Her name is Mioara Marin, and she is a model. She’s got hazelnut eyes and red hair. In Italy, we know her for being one of the ‘schedine’ (show girls, translator’s note) in the sports TV show “Quelli che il calcio e …”, hosted by Simona Ventura on Rai Due. She came to Italy by chance, thanks to some friends, and then she never left. She moved to Bologna, where she started taking diction lessons, while at the same time working as a model. We asked her to tell us more about her projects, her future plans, and her dreams… 

Red hair and an angular face – you are a rather intellectual kind of beauty.
How did it feel to be dancing during intermissions in “Quelli che... ”?
It was an extremely important experience for me. I worked as a ‘schedina’ for two years in a show like “Quelli che …”, hosted by a professional woman like Simona Ventura.
It gave me a chance to learn a lot and grow professionally, too, thanks to all the people who traveled this road with me and always supported me, even when I was tired or going through a hard time.

Would you like to become an actress? You kind of look like Jane Alexander, the Italian-British actress.
Yes, I’ve been told so before. We may look similar from a physical point of view, but I don’t see myself working as an actress yet. In fact, I am just taking my first steps in the field, and I am taking diction lessons at a school in Bologna.

Do you have a recipe to feel less homesick? Are you very close to your family?
I am extremely close to my family, and I miss it a lot. But it’s been ten years since I left my home town in Rumania. It’s a matter of getting used to it, I think. As time goes by, you tend to feel less homesick, and anyway, whenever I have a few days off I do whatever I can to visit my friends and family.

Why did you choose Italy?
As I was saying, I have been living in this wonderful country for ten years now. I did not have any specific reason to move here beside the fact that some of my friends had been living here for a while. So I visited them, and they actually talked me into moving here. I probably would have never been brave enough to move to a new, unfamiliar country if I had been by myself. I had to roll up my sleeves and start my new life from scratch. Having friends close by was of great help, especially when I first moved here.

How old were you when your career started? Were you very young? How did your enthusiasm for the show business start?
I started working as a model when I was 18. I wasn’t that young if you consider that today the average model moves her first steps on the catwalk when she’s 13 or 14 years old – with all the unpleasant consequences that it entails, as we all know. I love my job; I have wanted to do this since I was a little girl. And I am still doing it, even if I wouldn’t mind working on TV more, or act.

What field do you really feel like you belong to? And what career do you plan to follow in the future?
Working as a model is where my heart is. I would like to do that in the future, too. I have recently worked for the Von Dutch line, and I would be thrilled to become the spokesmodel for one of the emerging brands in the fashion field.

In Italy, women working on TV are often confined to dancing in skimpy dresses: aren’t you afraid that you will be always imprisoned in this role as schedina?
No, I don’t really think so. I believe that if you prove that you can do more than that, you will be remembered for your real skills. And then, to tell you the truth … even if that were the case, I wouldn’t have anything to feel ashamed about. For me, working as a schedina was a fundamental experience, a time of happy memories.

The “Vallettopoli” affair (a most recent scandal concerning show girls, translator’s note) taught us that if you are a beautiful girl and work on TV, you have to be very careful. How do you defend yourself?
I don’t really think that you have to find a way to protect yourself in this field. Being beautiful is not a crime, nor a fault. I think that what really matters is your attitude. You have to be yourself, and try not to pretend. Of course, like in any other field, there are both positive and negative people here … but it really depends on who you have around, and on your personality. I certainly do not approve of the fact that someone’s private life (whether it’s a celebrity or not) may be sold like that, like pieces of meat.

Reality shows are very popular right now. Would you ever be in one, or have you already been asked to do that? And what about making a calendar?
Yes, TV is just one big reality show! To be honest, I haven’t been asked to take part in one yet, but if that ever happened, I would accept the offer immediately, without a problem. It would be fun. On the other hand, I would never make a calendar, neither nude nor clothed – I have no interested in being remembered as one of the many girls that ended up on a wall.

What would you like to do when you grow up?
I don’t really know what I’ll do when I grow up. I live my life day by day; I don’t really have many long-term plans. I have dreams, though … for example, I would love to sell clothes in the future, brand names. Not my own line of clothing – to do that, you have to be good at it and have good potential.

What do you think of TV as it is today? 
I think that there are many questionable shows around. What they lack is quality, which is exactly what makes a show interesting. I watch all the shows hosted by Simona Ventura, and I like them very much, not only because I have a high regard for her, but also because I believe she is an ironic and intelligent host, which is always a good thing …

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