Star Search (Singaporean TV series) season 12

Star Search
Season 12
Hosted by	Lee Teng (auditions, semifinal) Herman Keh (auditions) Hazelle Teo (auditions) Joakim Gomez (auditions) Guo Liang (bootcamp) Dennis Chew (bootcamp) Sheila Sim (semifinal) Quan Yifeng (semifinal, final) Jeff goh (final)
No. of contestants	20
Winner	Tiffany Ho 何睿烔
Winning mentor	Lee Teng Yeo Yann Yann
Runner-up	Gladys Bay 马䲰娗
No. of episodes	5 [1]
Release
Original network	Mediacorp Channel 8 meWatch YouTube
Original release	20 October (2024-10-20) – 24 November 2024 (2024-11-24)
Season chronology
← Previous Season 11

Star Search 2024 is the 12th installment of the long-running Chinese talent competition Star Search , hosted by Mediacorp, which first premiered in 1988. The season premiered on 20 October and concluded on 24 November.

Hong Kong-based student Tiffany Ho was named the winner of the season, with breakdancer Gladys Bay finished as runner-up and sporting coach Jona Chung finishing in third place. Ho was the first female winner in Star Search in 21 years since Felicia Chin back in season eight, and not counting the male-female champion format between seasons four and eight, Ho was the first overall female winner in 31 years since Ivy Lee back in season three. Ho won a Mediacorp management contract along with a BYD Auto vehicle (without a Certificate of Entitlement) won by each finalist in the top three.

Development

The season was announced on 21 June 2024 via various social media platforms ^{[2] [3]} and its Chinese news website 8world, announcing a theme of X Factor. ^{[4] [5]} To promote the season, three rounds of meet-and-greet sessions with various Mediacorp celebrities were held from 28 to 30 June at Orchard Central. Last season's runner-up Herman Keh, along with Chen Ning JJ Neo, Richie Koh, Sammi Tan, Tyler Ten and Zhai Siming, hosted the first day; Ben Yeo, Bonnie Loo, Daryl-Ann Jensen, Denise Camillia Tan, Fang Rong, Hazelle Teo, Jeremy Chan, Lim Pin Juen, Tan Ting Fong, Tay Ying and Yunis To in the second day; last season's top three Ye Jia Yun, Herman Keh and winner Zhang Zetong, along with Benjamin Tan, Hong Ling, Jensen Wang, Jernelle Oh, JJ Neo, Lim Pin Juen, Seow Sin Nee and Sheryl Ang, on the third. ^[6]

Auditions

The auditions were announced on 22 June 2024 and applications opened until 13 July 2024, applicable for aspirants with ages between 17 and 30, and go through either rounds of auditions for a place in the live shows. In addition to the open auditions, talent scouts across five different polytechnics were also held prior to open auditions. ^[7]

Summary of Open Auditions

Date and time(s)	Venue
6 and 7 July 2024, 9.30am-7.30pm	Funan, Singapore
13 July 2024, 9.30am-7.30pm	Orchard Central

Following the audition and rounds of selections, the show announced on 23 August that they have shortlisted 20 contestants to compete this season, but not explicitly told of the names of the hopefuls at the time of announcement; they also revealed that these contestants had to attend masterclasses hosted by various celebrities and industry experts for two months thru September. ^[8] The top 20 cast for the season include a married breakdancer couple, an online influencer, a contestant of Thai and Chinese heritage (Gladys Ng), a contestant of Indian and Chinese heritage (Sufeia Azura Sunir), some sporting professionals and one loyal viewer of Channel 8 dramas. ^[9]

Marketing

BYD Auto replaces Audi as its official car this season, with the top three finalists winning a BYD car each (BYD Seal, Atto 3 and Dolphin for the winner, runner-up and third place finalists, respectively). Mitsubishi Electric is the only sponsor to return from the previous season. New and known sponsors for this season were Holistic Way, Recogen and Shopee.

