After some two months of waiting to see who made the shortlist for a chance to be Guyana’s next top model, the Guyana Model Search (GMS) finally debuted on television on Wednesday night but the models were only briefly featured.

Thirty made the cut, mostly promising young faces hoping to make it big on the local fashion scene. But there were the occasional faces that seem to wash up at every event, faces that Guyanese has seen way too often.

Wednesday night’s episode that aired on the National Communications Network (NCN) television introduced the persons behind Guyana Model Search, which is the committee that organized the Guyana Fashion Weekend. Kofi Branch of the committee and Chief Production designer, Richard Young were in the studio along with Donna Short-Gill to famililarise locals with the show.

The idea is to bring together a group of local models and film their every move for a six-week period. With the cameras rolling, the models will learn exciting new things and compete for the top spot. Initially the committee was looking for models ages 14-20 years but they moved away from that and accepted persons under age 30 years. The most important things they were looking for were attitude and persons who are prepared to cope with the occasional demands of reality television.

On Wednesday night, host Shonette Moore gave viewers a glimpse of the training sessions with Young which were intense and saw the hopefuls trying to perfect the catwalk steps, turns and poses. Some openly complained of how rigorous the exercise was. Then it was the getting to know bit where the models interacted.

It is still too early to say who the ones to watch are and who look like they are going to be dropped next week. Every week two persons, one male and one female would be dropped from the show.

In a press release last year to announce the project, Chief Executive Officer of GMS Sonia Noel had stated that Guyanese can expect to see the good, the bad and the ugly of the fashion scene in Guyana while at the same time fall in love with a particular model. Noel added that they intend to follow every model around very closely and though every person would be entitled to some private time, she said, “We intend to film them sleeping as well”.

Guyanese are being urged to get involved in every way since the show will allow public voting among other participatory avenues. Noel said the public will ultimately decide who the winner is, not the judges.

Fashion parties, shows and a new fashion block will also be part of the event. To have a sense of just how different things are going to be, Noel said, people can imagine Main Street closed off and luxury cars, models and photographers taking over the street to launch the fashion extravaganza of Guyana Model Search.

As grand as it is going to be, she pointed out that it is not all fun and games since international judges will be a part of the event and the models are expected to remember that it is a competition.

The winner and runners-up of the event can expect a fast track into the fashion industry with international fashion experience, a magazine cover and a fashion spread among other things as prizes.

Casting for the model search was done across the country but the majority of persons on the shortlist are from the city. The show will air every Wednesday on NCN at 10 pm until the finale. (ianaseales@yahoo.com)