| America's Next Top Model, Cycle 12 | |
|---|---|
Promotional photograph of the cast of Cycle 12 of America's Next Top Model |
|
| Format | Reality television |
| Created by | Tyra Banks |
| Developed by | Ken Mok Kenya Barris |
| Country of origin | USA |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Tyra Banks Ken Mok Daniel Soiseth |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | The CW |
| Original run | March 4, 2009 – May 13, 2009 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Cycle 11 |
| Followed by | Cycle 13 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
America's Next Top Model, Cycle 12 is the twelfth cycle of America's Next Top Model and the sixth season to air on The CW network. It premiered on March 4, 2009. The cycle's catch phrase is "Get In The Fold." The cycle's promotional song is Lady Gaga's "The Fame".
The first half of the cycle took place in New York City, moving the show back from Los Angeles last season. The international destination for this cycle is São Paulo, Brazil, the series first visit to South America.
The number of girls was reduced to 13, the first time since Cycle 9, after being maintained at 14 in the last two cycles. This was the last time Paulina Porizkova participated as judge.
The winner was 20-year-old Teyona Anderson from Woodstown, New Jersey. Her prizes included representation by Elite Model Management, a $100,000 contract with CoverGirl cosmetics, and the cover and six-page fashion spread in Seventeen. This season averaged 4.35 million viewers per episode.[1]
First aired March 4, 2009
34 semi-finalists arrived at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada, where they were dressed up as "goddesses" and took a profile shot before showing off their walks. Later that night, Tyra arrived dressed up as the "Goddess of Fierce," and told the models that she was looking for a "successor."
Notable interviews included London revealing that she was a street preacher, Allison admitting that she is fascinated by blood, Tahlia showing her burn scars, Kortnie telling the judges that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. used to be her boyfriend, Kathryn disappointing the panel for not knowing five working models, but then impressing them by citing three designers, and Monique confessing that she was a conspiracy theorist. In between interviews, Angelea revealed she had a daughter who died, and that she slept in the Port Authority Bus Terminal just so she could audition.
Later, a first cut was made, and 21 girls remained, each having to portray a certain goddess. During the shoot, Sandra and Angelea bickered, greatly affecting the latter's performance. Tyra then selected the final 13. When Tyra called the thirteenth girl (Sandra), Sandra bumped Angelea as an act of revenge for messing with her, disappointing the eliminated Angelea even further. (Angelea would audition again in the fourteenth cycle a year later, and was successful in making it to the Top Model house.) Jessica Santiago is the first Latin-american contestant in the America's Next Top Model history.
First aired March 4, 2009
After a trip to the rooftop of the Empire State Building, Celia was handed the key to their new Top Model house, who was chosen to choose the first bed. Sandra, placing her personal belongings onto Celia's chosen bed, stirred up conflict in the house until London gave up her own bed. In addition, Isabella discussed her epilepsy
The ladies participated in their first fashion show for Abaeté. Sandra only walked half the runway, but never realized it until judging. Tahlia's confidence was crushed when the designer dressed her up fully so as to cover her scars. They later headed to Central Park for their first photo shoot where they brought well-known childhood games to life, portraying "good girls" along with other models who portrayed "bad girls" with the photoshoot aiming to show how girls can grow up too quickly.
| Model | Childhood Game |
|---|---|
| Allison | Double Dutch |
| Aminat | London Bridge |
| Celia | Hula hoop |
| Fo | Ring Around the Rosie |
| Isabella | Dodgeball |
| Jessica | Jacks |
| Kortnie | Monkey bars |
| London | Tug of War |
| Natalie | Leapfrog |
| Nijah | Musical chairs |
| Sandra | Hide and seek |
| Tahlia | Tag |
| Teyona | Hopscotch |
In judging, London's photo received unanimously great praise, mainly because she managed to smile wide without looking cheesy and because she found her photographer while also finding her light at the same time. However, her not-so-model presence at the judging panel dragged the judges' choice down a bit. Allison, Celia and Fo also received praise, but Sandra, Isabella, Tahlia, and Jessica struggled to make it work. Near the end, Allison was the first to have her picture displayed as digital art in the house. The bottom two came down to Isabella and Sandra, where, despite Sandra's poor performances on the runway and in the photo shoot, Isabella was eliminated for having a weaker photo and presence.