Contestants

The 20 contestants were announced on 12 September, as follows: ^{[9] [10] [11] [12]}

– Winner  – Runner-up  – Third place

– Fourth place  – Fifth place  – Finalists

Act	Age(s)	Occupation	Gender	Profession	Semifinals Team	Finals Mentor	Result
Tiffany Ho 何睿烔	19	Student	Female	Acting	Lee Teng	Yeo Yann Yann	Winner
Gladys Bay 马䲰娗	28	Breakdancer	Female	Hosting	Lee Teng	Yeo Yann Yann	Runner-up
Jona Chung 仲伟杰	25	Sporting coach	Male	Hosting	Lee Teng	Qi Yuwu	Third place
Chua Seng Jin 蔡承峻	25	Freelancer	Male	Acting	Lee Teng	Qi Yuwu	Fourth place
Marcus Sim 沈伟洋	27	Designer/Breakdancer	Male	Hosting	Quan Yifeng	Yeo Yann Yann	Fifth place
Amy Ang 洪依嬣	21	Influencer	Female	Hosting	Lee Teng	Yeo Yann Yann	Finalists
Ler Ka Ying 吕佳颖	28	Freelancer	Female	Hosting	Quan Yifeng	Qi Yuwu
Gladys Ng 黄慧燕	24	Student	Female	Acting	Quan Yifeng	Qi Yuwu
June Tan 陈瑞敏	25	Postgraduate	Female	Hosting	Quan Yifeng	Qi Yuwu
Jadon Lim 林义豪	23	Student/model	Male	Acting	Lee Teng	Qi Yuwu
Tan Zi Sheng 陈子盛	21	Student	Male	Acting	Lee Teng	Yeo Yann Yann
Clement Yeo 杨岳翰	25	Student/actor	Male	Acting	Quan Yifeng	Yeo Yann Yann
Heng Jee Kuan 邢诒光	22	Student/model	Male	Acting	Quan Yifeng	—	Eliminated
Koh Boon Wun 许文恩	17	Student	Female	Acting	Lee Teng	—
Lee Ting Xuan 李亭萱	19	Student	Female	Acting	Quan Yifeng	—
Mitchell Lim 林铭轩	23	Artist	Male	Hosting	Lee Teng	—
Christopher Ng 吴剑宏	24	Freelancer	Male	Acting	Quan Yifeng	—
Sufeia Azura Sunir 李思萱	17	Student	Female	Acting	Quan Yifeng	—
Alina Tan 陈致嘉	22	Undergraduate	Female	Acting	Lee Teng	—
Gino Wong 王贤耀	25	Actor	Male	Hosting	Quan Yifeng	—

Semifinal

The semifinal stage were broadcast over three taped 90-minute episodes from 20 October thru 3 November. All episodes provide closed captioning, unless otherwise stated.

Episode 1: The Search for Stars - 寻星之路 (20 October)

The first episode covers highlights based on the two rounds of open audition, including the Emotion (which enact a script given by the producers) and Charm (which test on charisma, physical and mental fortitude, or fashion detail) challenges covered by the contestants, as well as Talent Scouts across the five Polytechnics. ^{[13] [14]}

Episode 2: The Making of A Star - 磨砺蜕变 (27 October)

The second episode features the Top 20 contestants attending a 29-day masterclass (大师班) and training inside a private "Talent House" bungalow, from several professional artists, producers, designers and studio management, hosted by Dennis Chew and Guo Liang. The results for each of segments and its featured contestants were as follows: ^{[15] [16]}

Part	Day(s)	Synopsis	Advisors
Articulation and linguistics	1-5	Narrate a drafted script from Star Awards to test articulation and linguistics.	Dennis Chew Guo Liang
Stage presence and body language	6-9	Taking a personal selfie of a contestant, without relying assistance, then a catwalk, and shoe wearing to train adaptability.	Ade Sheila Sim
Drama technique	10	Acting in a simulated disaster scenario, by testing on character and display empathy.	Loh Woon Woon
Body movement	11-14	Take part in body exercises and form in groups of five contestants, performed a scenario to test creativity.	Nelson Seah Yeo Yann Yann
Product placement	15-19	Continued from stage presence, contestants have to take certain shots to promote a product. (in order: BYD Seal, Holistic Way, a Shopee advertorial [17] [18] )	Ade Sheila Sim
Acting coordination	20-25	Group into 10 pairs of two contestants to act in a simulated environment.	Loh Woon Woon Qi Yuwu
Personal styling	26-27	Under advisory from guest stylists, contestants come with a creative costume design. Two contestants were selected for a makeover to display transformation.	Jeremy Tan Frederick Lee Peter Khor
Interview	28	Simulate an interview. If the contestant was able to perform well in the first two questions, a third question may be offered.	Dennis Chew Marcus Chin Guo Liang
Voiceover	29	Simulate in a radio drama using provided scripts.	Dennis Chew Jeff Koh

The contestant's potential profession are revealed at the end of the episode, with eight aligned to hosting profession, and the other 12 aligned to acting.

