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'Project Runway' takes catwalk to Times Square for 10th anniversary

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The clock, so prominent in the sewing room on “Project Runway,” looms large. It's 5:03 p.m., four hours before Season 10's first fashion show, in Times Square.

That fashion show, shot on a steamy June Friday, will be the centerpiece of Lifetime's returning hit at 8 p.m. Thursday. Lifetime granted Zap2it unprecedented access backstage at Parsons School of Design, where 16 contestants move purposefully, knowing this moment could launch their careers. That's the impact “Project Runway” has, though initially no one expected it to last.”The first few years, I didn't, but by Season 3 or 4, I did,” Heidi Klum, producer, host and judge, says in a hotel suite.

“The first year I thought we would be this independent phenomenon,” designer and judge Michael Kors says. “I didn't think we would have more seasons than ‘I Love Lucy.'”

“I never expected it would go to (Season) 2,” judge Tim Gunn says. “Not to denigrate the show. This is really surreal.”

“People didn't know what to expect” when “Project Runway” began, says judge Nina Garcia, a Marie Claire fashion director. “What I think is wonderful about this show and what sets it apart is I feel like you see the process of what the designers go through. It touches into the soul of the designers.”

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