Showcards: Work Agency - MBFWA SS 13/14

kellie williams via work agency

And now to part VIII of frockwriter’s MBFWA Spring/Summer 2013/2014 model showcards series – Work Agency. Although this show pack is so far the most compact of the season, we have to say it gets top marks for presentation. Internationally, model agencies go to some effort to make their show packs stand out, tapping art directors to create innovative concepts. Not so much down under. As competition increases in this market, branding is going to be increasingly important. Heading up Work Agency's MBFWA pack is the agency's star Cassi van den Dungen, who has just returned from making her international runway debut, walking for, among others, Miu Miu.

Australia's next top Miu Miu

miu miu FW1314 via wwd.com

Cassi van den Dungen missed out on winning Australia’s Next Top Model in 2009. But she has just achieved something that has so far proven beyond the grasp of any actual winners of the high rating Australian reality show: she just walked the Miu Miu show in Paris.

Cassi van den Dungen makes her move

stephen ward via dion lee's facebook

Cassi van den Dungen fans will no doubt be thrilled to hear that the next instalment of the Cassi saga is.... she just made her international runway debut at London Fashion Week, walking for Australian fashion star Dion Lee in the International Woolmark Prize show overnight. Lee lost out to Belgium's Christian Wijnants, but the whole exercise was a fantastic promotional opportunity for Lee and all the other contestants, not to mention van den Dungen, who strutted her stuff in front of a prestigious judging panel headed up by no less than Diane von Furstenberg, Donatella Versace and Vogue Italia editor Franca Sozzani. 

From a tattoo parlour to a Givenchy exclusive - Lydia Willemina Collins

givenchy FW1112/getty via daylife

There are three days to go in the Fall/Winter 2011/2012 show season. So far, frockwriter estimates that 24 Australians have walked its runways, several among them clocking up over 30 shows apiece from New York to Paris - and one (Julia Nobis), over 40. We've seen circuit veterans, circuit virgins and several models who have returned to the runways after taking a break - in Miranda Kerr's case at Balenciaga, two months after giving birth. But as the arrival of Lydia Willemina Collins overnight at the prestigious Givenchy show attests, it's not too late to throw a wild card into the ring. Modelling for a month, the 18 year-old Sydneysider - who is working under her two first names - was originally scouted three years ago by Work Agency's Helena Vitolins, working in her mother's tattoo parlour. "But she wasn’t ready" reports Vitolins from Paris. "I just waited for the right time. We got her passport on Thursday, flew her out on Saturday. All of this happened very quickly. We’re going to New York tomorrow, she has some major, major holds and some major, major appointments". The Givenchy exclusive was Collins' second job, after this lookbook for Australian label Scanlan & Theodore, shot by Max Doyle. A natural brunette (see below, from a February 3 post on models.com), her hair was dyed red by Givenchy's hair stylist Luigi Murenu specifically for the show. 

Cassi van den Dungen and Olivia Thornton haunt Ellery's Spring/Summer 2010/2011 'Horreurscope' campaign

All’s been quiet on the Cassi van den Dungen front for months. At least on the publicity side, which is probably the way van den Dungen’s managament likes it, given how many dramas there have been since she was crowned runnerup of Australia’s Next Top Model Cycle 5 in July 2009. Of course there was this Daily Telegraph story on August 6th – which frockwriter has on good authority came about after the paper was knocked back for an interview with the 18 year-old and then just simply did what’s known in the tabloid world as a “doorstop”: turned up regardless at her front door, camera in tow. On the work front, however, van den Dungen has been head down, booked almost every day of the week according to her mother agency Work Agency (which is now van den Dungen’s only Australian representation, having recently left Camerons in Melbourne). 

From Churchill to Cassi-Gate, insulting the French is "nothing new" - The Times of London

After last week's post about Cassi van den Dungen's ill-fated Paris Fashion Week trip, where hasn't the story appeared? First The Sunday Telegraph, then The Melbourne Herald Sun, The Brisbane Courier Mail and Ninemsn.com.au. Yesterday, Seven Network's Morning Show devoted an entire panel discussion to the subject, with The Herald Sun's Luke Dennehy - who apparently "broke the story" - crossing live from Melbourne to anchors Kylie Gillies and Larry Emdur and fashion commentator Melissa Hoyer, to discuss van den Dungen's Facebook rant against "frog eaters" and "snail slurpers" - as if it was an international incident (see below). Even the UK Telegraph picked it up.

Cassi van den Dungen takes one step back from her model dream

IMG

Are you ready for the next installment of the Cassi van den Dungen rollercoaster? Sadly this one ends with her 33,000 feet somewhere above Central Asia on a plane en route to Australia. Yes as frockwriter types, van den Dungen is winging her way back downunder, having failed to book a single show at Paris Fashion Week. No interest? Nothing could be further from the truth. Frockwriter can reveal that she was heading to Paris Fashion Week on option for an exclusive. Indeed a tremendously prestigious Paris Fashion Week exclusive which, if secured, would have undoubtedly launched her international career. She didn't get it. Even after three meetings with the design house and casting director. Now anyone who knows anything about the modelling business knows that this could have happened to any girl. There is however a little more to this back story, so buckle up.

Cassi heads to Paris Fashion Week

carlotta moye/work agency

Are you ready for the next instalment of the Cassi van den Dungen rollercoaster? Paris. Yep. Frockwriter hinted that there was potentially some exciting news surrounding a brand new Australian face at the FW1011 shows and this is it (well, part of...). After being crowned runnerup in Australia's Next Top Model Cycle 5, snubbing contracts with Priscillas and Elite New York, giving up modelling, signing with Tanya Powell, then Work Agency, getting slagged off by ANTM hosts Charlotte Dawson and Alex Perry on Facebook, then talked up by influential model scouting site The Ones 2 Watch, van den Dungen is packing her bags for her first ever trip to the City of Light. She has been placed with IMG's Paris Development board and will be chaperoned by Work Agency booker Sash Andreevski. So much for not wanting to work outside Australia. According to Work Agency director Helena Vitolins, "She's focussed, she's definitely ready, her head's in a really great space. She wants it all."

