* Judges are seeing red

WITH her porcelain skin and flowing red hair, Brisbane teen model Carmen James caught the eyes of casting agents yesterday.The 16-year-old, who hopes to be the next Megan Gale, was among 200 models auditioning in Brisbane for the David Jones Winter 2007 Collections – one of Australia's most prestigious fashion parades.

While she must wait until tomorrow to find out if she made the catwalk cut, with the parade's "Streets of Dublin" theme, the half-Irish model seems a good bet.
"Hopefully the red hair does something for me," the Brisbane Girls' Grammar School Year 12 student said.

David Jones fashion marketing specialist Luke Bonanno said they were looking for "local talent, healthy, athletic girls and a few redheads for the show". He said: "David Jones has always promoted a healthy body image with the talent we select for our campaigns and the girls we put on the runway."

Fashion industry debate continues to rage over ultra-thin models.
The issue was sparked when Madrid Fashion Week banned models with a body mass index of less than 18 after 40kg model Ana Carolina Reston died.

At yesterday's casting, Robina model Alexis Mann, 20, said there was still pressure to be thin,
though fashion events were addressing concerns over promoting dangerously low body weights.
"Look around and it's clear Size 6 and 8s are still highly-promoted here and preferred at castings," she said.
"Most of the girls here are naturally thin but I do know of a few girls who aren't naturally that way."