Episode 25: Casting Couture: Inside the Model Call Process | Mastering the Production Series, Part 5

0:00 Hey, hey, hey, welcome back to another day with Marketing EdVenture with Jacqué. So we're rolling through this fashion show production series. Today represents the 5th part of an 11-part series. Let's get going. Today we're talking about a model call. Now you've gotten through determining who's going to do what role in the fashion show. You've gotten through the development of the fashion show theme. Now it's time to have this model call because we're ready to get the models selected, so we can start getting them fitted, and we can start practicing our choreography for the show. So let's go. This episode is gonna cover all things model call, including the layout, the framework for how I conducted a fashion show model call every year. So it's very detailed. I'm not gonna go into the details and intricacies of each little step, but I'm gonna give you an overview of how you can set up your model. Let's go.

1:26 You're listening to Marketing EdVenture, the hub for business, fashion, marketing, and other CTE educators who integrate marketing into the learning experience. I'm your host, Jacqué Walker. Each week, I'll cover marketing, education concepts, strategies, tips, trends, frameworks, and other information to equip you to connect your classroom to digital natives while cultivating an engaged learning environment. So come on into the room, where your favorite beverage snacks, and even your cell phone are all welcome.

2:04 So back in episode 23, which was the third part of this 11-part series, I talked about the various roles of the fashion show production team. So the model coordinator was one of those roles. And the fashion show model call falls under the responsibility of the model coordinator. So again, the model coordinator determines the number of models; conducts the model call; develops the choreography for the show; works with promotions to advertise; and works with the stage manager to coordinate the runway details. They just have to deal with every facet of models for the show. So it's a really big responsibility. It does take a lot of coordination, because they're kind of the center person. Along with the fashion show director and the merchandise coordinator, they are kind of the center of this production. And then everything else is along the perimeter of the production because we gotta have models, we gotta have the clothes, and the show has to be managed.

3:23 So let's talk about the model call. So the model call has a lot of parts to it. So let's go over all these parts. The model call can be as simple as saying we're gonna have a model call just show up and you just do it. But to have a well organized show, well organized model call, then it takes planning. Now with the model calls that we normally conducted at my school, we would have at least 60 models show up. If we didn't have 60 models show up, or potential models, they were candidates. If we didn't have 60 people to show up, then it really didn't give us a really good pool of people to pull and select from. So it takes a lot of things, a lot of advertising and getting the word out to get a really good pool of candidates to come to your school’s model call.

4:33 Alright, so let's talk about it. Alright, so the model call is run by the model coordinator and the fashion show director along with the teacher. And so they work with a variety of team members to get this model call together. So I'm just going to run through it. I have it outlined here, just from the top, from the very first thing we do all the way down to when the candidate walks out the door, and down to the judging part. Okay?

5:14 So, the model coordinator works with the promotions coordinator and team to create the announcements for the model call. And so there's an announcement that we would do on the school morning announcements. And then there are posters and flyers that will be created and put up all over the school. Now our school is pretty big, we have 5000 students. So we had a lot of doors to put flyers and things on. So just think about your school's setup. You want to have a poster or a flyer at every entry door. You want to have it at the doors going into the cafeteria. You just want to have them everywhere. You want to have a poster on the wall at every level of the stairwells. So that's a lot of posters and flyers. So you have all the pertinent information that the candidates need to know about the model call.

6:15 The model coordinator will ensure that the model candidates turn in their model call registration packet. We had a packet. That information will be available in my program that's coming out in the fall. But we had a packet for the candidate to pick up and get turned back in to us before the model call was the goal, to get them to turn it in before the model call so that we can actually input that information into our spreadsheet.

6:56 And then the model coordinator was responsible for creating the choreography. So whenever the candidates come to the actual model call, they would have a certain walk that they would do. And they can put their own flair to the walk, but they had to do this particular walk. And they will make it simple enough for them to be able to learn it while they're at the model call, and then be able to do it in front of the judges. So that was the third thing that the model coordinator was responsible for as far as the model call is concerned.

