Sarahléna Manise, Miss Namur contestant: “Behind the rain, there’s always sunshine”
Portraits Bullied at school, she went through eating disorders before regaining her confidence. Aged 18, a nursing student and Miss Namur contestant,…
Portrait · Model and reporter, Belgium
Audrey
In May 2026, she walked up the steps at the Cannes Film Festival. In September, she went back with a press pass, to pose on two yachts and report on what she saw.
Text The info-shooting editorial team
Photos Éric Champs · Gilles Kyriacos · Audrey Chabotier
Based on articles published by info-lux.com in June and September 2026
On 8 September 2026, opening day of the Cannes Yachting Festival, Audrey Chabotier went aboard two boats: the Samar 50, a solar-electric yacht, and the MODX 70, an electric catamaran.
A Belgian model, she was there with press accreditation for info-lux.com, as a model-reporter.
Model and reporter: two jobs in one
Being a model reporter doesn’t simply mean appearing in photographs. It means exploring particular worlds, meeting the professionals who bring them to life, observing their skills and conveying an experience through a personal eye. In Cannes, I tried to understand as much as to look.
Audrey Chabotier, September 2026
Before the yachts, the red-carpet steps
Audrey Chabotier describes herself as an art model with a passion for images. Spotted at a very young age by a photographer, she started modelling at 18 and went on to pageants, exhibitions and magazines. Today, she says she puts her image at the service of independent designers.
Modelling is a way of telling a story and conveying an emotion through an image.
Audrey Chabotier, June 2026
In 2016, she writes to Andenne designer Séverine Mawet to suggest a photo shoot in Paris. The message goes unanswered: the designer only finds it in April 2026, ten years later. When she finally replies, Audrey is about to walk up the steps at the Cannes Film Festival. On 15 May 2026, she climbs them in a made-to-measure gala gown by Atelier Séverine M, with a bustier and full skirt.
When I found out I was going to walk up the steps at the Cannes Film Festival, I couldn’t believe it. It was a world reserved for stars I had only watched from afar.
Audrey Chabotier, June 2026
She links this moment to her own story: “Having been bullied at school when I was younger, finding myself on the steps of the Cannes Film Festival truly means stepping out of the shadows and into the light.”
A team for a day
Designer Carl Schemmel, who had spotted her in a video, created a made-to-measure piece for the occasion; alterations were made on board. Éric Champs photographed the red series on the Samar 50, Gilles Kyriacos the white series on the MODX 70. The feature contains 24 photos in two series.
For Audrey Chabotier, the boat was more than a backdrop: “This collaboration between fashion, photography and yachting felt coherent to me: all three worlds give pride of place to lines, volumes, materials and detail. The yacht became more than a setting; it was part of the shoot’s visual identity.”
Posing despite a fear of the sea
She admits to a genuine fear of boats and the sea: “Going on board wasn't just a professional step, it was a way of facing a personal fear.”
On the MODX 70, the twin-hull design reassured her: “I was no longer focused on the movement of the boat. I could look at the sea, watch the horizon, enjoy the moment.” She was also thinking of her grandmother, who dreamed of one day stepping aboard a yacht.
I went on board to overcome a fear. I came back with a new way of looking at the sea.
Audrey Chabotier, September 2026
The photographers
- Éric Champs: his first camera lent by an uncle at 14, years of black-and-white film, then the Paris scene from 1998. Today it’s fashion, with Ellen von Unwerth and Cassio Macambira as his references.
- Gilles Kyriacos (GillK): photographer, videographer, art director and casting director based in Cannes since 2007, founder of Cannes Photo Academy and of the monthly LE MAGAZiNE bY GillK.
- Carl Schemmel, fashion designer: graduated in graphic art in 2010, trained in tailoring with a Parisian master tailor, then, from 2017, in wedding and cocktail dresses.
What she takes away from it
The day changed her idea of luxury: “An understated luxury, built not on what you show but on what you feel. To me, that's also what being a model reporter means: not just being there, but living, observing and passing it on.”
As for what comes next, she was already answering in June: “I like to let life work its magic and let myself be surprised by good opportunities.”
Audrey in the media
The dress, the steps, then the report on board: three articles published by info-lux.com in 2026.
· info-lux.com
A dress from Andenne on the Cannes red carpet 2026: the story of Atelier Séverine M
The message forgotten for ten years, then the walk up the steps on 15 May.
· info-lux.com
Audrey Chabotier: a model’s fairy tale on the steps at Cannes 2026
Portrait: early days, independent designers, school bullying.
· info-lux.com
On board at the Cannes Yachting Festival 2026: Audrey Chabotier, model reporter, between the Samar 50 and the MODX 70
Her first-person account and 24 photos, on which this article is based.
Audrey’s gallery
Tap or click a photo to open it full size, then scroll through with the arrows, the keyboard or by swiping.
May 2026 · On the steps of the Festival de Cannes
September 2026 · In red on the Samar 50, by Éric Champs
September 2026 · In white on the MODX 70, by Gilles Kyriacos
Her portfolio: Audrey Chabotier on info-shooting. To offer her a photo shoot or a photo story, write to the editorial team, who will pass it on.
Photographers: Éric Champs’s portfolio and Gilles Kyriacos’s.
On info-lux.com (in French): On board at the Cannes Yachting Festival 2026 with Audrey Chabotier (24 photos) and her portrait after the Cannes red-carpet steps.
Sources: account by Audrey Chabotier for info-lux.com (September 2026); portrait and article on the Atelier Séverine M dress published by info-lux.com in June 2026. Photos: Éric Champs and Gilles Kyriacos (GillK) for info-lux.com, Audrey Chabotier; each photo is credited in its caption.
