Przemek Dankowski: I have the impression that the world of modeling is very different from social perceptions. The media creates an image of the model as a teenager earning millions of dollars or euros, partying with world stars or not necessarily intelligent. At the end of the day, all he needs for a job is a pretty face....

Maks Behr: You're right, there are common misconceptions that I've been trying to dispel since I was young in the industry. In every professional sector there are less and more intelligent people working, and fashion is no exception. I began my adventure in modeling as early as the second year of junior high school. I finished high school with five extended high school diplomas, which allowed me to get into law school. Until recently, I was a student of two majors. I have been combining work and education since I was 15, and it gives me great satisfaction. Unfortunately, we have our national trait of selfless envy towards each other, which I deeply regret. Many times in my life I have been given the impression that I have no idea about anything, because the modeling profession is an idyll and not a job. I've often heard that I'm "very intelligent for a model," as if, for unjustified reasons, we need to prove to the world that mentally we also have a lot to offer. My colleagues are often people with incredible passions and broad horizons. With hard work and charisma you can "move mountains" in any field. The media do not know the industry inside out. We often pour out of ourselves the seventh sweat to show the world fashion at the highest level. Fashion that will delight, enchant, attract attention, but also arouse emotions. Behind every project I have had the pleasure of participating in so far has been a staff of skilled people. These are people who are top-notch in their craft and take care of every detail. Very often a film set functions like an orchestra: if one person fails, the whole thing can become totally unattractive to the viewer.

As you mentioned, you started your career at the age of 15. It was a period of many successes for you. Already Miuccia Prada predicted a great career for you. However, there were also castings where, as you yourself stated, you were swept up in the mud. Do you think that being a teenager you were ready for this? At the time, most of your peers were not subjected to such tremendous pressure....

In my life I was subjected to a lot of pressure from an early age. Many issues made me have to mature faster than my peers. Sports were a haven for me to soothe my emotions, and it has remained that way to this day. My mother enrolled me from childhood in all kinds of sports training, which developed in me the need to compete and train my self-control skills. For modeling, I abandoned my competitive tennis adventure. Weekends at tournaments, lost matches and perpetual competition made me struggle with my own demons very often. I am incredibly grateful to my family for how they raised me. From home I brought a baggage of valuable and difficult experiences, which taught me about life quite quickly. I am very family-oriented, and the hardest thing for me was being away from home and friends. Especially when I was only sixteen years old. Modeling is a brutal and often zero-sum industry. To me, this arrangement suited me from the very beginning. In this industry, there is no time for "small talk" and making someone feel better. You fit into the vision or you don't fit into it. There were unpleasant moments when my great distance from myself didn't help anyway. The hardest thing in the industry is to maintain a perfect balance. We are required to have a perfect figure, be smiling and rested. Often our pace of work and movement doesn't allow us to accomplish everything the way we ourselves would like. It's difficult, but after years I've learned not to worry about issues beyond my control. It was different when I was just 15 or 16 years old. Back then I took a lot to myself, I tried to be a perfectionist. However, a great deal of distance from myself allowed me to distinguish between factual attention to my person and extreme fanciness. Fashion is millions of shades of gray. It has given me a lot of joy and often a lot of sadness. I love modeling, even despite the many adversities I have encountered. It has shaped me to pursue my goals and to want to learn about the world. I am grateful to my mother for giving me the green light and a lot of support even as a teenager. 

The situation of young models and models in the European and American market has changed quite a lot recently. Starting a career is only possible from the age of 16. Is this a change for the better?

I believe that one should not generalize. There are people who are very mature and stable at the age of 14, but also people who will never be able to cope with the pressures and demands that the modeling industry makes. As in any profession, someone does better because he has an aptitude for it, and someone is most simply created for something else. In life you have to go "against the tide," but sometimes you should not fight it beyond your strength. I can't imagine abandoning education for modeling. For me it was always a fundamental issue. I had a kind of arrangement with my mother and Mickel, my booker. Good grades at school guaranteed opportunities in the fashion industry. I often studied on the go and had sleepless nights, but I never wanted to stand out from my peers at school.

You are required to have a perfect figure all the time. I guess that by not fitting into certain norms you can forget about castings, fashion shows of key designers or magazine covers. Did you happen to feel appearance pressure because of this? 

Yes, very often. My figure has always been rather more athletic than androgynous due to the sports I've been exposed to since childhood. Not everyone liked it at fashion weeks, and I had to get over it. I realized after a while that commercial advertising and photo campaigns were the sector of the industry I felt most comfortable in. Fashion shows were my youthful adventure, which I remember with great fondness.

Over the past few years, several industry insiders have begun a public discussion of the dark side of modeling. Antoni Nykowski directed the film Zoe, starring Ola Rudnicka, touching on the subject of the subjective treatment of models by photographers or casting agents (the production was based on true stories). Supermodel Sara Ziff, who has worked for Prada, Kenzo or Chanel, founded the Alliance Model organization, which published a controversial report based on previous research. It shows that most models are subjected to sexual harassment, suffer from eating disorders, are forced to lose weight and even... take cocaine! Such issues should be spoken about loudly?

It's very important to support people who are struggling with such problems. I support any social action that makes people think. The modeling industry in my opinion is now even more difficult for women than it was before. The fair sex is subjected to much more pressure. I have met models who, while working for some of the biggest fashion houses in the world, were also extremely undervalued. Fashion has millions of shades of gray, sometimes including the darkest ones.

So do men have it easier in the fashion industry? 