First aired March 11, 2009
Tyra Mail announced that it was time for makeovers. They arrived at Bergdorf Goodman where the two Jays were waiting for their makeovers; most of the girls were pleased by their new looks, but Fo was visibly affected by the loss of her hair and her presumed femininity. In a Top Model first, Natalie was not given a makeover, as she was deemed to be sufficiently model-looking the way she was. That night the girls went to a bar and Sandra caused tension with Aminat, by insinuating that she could get drunk.
The next day, the girls were introduced to their first reward challenge. In teams of three, they had to search the streets of New York for a woman that embodied the spirit of Cover Girl and act as spokesmodels for the brand, as well as help her do her makeup. Team 1 consisting of Aminat, Celia and Sandra won the reward of doing a photo shoot that will be displayed on Walmart.com, despite Sandra's limited contributions to the group.
The week’s photo shoot required the girls to direct their own lighting using flashing light sticks. Fo’s discomfort over her makeover caused her to cry on set, disrupting the shoot. The judges were impressed by Teyona, Celia, Allison, London, and Natalie, but were disappointed with a large majority of the rest for lack of posing "tension." Despite a strong photo, Fo landed in the bottom two because the judges were concerned that she was unable to be a chameleon, but it was Jessica who was sent home for being unable to translate her beauty into photos and for relying too much on being pretty.
First aired March 18, 2009
The 11 remaining models attended Miss J's Charm School to practice their runway walks. Cycle 9 contestants Bianca and Chantal were there to give advice to the girls. Back at the house, tension arose when Natalie claimed that Tahlia's picture last week was the worst in the entire group. Teyona received a new weave after Tyra admitted in the last panel that it wasn't what she wanted.
The girls were challenged to walk for Jill Stuart, wearing her Spring Collection and carrying large shopping bags. Celia and Natalie's walks stood out, and despite making a mistake by ungracefully twirling on the runway, Natalie won the challenge and received a selection of items from the Jill Stuart collection.
The photo shoot involved posing in groups as different characters in famous Manhattan locations:
| Models | Role and location |
|---|---|
| Allison & London | Socialites on Fifth Avenue |
| Aminat & Fo | Stockbrokers on Wall Street |
| Celia & Sandra | Nannies on the Upper East Side |
| Kortnie & Nijah | Artists in SoHo |
| Natalie, Tahlia and Teyona | Tourists in Times Square |
Sandra impressed the judges with her stunning profile shot and received the first callout. Aminat, Fo and Tahlia also impressed the judges having their photos being their best so far. In the end, Allison, having disappointed the judges by over-analyzing her shot, landed in the bottom two with Nijah, whom the judges felt she was relying too much on being beautiful to get by in the competition. But the judges felt Allison had more to give, and Nijah was sent home.
First aired March 25, 2009
Tocarra Jones of Cycle 3 visited the girls for a slumber party, and taught them about making an impression with personality. The next day, the models were taught by Benny Ninja how to strike various poses with different genres of music. Most of the girls struggled at the teach, but Natalie and Celia stood out due to their creativity. Later that night the girls were challenged to a pose-off competition, where groups of girls faced off against each other and were judged based on the overall audience response to their individual performances. Celia and Natalie made it to the final round, but it was Celia who won the challenge.
Tahlia's confidence was once again shattered because of the audience's negative reaction during her performance, and she considered quitting the competition. This sparked a series of reactions from some of the girls, especially Celia, who were shocked that she might move on instead of someone who wanted to win more than her.
