The articles written by the PÚBLICO Brasil team are written in the variant of the Portuguese language used in Brazil.
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An open door to be a model, model for big brands, travel. This is the promise behind the contest Miss Brazil Europewhose eighth edition takes place on October 20th, in the Black and Silver Room of the Estoril Casino. The 18 candidates come from various parts of Brazil — this year, the largest number are from São Paulo, but there is one Miss who, before crossing the Atlantic, lived in Ji-Paraná, Rondônia.
Behind the initiative is Ana Paula Schwartz, 54, from Pernambuco, who has lived in Europe for 34 years and, since 2000, settled in Portugal. “I lived in Germany and Brussels and always worked in fashion and events”, he says.
The taste for public presentations comes from childhood. “My mother worked as a nurse in Recife and I grew up around dance. Since I was five years old, I participated in Escola do Frevo, Maracatu and Balé Popular do Recife”, he recalls.
The first time she came to live in Portugal was in the 1990s, when her husband, an engineer, came to work on the expansion works on the 25 de Abril Bridge. He returned a few years later and had to reinvent himself: he worked at an exchange office, but rediscovered his passion for events. He performed samba shows, organized the first carnival in Ponta Delgada, in the Azores, and even the samba show at the opening of the Lisbon Casino.
The first Miss Brazil Europe contest took place in 2012. Initially, plans were for it to be held every two years. The 2014 event took place, but Ana Paula was unable to organize the 2016 event. It was resumed in 2018, with the proposal to be annual. There was only one break in 2020, due to the new coronavirus pandemic.
Emely Diná, 28, from Goiás, works at Nestlé. He has a 1-year-old son and lived in Belgium for six years. I wanted to enter the world of fashion, but I didn’t have the financial means
Disclosure
fashion show
For participants, it’s not just about signing up and participating. There is work until they reach the competition. “It takes five months of preparation. I teach them how to walk in high heels, how to walk on the catwalk, how to be in an environment, how to sit, they do diction lessons”, reveals Ana Paula. She follows in detail what the candidates do, and even what they can post on social media is taught to the candidates.
The contest accepts women aged 18 to 35 and follows the standards of international Miss pageants. Accepts married women, mothers, does not impose height limits. Ana Paula sets some conditions: “It cannot be someone who is not doing anything. You have to be working or studying,” he says.
In this year’s contest, the youngest, Jessi Oliveira, from Vitória, who lives in Paraná, turned 18 a week before the decision. The oldest, Mariane Freitas, from Jataí, Goiás, who lives in Faro, is 35.
Ana Paula says that the competition opens the doors for candidates in the fashion world. Several participated in the parade of Brazilian designers at Paris Fashion Week — from the brands Cíntia Fontanelle, Scarpa, Cecon —, in September this year, and, as well as at CPLP Fashion Week, held in August, in Lisbon.