Episode 3: The Knockout - 对决之日 (3 November)

The top 20 contestants compete in a series of three tasks assigned by production, and are judged by Mark Lee, Kym Ng and season one winner Zoe Tay. ^{[19] [20]} These contestants are grouped into teams of two, helmed by either Lee Teng or Quan Yifeng, to complete these challenges, which are:

1. Conduct a photoshoot directed by Sheila Sim. Team Lee contestants took a picture with a horse at Singapore Polo Club, while Team Quan contestants took a picture with porcelain at Thow Kwang Pottery Jungle industry factory;
2. Through drawing of lots into ten teams of two (one per gender) based on their current teams from the first task, contestants are assigned to certain hosting-related tasks inside each BYD car, then scout across Paya Lebar and SingPost Centre to complete the tasks; and
3. Through drawing of numbered lots into ten teams of two (one per gender), disregarding initial teams, these contestants must portray a two-minute simulated emotional scene in front of the aforementioned judges; the task was filmed in one of three colored rooms located at ArtSafe, with each room changing after the third and seventh scene.

Eight contestants were eliminated after the episode. The summary for each of the contestant's tasks (in order of appearance) and the final results (weighted percentages of scores in parenthesis) were:

Act	Task 1 (30%)		Task 2 (35%)		Task 3 (35%)			Result
	Order	Task	Order	Task	Room	Order	Task
Amy Ang	1	Horse	7	Ask a female to dance together, and ask the female to share about her first dance	Black	9	Disgust	Advanced
Gladys Bay	1	Horse	9	Find a male to do a hairstylist by a female contestant, then ask the male to share about his favorite haircut	Blue	6	Sorrow	Advanced
Tiffany Ho	1	Horse	3	Interview a customer on their favorite food	Red	2	Joy	Advanced
Koh Boon Wun	1	Horse	5	Interview a couple under 40s on their strengths and weaknesses	Red	3	Embarrassment	Eliminated
Lee Ting Xuan	2	Porcelain	6	Teach a student three relaxation exercises	Black	10	Envy	Eliminated
Ler Ka Ying	2	Porcelain	10	Find a person with a height over 170cm to share a trendy product	Blue	5	Disappointment	Advanced
Gladys Ng	2	Porcelain	2	Interview with a children under 10 years old about their favorite animal	Black	8	Fearful	Advanced
Sufeia Azura Sunir	2	Porcelain	4	Ask people to pose the alphabets of ACT	Blue	4	Admiration	Eliminated
Alina Tan	1	Horse	1	Take a photo with a person with big eyes	Blue	7	Distraught	Eliminated
June Tan	2	Porcelain	8	Interview with a person carrying a backpack and ask to take one item as a travel essential	Red	1	Furious	Advanced
Chua Seng Jin	1	Horse	1	Take a photo with a person with big eyes	Red	2	Joy	Advanced
Jona Chung	1	Horse	5	Interview a couple under 40s on their strengths and weaknesses	Blue	4	Admiration	Advanced
Heng Jee Kuan	2	Porcelain	2	Interview with a children under 10 years old about their favorite animal	Blue	7	Distraught	Eliminated
Jadon Lim	1	Horse	3	Interview a customer on their favorite food	Black	9	Disgust	Advanced
Mitchell Lim	1	Horse	9	Find a male to do a hairstylist by a female contestant, then ask the male to share about his favorite haircut	Blue	5	Disappointment	Eliminated
Christopher Ng	2	Porcelain	10	Find a person with a height over 170cm to share a trendy product	Red	3	Embarrassment	Eliminated
Marcus Sim	2	Porcelain	6	Teach a student three relaxation exercises	Black	10	Envy	Advanced
Tan Zi Sheng	1	Horse	7	Ask a female to dance together, and ask the female to share about her first dance	Blue	6	Sorrow	Advanced
Gino Wong	2	Porcelain	4	Ask people to pose the alphabets of ACT	Black	8	Fearful	Eliminated
Clement Yeo	2	Porcelain	8	Interview with a person carrying a backpack and ask to take one item as a travel essential	Red	1	Furious	Advanced

