Top Model Interview: Rae Weisz

Yesterday I chatted with Rae Weisz, the most recent eliminee from America’s Next Top Model. The young mom from Minnesota talked to me about her surprise elimination, how she avoided the house drama and more.

Full Q&A is below the jump!

How did you get involved in Top Model?

I’m from Rochester Minnesota and they did their very own Top Model casting call. It was so much fun. They had their own panel and did interviews with all the contestants. They sent the tapes of everyone who entered to the production company from the show. I came in second there and got a call about a week later to come to the casting call in Chicago. Even later, they called me and asked me to come to Los Angeles and I made it into the house.

Were you surprised my your elimination?

I wasn’t really surprised, honestly. You never know what to expect when you go into panel. All the girls bring something different to the table. They all have different strengths and weaknesses. You never know what the judges want or what they are going to focus on that day, if the photo shoot will be the most important thing or if your overall performance will be highlighted. You can go into panel completely confident, but you still can’t predict what will happen. I didn’t have a sense of entitlement about the whole elimination process. I focused on doing my best and seeing what happens. I never expected to go home, but went into panel every time knowing it was a possibility.

Who would you like to see win the show?

Oh my gosh, that’s so hard to say. I love all the girls and they’re all so talented and beautiful. I will say, however, that Laura is perfect for CoverGirl. That face! It’s a perfect palette for makeup. Her photos are stunning. I also think Erin is a beautiful and lovely girl and it would be wonderful if she won as well.

Tell me about the interview challenge.

It was so much fun to be on the set and to meet with the producers. But I’d never seen 90210 – the original or the new one – and didn’t know who Jessica Lowndes was. I did my best to ask questions about her background and her history. It didn’t faze me when the teleprompter went off. I did my best to roll with it. But when I watched the episode, that slouching was insane! I couldn’t believe it! No wonder the judges gave me so much flack for that! I never slouch that much, I don’t know how or why it happened. But it was a lesson learned and it’s definitely something I’m going to be more aware of in the future.

Which photo shoot was your favorite?

I loved the photo shoots! They were what I focused on in the competition and I had so much fun doing them. I didn’t come into this competition so much to become America’s Next Top Model, but to develop my skills as a model and build a strong portfolio of work. My favorite photo shoot was definitely the Cirque du Soliel shoot. Cirque du Soliel is amazing. They’re fantastic performers. I’m a huge fan and it was an honor to work with them. I loved the styling of that shoot too, the hair and makeup were beautiful. I think some models find the whole group shot thing intimidating. Not only do you have to work together and feed off each others’ energy and complement each other, your’e still fighting to stand out. Instead, I fed off that energy and felt it added to my performance.

What was your least favorite photo shoot?

I really can’t say. I’m so passionate about the photo shoots and each one was a great learning experience. I would possibly say the Make Me Tall shoot. It wasn’t necessarily my least favorite, but I brought the least amount of energy to set. I struggled throughout the shoot. I don’t mind the photo and don’t think it was my weakest one, but I could have done better.

Do you feel you were portrated accurately?

To some extent. There’s only so much they can show of you. They can’t portray you to a tee, so they focus on certain things.

How did you manage to stay out of the house drama?

That was probably my downfall! (laughs). Every girl there was so different. They brought different things to the competition and to the house. I can honestly say I enjoyed each and every one of them. I’m a positive person and I decided to focus on what I liked about each girl and tried to relate to and explore that element. All the girls were wonderful and it was an amazing experience to be on the show with them.

Who are you planning on staying in touch with?

I hope to stay in touch with all of them. I was really close to Erin, she’s a lovely girl and was a close friend of mine in the house. I liked all the girls, even Lulu and Ashley! They were nowhere near as awful as they were made out to be on the show! I feel terrible for them. Everyone has seen the episodes, but it was a different experience living it. Being on this show was such a unique experience and these girls are the only other girls who share that with me.

What are your future plans?

I definitely want to explore modeling and get into acting. I want to look at the Chicago and Los angeles markets, see some agencies and go from there.

Image: Pottle Productions Inc