The weeks's photo shoot had the girls portray old immigrants that traveled to Ellis Island with their families; Benny Ninja was pictured with the girls as the family father. The pictures were taken via old-fashioned cameras, and were thus black-and-white. Tahlia once again expressed her desire to quit in the make-up room, but at panel, her improvement impressed the judges and she received the first call-out. Teyona, Natalie, and Allison also received unanimous praise for their convincing performances conveyed on film. Sandra, despite her poor performances in the challenge and photo shoot, was yet again spared elimination when Kortnie was sent home for not having striking photographs.
Right after Sandra's name was called, Celia went to stand by Kortnie and told Tyra that Tahlia wanted to quit the competition, and that she found it unfair to eliminate other girls with more passion. However, Celia was rebutted by Tyra who said that Tahlia should be the one to express her own feelings, not her. The judges' decision was final and couldn't be further altered.
First aired April 1, 2009
The fallout of the previous week's elimination continued to rock the house as the girls returned home, and a divide was created between Aminat, Teyona and Tahlia and the rest of the house.
The girls' challenge was to pose using face cut-outs in famous photos of Tyra Banks. Celia was criticised for focusing too much on her body, while London and Natalie excelled. Natalie was ultimately chosen as the winner, and she received 50% more frames at the next photo shoot as her prize. Back at the house later, Tahlia and Celia discussed the previous elimination, with Tahlia expressing her humiliation and disappointment in Celia's behavior. Celia said she did not regret saying what she said, but said humiliating Tahlia was not her intention and apologized, saying she felt sure she would be eliminated at panel.
This week's photo shoot saw the girls taking beauty shots using different colored powders.
| Model | Color |
|---|---|
| Allison | Hot Pink |
| Aminat | Green |
| Celia | Grey |
| Fo | Red |
| London | Blue |
| Natalie | Orange |
| Sandra | White |
| Tahlia | Violet |
| Teyona | Yellow |
At panel, the judges were impressed by Fo and Teyona's photos. Tahlia and Aminat also received positive feedback. Allison received a reprimand from panel for relying on one look in all of her photos, while London, Natalie and Sandra were criticized. Celia was praised for embodying her color and for strong personal style, but the judges were disappointed about her controversial actions last panel. Ultimately Sandra and Celia landed in the bottom two; Sandra for being unable to take a strong front facial shot, and Celia for her "non-beautiful" doings last week. In the end, Celia was spared because of her strong photos, but was warned to "not mess with another girl's money."[2] Sandra was sent home.
First aired April 8, 2009
The girls were taught acting skills by Paulina, which led them to act out a scene with Clay Aiken. Celia and London excelled, while Allison and Tahlia were criticized for holding back too much. London won the challenge, and $5,000 worth of clothing. However, she gave most of her prizes away as she felt she had gained weight and would not be able to fit in the clothes.
Instead of a photo shoot, the girls had a Cover Girl commercial with the aid of a teleprompter. They were split into two groups: Teyona, Allison, Aminat and Celia are in Group 1 and Fo, Natalie, London and Tahlia form Group 2.
At panel, all of the girls received criticism. Celia was praised again for her strong fashion sense although it was pointed out how much older she looked. Teyona was told she was not telegenic. Allison's commercial was criticized, both for her one-note expressions and delivery. On the side Allison was ordered to swap clothes with Teyona, as she was wearing an outfit that she had worn before. Aminat was criticized for clipping words and London was told her performance was lazy. The judges additionally commented on London's weight gain during deliberation. Natalie was told she looked good on film, but was forgettable; Fo stuttered through her commercial and was told that she performed better in the background of other commercials. A similar criticism was also given to London. Tahlia struggled, with the judges commenting that she looked older than her years.
Ultimately, Celia received the first call out for standing out in a batch of weak commercials. Allison and Tahlia landed in the bottom two, with Allison being told she was not versatile, and Tahlia that her low self-esteem held her back. With that, Tahlia was sent home.