Final

Episode 4: The Prelude to Finale - 终极冲刺 (10 November)

In the pre-finale episode, through the one-minute aptitude tests which involve script reprisals of drama serial scenes, both Qi and Yeo handpicked six contestants to serve as their respective mentors for the final and which films they will partake in the final. The episode also shows behind-the-scenes footage of the short films and supporters from each of the finalists. ^{[21] [22]}

Episode 5: The Final Battle - 决赛之夜 (24 November)

Unlike the first four episodes, the final is live broadcast and no closed captioning is provided (except for the Drama segment). ^[23] The guest judges for the finale were Raymond Lam, Christopher Lee and Sandra Ng. The guest performers for the finale were Desmond Ng performing the theme song of "飞高梦远" (backed a live band), and Tasha Low performing her single "Everything You Wanted". ^{[24] [25]}

Rounds 1 and 2: X-Factor and Dance skit

For these two rounds, contestants performed their own expertise and one dance skit. The X-Factor segment and Dance skit carries 25% and 15% weightage towards the final scores respectively.

Act	X-Factor		Dance skit
	Order	Description	Order	Description
Gladys Bay	1	Performed square dancing	1	Performed a "city of lights"-themed dance
Ler Ka Ying	2	Performed a pipa rendition of "十面埋伏"
Tiffany Ho	4	Performed a fan dance
Marcus Sim	7	Performed breakdancing
Jona Chung	8	Performed parkour
Tan Zi Sheng	9	Performed basketball stunts
June Tan	3	Performed a piano piece of "圆舞曲"	2	Performed a carnival-themed dance
Amy Ang	5	Performed a Chinese play
Gladys Ng	6	Performed a Thai traditional folk dance
Jadon Lim	10	Performed an erhu rendition of "赛马"
Chua Seng Jin	11	Performed callanetics
Clement Yeo	12	Performed Taiwanese opera of "状元楼"

Round 3: Eloquence Round

Round three carries a 30% score towards the final score. In this round, contestants drew lots on questions issued by each celebrity (acting as respective characters in selected scenes). Contestants have a specific amount of time to present their answers for the scenarios. ^[26]

Act	Order	Celebrity	Selected scene	Eloquence Question
Ler Ka Ying	1	Yao Wenlong	The Little Nyonya	You are posting vacation image on social media; your friend responded "is that cool?", and how do you react?
Marcus Sim	2	Richie Koh	Cash on Delivery	Your friend borrowed your money but did not return since. How would you respond from this?
Gladys Bay	3	Kym Ng	Till the End	You are on leave and taking a plane flight, and you noticed your company boss in the same flight. Would you pretend not to watch or meet up?
Tan Zi Sheng	4	Hong Ling	Unforgivable	You received an unsophisticated phone call from someone claiming it was your long-lost friend. How do you react?
Tiffany Ho	5	Brandon Wong	Joys of Life	You met your celebrity inside a toilet; after a moment of admiration, what do you do?
Jona Chung	6	Carrie Wong	A Quest to Heal	You are on a date and you accidentally hang up the phone call while making a confession. What can you do from this?
Jadon Lim	7	Zhang Zetong	All That Glitters	You, as a host, are interviewing an actor who doesn't speak often; how do you break the ice?
Gladys Ng	8	Yao Wenlong	The Little Nyonya	You met your friend you haven't see for a long time, and your friend forgot your name. Do you react politely or act negatively?
Clement Yeo	9	Zhu Zheliang	Star Search	You are in a student gathering and you noticed someone you dislike entering the party; do you stay or leave the place?
Amy Ang	10	Desmond Tan	A Song to Remember	You noticed your best friend your other half is a superior. Do you reveal your own romance or keep it secret?
Chua Seng Jin	11	Desmond Tan	A Song to Remember	You noticed your friend is spreading negative words inside a gym. Do you confront them or pretend to do nothing?
June Tan	12	Kym Ng	The Sheng Siong Show	Your mother noticed her favorite shirt is missing, and you noticed you accidentally discarded it. How do you react?

