subject: Avenue Productions, Inc... Roll Camera [print this page] Avenue Productions, Inc on Finding the Right Agency
Few professions can make you feel as exposed as modeling and acting. Not just the wearing of strange clothes for the Macy's catalog, nor the dodging of pyrotechnics in the music video, but the actual process of finding a good agency and getting started. This is where many aspiring talents go sideways, not through lack of talent or ambition, but because of unscrupulous agencies.
It's no trouble at all to find a modeling or talent agency, but that doesn't mean it'll be the right one. It may not even be an honest agency. Just cause they take your money doesn't mean they'll bring you work. There are a lot of promises in the talent industry, it won't surprise you to know, but not all are worth something. So it pays to research the agencies in your area and find out how they do business before you send them some of yours.
Any worthwhile agency will be fully licensed. Any worthwhile agency will not ask for a registration fee up front. Any worthwhile agency will have client you've actually heard of: Reebok, Toyota, Marriott. It proves they've been around a while. Lots of fees is a bad sign. Also that the client list includes "The Worcestershire Hut."
The soul-searching begins when you start thinking about what kind of work is the kind of work you want. The agency can help. Is it print or runway? Is it television, Internet, film? Radio? That kind of work is everywhere. In Southern Florida, for instance, USA Network is filming its hit "Burn Notice" and Fox is producing "The Glades." And casting directors are always looking for good local talent.
I know what you're thinking: you must be at least this tall to ride the modeling ride. Not true. You don't have to be an amazon to find work. Agencies actually are really interested in people of all looks, everyday and weekend, ages from child to grandparent. You don't need to have loads of experience either. Just the drive.
The agency is your jumpstart, your negotiator, your confidant. It helps you with headshots and auditions. But after that it's up to you. An agency can't guarantee work, because it's not magic. It can start drawing a map, but you've got to fill it in too.
