Emanuela de Paula - Otto Swimwear

Born: 25 April 1989
Where: Brazil
Height: 176 cm
Bust: 84 cm
Waist: 59 cm
Hips: 89 cm

Emanuela de Paula comes from the town of Cabo de Santo Agostinho in North Brazil. She knew at an early age she wanted to be a model. "I discovered myself", she rightly proclaims. At ten years old she started saving money to make a trip to the industrial epicenter of her country, São Paolo. By 15 she was visiting the many agencies of dizzying city and within a few days she was signed to the prestigious agency, Marilyn. "I was almost 16 and alone in Tokyo only a few months later. I was so scared", she remembers. "I had no friends and spoke no English or Japanese… All I could say was 'hi' and 'bye'"
Apparently this was all she needed. Emanuela started working immediately and quickly paid off her travel expenses. A few months later she came to New York with a tiny portable Japanese bicycle, a travel bag and healthy dose of acumen. Her first season yielded runway work for the likes of Ralph Lauren, Bill Blass and Zac Posen, as well as a lush story for W photographed by Michael Thompson. " I didn't expect anything. I was just happy for the experience," she says. Now 17, with a face as contemporany as it is innocent, she has already landed two makeup campaigns. Even so, she warns, "It's not quite my time yet".