Meet Models Becca Avill, Lucy Bale & Sophie Levine:

Lucy, Becca and Sophie gave me an inside look into what it was like to model for the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. Here’s the inside scoop!

1) What was it like to model at the Cannes Film Festival? What was the atmosphere like?

Lucy Bale: It was one of the best experiences. Everyone was excited to be there! Before every change, it was chaotic and mad. Everyone was yelling. But it all came together and was absolutely AMAZING when we got onto the catwalk. Before a show, I can be shy. But when I get onto the runway, I am a different person. Shout out to Jera, my modeling agency. Thank you!

 Becca Avill: It was chaotic, super busy and fun! We were booked every day that we were in Cannes. During the mornings we had castings and during the days we had rehearsals. I love doing catwalks because they are a lot more social and I get to meet other models.

Sophie Levine: It wasn’t the most organized but it was a lot of fun. When we were getting ready for a show, people were joking around and just having fun. The makeup artists and hair stylists were really nice. My hair was short for the shows so when I heard the words “slicked back” while they were talking about my hair, I was so nervous. It actually came out amazing!

2) Have you ever modeled for other international fashion shows? How was it different from your runway experience here?

Lucy: Yes, I have also modeled in the UK. Cannes is more structured. They pick their models beforehand. They know what they want. If you’re not what they’re looking for, you’re out. In the UK, it’s less structured. When you show up to a fitting you can change their mind and show them why you’re there. Also there were a lot more people working at the Cannes Film Festival.

 Becca: I started modeling internationally across France and London.  When I was in Cannes I was asked to stay and model for a few more days. I would say a major difference between my experience in France and in the U.K. would be the food. In the UK, it’s unheard of not to provide food and refreshments during a modeling event. In London, it’s important to watch over the models and give them food.

Sophie: Cannes was my first professional show… Though I have done student shows. In the student shows they’re always indecisive about what you’re wearing. They’ll have all the models try everything on before deciding who wears what. In the Cannes Film Festival, they were more decisive on what the models were wearing. They would give us something to wear and say wear this. I prefer Cannes. It was more relaxed.

3) What’s the coolest thing that happened behind the scenes? What was your most exciting moment?

Lucy: Being given the opportunity to do more shows. Designers would come in after a show and ask if we wanted to model for them. Yay! It was very self-uplifting… it was awesome!

 Becca: I met Leonardo DiCaprio! Oh and I met Fat Joe and Tiger at one of the places I went to. Cannes is a very good place for networking for international modeling agencies.

Sophie: Meeting everyone and especially the other models. Everyone was very friendly. The models took each other’s pictures backstage. It was cool how people recognized me after the show. They would say “you were on the catwalk!” It was also really nice to meet the designers. Some of the dresses were absolutely stunning.

4) What was the funniest thing that happened?

Lucy: All of the models were hungry and were trying to sneak out and buy croissants to feed everyone. I learned that next time I have to pack a lunch!

Becca: Going out at night directly after a catwalk – I made some fairly bold fashion choices on a few occasions.

Sophie: Walking around with my hair and makeup. The hair stylists were dancing behind the scenes while they were doing my hair! With no music!

5) What was it like to be backstage?

Lucy: Models would be half naked and the people working backstage would come up to us and help us change into our outfits.

Becca: I’ve done a lot of fashion shows and they’re always very fast paced and exciting. The only downside is that people do seem to forget you’re human and everyone and their mum wanders in while you’re changing.

Sophie: Everyone kept an eye out when the models were changing. The media would come behind the stage and just start filming even if models were changing in the background. I liked how all the models would stand in front of the camera so that the other models that were changing could have some privacy.

I’d like to thank Becca Avill, Lucy Bale  & Sophie Levine for giving me their time to interviewing them. I’d also like to thank  Lionel Madiou for his beautiful pictures. Thank you!

-Jenny A.