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fter spending more than a decade in modeling, Lisa Selesner finds herself ready to guide young models into the business through a modeling reality show – SupermodelMe.

With her slender figure, unique face and professionalism, Lisa quickly turned into one of Hong Kong’s supermodels.

Born in Monaco to a French-Chinese father and Jewish-American mother, but growing up in The Big Apple, she soon became the face of many brands, from skincare products and diamond jewelry to a major international bank while adorning the pages of some lifestyle and fashion magazines.

She also landed assignments with major designer labels, such as Yohji Yamamoto, Vivienne Westwood, Dior and Chanel.

Lisa, who decided to shorten her surname Selesner to just S in 2000 when she moved to Hong Kong, finds that modeling has become a much more encompassing job.

“I know that now people expect more out of a model. They are not just fashion models anymore; they are also spokeswomen, hosts and brand ambassadors,” she told The Jakarta Post during a recent phone interview.

Her great personality has also landed her job as host for many events and TV programs, including the Asian Film Awards (from 2009 to 2011), Ebuzz and E! News Asia.

Her face is also familiar to music lovers as she is also a VJ on music television networks Channel (V).

She is now tapped as the host and resident judge of a reality show called SupermodelMe, which brings in 12 models from all over Asia for the once-in-a-life-time chance to start an international modeling career, win the grand prize of US$20,000 and seal an opportunity to be on the cover of leading local fashion magazines.

SupermodelMe, created by Refinery Media in 2009, will kick off its third season, premiered at KIX Channel on March 13.

The show features a look into the larger-than-life intrigues behind the enchantment of the fashion industry. Here, the models will go through a string of heavy physical and mental challenges to test their mind, body and fashion industry survival.

The resident judges of season 3 include actress and model Ase Huimin Wang, model and TV host Dom Lau and editor-in-chief of ELLE Singapore Sharon Lim, while international celebrities, such as supermodel Qi Qi, supermodel-actress Ana Rivera as well as host-model Utt Panichkul will appear as guest judges.

Lisa is excited to be a part of the show, which will be involved in the development process of grooming young Asian models, dubbing the show as much more extreme compared with other modeling reality shows.

“You know, many modeling shows only concentrate on fashion, but modeling is more than just being fashionable,” she says, adding that the show also stresses on how to keep the model fit and healthy.

“We put the girls through very intense physical events to test their endurance.”

The show also allows her to share her experiences as an international model to the contestants.

“What kind of personal experiences? It is more about the negative side that could happen in the fashion world and what type of negative people you could be around in. How could I help these girls to be strong in this industry,” she says.

Others, including having thick skin, being a good money manager and having a passion with fashion are essential that a model should have to be able to survive in the industry.

Lisa admits that she is impressed by the accomplishment of Asian models in the international circuit, saying that they have a bright future in fashion.

A few years ago, she said that people maybe only see one Asian girl on the runway but now, many Asians have strutted their ways on shows in Europe.

“I think that’s really amazing. I think the girls are beautiful. We have tall slim girls, we have athletic girls, we have girls who can do runway and we also have girls who can do commercial stuffs,” she says.

She also finds the modern modeling industry has changed a lot compared to the era when she paved her career back in 1990s.

“I think we have more beautiful working girls. I think nowadays what people look more on a model is much broader boundaries than what it was before,” she says.

“When I started in this business, you have to be in a certain height and you have to have a certain body type. I think these days, it’s not so much important.”

Besides being a model and emcee, Lisa is also also a seasonal actress and has starred in Hong Kong movies like Silver Hawk (2004), Rob-B-Hood (2006) and A Mob Story (2007).

She, however, does not intend to get seriously involved in movies.

“I’m not an actress by any means. I have never pretended to be,” she says.

“I’ve always been lucky that I’m in the industry where I sometimes get the opportunity to do a movie.”

For her, doing a movie is an opportunity to do something different and interesting — to be around different people and experience different way of working. “Of course, if somebody offers me a movie for fun, I’ll do it, but it’s not a part of my career path,” she adds.

She says that being an emcee is her life and love. “I concentrate more on hosting. I’m good at being myself but not too great at being anybody else.”

The decision is also a matter of a longevity issue — as the modeling world does not last forever.

“I think in modeling, you have to decide what your next step is and I have decided that his could be my next step,” she says.

“The great thing about hosting is you can host until you are 75. There’s no age limit or looks limit when you are hosting. It’s about how you can connect with your audience.”