A Journey of Creation: Children and Mentors Unite to Evoke a Collective Resonance 2026-03-18

On February 28, “PALETTE Festa 2026: Becoming the Resonance” was held at the Smilegate Campus. The event served as a grand finale, bringing together children, teenagers, and mentors who participated in the 20-week PALETTE program since last September to share the results of their creative journeys. Approximately 250 participants attended, including children from 12 local children’s centers nationwide, facility teachers, and “Hope Creator” mentors.

The event featured two main programs: the “Signal Track,” where participants experienced and shared feedback on 51 creative works—including games, videos, and merchandise—and the “Resonance Track,” which introduced the production stories behind these projects. Here’s a look at the event, where the participants’ passion and efforts came together to create a powerful sense of “resonance.”

In the “Signal Track,” children had the opportunity to experience various creative works and share feedback. A steady stream of visitors filled the game demo booths. At the booth of the Gangneung Paran Bada Local Children’s Center, a game titled Save the Ocean was showcased. It is an interactive game where the story branches based on the user’s choices, highlighting the importance of environmental conservation.

The booth of the Seongnam Youth Local Children’s Center screened a romantic drama titled Heart Thump!, which follows an accidental encounter and the developing relationship between a boy and a girl. One visitor commented, “The portrayal of young romance felt very realistic,” and asked about the screenwriting process. The director, student Choi Ha-yul, replied, “I listened to as many real-life stories from my friends as possible and focused on making the story relatable.”

The booth from the Jeonju Seonneomeo Local Children’s Center, which featured keyrings, was also a big success. The most popular item was the “Luck-Making Children” keyring set, created under the theme of “Good Luck” by combining the children’s personal memories and imaginations.

Other creations added to the excitement of the event, including Youth Revelations (Busan Hope School Local Children’s Center), a music video created using the AI video tool Sora that captures the spirit of youth, and The Scene of Game Development: The Sabotage Team (Seoul Munjeong 1-dong Local Children’s Center in Songpa), a witty mockumentary about the challenges of game development.

Sharing Creative Journeys, Delivering Experiences of Growth

The “Resonance Track” featured participants taking the stage across three distinct segments to present their creations, introduce their production processes, and share their reflections.

In the “Play Stage,” teams from various local children’s centers presented games they had developed. A participant from the Gunpo Gippeum Local Children’s Center introduced Fragments of Memory, a Roblox-based game, while a representative from the Daegu Daegwang Local Children’s Center showcased an escape room game titled Daegwang Center Escape Map. Participants from the Jeonju Dongsan Local Children’s Center also presented Seafood Card Game, a board game featuring characters like squid and shrimp.

Next, during the “Screen Stage,” a diverse range of films, dramas, and documentaries was screened. As the lights dimmed and the videos began, the audience fell silent. A sense of tension filled the room during the screening of Escape the Center (Gangneung Paran Bada Local Children’s Center), while warm reactions followed The Star-Filled Diary (Siheung Pureun Local Children’s Center), a story centered on friendship. During the “Guest Visit (GV)” session following the screenings, the young directors took the stage to discuss their creative intentions and share behind-the-scenes stories.

Finally, in the “Voice Stage,” participants shared stories of personal growth through their creative projects. A participant from Seongnam Youth School introduced Golden Time, a mission-based PC game where players clear obstacles to secure a path for a fire truck in emergency situations. “While developing the concept and character designs, we refined our ideas through discussion and defined the game’s unique selling points,” said Ahn Seok-hyun. “Working with teammates and mentors to coordinate ideas and find solutions when challenges arose made me feel proud of my growth as a creator.”

As the participants, who had been nervous during their presentations, put down their microphones with relieved smiles, cheers of “Great job!” erupted from the audience.

A Festival of Creators, Where Everyone is a Protagonist

The event concluded with an awards ceremony recognizing outstanding creative projects, along with a completion ceremony for the mentors. Participants voted for the projects that impressed them most after experiencing the three segments—games, videos, and presentations—and the organizations with the highest votes were honored. As a result, Seonneomeo Local Children’s Center (for the game Surviving the Zombie World) received the “Game Changer” award, while Seongnam Youth Local Children’s Center (for the drama Heart Thump!) took home the “Scene Stealer” award. Dodam Bundang-dong Local Children’s Center (for the branding project LUCKY HAPPY) was honored with the “Future Vision” award.

Following the awards, a completion ceremony was held for the mentors who supported the students throughout their six-month creative journey. Typically, such ceremonies involve the organizer presenting certificates to participants who have completed a program. However, in this case, children and teenagers from the 12 local children’s centers took the stage themselves to present certificates of appreciation to their “Hope Creators.”

As the students read aloud the heartfelt and creative titles on the certificates—such as the “Loyalty Award,” the “Growing Together Mentor Award,” and the “Most Reliable in the World Award”—their voices filled the hall, followed by warm applause from the audience.

The Resonance of Young Creators Continues

While the 20-week creative project concluded with “PALETTE Festa,” the energy of these young creators will carry on into their next creations, as reflected in the event’s theme, “Becoming the Resonance.” This journey will continue through the “PALETTE Youth Party,” scheduled to run from April to July.

Through the “PALETTE Youth Party”—a series of autonomous creative clubs for children at local centers—Smilegate Foundation aims to encourage students to engage in creative activities independently, without direct mentor support. The studio also plans to provide ongoing support to help establish a sustainable creative environment within local communities.