Yuma's beauties turn out for TV casting call

Tina Eldrige had modeled on the runways of New York and wants to take her career to the next level. Linette Mikel, a business student at Arizona Western College, always wanted to try modeling but never had the opportunity until now.

Cpl. Samantha Garza, a mechanic at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, hasn't been on stage since high school plays, but she wants to prove she has what it takes to make it in fashion.

These were just three of the more than 50 young women who came out for the "America's Next Top Model" casting call Saturday at Yuma Palms Regional Center.

"America’s Next Top Model" is a reality TV show that follows a group of young women who live together and vie for a grand prize that will include a modeling contract.

The Yuma casting call was part of a national search for contestants for the show's 10th season.

The finalists compete in a "modeling boot camp," including mentoring by super-model Tyra Banks and exposure to high-profile fashion industry gurus, all under 24-hour-a-day surveillance cameras chronicling their every move.

The show airs on The CW at 8 and 9 p.m. on Wednesdays, with reruns on MTV and VH1. Check television listings for upcoming air dates.

The eighth season is currently airing, and taping is under way for the ninth.

The casting call was organized by KSWT-TV with the support of Lotus Day Spa and Yuma Palms staff. Television station representatives took photos and applications to submit to the show for consideration.

Candidates had to do an interview, show off their catwalk moves and tape three model poses. Those audition video tapes will be sent to "America's Next Top Model" casting directors.

Though casting will also be held in Phoenix, Yuma was the closest location for people in San Diego, Palm Springs, Calif., and surrounding areas in Imperial and Yuma counties.

The only requirements were that women be 18 to 27 years of age and at least 5 feet 7 inches tall.

K.C. Hoffman, senior marketing specialist for the local KSWT and The CW affiliates, said everyone who auditioned Saturday has as good a chance of getting on the show as any woman in the nation.

"Everybody's chance is equal ... We found a lot of talented, energetic, intelligent, beautiful girls," Hoffman said.

Most of the women there were fans of the show, so they know what they're in for if they are cast.

"I've seen all the seasons. I know pretty much what’s going to go on during the whole process if I go on it," Mikel said. "I want to be on it because, besides it being about modeling, you get to experience a lot ... Tyra Banks is a supermodel and she pretty much lets you see the way it is to be a model. Training."

Garza said she's seen the sometimes catty behavior among the "America's Next Top Model" contestants. But if she can survive Marine Corps boot camp, she thinks she can make it through the Tyra Banks version.

"Because I’m a Marine and I'm a mechanic ... females who think that they can't do something like this, I'm going to prove them wrong. Show them that they can," Garza said. "It'll be like another boot camp for me except I get to wear the clothes that I want."

Eldrige said she spent three months last summer in New York City with her manager, Pete Self. She did a few runway shows and got a taste of the fashion world.

"New York is just so fast-paced. I love it there. It’s so amazing. The people there are so creative," Eldrige said.

She said The CW show is the perfect opportunity to get her face out there.

She added that she knows she's only one of thousands of young women competing for a chance on "America's Next Top Model" but it's still a chance she wants to take.

"It’s just always been a dream of mine to become a model, so I think it’s like the perfect opportunity ... I might not make it but ... it's worth a try."