24-year-old Lucia Hawley made her TV hosting debut on 7Bravo’s Cultured, which premiered on April 15.
As an emerging Australian presenter, reporter, producer, and niece of Nicole Kidman, Hawley first made headlines when she was announced as 7Bravo’s local host and face of Live From E! red-carpet events in Australia.
Cultured is a local format that focuses on the biggest cultural trends happening right now in Australia, with the first episode offering a behind-the-scenes look at Melbourne Fashion Festival.
As host, Hawley chatted with some of this year’s most innovative designers, including Genevieve Smart from Ginger and Smart, Dale McCarthy from Bondi Born and Melbourne designer Jason Grech, to discuss creativity, innovation and how consumers can be more conscious when it comes to sustainability.
Mediaweek spoke to Hawley about her new hosting duties before her debut on Cultured.
Being the first show you’ve hosted, what was the biggest highlight of the experience?
“There were so many. It was exciting to be thrown in it, and just the novelty of even being like, “This is my job,” was a pretty big highlight. But also just being able to chat with designers that I well and truly looked up to my whole life.”
What do you hope viewers’ biggest takeaway was from Cultured?
“In terms of fashion, and the spotlight that we put on it, we’re often talking about international designers, and it’s seldom that we’ve focused on domestic designers that we have in Australia.
“We have such an amazing pool of talent, all on our home soil. And so it’s just exciting to be able to chat to the designers that are working from Sydney, all around Australia, and talk to them about what they’re doing in the innovation sustainability space, which is a really hot topic right now, of course. It’s exciting to give viewers an insight into whats happening here at home.”
Lucia Hawley host of Cultured at Melbourne Fashion Festival
Will there be future episodes of Cultured?
“Hopefully, in the pipeline. Melbourne Fashion Festival was the thing that we focused on mainly with Cultured, and then we have another series called the Curated, which sit down with stylists. And they’re not as episodic – they’re sort of slightly shorter, and give that same sort of insights into the trends and all that that we’re seeing in fashion. We’ll hopefully have a bit more to showcase, you’ll just have to tune in.”
You’re the face of red-carpet coverage in Australia with Live from E!; what was the process like getting the role?
“I’ve looked up to E! my whole life. I lived in Singapore, and E! is obviously a very international brand. I feel like it resonates with an international audience as well. So it was a dream, because I’ve watched all the coverage since I was a kid, and then being able to be like, “Wow, this is my job now.”
“In Australia, sometimes it seems like we’re in a bit of a bubble. And it seems like we can’t really achieve those dreams or those roles that are in the international arena. So being able to be a part of an international brand like E! is so awesome. It’s such a pinch-me moment.”
You worked at 9Honey before this; how has it been transitioning into a full-time hosting role?
“It’s such a dream. It can be kind of hard to sidestep into broadcast, and I absolutely fell in love with writing, especially at 9Honey, it was a really supportive environment there.
I always had my eyes set on moving into broadcast, but I really wanted to firstly, hone my skills in writing because, as a journalist, that’s really important.
“Secondly, I wanted to feel ready and prepared to move into the TV space. It was exciting to have this opportunity to come along because it’s very me, and I haven’t really seen any other roles out there that suit me as much as this role does, so it’s pretty surreal.”
With your role with Live from E!, what event are you most looking forward to?
“We have quite a few things in the pipeline. I would say there are movies that are coming up that I’m really itching going to go and cover, like the Barbie movie. That would be a dream come true to be able to interview Margot Robbie or Ryan Gosling. That would be amazing.”
What have been some of the biggest lessons you’ve learnt so far?
“I would say my confidence has really been tested in this role, especially in this industry, and that’s been really good for my mental health. I think imposter syndrome is a really big thing and really prevalent, especially when you get a role like this because I’ve been chasing it for so long, and then when you finally have it, you think, “What, me?”.
“You’ve got to be confident in yourself and believe in yourself because that’s when you’ll produce the best results.
What’s next for you?
“Just getting this role, I’m trying to throw myself into it as much as I can, and be as present as I can, because I still have so much to learn. So I think, rather than casting my sights on the future, I’m trying to embrace or just soak it all in as it comes now because it’s something that I’ve been wanting for so long.
“I feel like sometimes you can really set your sights on the future and always feel that you’re chasing something, and I just want to be able to be like, “Yes, this is so exciting; this is what I want to do,” and also be the best that I can, just by trying to really focus on creating and producing really great content.”