IN CONVERSATION WITH FERNANDO CASABLANCAS

Interview by Jana Letonja

Budding star Fernando Casablancas is the ultimate multi-hyphenate. He is making waves as a trailblazer in the fashion industry and has starred in campaigns for Balmain, Chrome Hearts, Wales Bonner and most recently as a non-binary talent in the Charlotte Tilbury campaign alongside superstars including Kate Moss. Fernando’s accomplishments extend well beyond modeling. He is also an emerging actor, DJ, and the quintessential New York City-based cool kid. 

Fernando, first and foremost you’re known as a model, who’s been making waves as a trailblazer in the fashion industry. How did your career as a model begin?

Weirdly enough, I never thought I could be a model. Growing up with the standard of supermodels at home, knowing what I know from my father, I always knew there may not be a place for someone like me who doesn’t fall into one specific category in mainstream fashion. However, times have changed and I find myself now in a world that embraces queer talent, thankfully. My career started when my agents at Elite found me on Instagram and saw potential in the way I performed and moved my body. I am first and foremost a performer, and by giving me the opportunity to showcase my personality and my talent in front of a camera, my modeling career was born. 

You’ve worked with renowned fashion brands, both on campaigns and on their runways. What is the most exciting aspect of a life of a model?

What has excited me the most, beyond the experience of traveling the world and getting to work with some of the most iconic brands out today, is the amazing people I’ve gotten to meet along the way. I’m lucky enough to meet some of the icons that have shaped the fashion industry, like Kate and Naomi, as well as the people that truly inspire me, the up and coming boys and girls, who I consider the new generation supers. 

Recently, you’ve starred in Charlotte Tilbury’s campaign alongside superstars like Kate Moss, as a non-binary model. What made this campaign so special to you?

I consider myself a chameleon and as an actor like to rise up to the challenge to play the role necessary for whatever job it is I am called for. In the case of Charlotte Tilbury campaigns I’ve had the pleasure of being a part of, I feel extremely lucky to be asked to be myself to the fullest extent. Charlotte and her team embrace people of all creeds and makes us feel like the superstars we are. Being alongside icons like Kate, Twiggy and Jourdan Dunn further validates that there is space in this industry for non-binary talent. It felt validating and at the same time it felt just right. 

What is your view on the ever evolving fashion world and diversity and inclusivity changes we’ve been able to witness in the recent years?

It’s about time! Because I am so deeply involved in the queer scene, not only in New York but around the world too, I have witnessed an immense amount of queer talent that I’ve revered and looked up to. These people have shaped me and inspired me to take who I am further. To me, it has always been a matter of time that the world would catch up to the insane amount of magic that queer people cast on the world. 

Which moment from your fashion career has had the biggest impact on your modeling career and you as a person?

Getting to showcase my rise as a model on the Hulu series ‘The Come Up’ was very special because it captured me at a moment that was both uniquely special and extremely difficult for me emotionally. Getting to witness that period of my life on TV will forever be in my heart, especially since they were able to capture the moment where my worlds collided in the conversation I had with my mother in Episode 8. Our relationship has since then come a long way and I believe being able to talk on camera about the difficulties we’d been through as a family has been one of the most cathartic experiences I’ve had so far. 

Besides modeling, you are also an emerging actor and DJ. When did you discover your passions for these two forms of art?

I remember the first time I ever had a career ambition I told my parents I wanted to be a ‘TV-er. I guess that was my way of saying actor. Ever since I remember, I’ve been on stage and even before that my passion for singing started in church. Music itself was a driving force in my family. My mother was a piano teacher, my father’s first job was a singer at a bar in Geneva and of course, my brother has made his name as a singer/songwriter for The Strokes. I guess my understanding of music helped me appreciate DJing on the dancefloor and I decided during the pandemic to take it further by learning to curate my own vibe. Since then, I’ve DJed around the world, in NYC, Turkey, at São Paulo Fashion Week, Tokyo and even Ibiza to name a few places, and continue to explore what the power of music means to me.  

How would you describe your first acting experience and how it motivated you to further explore acting?

I came to New York to develop myself as an artist and ended up finding myself at the NYU Tisch School of the Arts Experimental Theatre Wing, where my craft as an actor, singer and, most importantly, a mover evolved into what I consider my performance language. Since then I’ve gotten to work with artists like Richard Kennedy and Luke Gilford that have recognized in me the spark that I always knew was there. Getting to share my energy with the world is all that I have aspired for and to play a character that showcases queerness on a global scale consistently perpetuates my dreams coming true. 

This summer, you starred in the groundbreaking series ‘The Come Up’, which is streaming on Hulu. What attracted you to work on this series? What does generally intrigue you about portraying different characters?

The beauty of ‘The Come Up’ was that the producers at Cousins wanted us to simply be ourselves. I was honored to have been a part of a movement of young artists that withstood the trials of the pandemic in New York City in a year that felt so unsure. I must say that I had a very unusual start to my career in a time where so many people were met with a halt. However, the space that the pandemic had left in the industry was in a lot of ways a sign of divine timing. We were all trying to figure out where our lives would take us and ‘The Come Up’ was there to witness it all come to life. 

As the world opened up, I had my foot in the door, took that momentum and ran with it. I’m lucky I have agents that understand who I am and allowed me to show the world, through the Hulu series, what it means to be a queer person navigating the fashion industry, downtown New York and ultimately, intense heartbreak. I was weary of showing that side of me, but the amount of love I received from people who related to my story, no matter how different their lives are from mine, made my vulnerability worth it. 

When you are not working, either as a model or an actor, how do you like spending your free time?

This summer has been what I’ve called my year of cocooning. I’ve had an intense couple of years within the rise of my career that have questioned what I would like my future to be like. I’ve spent most of my time reading books by queer authors like James Baldwin, Edmund White, Dennis Cooper and Cookie Muller, looking to the past to try and project my future. I’m a strong believer in learning from my elders and those who came before me, like I did with my father. The lives we live are cyclical and I feel like my stories one day will serve the generations after me, in some way. 

Fernando, what are your goals for the future? Which industry do you see yourself working in the most in the future?

I will forever be a performer. I called my Instagram ‘TheFernandoShow’ because for me there is no other way to live this turbulent life without romanticizing it for my own eyes. To me, there are no wins and losses, there are only opportunities for joy and lessons for growth. I hope to one day bring The Fernando Show to life. Ironically, it won’t be about me since all I wish to do is bring people together to discuss our differences and how they can reflect our similarities. And by joining forces, we can celebrate each other and always end up having a dance party, where on the dancefloor we are all equal. 

Are there any upcoming, exciting projects that you can share with us?

I can’t speak of what is yet to happen, but if you’d like to follow my journey, tune in to @TheFernandoShow and you’ll be the first to know.

TEAM CREDITS
Talent: Fernando Casablancas @thefernandoshow
Photographer: Fernando Sippel @fernandosippel 
Stylist: Freddie Fredericks @freddiefredericks
Art director: Patrick James Reilly @patrickjamesreilly
Creative director: Lucas Cristino @Lucascristino_
Makeup: Chichi Saito @chichisaito @artdeptagency using @selaly.beauty 
Hair: Timothy Aylward @Timothyaylward @thewallgroup using Augustinus Bader haircare
Models: Paulo Voigt & Ana Barbosa @paulovoigt @_anabarbos
Editor: Timi Letonja @timiletonja
Interview by Jana Letonja @janaletonja