The X Factor Philippines is a Philippine reality music competition, adapted from the original UK series as part of The X Factor franchise, to find new singing talent in the Philippines. The show was hosted by KC Concepcion while the judging panel consists of Charice, Gary Valenciano, Pilita Corrales, and Martin Nievera. It was the first franchise to be adapted in Southeast Asia. KZ Tandingan was proclaimed the winner of the first season, of whom received a cash prize of 4 million pesos including a recording contract from Star Records, ABS-CBN's recording arm. Overview The series is part of The X Factor franchise and is based on a similar competition format in United Kingdom entitled The X Factor. Format Categories The show is primarily concerned with identifying singing talent, though appearance, personality, stage presence and dance routines are also an important element of many performances. Each judge is assigned one of four categories. For season one, these categories were: "Boys" (aged 16–25 males), "Girls" (aged 16–25 females), "Over 25s" (solo acts aged 25 and over), and "Groups" (group or duo acts aged 16 and above). Some groups were formed from soloists and other groups rejected after the audition process. Through the live shows, the judges act as mentors to their category, helping to decide song choices, styling and staging, while judging contestants from other categories. Stages There are five stages to The X Factor Philippines. First is the Producers' auditions, the stage where the producers decide who will sing in front of the judges and of the live audience. It is followed by the Judges' auditions, then the Bootcamp, the Judges' home visit, and the Live shows including the finale. Auditions A round of first auditions is held in front of producers months before the show is aired through "open" auditions that anyone (solo artists and vocal groups ages 16 and above) can attend. These auditions, held at various venues around the Philippines, attract very large crowds. The auditions themselves are not televised, but shots of crowds waving and "judges' cars" arriving are filmed and later spliced in with the televised auditions shot later in the year. After waiting at the venue for hours and filming more inserts of screaming and waving, candidates are given a brief audition by someone from the production team. Should they pass that producers' auditions (either for reasons of talent or for the potential of