Midori Amae

At exactly six feet tall, with 34-26-36 stats, it could go without saying that top fashion model Midori Amae has walked runways for some of the biggest name designers and appeared at some of the most prominent  events in the fashion industry, such as those staged during the semi-annual New York Fashion Week. Fans of America's Next Top Model can look forward to seeing Midori on the show's upcoming Cycle 22. She'll go into that competition as the number two fan favorite. She tells me she wasn't planning on auditioning for the show, but did because she happened to be at home and have the day off when auditions were being held in nearby Arlington, Virginia in January. (As of this writing, no air date has been announced for Cycle 22, but the show's Facebook fan page will post it as soon as it's set.) She was also recently named creative director for i-Fashion magazine.

Despite her hectic schedule and frequent traveling, I was fortunate enough to be able to speak to Midori at length earlier this month. And to dispel a sort of myth about high class fashion models; I found her to be very down-to-earth with a great sense of humor and not pretentious at all. Besides her modeling, our topics included sports, food, one of her favorite charities, and her mild obsession with wearing glasses with no lenses. Above photo by Steve Bennett.

The Ladies of The Last Beautiful Girl

Over the last few years, Austin, Texas-based Twitchy Dolphin Flix has become known for producing movies featuring some of the brightest young actresses in independent films. One of their latest productions, The Last Beautiful Girl, is no exception. With a cast that includes alumnae from other award-winning Twitchy Dolphin productions such as Snatch 'N' Grab, Abram's Hand, Goin' Guerrilla, and DisAssociationVille, it's a good bet that The Last Beautiful Girl will be receiving accolades at independent film festivals around the country. The script is said to already be on the film festival circuit and has made it to the finals in two of those festivals.

Described by the film's writer and director James Christopher as a "romantic dramedy exploring the first time you fall in and out of love," the The Last Beautiful Girl is currently in the pre-production stages. With all of the parts cast, and trailers shot, the film is slated to begin shooting in May. At right are 3 of the 16 ladies who'll be appearing in the film; Shelby Cullinan, Morgan Floyd, and Shelby Surdam, who have featured roles as sisters. Read on to see the entire female cast and a little info on each of them.

Kimmie Yan

If it weren't for Arielle Brachfeld, a talented actress I interviewed last month, starring in a film that's currently in production entitled Day For Night, Kimmie Yan  might have slipped under my radar. Kimmie is one of the producers of Day For Night (which is not a remake of the 1973 film of the same title), and to say she's excited about the project is an understatement.

Even though Kimmie tells me Day For Night is the first feature film in which she's been one of the primary producers, she's far from a novice when it comes to producing and the behind-the-scenes workings of films and show biz. A graduate of Boston University, Kimmie has an impressive resume that includes music supervisor on 2014's Dawn Patrol, associate producer on 2012's The Devil's Carnival, and less recently, a stint as operations manager at West Hollywood's (in)famous Viper Room.

I recently had the pleasure of talking with Kimmy about her recent projects, as well as the many unglamorous behind-the-scenes jobs and tasks she's had, the possibility of someday producing her own cooking show (she's a self-confessed foodie) and her mild obsession with Star Trek: The Next Generation. The above photo from a very recent shoot with J. Michaels, is courtesy of Kimmie.