Different Types of Pressure Meant Different Results on PROJECT RUNWAY CANADA, Says Coco Rocha

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede   It has been a fun, feisty, and fashionable year on PROJECT RUNWAY CANADA, which drops its dramatic season finale on Friday, Jan. 16, only on Crave (where all episodes are available for catch-up). Here’s how Canadian supermodel Coco Rocha, who served as both the host and one of the judges, analyzed the entire enthralling experience: Q: Did you get two cheques for hosting and judging? COCO ROCHA: “We wish! I think it was all muddled into one.”   Q: Sounds like time for a renegotiation. COCO ROCHA: “There you go. You can be my lawyer.”   Q: Which comes more naturally to you, judging or hosting? COCO ROCHA: “I think host and judge were definitely very combined, but also just being an executive producer was the area where I was really wanting to put my hat in the ring. The reason why it was so important to me was because PROJECT RUNWAY CANADA was coming in with producers who all came from the world of TV, whereas I was very much wanting to make sure that the fashion component was there. I wanted to be the playful judge, and the playful host, but also making sure that we were hitting all those key targets of, like, what was true fashion? What are the stories we need to really be discussing? I think that balance was, well, I wouldn’t say the hard one, but just the one I was very much aware of.”   Q: How would you rate the talent level of the designers on PROJECT RUNWAY CANADA this season? COCO ROCHA: “I think we had a majority of highly skilled designers. There were some challenges where I could not believe they could produce such beautiful things, even when I wasn’t expecting it. They showed me that anything’s possible, as long as you’re a creative person. So I have to say there were moments I was absolutely shocked in the greatest sense, but also sometimes shocked in the worst sense (laughs).”   Q: I guess those are the extremes that you’re looking for on a TV show such as this. COCO ROCHA: “I was hoping for that, yeah.”   Q: Do you have any specific takeaways? COCO ROCHA: “I think the designers were very good when it came to challenges where we very much told them, ‘this is all you’re allowed to use.’ But when they could use any material, it was interesting how they would panic under that kind of pressure. Not everyone, but some would. When you gave them, like, ‘here’s the challenge, here’s your material, here’s the amount of hours, this is all you’re allowed to do,’ that’s when they almost had the attitude of, ‘I’m going to prove to them I can do it.’ That’s usually when they were really good. So it was funny, if the challenge was more relaxed, and they had more time, what they came up with seemed to be less interesting to me. So I don’t know, under pressure, they did well.”   Q: Maybe that’s just human nature. COCO ROCHA: “I wonder, because it was almost always the case, and we noticed it as judges. When they were given very specific parameters, they killed it, like, murdered it. But if it was just a theme, like, one of the ones we had was ‘futuristic’ – I don’t know if that’s exactly what we called it – but a futuristic theme, what will it look like? That was too big for them. And it was a challenge where they had to work together, too, and you know, working together as designers is already a faux pas (laughs). They’re not usually good at that. But in general they had a hard time with that one because it was just too broad.”   Q: What do you know about your fellow judges – fashion media icon Jeanne Beker, and award-winning designer Spencer Badu – that you didn’t know at the beginning? COCO ROCHA: “So Spencer and I didn’t really know each other at all until we met at the Bell Media Upfront (last June). Back then he was so quiet, and calm, and poised. And now he’s like that little brother who you just nag in the best of ways. We made fun of each other 24/7, to the point where I’m sure Jeanne was like, ‘do they love or hate each other?’ She could not figure it out. But I mean, we would go out and have drinks and hang out, so we’re good. But it is funny how you get so comfortable around the people you work with, to the point where you’re just bashing them all the time! Not Jeanne, though, we would never … she’s a classy lady! We can’t do that to her. But just to give two cents about Jeanne, it was amazing to see when she would speak to the designers about their craftsmanship, or give them praise, how many tears would be on that runway. Hearing Jeanne Beker tell them, ‘I’m proud of you, you did it,’ they would just break down. It’s a testament to just what she has accomplished, and will continue to accomplish, in our industry. To see how much admiration and respect this new generation has for Jeanne was so touching. And also to see her well up … like, in just about every episode, at least one of us was crying. Well, mostly not Spencer, let’s be real.”   billharristv@gmail.com @billharris_tv