TWELV DIARY #34: ZOIE ZELLER

NAME: ZOIE ZELLER

OCCUPATION: MODEL

AGENCY: FENTON MODEL MANAGEMENT

I was born and raised in Colorado, started off in the mountains and moved to the suburbs at age 8. When I was a freshman in high-school I started taking modelling and acting classes at a school called John Casablanca’s. They taught me how to walk runway, how to pose in front of the camera and how to carry myself as a model. After finishing the course, the director of the agency at the school introduced me to an old friend of his who was a mother agent in Philadelphia. I signed a contract with her in 2016 and she started developing me. I finished out my awkward years in high school, went to prom and graduated! I moved alone to Manhattan in September 2018 to pursue modelling.

I have always had a passion for working with kids so along with signing with an agency, I got a job teaching at Barbizon modelling school and started nannying. I have always loved working with kids, and teaching modelling classes is an amazing combination of my two favourite things in one!

Like most cases the process of becoming a working model was slow at first and is still a work in progress to get to my goals. I ended up switching agencies to Fenton models in May 2019 and started working more frequently. I currently have agencies in Colorado, Chicago, New York and am working with my mother agent on overseas placement. My favourite part about modelling is that no day is ever the same, every job is completely different than the last. It is a great career for someone with lots of energy and passion. It has been amazing meeting people from all over the world with all kinds of visions and talents. I have been very lucky to meet and work with some amazing people. To date some of my favourite jobs have been working with Redken, walking in two seasons of NYFW so far and hopefully again this upcoming September. As well as being published in vogue twice and walking at Cipriani Wall Street for Consinee group. And of course, working towards bigger and better things to come!

Some of my inspirations have been of course Coco Rocha who I see to be one of the best models in the industry, with her passion and photo movement she is a huge role model. My favourite designer would be Herve Leger because he was the first top of the line designer dress that I owned, I got one of his dressed for 80% off at 16 and it’s been a piece that inspires me to keep moving up and up. 

Some of my best modelling advice and tips are; not everyone has what it takes to be America’s next top model, but everyone has what it takes to try hard and do their best. Everyone deserves to do photo shoots and feel good about themselves. Every shape size race gender deserves a chance to spread their story. The industry is cut throat and will always be that way, it needs to in order to stick around. Being a good model starts with the mentality of; it’s okay for people to not like your look and to say no, you got to say thank you and just move on. A model also needs to take care of every single part of their body, that’s the main tool for a model. If you want to model for fun it’s a great time passer, if you want to model for a career it’s a whole new ballgame that takes 100% effort.

WRITTEN BY ZOIE ZELLER

INSTAGRAM: @zoiezeller

COPYWRITE BY ANNA SPROUL

EDITED BY KAREN YABUTA