTech’s newspaper- in both Korean and English- need to find a way to promote more, suggesting that the best way to ensure this would be to let them know where the newspapers are via SNS.

Performances of the Stage

After the various club booths ended at around 5 p.m., students’ attention shifted to the dirt field, which served as the main festival area for the evening events. With stage performances, pub booths, and food trucks ready, the queue of students waiting to enter stretched from the main gate to the back of the 100th Anniversary Hall, showing the evening festival had begun. From 6 p.m., SeoulTech’s performance-related clubs took the stage with band, rap, dance, and cheerleading performances, raising the energy of the festival. In particular, the “Starlight Youth Song Festival,” held on the first day, drew attention from many students. Talented vocalists and bands from SeoulTech performed, showing that the festival was also created by students themselves.

Before Haha’s performance, special guest Ryeojin appeared and performed songs such as “Just Once” and “ㅠUㅠ.” After the performance, Ryeojin looked for students born in 2007, the same year as the singer, and engaged in friendly communication with the audience. Soon after, the main artist of the first day, Haha, appeared. As soon as students heard his voice from behind the stage, loud cheers filled the field. Haha performed many songs, including “Busan Vacance” and “The Story of a Short Kid.” He also brought special guests, with the band SRG and rapper Reddy adding to the show. For more than an hour, students jumped, sang along, and enjoyed the performance together. Haha also shared sincere advice with students, leaving a warm afterglow. The Day2 evening’s guest artist was FT ISLAND. The band performed hit songs such as “Lovesick” and “I Hope,” heating up the final night of the festival. The members guided the audience to sing along, and the field was filled with group singing and cheers. In particular, the final performance of “Jilpunggado” became a moment that everyone came together to celebrate the end of the festival.

Overall, this year’s Hwaetbul-Je came up with the unique concept of SeoulTech trapped in 1988, club booths, student-participation events, and invited artists’ performances. Although there were spatial limitations due to construction, the Club Union used the available spaces effectively. In the end, Hwaetbul-Je became a meaningful festival for SeoulTech students.

Reporters

Seongbeom Hong

hongsb@seoultech.ac.kr

Sua Lee

sualee7@g.seoultech.ac.kr

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• e-mail : hongsb@seoultech.ac.kr

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