Location: Mgm
Date: Monday, 6 February 2006, at 11:58 a.m.
In Response To: Scouts and other scams 
(David Blewett)
WebModels Professional Forum is a message board for models, photographers, agents, managers, and others associated with the modeling industry.
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WebModels Forum for the Modeling Industry
Another Perspective
Posted By: Shane (66.208.162.244)
In Response To: Scouts and other scams
Location: Mgm
Date: Monday, 6 February 2006, at 11:58 a.m.
(David Blewett)
There truly are some wannabes that don't WANT anyone telling them how things are. They're looking for the short-cut to their fame and fortune and most of them think they want to be in this business because they have such incredibly low self esteem to begin with. So they're easy marks.
Here's a letter I put together for a wannabe's mom...
"Barbizon is a school. It's not an agency, it won't get you work, it won't help you build your book, it won't provide any useful professional assistance in the industry whatsoever. The things you learn at the school don't even have practical applications, as the runway training for example teaches runway techniques that haven't been used since the early 70's.
IMTA is a convention. Conventions don't make money on placing talent with major market agencies, and in fact make zero money if they win, lose, or draw in that aspect. Conventions make money by charging insane amounts for you to spend a weekend competing with other suckers and finally getting a 10 second callback (if you're lucky) with one or more major market agents that 99.5% of the time leads to absolutely nothing.
If you have what it takes to be in a major market, keep your money, drive to New York or Miami or Chicago or wherever and go to the open calls at the agency yourself.
There are four players to the modeling game - clients, models, photographers and agents. Let me describe what each does and maybe you'll understand how the racket...er...business works:
Clients - these are the people who hire the models. They include Marketing Departments, Advertising Agencies and so on. The are the start of the process - someone needs a model for something.
Agents - think of them as real-estate brokers for people. The requests for talent comes in through the agent and they supply a pool of people who meet the requirements, by sending the client a bunch of Composite Cards (Aka, Comps or Zed Card). From there, they select their talent, or outside of the Podunk, there may be a go-see, which is basically a face to face meeting between the model and the prospective client. There, they look at the model's work and, in the end, decide who will be chosen for the job. In Podunk (like Wisconsin) the work is booked from a headshot or a comp. For putting the clients and talent together, the agent takes 15 - 20% for their effort.Models - they are the talent. There are all kinds, print, runway, promotional, convention and so on. Some people can do a bunch of different things, some can't.
Photographers - they take the pictures. Sometimes, they will assist in the chosing of talent, most times - not.
For a model to get work, he/she needs to get an agent. Yes, there is some work booked directly, but that is rare. The internet is waste of time for finding work for commercial modeling (catalogs, advertisements and so on), which is what you're daughter would be.Legitimate agents make money strickly from the model working. Those that don't have models working, have to come up with more, um, creative ways to make money. The biggest is modeling schools - esp. the ones run by an agency. Barbizon and John Powers aren't much better, especially if you're going into modeling, however, they are some benefit for the pagent girls, but that's another discussion. Think Charm School. I digress, there are also 'mandatory workshops, photo fees and other add-ons. Does that mean there aren't legitimate expense, yes there are.
A model, to put it simply, is a small business. They have to do their own promotion, advertising and so on, so there are legitimate expenses to getting started.First, there is some debate whether you need pictures to get signed, or you get signed, then get pictures. The agencies I personally have knowledge of are split, but they both agree that they will sign talent based on snapshots. However, they know if that if the model comes in with a well-done portfolio, they can scan some images, do a quickie comp. card and get her working, wherease, if the model needs to go out and get pictures, a lot of time they don't come back.
However, once you are signed, you will need pictures. In all probablity you are going to have to pay for them. Odds are (and I know I'm going to take a lot of flak for this statement),you will not find pictures of sufficient quality via a trade. Don't get sucked into that internet 1/2 truth that if an agency likes you enough, they will pay for your portfolio or get it free. Yes, it occasionally happens, about as much as people get struck by lightening, in fact, if happens a lot less than even those that think it happened to realize.In a lot of cases, if they need a warm person for a hot booking, they will get a photographer to shoot a portfolio, and then deduct the sum on the model's first gig. Since it happens so fast and most models aren't savvy enough to read their first statment fully (they're too hyped after seeing they made XXX dollars) that they miss the few hundred dollar deduction for pictures.
The legitimate agents will do one of two things: have a listing of preferred photographers or give you a sheet of example pictures, an a mandate to get 'something that looks like this.' In either case the choice of photographers should be up to you. Beware of agents with 'their' photographer, sometimes there's a kickback scheme going on. In the sticks, sometimes there is no one locally with the ability to produce modeling pictures of sufficient quality, so an agent will bring someone in, again, beware and ask quesitons. Also beware of photographer-agents - it's a conflict of interest and a hornets nest of problems.
She will also need comp. cards. The agent usually will help you select the photos for the comp. Remember when selecting photos, these are modeling photos, not portraits. It isn't the photos that make your daughter look good you want, it's photos that will sell your daughter. These will cost $75-200 depending on the printer and how many your order.
There are also Agency Catalogs, or Comp. Books and they are known by a host of other names, but these are books the agencies publish that go to their clients. These are a must for a model to be inserted into in most cases, as a lot of talent is booked right out of these. Cost is usually $100-$500+, but again, a worthy investment that can be earned back in one shoot but should not be considered until AFTER gaining some work. Comps are an investment based on experience.
The agency may have a website that they will charge to put you on. I don't know if this has as much value as the books, but the fees are usually nominal ($35-50) and any exposure helps.Now that you have an overview of the business, let's discuss model searchs. If the person is 5'10-6'0, size 0-2, and causes traffic accidents as she walks down the street, then there may be some value in attending, if: she's willing to move to the market she's selected in and has enough money to support herself for 6-9 months until she's established. If she has all that, then go for it. If not, you're paying for someone like her to get discovered.
But, as you can infer, it's not a route I recommend. Over 98% of models are booked locally. Let's face it, by the last estimate I heard around 100,000 people try each year to become a model in New York. I think that sounds high, but let's face it, whether or not that many hopefuls actually try it, it serves the point that there is a lot of competition for a finite number of jobs. With that large of pool, who is going to fly people in from Podunk when they can just hire people right out the front door? True, it does on occasion happen, but people get eaten by sharks swimming in Florida too, your odds are about the same. Are those odds you want to bank a career on?
So, even if you go to the search, your daughter is selected, you get the pictures and comps, are your going to move to the area she gets signed so she can work? Think about it.
Your best bet is to look in your phone book under Talent Agencies in your town. Check with your state if they have a licensing for talent agents (most do, but some do not). Those that do, usually have a listing somewhere (it's public record) that you can refer to. If there aren't any, then there probably isn't any modeling work in your town. If you are near a major metro (within 2-3 hours driving to the center of down town), then try there. Call the agencies, find out how they find new talent. Some have open calls, some will have you mail pictures, some will do something else. Do exactly as they say. It helps if your daughter does the calling, it shows she is the one interested in doing the job."
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