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Thursday, July 10, 2008
Model behaviour
AMTM, BNTM - either an acronym too far or like me you are well aware of the empty head nonsense that is Americas/ Britains Next Top Model. Programmes where lot's of girls who are (by industry standards) too old, too short etc etc fight it out in the hopes of becoming the next 'top' model. Great fun, but I suspect Agenyss Deyn is still sleeping soundly.
So working on the premise that model perfection lies somewhere between size zero and 5ft11" can a disabled girl become a mainstream model? This is the question posed by BBC3's Britains Missing Top Model. As with the more familiar Living TV series, a handful of stunning girls have to share an apartment and compete for the top prize through a series of modelling tasks. The difference of course that the girls all consider themselves to be disabled.
In episode 1 the ranking of disability started, the girls moaned about who was more disabled than who, the judges couldn't agree if they were looking for a model or a role model, a poster girl for disability if you like. At judging all of the contestants were angry at the lack of constructive feedback, disappointed at with comments like ' didn't you do well', 'do you think you could cope in the real world?' .
By episode 2 things really started to heat up:- well, my blood was boiling! The models mentor, Jonathon 'i've only ever met perfect people' Phang, decided that ensuring the deaf girls could participate in a group discussion was a bit of a luxury, after all wasn't it annoying/inconvenient/expensive (for him) to have an interpretor on hand. Never mind the phone call to give instructions for the next days task - couldn't he send a text or did he really enjoy telling the girls who hadn't heard what was going on a dressing down?
For me the jury is out on this show. Like The Apprentice I can watch and cringe at the gaffs of the 'industry experts' and sneakily enjoy the catty remarks between contestants, but I do wonder if this programme will really achieve its aim of challenging stereotypes or if in fact it will perpetuate a view of disability as one of inability and not ability.
posted by Sherpa at 11:58 AM
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