Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Ellie Goldstein Always Wanted to Be Famous. Now She Is.

Ellie Goldstein Always Wanted to Be Famous. Now She Is.

She recently appeared in a historic beauty campaign. But this British 18-year-old has long been challenging perceptions just by being herself. In our latest digital cover story, senior beauty editor Dianna Mazzone caught up with the model who is spreading positivity throughout the world - and a message to the industry about the importance of inclusivity.

Ellie Goldstein always wanted to be famous. This is one of the first things she tells me when we sit down for a Zoom interview in early October. (She's tuning in from her home in Ilford, Essex, about a 45-minute drive from the heart of London.) And at just 18 years old, she's well on her way to that goal, propelled by a now-viral image in which she appeared for Gucci Beauty in partnership with Vogue Italia.

"When I saw [my picture] on Gucci Beauty’s Instagram, I thought, Wow! Who is this? Is this me, or what?!" says Goldstein. "My friends and family saw it. It felt very special to me." Scrolling through Goldstein's feed, I see comments in eight languages and messages like "She has to have one of the sweetest faces I’ve ever seen" and "As a handicapped person, I'm so happy someone is finally representing us."

Of course, it takes years to become an overnight success. Goldstein, who has Down syndrome, started dancing when she was five, and went on to appear in school plays, like Jack and the Beanstalk. "When I was doing the play, it hit me [that I wanted to keep doing this]," she says. "I love to be seen."



Goldstein continued her training in drama and dance, appearing in productions at the Royal Opera House and Royal Albert Hall. And when, just before Goldstein's 15th birthday, her mother, Yvonne, heard about a new talent agency that represented people with visible differences and disabilities, the stars aligned.

Zebedee Management was founded by sisters-in-law Laura Johnson and Zoe Proctor in 2017. Johnson, a social worker, and Proctor, who taught theater arts to young adults with learning disabilities, were taking a walk on a beach in North England when they began to reflect on why people like Proctor's students weren't granted the same opportunities as other performers and models.

"We said, 'If nobody else is doing it, why don’t we?'" recalls Proctor.

They put out a casting call through support groups in London and magazines geared toward the disabled community. When they received thousands of replies from people with disabilities who wanted to pursue modeling and acting careers, they realized they were onto something.

                                

Regrettably, the fashion industry in particular has been notoriously slow to embrace anyone who doesn't fit the mold. Sue Moore, Zebedee's head booker, says she would get "quite a lot of negativity," as recently as two years ago, when pitching talent to brands for potential campaigns. "They'd say, 'No, I don’t think we’re ready for that yet,'" says Moore.

Today, slowly but surely, "the tide is turning," Moore says. "Some of our biggest wins are the smallest of jobs to other agencies - like e-commerce [shoots]," adds Proctor. "It's those jobs [with clients] that probably hadn't considered a talent who had a disability or a visible difference [before]."

Proctor, Johnson, and Moore have helped open doors for models with disabilities, but it's up to everyone in the industry - from brand execs to stylists to photographers - to create an accessible environment they can stride through confidently.

That might mean having a sign language interpreter on standby during a shoot, or ensuring a studio has ramp access for a model in a wheelchair. "We talk with our models about their needs, and have a very open dialogue with our clients as well," says Proctor. "We have a no-silly-questions policy, whether it's regarding a fitting room or toilet.… It's got to be a positive experience for everyone."



The word "positive" brings us back to Goldstein, because there is perhaps no better way to describe the kind of energy she creates on set. "She brings up everybody's energy levels to a different kind of place," says Proctor, who says she's seen Goldstein blossom from a little girl to a successful young woman over the past three years. "It's just absolutely breathtaking and really quite moving to watch her in front of the camera."

"I never get upset or sad. I'm always happy and bright and bubbly," says Goldstein. "…And a bit cheeky." (She says this with a giggle, exchanging a glance with her mom, who sits off-camera during our interview.)

With a major beauty campaign in her rearview mirror, Goldstein's goal is to work for other high-ends brands, like Chanel and Louis Vuitton. "Ten years from now, I want to be all over the world," she says. Something about the look in her eye and the confidence with which she says so tells me that, indeed, she will be.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×