New Reality Show Seeks Fashion Designers
Reality television will turn to the fashion industry this fall. Miramax Television, the company behind “Project Greenlight,” is teaming up with the Bravo network and Elle magazine to create an exciting new series called “Project Runway.”
The 10-week series, which will debut on Bravo this fall, is a dream opportunity for an aspiring designer to launch his or her career. The reality television series will follow 12 upand- coming designers who will compete in a weekly elimination-style competition similar to NBC’s “The Apprentice.”
Supermodel Heidi Klum will host the show and head a panel of judges made up of fashion editors, photographers, stylists and designers. Contestants will be judged on weekly design challenges, such as making an Oscar-worthy gown or a fashionable New York Police Department uniform. One contestant will be eliminated each week, and the final three contestants will face off on the runway during New York Fashion Week in February 2005. The winner’s collection will appear in Elle magazine in a full fashion spread photographed by Gilles Bensimon, Elle’s publication director.
Casting calls will be held in Los Angeles on June 15, Chicago on June 19, New York June 21–22 and Miami on June 25. Each potential contestant should bring a portfolio of sketches or photographs of at least five looks and be prepared to present two to four actual men’s or women’s designs to the panel of judges. For more information, go to www.bravotv.com.
—N. Jayne Seward
