'Teaser Controversy' Overcome, 'Street Fighter: Directors War' Expands the Stage.. The Real Battle of 'Performance Directors', Not Dancers [Comprehensive]

*This content was translated by AI.

'Street Fighter' series has once again changed the stage to a battle of 'performance directors' rather than dancers. Can 'Street World Fighter: Directors War' (hereinafter 'S-Di-Pa'), which returns after overcoming controversy, captivate living rooms once more with an intense competition among behind-the-scenes planners?

On the 18th, a production press conference for Mnet survival program 'S-Di-Pa' was held at Elieana Hotel in Seoul Gangnam-gu. The event was attended by PD Choi Jeong-nam and choreographers Nine, Reran, Bada, Baek Gu-young, Baby Joo, Shimizu, In-gyu, Jung Min-jun, Casper, and Hash.

'S-Di-Pa' is a new expansion of Mnet's dance series that sparked a 'dance syndrome' in Korea, starting with 'Street Woman Fighter'. While the existing series focused on the competition among world-class 'dancers', this time 'performance directors' who plan and complete stages take center stage.

On this day, PD Choi Jeong-nam revealed the unique selling points of 'S-Di-Pa'. He stated, "Until now, the series was conducted with crews. This time, choreographers compete with their works. We will show the process of creating and unfolding the work." He added, "Actually, when it comes to performance directors, they can showcase the process and results of utilizing dancers, including music, concept, choreography, and changes in movement lines, all into one result until a single work is produced. Therefore, I think this program will be able to show richer thoughts than existing dance series."

He continued, "If we call it a war of works within the program, there was confidence that the directors' thoughts would come into play. While preparing the program, I worried a lot about how to show the process." He explained, "We tried to capture each choreographer being given their own space, thinking about concepts, holding meetings, and going through the process while thinking within it. I want to say that there will be fun in watching those works within the program."

Furthermore, PD Choi said, "Veteran directors certainly showed many stable and expected works, and within the program, young directors also showed enough works to compete with veterans," and confidently added, "Every mission feels like a mega crew. I think it will be spectacular."

He also mentioned the winning benefits and voting system for this season. PD Choi stated, "In this program, only one winner will emerge. For the winner, we aim to provide an opportunity to direct a global award ceremony stage and grant funding support for that direction. Since it is a director's journey in the survival format, which can be tough, we want to provide benefits so they can refresh."

He also mentioned the voting system for fairness. PD Choi explained, "We thought a lot about the voting system internally. There are choreographers who are well-known and those who are new, so the voting system will proceed anonymously. It is being conducted in a way where voting is done based on works."

PD Choi also clarified his stance on the previously raised teaser manipulation controversy. The teaser video released in April to announce the program's launch featured silhouettes of directors who participated in numerous artists' choreographies, as well as dazzling stages such as Coachella, Super Bowl halftime show, Olympic opening ceremony, and large-scale world tour concerts. However, immediately after the video was released, performance director Keira Harper protested, saying, "I did not appear on this program nor said these words. The production team asked 'Who did you dance with?' and I said 'I danced with Dr. Dre and Snoop at the Super Bowl.' This editing is really crazy," sparking controversy.

Regarding this, PD Choi stated, "We are taking what happened earlier seriously," and conveyed his position: "While proceeding with the program, we will look into details carefully to ensure such incidents do not happen and create works accordingly."

The resolve of the directors participating in the program continued. Baek Gu-young said, "Since it is a competition under one's own name rather than a crew name, there is a heavy responsibility for overall quality. We are making efforts to create works with even more effort."

Baek Gu-young, who previously served as a master on the boy group survival program 'Boys2Planet', shared his thoughts as a participant: "I feel sorry every day to the participants of 'Boys Planet'," and added, "I am also spending desperate days to survive myself, so I feel guilty for not being able to understand their feelings." He then conveyed, "Having tried both being a teacher and a participant, I think I have become a strict teacher who pushes hard, and I am working hard with that mindset."

Bada, leader of the winning crew Bebe from 'Street Woman Fighter 2', stated, "There was a lot of burden due to the name of being a winning crew. We tried to turn that burden into responsibility." Regarding his reason for challenging again, he said, "It is such a grateful opportunity that I gained the name of a winning crew, but since I am someone who does not stay there and keeps challenging, I wanted to challenge this time." He added, "I am happy to participate in this good opportunity. As a team leader, taking on the team's name brings great burden, but I feel it is a pleasant burden because I think I can show my own unique color."

Shimizu said, "There is a team called Latchika, and I am also managing artists, so there is even more responsibility. We tried to be as careful as possible for each mission," and Nine added, "In participating in the previous series, there was a burden of showing our growth since we were young. Since it is under my own name, the responsibility was great."

In-gyu revealed his unique feelings: "In the previous season, I wondered what dance to show, but this time I have been wondering why this scene must be here. There was also a sense of responsibility toward the team."

Statements from newly joined directors were also shared. Baby Joo introduced himself as "a director who can integrate everything into one," Hash said he is "a director who awakens dancers' potential," Jung Min-jun described himself as "a persuading director," Reran as "a director who does not miss a single detail," and Casper as "a hexagonal director," pointing out their respective strengths.

PD Choi stated regarding the selection and composition of choreographers this time: "If we call it a war of works within the program, there was confidence that the directors' thoughts would come into play," and added, "While preparing the program, I worried a lot about how to show the process."

He continued, "We tried to capture each choreographer being given their own space, thinking about concepts, holding meetings, and going through the process while thinking within it," and explained, "I want to say that there will be fun in watching those works within the program."

Furthermore, he stated as a viewing point unique to 'S-Di-Pa': "Veteran directors certainly showed many stable and expected works, and within the program, young directors also showed enough works to compete with veterans."

Meanwhile, 'S-Di-Pa' will premiere at 10 p.m. on the 18th.

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*This content was translated by AI.