SIZE DOESN'T MATTER IN "PROJECT RUNWAY'S" SWEET 16 SEASON FEATURING SIZE INCLUSIVE MODELS IN CELEBRATION OF BODY DIVERSITY

Heidi Klum, Tim Gunn, Nina Garcia and Zac Posen Return with Guest Judges Demi Lovato, Katie Holmes, Olivia Munn, Yolanda Hadid, Kate Upton, Maggie Q, Kelsea Ballerini, Dove Cameron, China Anne McClain, Carly Chaikin, Maddie Ziegler, Asia Kate Dillon and Others

LOS ANGELES, CA - (July 12, 2017) - For the first time in Project Runway history, season 16 breaks out of the conventional modeling mold and celebrates body diversity by incorporating size inclusive models on the catwalk. As a true reflection of all women across the country, models range from 0 to 22, and this season's designers must show off their skills and ability to make stunning creations, for any size. Emmy(R) Award winning hosts and dynamic duo Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn return to the runway alongside fashion authorities, Nina Garcia, Marie Claire's Creative Director and Zac Posen, designer and creative director for Brooks Brother Women for a super, sweet 16 season of #ProjectRunway, debuting Thursday, August 17 at 8pm ET/PT.

Guest judges making their way to the runway this season include Demi Lovato, Katie Holmes, Olivia Munn, Yolanda Hadid, Kate Upton, Maggie Q, Kelsea Ballerini, Dove Cameron, China Anne McClain, Asia Kate Dillon, Carly Chaikin, Maddie Ziegler, Sophia Stallone, Georgina Chapman, Rachel Brosnahan and Anne Fulenwider.

The Project Runway Season 16 designers are:
Aaron Myers (23) Brooklyn, NY
Amy Bond (46) Los Angeles, CA
Ayana Ife (27) Salt Lake City, UT
Batani-Khalfani (32) Inglewood, CA
Brandon Kee (24) San Francisco, CA
Claire Buitendorp (27) Grand Ledge, MI
Deyonté Weather (36) Lynwood, WA
Kentaro Kameyama (38) Los Angeles, CA
Kenya Freeman (37) Atlanta, GA
Kudzanai Karidza (32) Atlanta, GA
Margarita Alvarez (30) San Juan, PR
Michael Brambila (25) Oakland, CA
Samantha Rei (36) Minneapolis, MA
Sentell McDonald (33) New York, NY
Shawn Buitendorp (27) Grand Ledge, MI
ChaCha (24) Taipei, Taiwan

The winner of Project Runway will receive $100,000 to launch their line, and the opportunity to collaborate with JCPenney on a limited edition capsule collection as part of the Project Runway line sold at select JCPenney stores and online at http://www.jcp.com. In addition, the winner will receive a selection of Brother sewing and embroidery machines, with a retail value of $40,000; a lifetime supply of pens from the Pilot FriXion Erasable Pen, the official pen of Project Runway and an all-expense paid luxury trip to Japan, including a 5-star stay near Japan's fashion center. The prize package also includes the new 2018 Lexus NX, coming this fall, with advance innovation and safety systems standard. Additionally, the winning designer and model will receive a fashion spread in Marie Claire magazine.

Social Media Info: @heidiklum @timgunn @ninagarcia @zac_posen @projectrunway @lifetimetv #ProjectRunway

ABOUT PROJECT RUNWAY

Hosted by Emmy(R) Award winner, supermodel and fashion connoisseur Heidi Klum, the hit Emmy(R)-nominated series Project Runway provides budding designers with an opportunity to launch their careers in fashion, under the watchful eyes of mentor and co-host Emmy(R) Award winner Tim Gunn and judges Nina Garcia and Zac Posen.

Project Runway is produced by The Weinstein Company, Bunim/Murray Productions, Full Picture Entertainment, and Heidi Klum Company. Executive producers include Bob and Harvey Weinstein (Co-Chairmen of The Weinstein Company) and Patrick Reardon and Barbara Schneeweiss of The Weinstein Company, Jonathan Murray and Sara Rea of Bunim/Murray Productions, Heidi Klum, Jane Cha and Desiree Gruber of Full Picture Entertainment. Mary Donahue and David Hillman of Lifetime also executive produce, and Gil Goldschein and Teri Weideman of Bunim/Murray Productions serve as Co-Executive Producers. Tim Gunn serves as a producer.

ABOUT THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY

The Weinstein Company (TWC) is a multimedia production and distribution company launched in October 2005 by Bob and Harvey Weinstein, the brothers who founded Miramax Films in 1979. TWC also encompasses Dimension Films, the genre label founded in 1993 by Bob Weinstein. During Harvey and Bob's tenure at Miramax and TWC, they have received 357 Oscar nominations and won 82 Academy Awards(R).