Round 4: Short film

This round carries a 30% score towards the final score. In the final round, the 12 finalists were divided into two groups to participate in either one of two short films. ^{[27] [28]}

Acting Description
Order	Drama	Mentor	Director	Guest Actor	Cast
1	Theatre Of Life (人生剧场)	Yeo Yann Yann	Cho Jun Ming	Lina Ng	Amy Ang, Gladys Bay, Tiffany Ho, Marcus Sim, Tan Zi Sheng and Clement Yeo
2	Talent Theatre (才华剧场)	Qi Yuwu	Jun Chong	Andie Chen	Chua Seng Jin, Jona Chung, Ler Ka Ying, Jadon Lim, Gladys Ng and June Tan

Overall result

Award	Result
Fifth place	Marcus Sim 沈伟洋
Fourth place	Chua Seng Jin 蔡承峻
Third place	Jona Chung 仲伟杰
Runner-up	Gladys Bay 马䲰娗
Winner	Tiffany Ho 何睿烔

References

1. "Star Search 2024 - Telecast Details". Mediacorp. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
2. "Star Search is back!!! 如果你也有像品隽那么好看的朋友，赶快在留言区 @ 他！！🫰✨ ➡️ Get the latest updates on #StarSearch2024 here #才华横溢出新秀2024... !!! By Mediacorp YES 933Facebook". Facebook . Retrieved 29 June 2024.
3. "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
4. "《才华横溢出新秀》重磅回归！7月展开3轮公开海选". 8world Entertainment Lifestyle. 29 June 2024. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
5. "《不正经PODCAST》Ep 100：时隔五年，《才华横溢出新秀2024》重磅回归！新加坡能否再现演艺奇才？". 8world Entertainment Lifestyle. 26 June 2024. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
6. "Star Search 2024 - Events". Mediacorp. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
7. "Star Search 2024 - Register". Mediacorp. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
8. "Star Search 2024's top 20 will attend masterclasses by celebrities like Guo Liang and Dennis Chew". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
9. 洪亿隽, 文 (13 September 2024). "《才华横溢出新秀2024》20强闪耀亮相！". 8world Entertainment Lifestyle. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
10. "Star Search 2024 - Contestants". Mediacorp. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
11. "Star Search 2024: The Top 20 contestants include a breakdancing couple and a content creator". CNA Lifestyle.
12. "Star Search 2024 - Top 20 Profiles - mewatch" . Retrieved 20 October 2024.
13. "The Search for Stars | Star Search 2024 EP1". YouTube . 8 October 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
14. "Star Search 2024 - The Search For Stars - mewatch". meWatch. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
15. "The Making of a Star | Star Search 2024 EP2". YouTube . 8 October 2024. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
16. "Star Search 2024 - The Making Of A Star - mewatch" . Retrieved 27 October 2024.
17. "Star Search's Top 20 Are The Stars Of Shopee's 11.11 Ad". 8days. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
18. "It's the 11.11 Big Sale!". YouTube . 28 October 2024. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
19. "The Knockout | Star Search 2024 EP3". YouTube . 8 October 2024. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
20. "Ep 3 Star Search 2024 - The Knockout - mewatch" . Retrieved 3 November 2024.
21. "The Prelude to Finale | Star Search 2024 EP4". 8 October 2024. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
22. "Ep 4 Star Search 2024 - The Prelude To Finale - mewatch" . Retrieved 10 November 2024.
23. "The Final Battle | Star Seach 2024 EP5". 8 October 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
24. "吴君如林峯李铭顺担任"才华"决赛评审". Zaobao. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
25. "吴君如、林峰、李铭顺将担任《才华横溢出新秀2024》大决赛评审！". vibes by 8world. 11 November 2024. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
26. "Star Search 2024: Actor Christopher Lee, Hong Kong stars Sandra Ng and Raymond Lam unveiled as judges". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
27. 洪亿隽, 文 (11 April 2024). "《才华横溢出新秀2024》决赛12强名单出炉！". 8world Entertainment Lifestyle. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
28. "Star Search 2024: Top 12 contestants to act with Lina Ng, Andie Chen in short films to be screened during grand finale". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 4 November 2024.

External links

• Official Website
• MeWatch Microsite