I think somewhat differently. It's not that men in the fashion industry have it easier and women have it worse. Despite the fact that we meet on photo sets and runways, I would separate the two worlds. Male modeling has fewer opportunities on the employment scale relative to women. Ladies, on the other hand, have it much harder when it comes to competition, because there are many more women in the modeling profession than guys who are models. However, looking over the years at the problem you've raised, I've observed that it's easier for men to accept criticism relative to their appearance than it is for women. Looking at it from this one angle is less of a mental burden for guys. 

There is a lot of talk now about the disparity between men and women in various industries. According to the London agency Established Models, in modeling men's earnings are on average 60% lower. One wonders what is the reason for this.

The answer is relatively simple. The law of supply and demand becomes the explanation here. Statistically, women consume more in the clothing and cosmetics market. The demand for women's clothing and cosmetics is much greater than for the men's market. Greater needs generate greater profits, which also translates into earnings. 

My impression is that modeling can be all-consuming. There are some people who put everything on one card and do not look for other alternatives outside this world. If they succeed, they often lose themselves in it losing touch with reality. However, you are looking for other paths of development....

As I mentioned, for me education has always been the most important thing. Modeling, despite the fact that I didn't take it very seriously at first, became a huge part of my life. I've been in the industry for seven years and it's been an extremely productive time for me. I have met a lot of incredibly talented and wonderful personalities. Learning about fashion from the inside out, I decided to develop my fashion DNA by opening my own streetwear brand, which I have been developing for the past four years. Journalism and development in business are my dreams for the future.

Despite many adversities, you have managed to become known as one of the most sought-after models in the world. You have worked with brands such as Prada, Levi's, Reserved and Zalando. You were also on the cover of the Polish edition of ELLE MAN. And you're only 22 years old.

Modeling is an insanely dynamic industry. One season you can be the most sought after, and the next season everyone can forget about you. I've never had a push for glass, and treated my assignments simply as a kind of work. Together with my booker Mickel, we managed to achieve a lot thanks to our super relationship, as well as luck, which we were able to help by rising to the occasion when needed. Those campaigns you mentioned are a lot of laughs and beautiful memories, for which I am extremely grateful. Modeling has changed my life by at least 180 degrees. Now I know that at only 22 years old I have a baggage of incredibly useful experience in the industry, which I would like to put to good use. I work as a model and an entertainer. My passion is also journalism, in which I am developing with an eye to the future. 

Doing research on you, I learned that your favorite movie is "Blow," your favorite book is "The Art of Victory" by Phil Knight, and your interests even hooked on philosophy. You seem like a very intelligent guy, which is not just my opinion. I wonder if modeling stimulates you intellectually as much as you would like it to?

I try to get inspiration for my life from everyone. I love to talk and meet new people. I love reading biographical books, because they motivate me. If Phil succeeded, why shouldn't I succeed? - I thought after reading his book. I have the opportunity to meet new colorful personalities every day. Frequent travel and living on suitcases has shaped me more than anything. Being able to explore new corners of the world, customs and cultures makes me very happy. Modeling is not stimulating or limiting. If you only want to, you can only look at the "bright side" in your life and take the positives out of everything. I haven't mastered this to perfection yet, but I'm still learning and getting to know the world.

On the set of the cover shoot for ELLE MANA you posed together with Dominik Sadoch, Adam Kaszewski, Mikolaj Kajak and Max Barczek. As far as I know, the atmosphere at the sejsi was extremely friendly. One could sense that you had a tremendous affection for each other. And one could say that you are competitors for each other....

I have known Dominik Sadoch for 6 years. Dominik was my companion from the beginning of my modeling struggles. I always cheered for him and I still cheer for him today. We are very similar and totally different at the same time. These opposites have always attracted us to each other. In my work I have always given 100% of myself. I have no influence on casting decisions and the boys don't either. We are buddies, the word competition in this case is foreign to us. I'm happy to be one of the 5 most important faces of the ELLE MAN cover dedicated to the best Polish models. This is an honor for me, which makes me roll up my sleeves even more and get to work!

How do you find yourself in the world of social media? Today, modeling stars often become influencers. They are the ones who appear in campaigns of fashion houses, on the covers of popular magazines or catwalks of top designers. 

Nowadays, social media is the perfect medium to contact the world from every corner of the globe. I try to rise to the challenge of the 21st century in a substantive way.

On a daily basis, in addition to modeling, you also work on your own brand Balloon. In fashion, the beginnings of running a business are always difficult. As statistics say, as many as 53% of newly established clothing brands fail within the first 4 years of their business. Despite this, you are developing your brand very rapidly. Does your experience in modeling help you in this?  

Of course, my experience in modeling taught me how to organize multidimensionally. Fashion is a business that I have had the opportunity to learn about from the inside out since I was 15. I have been passionately developing my brand since my sophomore year of high school, and it makes me very happy. I love playing with fashion and providing others with high quality workmanship, which I subscribe to. Polish women and Poles are more and more willing to reach for Polish brands, which is very encouraging and drives me to act. Clothes sewn in Poland in ecological standards are our calling card. 

The clothing industry is the second most environmentally damaging industry. In the climate crisis, many global brands, as well as designer brands, are taking various measures to reduce their negative impact on the ecosystem. Do you see this need for change?

I recognize the need for change and I am making changes myself. I very much appreciate the brands I have the opportunity to work with that adapt to the needs posed by the environmental crisis. It's very important to be economically rational when producing during the climate crisis and to limit everything that is harmful to the planet.

Since you are a model your calendar changes from day to day. Are you nevertheless making plans for the future?

I devote my free time to personal development. I am currently studying and working. In the future, I would like to combine my strengths from the modeling and conferencing industry and use them in journalism.Dream as if you were to live forever and live as if you were to die today. This is a maxim that I have come to love in the rush of the fashion world and that guides me every day.