First aired April 10, 2009
This is the recap episode. It featured unaired clips such as two verbal altercations between Nijah and Sandra, Celia giving her breakdown of the girls at casting, Allison's drawings (including a nose-bleeding Tyra), a montage of Natalie sleeping, Fo's incessant crying, Sandra's repeatedly reiterating she was there to become America's next top model, Aminat and Teyona stripping on the runway, Sandra's breakdown during Toccara's visit and her reaction to Celia's judging disruption,Kortnie, Allison and Celia making a bird house and more insight into Allison and Celia's friendship.
First aired April 15, 2009
The week's reward challenge had the girls become the creative directors of their competitors' photo shoots as they take pictures for a South Pole Junior advert. Allison impressed Jay with her bubbly personality for the first time, while Aminat's laid back attitude infuriated him as she used too much time on wardrobe and only had four minutes to get Natalie on set. Celia gave good direction but selected a picture where Fo’s shoes were cropped out. Teyona's creativity amazed Jay and she was chosen as the winner, and got the opportunity to appear in the June issue of Seventeen magazine, which she shared with Aminat and Celia.
The next morning, Jay visited the girls at their own house and brought in the entire Tyra Banks "glam squad (occasionally featured in some of Tyra's talk show episodes)." R&B superstar Ciara arrived at this week's photo shoot, and the girls had to portray crazed fans of the star tangled up in wires. While Teyona, Fo and Natalie excelled in the shoot, Aminat and Allison struggled to deliver a shot. London's weight gain was too obvious to be ignored, and Jay discussed it with her after her photo shoot, telling her that while she was way too small for plus-size modeling she should watch her eating habits to continue to fit in sample sizes.
A male model appeared at the beginning of panel speaking Portuguese and presented Tyra with a bowl of Brazil nuts, leading her to tell the girls that the six models to survive elimination would be going to São Paulo, Brazil for the rest of the competition. Teyona received the first call out while Aminat and London ended up in the bottom two, each for the first time; Aminat for her bland shot and dead facial expression, and London for not using her conventional beauty well in her photo. In the end, London was eliminated.
First aired April 22, 2009
Upon arrival in São Paulo, Brazil, the remaining six contestants were greeted by Brazil's Next Top Model host Fernanda Motta and raced in pairs to deliver flowers to Helô Pinheiro, "The Girl from Ipanema." Natalie and Fo were the first to arrive and they received US$500 pairs of jeweled Havaiana flip flops as well as the keys to their new home.
The following day, the girls learned the martial art of Capoeira and Celia accidentally kicked Aminat in the face during practice. They were then challenged to perform while attempting to produce a good photograph. Most girls struggled, such as Celia who repeatedly blocked her face, Teyona who did capoeira more than she modeled, and Natalie who didn't push through. Fo's photo was chosen as the best, granting her 50% more frames during the next photo shoot while another contestant of her choice would lose 50%. Fo, still bitter that Teyona did not choose her to share in her reward during the previous episode, chose Teyona to lose half of her frames.
For the week's photo shoot, the models embodied Brazilian icon Carmen Miranda. Allison surprised Jay with her creativity and Teyona excelled despite having only 25 frames. On the other hand, Aminat and Fo struggled to deliver a shot with Jay criticizing Fo as interpreting the Brazilian icon so literally that she lost her model sense.
At panel, Allison's photo received praise for her successful embodiment of the icon and Teyona's photo was deemed as the only "model" shot in the bunch. Despite the good photo, Teyona's wardrobe was criticized while Celia's photo was chastised for not looking fresh. In the end, Natalie was dropped to the bottom two for not having a great portfolio along with Aminat for her lack of expressions in her photos. Shockingly, Natalie was sent home and Aminat was again spared.
