The finale of A+E Networks Asia’s MasterChef Asia, airs on Thursday, 10 December, bringing to an end – for now – the Asian network’s biggest, boldest bet on local content. There’s no confirmation yet on season two.
The first Asia version of the MasterChef format airs Thursdays at 9pm on female-focused entertainment channel, Lifetime. The series features 15 aspiring chefs from China, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore.
The series, thought to have cost about US$3 million, ran for 15 episodes (60 mins/90 mins). Judges are Susur Lee, the “Father of Fusion” from Hong Kong; 3-Michelin starred chef Bruno Ménard; and Singapore-born, Audra Morrice, a MasterChef Australia finalist.
Building the set and equipping the kitchen and language difference during casting were among the greatest production challenges, says Michele Schofield, A+E Networks Asia’s senior vice president, programming and production.
The local version was modelled after the style and tone of MasterChef Australia. “We wanted a sense of aspiration and a passion for cooking,” Schofield says, adding: “It was never about contestants aiming to disadvantage their fellow contestants (which you see in the U.S. version). We saw camaraderie develop very quickly among our contestants, which was wonderful to see.”
Schofield was surprised to see how many applicants preferred cooking western food to Asian food during casting. “Their styles were rooted in classic French techniques,” she says.
She also noticed that the ‘younger’ generation cooks much more as a hobby and passion than as a necessity to make dinner each night. “This meant they have studied a lot of the great chefs and taught themselves the foundations of French cuisine. I guess I wasn’t expecting this, going into casting. Meanwhile, other contestants brought to the MasterChef competition, flavours unique to their home country and tried to elevate the dish. It was great to see the diversity of cooks and cuisine,” says Schofield.
Prizes include the winner’s own cookbook, US$50,000 cash, US$10,000 worth of leisure experiences in Singapore, US$15,000 of home appliances and a paid...
The finale of A+E Networks Asia’s MasterChef Asia, airs on Thursday, 10 December, bringing to an end – for now – the Asian network’s biggest, boldest bet on local content. There’s no confirmation yet on season two.
The first Asia version of the MasterChef format airs Thursdays at 9pm on female-focused entertainment channel, Lifetime. The series features 15 aspiring chefs from China, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore.
The series, thought to have cost about US$3 million, ran for 15 episodes (60 mins/90 mins). Judges are Susur Lee, the “Father of Fusion” from Hong Kong; 3-Michelin starred chef Bruno Ménard; and Singapore-born, Audra Morrice, a MasterChef Australia finalist.
Building the set and equipping the kitchen and language difference during casting were among the greatest production challenges, says Michele Schofield, A+E Networks Asia’s senior vice president, programming and production.
The local version was modelled after the style and tone of MasterChef Australia. “We wanted a sense of aspiration and a passion for cooking,” Schofield says, adding: “It was never about contestants aiming to disadvantage their fellow contestants (which you see in the U.S. version). We saw camaraderie develop very quickly among our contestants, which was wonderful to see.”
Schofield was surprised to see how many applicants preferred cooking western food to Asian food during casting. “Their styles were rooted in classic French techniques,” she says.
She also noticed that the ‘younger’ generation cooks much more as a hobby and passion than as a necessity to make dinner each night. “This meant they have studied a lot of the great chefs and taught themselves the foundations of French cuisine. I guess I wasn’t expecting this, going into casting. Meanwhile, other contestants brought to the MasterChef competition, flavours unique to their home country and tried to elevate the dish. It was great to see the diversity of cooks and cuisine,” says Schofield.
Prizes include the winner’s own cookbook, US$50,000 cash, US$10,000 worth of leisure experiences in Singapore, US$15,000 of home appliances and a paid internship.
MasterChef Asia set new Lifetime ratings records for its premiere episode on 3 September. The multi-million dollar bet on original production paid off best in the Philippines, where audiences were 850% higher than the year-to-date prime-time channel average. Audiences in Singapore were 379% up, Malaysia came in at 350% up and Thailand increased 170%.*
MasterChef Asia was executive produced by Endemol Shine Asia’s Sharon Pereira and David McDonald (MasterChef Australia) with a crew of about 120 people in Singapore.
This article first appeared in ContentAsia eNewsletter 220, published on 2 November 2015.