7:39 And then another thing that they would do was create an outline. Actually the diagram had already been created by the teacher. So as the teacher, I had created a diagram because we did this every year. So there was no need to reinvent the book when it was already there. So I just created a diagram of where we were having our model call. And then I would give the blank diagram over to the model coordinator. And then the model coordinator would then at every station, make assignments to the class, the team members and also to volunteers. We would have our underclassmen volunteer to participate in the model call and help out. And so the model coordinator was responsible for making sure that every station had an assignment of students working at those stations. Those stations included a registration table where the headshots were taken; overseeing the area with them candidates were waiting; the practice room; judges; and the music. There are several different areas that need to have someone working as a part of making the model call run smoothly. And so after they've done their outline, they're then ready to manage the event.

9:19 So I want to step back for a moment and just give a kind of a timeline to a couple of things here. So I first stated that the model coordinator works with the promotions coordinator to develop the advertisement and the posters and flyers. Now, you want to do this far enough in advance so that the students will have time to prepare their ride, all of this kind of stuff, just make preparations. Towards the end of my career, as a teacher, we decided that our fashion show would be a senior showcase. Now, it was our junior class that was actually producing the fashion show. So it started at the beginning of their junior year. All the planning started at the beginning of the junior year. The design students would begin making their collection at the beginning of their junior year, and they would have all year to create their collection. So the idea was that, given that timeframe to create the collection, we would have an opportunity to select the models; fit the models; and practice with the models. And it was really the runway for the designers having enough time to create a collection. Then at the beginning of their senior year, we would have the fashion show. It would be a showcase. We normally had it in October. So it was right at the beginning of the school year. So the models had an opportunity to practice in the spring, come back in the fall, and be ready for the fashion show. Did we lose some of our models over the summer? Just a couple, maybe. But it really wasn't a big deal.

11:28 So anyway, we're talking about the lead time for promoting so we would have our fashion show model call in the fall of the juniors’ school year. So once we came together, collaborated, came up with the theme, and knew what we were going to do for the fashion show. We would then host a model call. So that would usually be held in November. So we started planning as soon as school started, August/September. So once we made the decision about what we're going to do, then we had the model call. So that gave us a good 30 days or even more to promote the model call. So you want to give yourself no less than 30 days to promote a model call. And sometimes we may have to have a second model call if we lost too many models over the year that the whole production planning is going on. So I would say give yourself at least 30 days to promote the model call.

12:43 All right, and then following up, of course, once you've had your model call following up with your models, and all that kind of stuff. So as far as the candidates turning in their registration packets, I mean, that's another reason why we have a 30 day period of time for promotion. During that whole 30-day promotional time, model candidates are coming to pick up the registration packets, and it gives them enough time to fill it out and turn it back in before the model call.

13:22 So the other thing is the model coordinator creating the choreography. So within that time frame, a lot is happening within those 30 days or so that you're promoting the fashion show model call. So there's choreography going on that the model coordinator has to create. There's the creation of the diagram. So all of that happens within that 30 day period of time. So just be mindful of creating time before the model call to create the choreography and the diagram and all those parts that you need to have ready for the model call.

14:04 Alright, so let's get into managing the event. We are now at the date of the event. It's time for all of the parts to come together to have the model call. Models will check in at the registration table. And then once they're checked into the registration table, they head over to the area where the headshots are being taken. They have to put a number on. They have to get their headshot done from the chest up and the number has to be visible.

14:40 And then the models have the opportunity to go into a practice area. But they then need to make sure and keep an eye on their time because they have to go into the waiting area where the students are seated in numerical order. Then they transition from that area into the judge area one at a time. They are then judged by a panel, which consists of one of two different types of panels.

15:09 So if this was a fashion show that the marketing students were putting on and they selected the theme, and there was no fashion design class involved, then the panel would consist of the teacher, the model coordinator, the merchandise coordinator, the fashion show director, and then maybe a guest judge. And sometimes we pull somebody from industry, or another teacher, or just someone that we felt would be a good judge of the potential models that we had, that we're going to be trying out. So that is if the fashion show marketing class was putting on the show without the designers. Now, if we were collaborating with the designers, then the panel would be the teacher, the fashion show director, the model coordinator, and the merchandise coordinator, and then the fashion design teacher, and then three of her students would participate in the judging of the models. So that was our panel. And then we all had a judge sheet that we used to simply mark a score on the model's number. I have those judge sheets and will also make them available to you.