First aired April 29, 2009
The girls met Paulo Borges, the director of São Paulo Fashion Week before being sent on go-sees throughout the city. Despite a high fashion portfolio, Allison's walk was criticized. Aminat's walk was heralded as great whilst Teyona was praised for her face and personality. Fo managed to see all five designers but was chastised heavily for her height and looking too commercial. Celia's age did not sit well with one designer, but compensated for her graceful, elegance walk and sense of style. In the end, Fo managed to book none of her go sees whilst Celia saw the best results, managing to book three out of four go sees. However, both arrived late (Celia by one minute and Fo by 12) and were both disqualified. The rest of the girls flew by helicopter to meet Paulo at the fashion week headquarters. Teyona won the challenge as she was booked by all three of her go-sees, and won clothes from each designer.
For this week's photo shoot, the girls had to pose in small, high fashion swimsuits while standing out on a crowded beach of locals and tourists in Santos. Allison was praised for being able to connect with her surroundings whilst Teyona was noted for being able to understand her angles. Aminat failed to use the potential in her body with her shot coming out stiff, whilst Fo's shot made her look even shorter. Celia, despite again lauded for her strong personal style, was lambasted for being overly-rehearsed during her shoot.
Celia landed in the bottom two for not looking fresh and thinking too much beforehand, whilst Fo joined her for looking short in her photos and booking none of her go sees. In the end, Fo could not compensate for her lack of height and Celia's previous strong shots and personal style won the judges over, and Fo was sent home.
First Aired: May 6, 2009
The girls arrived at Águia de Ouro and met Paulina where they learned the steps in samba dance. The next day, they were put to the test and had to create an illusion of having a good time through the dance they learned. Celia managed to relax her face and delivered a convincing performance, winning her jewelry from Ara Vartanian worth over $7,000, which she shared with Allison.
For the week’s photo shoot, the girls traveled to the Brazilian jungle where they were dressed as exotic birds sitting in their nests, with Tyra herself as the photographer. Allison’s composure on set got praise and Celia was lauded for looking fresh and being creative. On the other hand, Aminat’s inability to use her face to catch the light impeded her performance[3] while Teyona struggled against various elements (rain & darkness) during her photo shoot, causing Tyra to have difficulty in shooting her as well.
At panel, only Allison's photo received unanimously great praise from judges, though the rest also received praise. Although Celia was deemed to have a better portfolio, the judges felt that she continued to look old in her pictures and was ultimately eliminated while Aminat was again saved for another time.
First aired May 13, 2009
The final three shot their CoverGirl commercials. Aminat was criticized for her lack of facial expression on film but her overall commercial was deemed the best by panel. Allison forgot her lines but managed to deliver a convincing commercial, while Teyona's nerves took their toll on her as she fumbled through her lines. Afterward, the girls shot their CoverGirl print ad.
Allison was called first for her ability to capture her beauty in a photo due to her stunning picture, despite her average but believable commercial. Aminat's inability to photograph with facial variety disappointed the judges once more, though her commercial was the strongest of the three. Teyona's photo granted her universal praise once again because she managed to appear sultry and maintain commercial appeal, but she was lambasted for her uninspiring performance in her CoverGirl commercial. Aminat's inconsistent portfolio and Teyona's dismal commercial landed then in the bottom two. But the judges deemed Teyona's portfolio was strong enough to save her, thus sending Aminat home.
The final two shot their Seventeen magazine cover tries where they both excelled and impressed Ann Shoket. Later, for their final performance, Allison and Teyona arrived at Ibirapuera Auditorium for competed in a Rosa Chá swimsuit fashion show where they had to strut a sultry walk, dance in samba movement and crawl provocatively at the end of the show.
At panel, Allison was commended for her significant improvements throughout the competition as well as for her strong walk, which also improved immensely from being the worst of the bunch. Teyona's walk was criticized for looking somewhat robotic, though she was still praised for her stellar photos. The judges felt that both finalists had their own strengths; Teyona was lauded for her versatile portfolio that translated into booking ability, creativity during photo shoots, and genuine personality while Allison's high fashion and editorial look could book her international fashion shows.
The girls were called back, and Tyra announced Teyona as the twelfth winner of America's Next Top Model.
