Model Rebecca Dubber from All is for All at the NZ Fashion Week 2019 casting. Image by James Yang Photography.
When I was younger, my favourite show to watch with my mum was America’s Next Top Model. For little 12-year-old Rebecca, there was something magical and glamourous about the life of a model – from the hair and makeup to the extravagant outfits and the amazing places they got to travel to, it seemed like a dream life.
I was so enamoured with what I saw on the show that I decided I wanted to be a model too. I remember seeing a modelling competition being advertised in a teen magazine and knew I had to enter. I was so excited, thinking this was my chance to be discovered, so I got dressed up, did my hair and makeup and asked my mum to take some photos.
I submitted them to the competition but never heard back. I don’t ever remember feeling disappointed that I didn’t get picked, but I also remember mum having a conversation with me about how I might not fit the image that they would be looking for. Perhaps I didn’t quite understand what she meant at the time. Still, looking back, it’s obvious she was referring to my disability and the fact I use a wheelchair for mobility.
After realising that I wasn’t going to win the model search competition, I decided that maybe modelling wasn’t for me after all. I decided to focus on other pursuits like my swimming. With a lot of hard work and determination, I went on to have a very successful career competing at two Paralympic games and winning one Paralympic medal.
Even though I never put too much more thought into modelling while I was swimming, there was always a part of me that wished I could fit into that world and have those experiences.
I paid close attention to the conversations that were happening around body positivity and representation of diverse bodies in fashion, and while most revolved around size, I often found myself wondering whether disability would become part of the discussion too.
At the beginning of 2019, my dear friend Grace Stratton co-founded an inclusive e-commerce website and talent agency called All is for All alongside Angela Bevan, which was dedicated to making some of New Zealand’s top powerhouse labels more accessible to disabled people, but also to show the pieces from those same designers on the bodies of disabled models.
It was incredible to see disability finally being brought into the fashion conversation. It wasn’t hard to see that the combined efforts of Grace and Ange were making some pretty positive and exciting waves – I knew I had to find a way to be a part of this exciting movement.
I got in touch with Grace about being on their books as talent and was almost a little surprised when she came back straight away, saying she’d love to have me involved.
I participated in a couple of photoshoots, to begin with. Then I remember having a conversation about New Zealand Fashion Week 2019. With all of the momentum she was gaining with All is for All, Grace thought it was important that disabled models had a presence at Fashion Week.
Model Rebecca Dubber (centre front) on the runway at New Zealand Fashion Week 2019.
One day we were chatting, and she asked me if I’d be interested in going along to the casting. I don’t think I even hesitated to say yes, because the prospect of being involved in Fashion Week to me seemed like a dream come true. Although the opportunity to be involved was an exciting one and a big step towards greater diversity, Grace was also great at managing expectations, reminding us that the fashion week casting didn’t necessarily mean we’d get picked for a show.
With that in mind, I went to the casting determined to enjoy the experience, and if that’s as close to the runway as I get, that was okay.
A few days after the casting, I remember getting a call from Grace; she was so excited to tell me that I had been cast in five shows – the Resene Designer Runway shows and the Zambesi 40 year retrospective show.
I may or may not have had a big happy cry on the phone, but there aren’t really words to describe how I felt at that moment, realising that I would be participating in New Zealand Fashion Week as a disabled model.
I found the experience, on the whole, very positive. I also realised how much work goes into organising everything from the fittings to hair and makeup, and setting the order of the shows.
I was incredibly nervous about my first show. Being the only wheelchair user backstage, I felt a bit out of place; I was also worried about what the other models would think – did they think I was just there to fill a diversity quota?
The nerves were short-lived once I swiftly realised how lovely everyone was, from the other models to the hair and makeup artists, the people dressing us, and of course the show producers, stylists and other team members working on the shows.
When I got cast in the first show, I promised myself that I would make the most of the opportunity, saying yes to any opportunity that came up, including modelling underwear and doing a few mid runway wheelies.
Of course, the best memory is what it was like to go out on the runway for the first time. I had butterflies similar to what I felt before a big race; I felt excited, energised and ready to go. I was opening the show, which was a huge honour, and when the music started, I just went for it. I still get goosebumps thinking about it now.
It’s a crazy thing for me to reminisce back on, especially when I think about a young Rebecca who was so determined to model but was deterred by an industry that wasn’t ready to showcase a body like mine.
I am grateful to Grace and Ange for starting a movement that led to me achieving my dream of modelling and the designers, producers, stylists, photographers, and other influential people within the industry who have chosen to and continue to embrace disabled bodies in fashion.
It was the most incredible experience, and I can’t wait to see how disabled models continue to be embraced by New Zealand.
Model Rebecca Dubber (centre front) on the runway at New Zealand Fashion Week 2019.
Images by James Yang Photography and Getty Images.