Since 2005, TWC and Dimension Films have released such films as Vicky Cristina Barcelona; The Reader; Inglourious Basterds; Scre4m; Spy Kids: The King's Speech; Undefeated; The Artist; The Master; Silver Linings Playbook; Django Unchained; Scary Movie 5; Lee Daniels' The Butler; Philomena; The Imitation Game; Paddington; Woman In Gold; Southpaw, Carol; The Hateful Eight; Sing Street, The Founder And Lion. Upcoming releases include Wind River, Leap!, Tulip Fever, Mary Magdalene, and the Current War.

Weinstein Television boasts an active television production division with critically acclaimed projects in both scripted and non-scripted series. Weinstein Television produces the reality powerhouse Project Runway, with its spin-off series Project Runway All Stars, hosted by Alyssa Milano, Project Runway Jr, featuring supermodel Hannah Jeter and fashion critic Kelly Osbourne. Lifetime also aired business focused Project Runway: Fashion Inc. as part of the Project Runway franchise. Current series include TIME: The Kalief Browder Story which premiered on Spike in March 2017.

Scripted series include the critically acclaimed miniseries War & Peace, which debuted on Lifetime, A&E and HISTORY in 2016, Scream with MTV, which premiered its second season in May 2016, Peaky Blinders on Netflix, Julian Fellowes' Doctor Thorne with Amazon, Stephen King's The Mist for Spike TV and the military drama Six for HISTORY. Upcoming series include for Waco for Paramount TV, starring Michael Shannon and Taylor Kitsch, a new series from David O. Russell, starring Robert DeNiro and Julianne Moore for Amazon, Matthew Weiner's The Romanoffs for Amazon, and an epic reimagining of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables with the BBC.

Television projects in development explore a range of arenas and are not exclusive to drama or comedy, minis or continuing series, live action or animated. An active slate of more than 60 projects includes Elvis, the first-ever scripted series to shoot at Graceland, Josephine and Napoleon by Tony Saint, Stephen King's The Breathing Method with Blumhouse, Scott Teems and Scott Derrickson, and UK series The City and The City and Fearless.

ABOUT BUNIM/MURRAY PRODUCTIONS

Bunim/Murray Productions (BMP) is the leading producer of innovative entertainment content. The Emmy Award-winning company is widely credited with creating the reality television genre with its hit series The Real World (31 seasons on MTV). BMP continued to innovate with the first reality game show, Road Rules (MTV), in 1995; the first reality sitcom, The SimpleLife (E!), in 2003; and the first reality soap opera, Starting Over, in 2003. BMP's current programming includes Mariah's World, I Am Cait, Keeping up with the Kardashians, Rob & Chyna, Total Divas, Total Bellas and Cosmo Life (E!), The Real World and The Challenge (MTV), Project Runway and Project Runway All Stars (Lifetime), Bad Girls Club (Oxygen), Valerie's Home Cooking (Food Network), Born This Way (A&E), Gary Owen Family (BET) and Earth Live (National Geographic). BMP has also produced films, including They Call Us Monsters, Valentine Road (HBO), Pedro (MTV) and the Emmy Award-winning Autism: The Musical (HBO). BMP has launched additional entities including BMP Films, BMP Digital and BMP Latin. Based in Van Nuys, CA, the company was founded in 1987 by Jonathan Murray and the late Mary-Ellis Bunim, who were inducted into the Television Academy's Hall of Fame in 2012. The company joined Banijay Group in 2010.

ABOUT FULL PICTURE ENTERTAINMENT

Full Picture Entertainment's multiple divisions include Television & Digital Production, Publicity/Marketing, Management, Branding/Licensing and online fashion portal Modelinia. Full Picture co-created and executive produces the eleven-time Emmy- nominated, PGA-nominated and Peabody Award-winning series Project Runway. Full Picture has also produced companion series Threads, Project Runway Junior, Models of the Runway, Fashion Nation for TVGN, CW's Stylista, Modelinia Fashion Week TV, as well as Lifetime's Seriously Funny Kids. Full Picture has numerous scripted and reality projects currently in development relating to fashion, food, luxury branding and health-fitness for television and online distribution.

ABOUT LIFETIME

Lifetime is a premier entertainment destination for women dedicated to offering the highest quality original programming spanning scripted series, non-fiction series and movies. The critically acclaimed UnREAL, Project Runway, Dance Moms, Bring It!, The Rap Game and Little Women franchises anchor the network's programming, in addition to its over 25 original movies annually that continue to define the TV movie genre. In 2015, Lifetime launched Broad Focus, a major global initiative dedicated to supporting and hiring female directors, writers and producers to make its content which totals over 450 original hours. Lifetime Television(R), LMN(R), Lifetime Real Women(R) and Lifetime Digital(TM) are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, LLC, a subsidiary of A+E Networks. A+E Networks is a joint venture of the Disney-ABC Television Group and Hearst Corporation.