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True believer

Fashion mentor Henry Roth is more than just Project Runway Australia's mentor, he is an ambassador of emerging fashion, as he explains to TV Tonight.

Project Runway 01Project Runway Australia‘s Henry Roth is quite the ambassador for Arena’s new show. With host Kristy Hinze overseas at the end of shooting, Roth is madly working the phones and publicity trail, talking up the second season. But while he knows how to spread the word, he is clearly a true believer.

“The whole concept to really raise the bar on season one,” he told TV Tonight. “There was a lot of pressure as to how we would go topping the highest rating show on Arena, with some of the best talent and designers Australia has to offer.

“I am proud and thrilled to say we’ve had some exceptional success from season one, but I think the designers from season two are going to top that, because they’re unbelievable.”

As yet another reality series produced by FremantleMedia, the series has all the hallmarks of good storytelling: a diverse cast, high stakes, emotion, dreams, big personalites and handsome production values. Whilst there’s just a smattering of conflict, Roth says it doesn’t come at the expense of the contestants.

“First of all we’re allowed to be ourselves. I think it’s cheap on putting people down for a two second laugh, and I don’t know how to do it anyway.

“You can bet your bottom dollar there’s a lot of spills along the way, absolutely. But it’s not done too much, I would say, at the expense of the person next to you.”

Roth works closely with the 12 aspiring designers, carefully discussing their design ideas, offering advice and helping them explore their options. It leaves him as a champion of emerging fashion, and with an emotional attachment to those under his wing. He even helped liaise some meetings with fashion houses overseas for some of last year’s contestants.

As mentor he has both on screen and off screen duties, assisting in production.

“I’m very actively involved in the make up of the challenges,” he said. “So we have to tick off a lot of boxes that require my professional consultation. Whether we’re testing team management, time management, ability to work with fabrics –the bottom line is I’m intrinsically involved with the challenges. So between that and then mentoring I’m pretty much on 24 hours a day.

“We gave these designers more hair raising challenges simply because we had to test their skills. They’re of a very high level.”

Roth is also especially pleased with the range of contestants this year, diverse in age, sexuality and social backgrounds.

“You’ve got Mark in his 40s, and William. There’s Kelli-Anne who’s like the mother hen of the group, and Yopie who has a disability and she’s just unbelievable. I love that girl to pieces. You just appreciate her creativity and bravery.

“Fashion is normally about being skin deep, but Project Runway Australia is about behind the scenes and it’s anything but skin deep. And if that’s not a quote I don’t know what is.”

Project Runway Australia
premieres 8:30pm Wednesday on Arena.

2 Responses

  1. A John Safran doppelganger!

    I saw Henry tonight on My Generation and had to doubletake when I thought I saw John Safran sitting next to Amanda as a baby boomer!

  2. Great interview David.
    Henry also appeared on Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation on Channel Ten tonight, playing in the Baby Boomers team alongside Amanda Keller.

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