Local designer Francis Libiran, favored by the likes of Heart Evangelista, Maine Mendoza, and Tricia Centenera-Valenciano, has been tapped by America’s Next Top Model (ANTM) host and model Tyra Banks to do a whole collection for the show’s 22nd cycle.
The couture collection is guided by the theme Creatures of the Night, where Francis has men dressed as hunters and women dressed as the hunted. Without giving too much away, Francis describes the clothes to our source: “It’s about conceptualizing with really bright colors like red, yellow, cobalt blue, tone on tone, and creating beaded details [that are] more creature-like. [For the girls,] hindi siya elegant like floral prints; it’s more exaggerated, I want it to be flowy.“
Apart from creating a full collection, Francis will also make an appearance himself on the show’s 12th episode for the season.“Our call time was at 7 p.m. and we ended at 4 a.m. the next day. Ang lamig! [During the shoot,] very limited yung movement ng models while we’re throwing the dress. It was so dark, there were no lights, and it’s just flash. Kaya it’s very challenging for them because yung iba nahihilo, nahuhulog, and yung iba hindi maka-balance,” says Francis about his experience while taping the episode.
This is not the first time Francis got a nod from Tyra and her long-running reality show. In 2012, Francis was asked by ANTM to create pieces for the show and he produced clothes with Hello Kitty accents. He was only briefly credited in the show through a photo of him with Anne Curtis. Tyra also personally choose to wear a gold leather cut-out serpentina gown from Francis for the 2014 Flawsome Ball.
The full episode will be shown on Nov. 7, at 8 p.m. on ETC.
Photo courtesy of Solar Entertainment