SWIFT CURRENT — A Swift Current high school student is returning home with top national honours after competing against young women from across Canada at a prestigious modelling competition in Ontario.
Hailey Siemens, a Grade 12 student at Swift Current Comprehensive High School, captured numerous awards at the event. She won the Grand Overall Female Model of the Year title plus was the 16-19 age division winner. Siemens also finished first runner-up in the 16-19 cover competition, winning all three awards while at the Canadian Model and Talent Convention (CMTC), held April 29-May 3 in Toronto.
Siemens and her mother Marcia Fiddler travelled to Ontario on April 28 to attend the event, which draws aspiring models, actors, singers and dancers from across the country.
“Everybody kind of said I had a unique look,” Siemens said. “I never really thought that, but they said that. My mom found out about CMTC and said I should try it. We went to Saskatoon to give it a shot, and it just kind of happened. We never expected to go this far.”
Fiddler said their initial entry into the competition process happened almost by chance.
“We were in Saskatoon anyway and went to the Sheraton Hotel for the tryout,” she said. “It was kind of a fluke.”
Unlike many participants, Siemens attended without agency representation.
“We went just on our own, with the costs and everything,” Fiddler said.
The qualification process began last October, when Siemens attended a regional audition in Saskatoon. She was required to submit a self-tape by midnight the same day and was notified that she had advanced.
In the months leading up to the Toronto event, Siemens completed several preliminary tasks, including commercial-style self-tapes, acting and modelling submissions, and a cover photo, which was due by March 15.
“I was chosen from all around Canada to go to CMTC,” Siemens said. “If you get accepted, you’re one of only a few people in the country who get to go. That leads to the final part.”
Fiddler said participants spent months preparing through video submissions and online instruction before arriving in Toronto.
Nearly 1,000 competitors attended the convention, with 110 young women in Siemens’ age division, representing the top regional selections from each province.
Fiddler said the event began with educational seminars and workshops taught by industry professionals from around the world.
“It’s very educational for anyone interested in modelling, acting, singing or dance,” Fiddler said. “She learned from one of the top runway coaches out of New York. Coaches came from Milan, Japan, Los Angeles and New York.”
Competitions were held April 30-May 2 and included runway modelling, television commercial performance, cover photo submissions and commercial print judging. The final scores were calculated from all categories.
Siemens’ results also earned her callbacks from seven modelling agencies from around the world.
“On the final day, agencies post callbacks online for people they want to meet,” Fiddler said. “She had seven. In two to four weeks, they may approach her with a contract.”
Fiddler noted that a past CMTC winner has since become one of the top models internationally.
Following the competition, Siemens and her mother stayed an extra day in Ontario to visit Niagara Falls before returning home to Swift Current, where congratulations have continued to pour in.
