Sims Next Top Male Model (cycle 8)

The eighth cycle of Sims' Next Top Male Model featured a cast of twelve model hopefuls, half of which being past contestants, and the other half being relatives of theirs.

Episode 1
The six pairs of models all meet in New York City and arrive at a luxurious apartment complex. Later, they meet Maicle who tells them that they will be staying in the penthouse suite for the duration of the competition. They explore their massive room and find that there are two bedrooms: one for returning models and one for new models, and Emanuel especially is sad about not being able to room with Max. Fellow new model Jirayu comforts him in broken English and offers to be his friend, which Emanuel kindly accepts. Amongst the returning models, Houshuai feels awkward being the one who left soonest out of them all, and Anu asks if maybe he should go room with the new models instead, aggravating Houshuai. Houshuai's older brother Wangqi overhears this and ends up losing his temper and yells at Anu. Anu's brother Souvanna watches, but does not do anything, as he states in a confessional he just found it funny seeing Anu yelled at, claiming he is always seen as the most angelic child out of his siblings at home.

The next day, the models have a self-styled family portrait inspired photo shoot, and at the end of the day Maicle announces there will be no elimination that week.

Episode 2
Back at their penthouse, the conflict between the Wang brothers and Anu continues as Anu accuses Houshuai of stealing his food. Again, Wangqi gets very angry with Anu and they begin yelling at one another. At the same time, Emanuel and Gabriel get to know each other better and bond over being born the same year.

The next day, the models are split up into four teams, each representing a different Korean pop group. At panel, the groups as a whole are ranked, then the models ranked within each group. Team EXO wins for capturing the right emotion and capturing the essence of EXO, and individually, Emanuel is determined the best, with Team SHINee right behind. Team Boys Republic is ranked third, thanks to Gabriel, according to Maicle, leaving Team VIXX, consisting of returning models. François and Max find themselves in the bottom for underwhelming performances, but it is Max who didn't understand the brief, and has to go home, to his brother's despair.
 * First call-out: Emanuel Meier
 * Bottom two: François Émile & Max Meier
 * Eliminated: Max Meier

Episode 3
Sad losing his brother so soon, Emanuel locks himself into the bathroom for some time alone, which annoys Souvanna, who tells him to stop "whining because Max sucked anyway". Emanuel gets even more sad that he would say that about his brother. Gabriel overhears and gets frustrated at Souvanna, asking him if it's a Laotian thing being a douche. Anu pops out of nowhere asking him if it's a French thing being ugly

The models have a photo shoot wearing luxurious all-black clothes. At panel, Emanuel's effortless photo pleasantly surprises the judges, and he wins best photo of the week again, with Souvanna right behind him again, too. Henry and Jirayu land in the bottom two for their stiff and awkward photos, and Maicle saves Henry as he states he sees more potential in him.
 * First call-out: Emanuel Meier
 * Bottom two: Henry Sutton-Lémieux & Jirayu Songprawati
 * Eliminated: Jirayu Songprawati

Episode 4
The models had a surprise photo shoot with Maicle on their balcony, which was a test cover shoot for L'Officiel Hommes. At panel, Emanuel yet again stood out of the bunch and received the first call-out for the third week in a row. Cousins Connor and Henry landed in the bottom two for overall underwhelming performances throughout the entire competition, but Connor was saved for his potential shown in cycle 6.
 * First call-out: Emanuel Meier
 * Bottom two: Connor Brzezicki & Henry Sutton-Lémieux
 * Eliminated: Henry Sutton-Lémieux

Episode 5
The morning after elimination, Maicle comes to the penthouse and surprises the models with plane tickets to a new location. Once they are allowed to look at them, they find out they're going to Tunis, and will be staying there for the next two weeks.

In Tunis, they have a photo shoot in groups in a bathhouse.

At panel, Anu wins best photo, breaking Emanuel's streak, whereas François and Houshuai find themselves in the bottom two. In the end, François has to leave the competition for failing to live up to his past performance.
 * First call-out: Anu Phoumavanh
 * Bottom two: François Émile & Wang Houshuai
 * Eliminated: François Émile

Episode 6
Their second and last week in Tunis, the models head out in the desert modelling as urban nomads. At panel, Emanuel gets back on track as he receives the first call-out yet again, for the fourth time. Houshuai also makes a big improvement as he places second, with Souvanna right behind. Loïc and Wangqi find themselves in the bottom two, and Loïc is saved for making and overall bigger impact.
 * First call-out: Emanuel Meier
 * Bottom two: Loïc Songprawati & Wang Wangqi
 * Eliminated: Wang Wangqi

Episode 7
The models go to the airport in Tunis, expecting to head back to New York City, but Maicle announces their trip does not end there, as they will be going to Spain for the remainder of the competition. The boys fly to Málaga and move into a rather small hotel.

