Here For Xiao Zhan

Every XFX knows that Xiao Zhan first entered the entertainment industry by participating in the idol competition reality show, X-Fire. But do you know about the training camp and all the elimination rounds he had to overcome to get on the show?

To give a brief overview, X-Fire casting directors searched all over the world, both domestically in China and abroad, for top candidates to compete for debut spots. After several rounds of selection from more than 40,000 applicants, 16 trainees were chosen to compete on the show.

The search began in April 2015 and was divided into several regions—Xiao Zhan was part of the southwest region. The search methods mainly fell into two categories: either by recommendation or through university searches.

Recommendations could be self-recommendations or referrals by others. For self-recommendations, candidates had to provide an introduction and performance video, which would be reviewed by the director in charge of selecting candidates. Those who were recommended by others were typically nominated by industry professionals. As far as we know, Yan XuJia and Guo Zifan, both with experience as child stars, were recommended by the industry.

As for the university search, the program team employed 40 full-time editors and directors, along with several part-time editors, who traveled to universities across the country for three months. “The members of the online team targeted forum websites like Tianya, Maopu, Weibo, and Renren.com, using more than a dozen keywords such as ‘school grass’ and ‘campus singers’ to search repeatedly,” said Zhao Hui. “The program team also collaborated with foreign Chinese TV and radio stations, including BBS, where some international students gathered, and even searched Facebook and Twitter to find people.”

The university search was how they found Xiao Zhan. On May 5, 2015, X-Fire began its search in major colleges and universities in the southwest region. In June, Chongqing Technology and Business University was searched. Thanks to a teacher remembering Xiao Zhan’s phone number, the teacher provided his contact information to the casting director.

There is also an interesting story about the process of selecting Xiao Zhan. Because Xiao Zhan resembled a staff member, the director team thought it would be amusing for Xiao Zhan and the staff member to stand together, looking like twins. It was also a pleasant surprise that Xiao Zhan’s overall character was excellent and that he was very polite to everyone.

In the end, the X-Fire program team collected more than 10,000 short videos.

After the search concluded, each region conducted several rounds of preliminary interviews and selected the top 120 candidates. On July 2, 2015, the 120 competitors gathered in Changsha for the final trainee selection, which consisted of two rounds: 120 entered, 50 selected; 50 entered, 26 selected. On July 5, 2015, the final selection results were announced, and 26 candidates were chosen.

After the results were announced, Xiao Zhan returned to Chongqing and had a pleasant dinner with his friends.

On July 18, 2015, he, along with the other 26 candidates, flew to Beijing and entered the IDG training camp.

There were three teams training the boys: dance teacher Kenn’s training school, the program director group, and teachers from SM Entertainment in Korea. The boys worked in the training camp for more than 10 hours a day, analyzing each individual, writing reports, holding meetings, making training plans based on each boy’s progress and characteristics, and discovering the unique charm of each person. During this period, many test sessions were also set up: three days for a small test and five days for a big test, with further training adjustments made according to the test results. “80% of them failed in three days. Except for a few boys who could dance, none of them had the habit of exercising or working out, which shocked me. It turns out that the 90s generation doesn’t weight train or exercise!” Kenn concluded. “So, three days before the training started, the boys collapsed: muscle strain, knee effusion, muscle soreness, not adapting to the weather in Beijing, headaches, and fevers, etc.”

During this time, Xiao Zhan’s work ethic and warm character really left a deep impression on many of the teachers. Kenn, his former dance teacher, shared this about Xiao Zhan:

“His biggest impression on me was his hard work. In dance class, he was extremely serious, especially his persistence in fitness. Because he had no dance foundation, on the second day after the physical fitness class finished, his knees swelled up. On day 5, he wore a knee brace and continued. He doesn’t act like a spoiled child and never says, ‘Teacher, I can’t do it.’ Not until a staff member noticed his face had turned pale and asked him what was wrong did he admit that his feet hurt. Then we took him to see a doctor. His character is warm, but his willpower and fighting spirit are very strong.”

— Kenn

Below, the first picture is from the Changsha final trainee selection, where the top 26 were selected to go to Beijing and enter the IDG training camp. Xiao Zhan was competitor #14. The last picture in the slideshow is of the final 16 trainees who made it onto the X-Fire show.

During the three months of secret training in the camp, more people were eliminated. Some of them failed the selection and were transferred to other departments of the company (mostly the film and television departments). Xiao Zhan signed a trainee contract. At the end of September 2015, the final assessment was conducted.

The final 16 contestants were determined, with Xiao Zhan being one of them, to appear on the X-Fire show. On October 21, 2015, X-Fire began recording. The following are testimonials and articles from some of the staff and associates of the X-Fire show: