The modeling industry has changed quite a bit since I was young. Bones, blonde hair and pale skin was the name of the game in the 90’s and 2000’s. And although the Y2K fashion trend is in full swing right now, the old beauty standards are not. Never did I think I could be signed to a modeling agency at 28 years old with momentum picking up at 30. The inclusivity movement has its moments of feeling contrived and forced but overall the landscape is finally allowing indigenous faces, different ages, all body types and disabled people.
Since the pandemic, the modeling and casting industry has changed drastically. Actors used to shuffle in the door to audition at their local casting agencies and models used to strut their stuff with portfolio book in hand and introduce themselves. But every industry fast-forwarded 10 years in terms of our dependence on technology and models, actors and casting agencies are no exception. Almost all submissions for anything are done online now.
I stepped into the scene in the middle of 2020. With nothing to do in my hometown in Oregon, I sat down at the computer and submitted myself to every agency I could find in Oregon and California. One responded and I was in. The point is not how amazing I am, the point is what seems like a profession reserved to the young and beautiful is actually more dynamic and open than the average person would think. And the truth is, many commercials and modern clothing companies are aimed at the “average person” because 15-year-old anorexic runway models are not the only people participating in American consumerism.
If you’re in your 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and you have a knack for being on camera. Don’t let the old ways of thinking about the industry discourage you. But make sure you find the right agency and genre of modeling that fits you best.
Here’s 5 types of modeling that isn’t your first idea of modeling:
Plus Size / Curve modeling
Classic Faces (older age groups)
Parts Modeling (hands, hair, feet, etc.)
Fit Modeling (fitting clothes on a live person instead of a mannequin)
Commercial Acting / Modeling (real people)
Hello my name is Sophia Phoenix, I’m a lover of all things fashion from the past, present and future. From Gucci to Goodwill I’ll be writing about whatever catches my attention! Follow here for more blogs if this sort of thing is up your alley (or in your closet.)
