HOW does one make it in the international modelling scene?
Clint Holton P. Potestas interviews a young lady who took the plunge and made it.
THOUGHT models abroad were catty and snobbish,” says Loise Angelique Tan about her first impression on her international colleagues, and on her first booking as a walking hair mannequin in Hollywood. She then takes it back, saying, “I really had a great time bonding with them.”
For someone like Loise, who was crowned Miss Cebu 2007, to stand out in a crowd of 300 hopefuls – being the only Filipino among the 20 ladies who passed the screening – is not actually beginner’s luck.
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In the Philippines alone, she was handpicked to endorse MyGold, a jewelry line that carries her image on its advertisement campaign nationwide, a modeling career under AD Models Homme et Femme in Cebu, and an upcoming stint on cable television. In the
United States, Hair Model Express provides the career path she’s destined to follow.
But whatever you call her breakthrough, it is sheer determination that accelerated her to the top. “I was staying in Los Angeles for a couple of months late last year when I saw an ad looking for hair runway models. I decided to try my luck and applied for a slot,” she recalls the October 2009 experience.
“I went to the casting (call) without any doubt, so I could experience how it was like to apply for a show in the US.
When I arrived at the venue, I was stunned to see over 300 girls also trying to join the event, including models from Ford, Wilhelmina, and L.A Models Management. There was even a finalist of America’s Next Top Model,” continues the 24-year-old registered nurse who graduated from Velez College.
Held at the Avalon Theater in Hollywood, Future Vision Unplugged was the biggest runway show organized by Proctor and Gamble that featured the latest hair trends from Wella and Sebastian. She had the opportunity to collaborate with stylist Nick Arrojo, the master colorist who tutored Queer Eye for the Straight Guy’s grooming guru, Kyan Douglas, and has treated the hair of famous Victoria’s Secret “angels.”
How about this: Kim Vo, one of the judges of Sheer Genius, a reality show for stylists on Bravo television, asked her to grace one of his photo shoots.
“Most of the girls who tried out were Caucasians. Only a few were Asians. The staff said they wanted my look since it was different from the usual models they had.
In fact, they had a hard time identifying my nationality. I didn’t have enough time for preparation, but my experiences in modeling here in Cebu helped me prepare for the casting and the show itself,” she shares.
“When I told my co-models I have been modeling in the Philippines for three years, one girl said, ‘Oh that’s why you know how to walk and pose! I wonder why you learn so fast’.”
Time is of the essence. In Hollywood, it is not enough to be punctual. “The casting was at 9 am. There were almost 50 girls who were not able to get inside the casting venue because they came in 9 am sharp, which was considered late by the organizers.
I was constantly reminded by my agency to come in early since arriving at the venue right on the dot is essentially late for them,” she narrates.
“Another thing is,” she further says, “I have learned to not allow yourself from getting intimidated by others, most especially if you think that you don’t belong to the group, because you might just have the unique look that the clients are looking for.”
“Even if you have attained several accomplishments, don’t let it get into your head.”
There she states the secret of fashion’s super stars who have sustained their post on top.
This woman here, poised, polished, and utterly composed, is a phenomenally influential force (and driver of merchandise) in terms of culture, fashion, style, and beauty for vast numbers of women in their 20s and up.
In terms of her own trade, she changed everything: She turned the twentieth-century Filipino iconic models on their heads, and blazed a trail of her own.
