ELLE’s 8 New Talent Fresh Face Finalists

ELLE’s 8 New Talent Fresh Face Finalists

Eight young beautiful and fresh faces have made it to the finals of the 2010 ELLE New Talent Fresh Face Search, being conducted in partnership with South Africa’s largest quality retailer Woolworths. ELLE magazine has invited the public to vote for their favourite new fresh face and assist ELLE in choosing South Africa’s New Fresh Face for 2010.

The eight finalists, announced on 28 October, are:

17 year old Alexandra Robertshaw from Johannesburg who describes herself as a little like a chameleon, as she is adaptable to any situation and can mould into any circumstance; 19 year old indie pop and rock music fan Alexa Corlett from Cape Town; 20 year old Thato Mabe who is currently doing a BCom Financial Management Degree at the University of Pretoria;  21 year old final year Industrial Psychology student at UNISA, Neo Thabisile Mofokeng from Johannesburg; 20 year old second year Medicine student at the University of Pretoria Sonja Wronski from Pretoria; 21 year old car fanatic Mary Anne Fourie from Hermanus, Cape Town; 21 year old fashion fanatic Sharleen Dziire from Johannesburg; and 18 year old Coco Chanel fan Gabrielle Pollock from Port Elizabeth.

Pride, optimism and a positive spirit are the building blocks of the ELLE spirit and from a list of over 87 girls from across the country, ELLE selected 12 for the semi-finals. The list has been narrowed down to eight. Part of the judging criteria consisted of a series of interviews that ELLE conducted with each of the 12 candidates to reduce the list to the current eight. The girls were each asked 20 questions which helped the judges determine their ability to hold a conversation comfortably, strength of character, rapport with the production crew and attitude towards taking criticism.

ELLE Fashion Director, Chris Viljoen says that, “The selection process has not been easy, as South Africa has some really talented young women. The challenge in the judging process is that we are not just looking for technical attributes of your typical model like height and facial features, we are also looking for someone who resonates with the optimism characteristics of the ELLE South Africa brand, a sexy, stylish, spirited and independent woman.

Viljoen says, “Although the technical beauty elements are important, in selecting the winner from the 8 finalists, our main focus will be on emotional intelligence attributes, one’s ability to interact with the camera, confidence and ability to converse comfortably.”

Shaheda Sayed, Head of Brand Communications for Clothing and Beauty at Woolworths says:  “This collaboration with ELLE Magazine forms part of Woolworths’ long-term Real People strategy. In addition, our involvement in the Fresh Face campaign supports our commitment to creating opportunities for South Africa’s young people who represent the future of our country. We want to celebrate and embrace the optimism, confidence, freshness and newness that they have to offer.”

“Furthermore, this opportunity presents the ideal platform for us to continue showing our commitment to the industry. Our aim is to establish long term relationships with ELLE Magazine in the talent search campaign, as the publication has shown true commitment to making a difference and creating real opportunities for South Africa’s youth,” says Sayed.

The winner  of the ELLE New Talent Fresh Face Search will get prizes to the value of up to R45 000 from various sponsors, including appearing in the Woolworths campaigns for winter and summer range of 2011, a wardrobe make over, make-up and a two-year contract with Boss Models,  who will network her to top international agencies. They will also receive a year’s subscription to Elle and be featured on the cover of the April 2011 issue of ELLE.

Editor of ELLE Magazine, Jackie Burger comments; “This is the first time in South Africa ELLE’s done the fresh face search and we want to see more girls come on board as this presents a perfect launching platform for their careers, where other girls would take two to three years to make it in the industry, this opportunity fast-tracks their careers.”

Burger notes that given the exposure all the girls will get, the industry will have a new pool of talent available to them, however there’s a need for more industry players to come on board in creating opportunities for young people in the fashion industry.

The final announcement of the winner will be made in due course. ELLE has done a photo shoot with the eight finalists and they will appear in the January 2011 issue of ELLE Magazine. The finalists will each walk away with a photography portfolio, hair, make-up and styling for the photo shoot will be done by ELLE’s team of expert make-up artists. Each finalist will also get wardrobe and make-up to the value of R3 000.

To vote and to view photos of the finalists visit the ELLE blog http://www.elle.co.za.

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