#1448 Jessica Clarke pegged to be 'the next big thing' by top casting director, plus all the other Kiwis working New York

Photo: models.com

Kiwi model Jessica Clarke is about to have a moment, and if casting director Ashley Brokaw has anything to do with it, that moment could be rather large. Brokaw, who casts models for top designers including Prada, Calvin Klein, Proenza Schouler, Narciso Rodriguez and Balenciaga, was quoted in the New York Times last week saying she was "VERY excited about" Jessica Clarke, calling her, "Classic supermodel material from New Zealand." Repped by Clyne in New Zealand and DNA in New York, Clarke has only worked internationally once before, walking a Calvin Klein show in Sydney back in 2008 – she was 15 at the time and had been modelling one month. According to Clyne's Marama Nicholas, a lot of energy has been put in to get her to this point.

"The last two years have been spent grooming her for this season, we've been prepping Jessica in a very specific route to get her where she is. All the attention is no real surprsie to be honest because I'd already been talking to a lot of people before she got to New York. All I can say is that she's been working really, really hard. She has a huge array of options but I won't say anything more than that."

Best of luck to Jessica, we'll be keeping a close eye on her progress in New York throughout the week ahead. Other Kiwi models walking New York Fashion Week include:

Aiden Andrews,


Zippora Seven,


Stella Maxwell,


and Chris Landon.

Former models.com top 50 ranked male model (and face of Polo Ralph Lauren) Nick Bryant is said to be in talks with casting directors for the shows, Sydney-based Bella Barber is said to be in town with Elite but doesn't appear to have a showcard, ditto Grace Hollows, and Georgia Fowler is skipping New York but will join the pack in Milan and Paris.

GO THE KIWIS!

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