The next day, they head to the old Alcazaba castle where they have a prestigious photo shoot dressed in expensive designer suits. At panel, Gabriel's photo impresses, but it is Souvanna whose photo impresses even more, earning him best photo. To everyone's surprise, Emanuel barely escapes the bottom two, in which Anu and Houshuai find themselves. In the end, Houshuai is the one who must pack his bags for being too inconsistent.
 * First call-out: Souvanna Phoumsavanh
 * Bottom two: Anu Phoumsavanh & Wang Houshuai
 * Eliminated: Wang Houshuai

Episode 8
The models go to a coastal town in Catalonia where they get some time to relax.. or so they think! Upon arriving at the hotel, they go on a walk with Maicle to ancient Greek ruins not far away. Well there, they are greeted with the styling crew and find out they're having a photo shoot.

At panel, Emanuel redeems himself, but it is Connor who finally makes his comeback from cycle 6 as he wins best photo. Anu and Loïc are left at the bottom of the ladder, and it is Anu who is given another chance for making a bigger impact, sending Loïc home.
 * First call-out: Connor Brzezicki
 * Bottom two: Anu Phoumsavanh & Loïc Songprawati
 * Eliminated: Loïc Songprawati

Episode 9
The top five head to their next destination of Barcelona, where they have a swimwear photo shoot. At panel, Emanuel keeps building onto his record by winning his fifth best photo of the season, with the previous record being three. Gabriel and Souvanna on the other hand underperform, but in the end it is concluded neither performed poorly enough to be eliminated, and all five models move on to the next round.
 * First call-out: Emanuel Meier
 * Bottom two: Gabriel Émile & Souvanna Phoumsavanh
 * Eliminated: No one

Episode 10
The guys go sightseeing in a photo shoot portraying chic tourists. At panel, Souvanna makes his comeback winning his second best photo, with Gabriel just barely missing out on it yet again. Connor and Emanuel land in the bottom two, and Connor is eliminated for underperforming throughout the entire competition.
 * First call-out: Souvanna Phoumsavanh
 * Bottom two: Connor Brzezicki & Emanuel Meier
 * Eliminated: Connor Brzezicki

Episode 11
The boys have their first shoot for a real client - Guess. Everyone delivers impressive results, but it is Gabriel who finally stands out enough to earn him a first call-out for his confidence and manly edge in his photo. With an equally strong photo, Souvanna is called second. Anu and Emanuel therefore remain as the bottom two. In the end, Emanuel's work is deemed stronger and Anu must go home.
 * First call-out: Gabriel Émile
 * Bottom two: Anu Phoumsavanh & Emanuel Meier
 * Eliminated: Anu Phoumsavanh

Episode 12
The guys have their last and most important photo shoot of the season: the L'Officiel Hommes covers. After the photo shoot, a representative of the magazine reveals that Gabriel's cover impressed the least, resulting in him being eliminated on the spot. The final two face the judges. The judges question whether Emanuel can be consistent and if he will lose confidence being in the industry. They then question whether Souvanna looks more like a model or a pop idol. In the end, for having a slightly better cover, and an overall impressive run in the competition, it is the 16-year old Israeli Emanuel Meier who is crowned the winner of the eighth season of Sims' Next Top Model.
 * Eliminated: Gabriel Émile
 * Top two: Emanuel Meier & Souvanna Phoumsavanh
 * Sims' Next Top Male Model: Emanuel Meier

Contestants
(information stated is correct at time of contest)

Call-out order

 * The contestant was eliminated from the competition.
 * The contestant was part of a non-elimination bottom two.
 * The contestant won Sims' Next Top Male Model.


 * Episode 1 did not feature an elimination.
 * In episode 2, each group was called out collectively. The models were then ranked within each group.
 * Episode 9 featured a non-elimination bottom two.

Photo shoot guide

 * Episode 1 photo shoot: Family portraits
 * Episode 2 photo shoot: K-Pop Idol Groups
 * Episode 3 photo shoot: Men in Black
 * Episode 4 photo shoot: L'Officiel Hommes Cover Tries
 * Episode 5 photo shoot: Tunis bathhouse
 * Episode 6 photo shoot: Urban nomads
 * Episode 7 photo shoot: Designer suits in Alcazaba
 * Episode 8 photo shoot: Empúries ruins
 * Episode 9 photo shoot: Designer swimwear
 * Episode 10 photo shoot: Barcelona sightseeing
 * Episode 11 photo shoot: Guess ads
 * Episode 12 photo shoot: L'Officiel Hommes Germany Covers