Cassi van den Dungen - two steps closer to her model dream

camerons via TO2W


OK so where were we on the Tahnee Atkinson/Cassi van den Dungen/Australia's Next Top Model roundabout? Atkinson has just shot the Curvy jeans campaign for Bettina Liano. After losing the Cycle 5 ANTM crown to Atkinson and flipping the bird to the show by turning down contracts with Priscillas and Elite New York, van den Dungen, meanwhile, signed with her childhood modelling agency, Tanya Powell, in Melbourne, then also with Work Agency in Sydney, before shooting lookbooks for Portmans and getting bullied by ANTM’s Charlotte Dawson and Alex Perry. Coupla interesting updates. Apart from currently being plastered all over Portmans front windows, van den Dungen has finally ditched Tanya Powell for Camerons, a boutique - but nevertheless far more serious-looking - Melbourne agency. Most interesting of all: she has just been featured on The Ones To Watch, models.com’s emerging talent satellite site.

In a profile on December 1, TO2W noted:

“Cassi is sensational – her features, her height and her personality all combine to make one super model who is creating interest all over the world. With building a strong book her priority right now, expect to see Cassi on the global fashion scene by mid-2010”.

Fascinating contrast to the prediction by ANTM model mentor Charlotte Dawson, who told her Facebook friends back in July:

“I think Cassi's only going to end up being the poster girl for Sunbury Centrelink”.

Meanwhile, although Tahnee Atkinson reports that she was recently told in New York that she would need to lose weight in order to work in that market (with Atkinson telling Today Tonight last week, "But I'm prepared to do that to go to New York"), van den Dungen told News Ltd that one of the reasons she rejected the Priscillas/Elite contracts was out of concern that she would need to lose weight to work internationally. Which NL duly whipped up into the headline:

"Australia's Next Top Model's Cassi van den Dungen rejected New York deal over weight issues"


Without having set foot beyond Sydney however, she is looking rather thin in this new set of test shots.

Cassi explores her window of modelling opportunity - at Chadstone

Long time, no Cassi van den Dungen update. Well while ANTM Cycle 5 winner Tahnee Atkinson has been busy shooting for Australian Harpers Bazaar and walking the runway for Myer, runnerup van den Dungen has been hard at work at high street chain Portmans (in addition to modelling for the Melbourne Wedding & Bride 'Dress of Your Dreams' show, part of the Melbourne Spring Fashion Week – a gig organised by her Melbourne-based mother agency, Tanya Powell). Frockwriter can reveal that van den Dungen has now shot two lookbooks for Portmans, as organised by her Sydney agency, Work Agency. The first is now online on the Portmans website and the second was shot last week. And while two lookbooks do not an advertising “face” make, van den Dungen is also helping Portmans celebrate the opening of its largest store - at the new A$270million Chadstone redevelopment in Melbourne.

Portmans' new 350sqm flagship was designed by Mark Simpson of the London-based Universal Design Studio, whose other retail clients include Stella McCartney, H&M, Paul Smith and Selfridges.

One of five models who took part in a live installation inside the Portmans Chadstone windows yesterday, van den Dungen has been accorded top billing by Chadstone as one of several celebrity guests who will be on tap over the weekend to help kick off festivities, along with MTV host Ruby Rose and musician Axle Whitehead.

Any Cassi fans who want to say hi can catch her in the Portmans Chadstone front windows again tomorrow from 11am-1pm and 2-4pm.

Cassi signs with Work Agency

jez smith/antm via tanya powell

It’s hard keeping up with Cassi van den Dungen. Crowned runnerup in ANTM Cycle 5 three weeks ago, she declined contracts with Priscillas and Elite New York to rejoin her childhood modelling agency in Melbourne, Tanya Powell. On Saturday she shot a first job with Portmans. Frockwriter can reveal that van den Dungen has now signed a contract with the Sydney-based Work Agency. A boutique agency that reps photographers, hair and makeup artists, stylists and 14 models, it is operated by Helena Vitolins, who reports that she signed van den Dungen 10 days ago and that Work Agency organised the Portmans gig. Vitolins also reps Nicole Bentley who shot the campaign. Vitolins reports that her biggest model names are Holly Thompson, who has shot for Vogue Australia and Siew Longhorn - who has worked for Calvin Klein Jeans, Tommy Hilfiger and, last week, The Gap. But arguably the agency’s most high profile name in any field to date is photographer Carlotta Moye, who recently shot Miranda Kerr for the cover of Australian Rolling Stone.

Vitolins reports that van den Dungen has a lot of job options. However she declined to clarify whether or not these options are completely different, or one and the same, to those mentioned yesterday by Tanya Powell - which remains van den Dungen's mother agency.

“Her chart is full” is all Vitolins would say.

Nor would Vitolins clarify if she has had any dealings with any international agencies with regards to van den Dungen.

It does appear however that van den Dungen is unlikely to be turning up on the SS10 international runways in September and October.

“It’s far too early for that” said Vitolins. “I think it’s important that Cassi establishes herself in the Australian market and learns to model. She’s loving modelling and I think she has the potential to do very well.”

She added, “I’m a small agency. I’ve always been very much under the radar, I’m not in the Yellow Pages. It’s total management and I am very selective. It’s a very career-based agency. I don’t represent people who don’t work”.