The reunion aired May 13, 2009 on The Tyra Banks Show and was the third one after cycles 5 and 10. It was graduation themed and all the girls (except for Sandra, who didn't attend) wore bikinis. The girls were voted yearbook-style as follows:
Various girls were interviewed after their vote was revealed. Fo revealed she had met her father, whom she didn't know was black until she was six and coined the phrase "blaxican" at 12. Celia got her one featurette about her personal style and London went on to preach on the streets of New York City. Tyra also discussed Allison's nosebleeding picture of her and Tyra made a montage of her and Robert Pattinson. Natalie revealed she suffered from panic attacks and hypochondria.
Tyra brought a general from the US Army to discuss her positive impact on burnt soldiers and Tahlia did a shoot with a burnt soldier and another burn survivor where they displayed their scars. It was also revealed that Tahlia had become pregnant since the taping of the show. Then elderly people reenacted memorable scenes introduced by Bianca Golden from cycle 9. Those included Fo's haircut, Celia's rebellion against Tyra and Natalie's and Aminat's face off. Celia said that all things were settled between her and Tahlia and when Tyra said "Don't mess with a girl's money," Celia joked back that Tahlia was messing with hers.
The show ended with Tyra revealing that two contestants had been offered a contract with Nous Model Management by Kenya Knight which were revealed on her show's website as being Allison and Fo.
(ages stated are at time of contest)
| Contestant | Age | Hometown | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kelly Marie "Isabella" Falk | 19 | Barboursville, Virginia | 13th |
| Jessica Santiago | 18 | Caguas, Puerto Rico | 12th |
| Nijah Harris | 18 | Rancho Cucamonga, California | 11th |
| Kortnie Coles | 24 | Houston, Texas | 10th |
| Sandra Nyanchoka | 19 | Rockville, Maryland | 9th |
| Tahlia Brookins | 18 | Phoenix, Arizona | 8th |
| Lauren "London" Levi-Nance | 18 | Arlington, Texas | 7th |
| Natalie Pack | 19 | Palos Verdes, California | 6th |
| Felicia "Fo" Porter | 19 | Albuquerque, New Mexico | 5th |
| Celia Ammerman | 25 | Cynthiana, Kentucky | 4th |
| Aminat Ayinde | 21 | Union, New Jersey | 3rd |
| Allison Harvard | 20 | New Orleans, Louisiana | Runner-up |
| Teyona Anderson | 20 | Woodstown, New Jersey | Winner |
| Order | Episodes | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | |||
| 1 | Aminat | Allison | Teyona | Sandra | Tahlia | Fo | Celia | Teyona | Allison | Teyona | Allison | Allison | Teyona | |
| 2 | Natalie | Fo | Celia | Aminat | Teyona | Teyona | Natalie | Fo | Teyona | Allison | Teyona | Teyona | Allison | |
| 3 | Fo | Teyona | Allison | Tahlia | Allison | Tahlia | Teyona | Natalie | Fo | Aminat | Aminat | Aminat | ||
| 4 | Allison | London | Natalie | Fo | Natalie | Aminat | Fo | Celia | Celia | Celia | Celia | |||
| 5 | Tahlia | Celia | London | Celia | London | Allison | London | Allison | Aminat | Fo | ||||
| 6 | Celia | Nijah | Nijah | London | Aminat | Natalie | Aminat | Aminat | Natalie | |||||
| 7 | Nijah | Kortnie | Tahlia | Kortnie | Celia | London | Allison | London | ||||||
| 8 | London | Natalie | Sandra | Teyona | Fo | Celia | Tahlia | |||||||
| 9 | Teyona | Aminat | Kortnie | Natalie | Sandra | Sandra | ||||||||
| 10 | Kortnie | Tahlia | Aminat | Allison | Kortnie | |||||||||
| 11 | Isabella | Jessica | Fo | Nijah | ||||||||||
| 12 | Jessica | Sandra | Jessica | |||||||||||
| 13 | Sandra | Isabella | ||||||||||||
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