By XAVIER SMERDON
A POINT Cook teenager is getting ready to grasp her dreams with both hands after making a name for herself as one of the next big names in the fashion industry.
Shanali Martin has made it into the final three of Australia’s Next Top Model, with the live results being announced on national television tonight.
At just 16-years-old, Shanali juggled both her school work and a burgeoning career as a superstar to be the first model to make it through to the grand final of the show’s eighth season.
Her teachers at Point Cook Senior Secondary College were called into a meeting when it was first revealed Shanali would be on the hit show and told to create a syllabus for her.
Outside contact was forbidden while the show was filmed, so they needed to be prepared for everything.
“They were told I could be there for three days or three months,” Shanali told Star.
After beating 50 hopefuls from around Australia to make it into the final three, Shanali said she was still hoping to pursue a career as a fashion designer.
“The show has been just incredible. It’s something I never thought I would do,” she said.
“I went into the show because I thought it would be a good insight and now I’ve been able to meet so many amazing people like Alex Perry.
“The big plan is to keep doing modelling to gain some more experience in styling and then convert that into a career as a designer.”
It has been a long journey for Shanali, who was flown to the African island of Mauritius for last week’s episode, but her dreams of being a designer have never changed.
Two years ago in an interview she told Star she was ready to work for her goals.
“From what I heard about getting into the fashion industry, it’s going to be hard to crack into and takes a lot of work, but hopefully I can do it,” she said at the time.
And while she is still coming to terms with people recognising her in the street, the girl who got her first taste of modelling at Fashion Awards Australia in Werribee said she was ready for whatever laid ahead of her.
“There is no other industry other than fashion that I want to be in,” she said.
“It’s strange thinking that all this has happened to me but I can’t think of anything else I’d rather be doing.”
Voting for the winner of the series closes tonight before the airing of live final episode on Fox8 at 7.30pm.
For more information visit www.fox8.tv/shows/australias-next-top-model/live-vote
