On April 8th, model Marie made a surprise guest appearance at the presentation event for the creative award, "DIGITAL FRONTIER GRAND PRIX 2012".

This marked Marie's first public appearance after entering Parsons The New School for Design in New York this past fall. She commented, "I'm a student. I make clothes with my own hands. I can't do graphics; it's such a wonderful thing, so I'm envious."

Although Marie is studying abroad in America, she is still continuing her modeling activities in Japan. While charming the audience, she handed a flower bouquet to the grand prix winners.

The "DIGITAL FRONTIER GRAND PRIX 2012" is a creative award that is sponsored by the educational institution,�Digital Hollywood. The winners were chosen among over 1,000 works created by students, which included CG animation and graphic arts.

This year's grand prix went to Oba Ryo, Kubota Hiroki, Komiya Kentaro, Takahashi Ayumi, and Hachiya Norimichi's "Ride On". Their work will be screened as a special entry at the "Short Short Film Festival".