For lots of people, working in the fashion industry would be their ideal career. But are reality TV programmes deluding audiences into thinking that a career in this fickle industry is easy to achieve and maintain?
There are numerous television programmes that follow people who are trying to get into the modelling and fashion industries. It could be to become a designer in Project Runway, to become fashion editor of ELLE in Stylista or to become a model in a Next Top Model series.
It has been revealed that Vogue has also been making a series to be shown on their website following three models as they work at the major fashion weeks. This comes as a surprise after American Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour made a point of how these programmes are encouraging people into the industry because it’s the in thing, and not because they believe in it.
“Don’t go too fast,” Anna Wintour advises. “Because of reality television, everyone imagines they can just be a fashion designer, photographer, or model. That’s not the way things go. Learn your craft.”
In terms of modelling careers, Damian O’Connor, Managing Director of modelling agency, Models Direct agrees. Modelling can be a hard industry to get into and it helps to do your research and gain as much experience as possible to be successful.
O’Connor suggests that the media is a great place to start when looking into building a career. “It’s fairly easy to find interviews and articles about the world’s leading models in the media, especially if you look online,” Damian says. “They’re a great source of advice and tips on becoming a model and sustaining your modelling career over the long term.”
Luckily, at Models Direct, you don’t need experience of high fashion modelling to find work. They deal with clients looking for models of all shapes, sizes and ethnicities that reflect today’s society.