With Jakarta Fashion Week (JFW) 2017 just around the corner, the new face of JFW 2017 has a lot of responsibilities on her shoulders that don’t include walking down the runway.

This week, JFW is returning for its ninth revival since it was first established in 2008. The event will run from Oct. 22 to 28 at Senayan City shopping mall. The director of JFW 2017, Lenni Tedja, recently introduced fashion model Juwita Rahmawati, better known as Wita Juwita, as the face of JFW 2017.

The 28-year-old is no stranger to modeling, having participated in various modeling competitions, in previous JFW shoes, and most notably winning the title of the Face of Femina in 2013.

Despite her successful modeling career, it is clear that Wita was not just handed this coveted position. She discussed the challenging selection to become the face of JFW, saying: “The competition was really intense, especially because of the experienced and professional models I was up against.”

Wita said she did her homework prior to the competition.

“I looked at past catalogues and JFW promotional media from previous years and noticed one of the model’s poses and practiced it in front of the mirror. I learned the secret that a JFW model must have the talent to pose like someone jumping in the air”, she said, laughing.

Intan Ferisya, junior manager of F&G Model Talent Agency, which was involved in the selection stage, said Wita was not an instant choice but the result of a thorough search process.

“More than 300 models participated in the search, and the level of talent was high,” she said, adding that finally Wita had been chosen because she had the posture and the personality they were looking for and she had been involved with JFW since the beginning.

Although she has much experience in modeling, Wita knows that being the face of the prestigious fashion event entails a lot more than modeling.

“As the face of JFW 2017, I am not only expected to wear the collections of Fashion Forward Indonesian designers on the runway, but I have to represent what Jakarta Fashion Week and Indonesian Fashion Forward are all about and encourage fashion development,” she said.

Wita attributes much of her success in becoming the face of JFW 2017 to her experience as the face of Femina in 2013.

“Being the face of Femina has given me the discipline and confidence that I needed to be an effective face of JFW”, Wita says.

Her determination and hard work has certainly paid off for Wita, whose experience so far as the face of JFW 2017 has been beyond what she could have expected.

“A highlight for me would be that this year there are definitely a lot of good designers. You can see their designs on social media, under the account JFWOfficial. Don’t forget to check it out!” she said.

She revealed that after fashion week, there were plans in motion to produce a television series about the Jakarta Fashion Week Model Search that had propelled her career. Fans of the ever-popular America’s and Asia’s Next Top Model would be sure to tune in to watch the competition, as well as aspiring models hoping to pick up tips from Wita’s success.

For now, Wita said her most essential piece of advice for those who wanted to take up a modeling career would be: “Always try hard and never give up. Most importantly, models need to have confidence!”

— The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post.

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