If young men and women weren’t already obsessed with supermodels, reality television inspired by the runway has done it! During our initial interview process, I regularly ask aspiring models why they want to pursue such a demanding career. The answer I hear more often than not is, “Because people [in most cases, it’s Aunt Lula] tell me I’m tall and I should model.” It’s an answer, but it’s not the most clearly defined assessment.
Runway models are by trade a breed set apart. Being set apart doesn’t make them better or worse than any other kind of model, but it does make them unique. Good thing they are unique, since runway work is less than 10% of the modeling industry! There are only a hand-full of jobs for only a hand-full of models – it makes sense.
So Aunt Bertha told you that you were tall or handsome “like a model”. If your Aunt Bertha is Cindy Crawford or Alec Wek, you just might be in luck. Listening to unqualified family and friends dictate a challenging career path for you, however, is unwise. Height is important, yes, but it is not the singular physical characteristic of a successful runway model.
Runway models are typically 5’8” to 6’0”. They have symmetrical features (jaw line, nose, eyes, cheeks, lips, smile, brows, etc). Their skin is flawless. They naturally wear a size 2. [Starving ones self to get that skinny does bad things to your health that becomes evident in skin, teeth, eyes, and energy levels.] They have great muscle tone from head to toe and the personality and professionalism to make a day on set with them exhilarating!
How many of those sentences can you check off after looking in the mirror? If you checked all of them, let me know because we need to get you to a runway to take advantage of your opportunities before it’s too late!
If there were one or more that you couldn’t honestly say you possess, the good news is that there is still 90% of the modeling industry out there just for you!
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