16:35 And then we had a person who was our stage director over the music that would play as the candidates walked down the runway. And then after they did their walk, they would exit out the back where they exit the building. So there was no coming back into the model call area. So it was a pretty fluid process in which we started at registration all the way to the end. And it was made simple by the diagram that was created in the assignments that were made by the model coordinator to each one of those areas. And that pretty much is it as far as the model call is concerned.

17:26 Now, after we've conducted the event, of course, we had to do our model selection. So that process didn't happen on the day of the model call. It happened the next class day that the juniors had. The model coordinator would gather all of the judge sheets and then we would write that information, all the scores from the judge sheets into one spreadsheet. Then it tabulated up all of the votes, the scores by the judges. And then first of all, we had to know how many models we needed, based upon the designers, the number of designers, the number of clothing that they were producing, or either based upon what the marketing students had determined. If we were doing a show without the Fashion Class designers, we would have to determine how many models we needed. And then once we made that determination, based upon the model candidates that did come to the model call, we would go into the spreadsheet where all of the scores were input. And we would take let's say, if we needed 20 female models and 10 male models, we would go into the spreadsheet and the top 20 scores for the females and the top 10 scores for the males, we would take those candidates, look at them, do some evaluations give our feedback as a whole class, we would give feedback on those models. And if let's say we knew of a candidate that we thought was going to be pretty good and was someone that either a designer had desired to have as their model or what have you, we will look at that information and evaluate that as a one off type situation. But we generally took the top scores for the number of models that we needed for male and for female, and we put them into our model group. And then we also took alternates. The number of alternates would really vary just based on what we felt like we would need as backup, and yes, we always needed back up models. So be sure to, if you have 20 female models, I would say have five alternates. If you have 10 male models, at least four alternate models because things happen with kids such as: grades, moving, they just decided to change their mind ... .who knows. But you always want to have those alternates, as backups for your show.

20:22 So then once we made our decision about the models, then we would make the announcement for who made the fashion show. So we would post a list on our door or a wall right outside of my room; we would make an announcement on social media since we have Instagram or Facebook, but it was generally Instagram. And also, sometimes we will make an announcement on our school announcement system about who made the fashion show. So we always want to do something fun to try to make that suspenseful for the students who had tried out for the model call.

21:09 So that basically wraps up how we conducted a model call. I hope that gives you a general idea of how you can go about conducting a model call if you're having a fashion show. There's so much detail to the processes that it takes to produce a fashion show that I have to create a program.I’'ll make it available to you in the fall. It’s going to have video, audio and all of that. So be on the lookout for that. Okay.

21:39 I hope this was valuable for you. And if you have any questions, please send me a DM on Instagram Marketing EdVenture. And I will be happy to answer your questions about today's episode and previous episodes. Even if you have ideas about something that I may not have on my list to discuss in this series, please let me know. Maybe there's an area that I've left out that you're interested in. I'd be happy to consider that for an episode here. So I do thank you for listening to Marketing EdVenture by Jacqué, and I hope you have a wonderfully blessed day.

22:23 If you found value in this fashion show production series, I have a program that will be available in the fall 2024. It will provide a scope of resources to help you create and implement a successful fashion show. It's something I've wanted to do for years because the fashion show has so many moving parts. And of course, when you're managing students who were responsible for implementing the show, it really is a project management responsibility. Now this program will contain video and audio modules, as well as a project management framework. Proprietary documents for management in all areas of the responsibilities; signature model call framework; an outline for creating your fashion show bible; media kit framework; real examples of my productions; and highlights of my student-led fashion shows and so much more. Now stay tuned for the early bird invitation to access the program. I look forward to having you access that. And I also look forward to hearing about your fashion show productions and seeing them on Instagram. So be sure to connect with me at marketingedventure so I can see all of the wonderful work that you're doing with your program.

24:01 Thanks for listening to Marketing EdVenture. Remember to subscribe, rate, review and share this episode with someone you think will benefit from the information shared here today. If you have any questions or want to connect with me, find me on Instagram at Marketing EdVenture. All links and resources discussed in this episode can be found in the show notes at marketingedventure.com.