Barboursville woman gets taste of television

Kelly "Isabella" Falk hasn't let the bright lights of the city change her. Falk, a Barboursville native with a sunny disposition, has achieved something many only dream of. She beat out thousands of girls to become one of 13 contestants to battle it out in front of Tyra Banks to become the next “America's Next Top Model.”
The show, created by Banks, aims to find the next major fashion model. Castings are done in major cities all over the country to find the girls with the most modeling potential. Once the potential contestants are interviewed and judged, they are whittled down to the final 13 or 14 that will compete for the title. Those contestants are eliminated week by week based on photo shoots and other criteria. The one left standing at the end of it all gets a magazine cover, a contract with a modeling agency and a Cover Girl contract worth thousands of dollars.
Falk, who became interested in modeling at the age of 15, had done some smaller productions within Virginia, so when she got the opportunity to audition for the show, she jumped at it.
"I sent in a casting tape and was asked to go to New York for a second interview," she said. "I waited about a month after that before flying to Las Vegas [for the final competition]. It was very exciting."
Falk had to leave without much notice and was only allowed to tell her family where she was going.
"They were super supportive," she said.
After being chosen as one of the 13 contestants in Las Vegas, Falk and the other women were sent to New York where they would live together in a loft and compete for the grand prize.
As has been done on the show in the past, the girls were put to the test by walking in a runway show. Previously, Falk said that she had done one small runway show for a department store but nothing like the one featured in the show.
"It's very exciting," she said. "It's an adrenaline rush. You only have one chance to get it right. Stepping out [on that runway] was an amazing feeling."
The runway could have been a challenge more-so for Falk than for others, something that the show highlighted. Falk has epilepsy which can be triggered by flashing lights.
"It wasn't my intent to [focus on my epilepsy]," she said. "It was more that the producers focused on it. It's something I deal with. It's kind of nice having it brought forward. [It shows] that you don't have to let if affect you. You can put it in the background."
Even though she passed the runway test with flying colors, Falk was the first contestant eliminated from the show. Some of the other girls and hundreds of people online thought that she should have stayed.
"I felt so touched to hear the girls say that I should have stayed," she said. "I felt like they were my friends. It was like a big sleepover for a week. I feel in the future it will make us closer."
Even though she was only in the New York loft for about a week, Falk says she had a great time and still talks to some of the contestants from the show.
"I made friends with lots of the girls [like] Celia, Allison and Courtney," she said. "Leaving was hard. I didn't feel like I had ample time to make friends. It's so nice to connect with girls who have the same dream [as me]."
After watching the show, Falk said she was happy about the way she was portrayed.
"I was showed exactly as I am at home," she said.
She does admit, however, that watching herself was weird.
"I get so embarrassed," she said. "I'm not used to that feeling."
Since being home, Falk said she has been recognized by people who watch the show.
"It's nice to have hometown people encourage me to continue following my dreams," she said.
And that is just what Falk plans to do.
"My fiancée and I have plans to move to New Jersey so I can continue modeling," she said. "I have contacts in the city and I hope to sign with one of them. I'm going to keep pursuing my dream. ‘America's Next Top Model’ lit a fire under me to keep going."
As for who she hopes to win, Falk has her pick.
"I'd love to see Celia win," she said. "I was very close with her. She has a great personality."
The CW Newtwork show is ten weeks into the season with only five contestants remaining.
The show is currently casting for its next season, cycle 13. For anyone thinking about auditioning, Falk would advise they do what she did.
"Go into it being yourself with your own personality," she said. "Have fun and portray yourself as you are."
"America's Next Top Model" airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.