As a performer it kills me to see my fellow actors and performers getting duped. It’s usually by the same kinds of people every time. You know the ones. ‘Do you want to be the next Hannah Montana or Ashton Kutcher? Then you need to come down to the SnakeNavel Convention Center and audition for our top agents and managers this Saturday from 10am to blahblahblah.’ Ads in the paper or on a website promising casting info or introductions to casting directors, agents or producers for a fee. This is a multi-BILLION dollar criminal industry.
Like a slimy used car salesman they’ll promise you the stars and deliver zero.
Question: How do you know if you’re being taken advantage of? Answer: Below are the most common scams and how to spot them. (thanks to the Better Business Bureau for their help on this)
Beware of any person, company or organization who:
1.Asks for up-front money, which may be called “registration,” “consultation,” or “administrative” fees. Legitimate agents work on a commission. They don’t get any money until you get paid for doing the work they have obtained for you. 2.Pressures you to leave a check or cash deposit or sign a contract immediately. (I’ve been repped by William Morris and ICM and never had to sign a contract.) The agent may insist that you take acting lessons at a particular school or from a particular teacher; or may try to get you to buy expensive photographs, audition tapes, or other services or materials sold by someone he or she suggests. An agent’s time should be spent finding work for his or her client, not selling products and services. One of the biggest complaints from casting people? Actors spend WAY too much money on photos that don’t even look like the person who walks in the door. Money doesn’t make you photogenic. 3.Displays pictures of famous models or celebrities on the walls to make you believe they are represented by that agency, although they’re not.
. 4. Uses names which sound similar to well-known agencies. Fraudulent companies will sometimes do this to give the incorrect impression that they are connected to a legitimate entity.
. 5. Places phony ads in the help wanted section of newspapers that say something like, “new faces wanted” for commercials, movies or modeling or claim that “no experience is necessary.”
6. Charges you money to speak with agents over the phone. There are several websites who do this. Agents and managers are busy people but they won’t charge you to speak to them. They may not return your calls right away but that’s part of the game. No one should charge you on their behalf.
Problems or complaints about an agent or an agency may be referred to the Better Business Bureau, state Department of Licensing and Regulation or consumer protection agency in the city where the company is located. To obtain helpful consumer information on a particular agency, you will need to contact the local BBB that serves that particular city.
There is no magic formula for success. Following your heart will take you to greater heights than following your wallet. If it sounds too good to be true…well, you know the rest. Here’s to your success!
-Kahlil at GigSmacked dot com
We want to hear from you on this. I’ve snuck into a few of these ‘conventions’ and ‘agencies’. The dishonest business practices are shocking. Share this with your friends, family and colleagues and let us know what you think.
As you can imagine, I get hit with a lot of emails and phone calls from people looking to be represented. I fully admit that I don’t respond to the vast majority of these inquiries. If something strikes me, I will click through to a link if I’m intrigued.If you get this far with a cold call email with any agent or manager, it is your time to shine. Whatever comes after that click determines whether I spend another 3 seconds or another 30 minutes getting to know what you do.
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Here’s the reality: I know extremely quickly most of the time. The talent involved is obviously my primary concern, but I’m looking for WAY more than talent. I want to see that you have thought seriously about your own career; that you are legitimately pursuing your passion with everything you’ve got. If I feel that the talent is there (which is fully subjective of course) then here’s what happens:
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I spend 2-3 minutes (literally) searching YouTube, Facebook and Twitter and browsing your website.
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It will be clear to me within that time frame whether or not you are taking your career seriously. If you haven’t invested time in creating audience loyalty and connections through social media, I’m out! If your website is bad or very out of date, I’m out. If I can’t find something that makes your talent shine on YouTube, I’m out.
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If I am going to invest my time by partnering with an artist, I want to definitely make sure they are extremely serious about what they do. Take a few minutes and really evaluate how your business or talent is being presented to the world. Focusing on this a few times a month can really make a huge difference for you!
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- Justin Sudds – GigSmacked.com
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Leave us your comments below and let us know what you think?
The excitement and anticipation of your first interview is hard to describe so here’s how you make the most of the opportunity and ensure that your first isn’t your last.
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The first time I got the call that I was going to be on television I thought they must have mixed me up with somebody else. I called every relative I could think of! It was an early (way too early) morning interview for a popular Montreal morning news show and for some reason I thought the interviewers would tell me what to do. Mistake. The interview went okay, so ‘okay’ that I burned the footage. I was unprepared. You won’t have to worry about that because GigSmacked is hooking you up with the good stuff.
Whether it’s television, radio or over the phone doing interviews is a daunting task because you never know what to expect. If you have a good publicist (Keith Sherman & Associates handled my show, I highly recommend them) it can be smooth and painless. But not everyone can afford a publicist and what if your publicist sucks? Here’s how to prevent getting caught with your pants down when it comes to your big day:
1. Ask for the questions in advance. This mostly applies to print media but it’s worth a try for tv and radio. If they balk at this then watch or listen to a previous broadcast of whatever station you’re about to interview with. This will give you an idea of the flavor of their show.
2. Get plenty of sleep the night before. Interviews especially TV can sometimes be VERY EARLY. Performers like to party, and nobody’s knocking it. But remember that your first responsibility is to your gig. It does you no good to show up for a BBC talk show looking like death warmed over expecting them to ‘understand’. Beware of the power of editing. They can make you disappear and nobody will know your interview existed.
3. Listen. This will prevent you from saying ‘um’, ‘uh’, and other things that make us sound like Cro-Magnon man. Don’t feel like you have to answer every question right away but on the other hand don’t give it a Forrest Gump pause. Listen to the question, think about the SHORTEST ANSWER possible and then let it rip as you stay on the subject. If the interviewer wants to hear more they’ll elaborate. Less is more.
4. If your gig is more than one person (a band, theatre troupe etc) get together and rehearse some questions in the mirror the day before the interview. Just make up a list of questions. If you can, record it and play it back. You’ll be surprised to see how your chemistry comes across on camera and you may decide that not all of you should speak.
5. Just be yourself. You got this interview because you have something unique and interesting to offer the audience. Don’t use words you don’t know the meaning of in an effort to sound intelligent. In the internet and social media age EVERYTHING you say exists online forever so let’s prevent the grandkids from asking you why you screwed the pooch on national television.
p.s. Don’t forget to promote your show or event during the interview! Television and radio are designed for short attention span. The quickest way to promote your gig? By quoting your website.
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If you don’t have a website get one. It’s 2010.
Got a good interview story or something to add? We want to hear from you. Leave us a comment about your experience. Share,Tweet, and spread this post! Facebook is cool too.
Watching the news this morning while traveling in Toronto, there was a short report about a big buzz happening on Twitter. Some older man working at a transit ticket booth in the middle of the night was fast asleep in his chair. Someone passing by took a snapshot on their phone and posted to Twitter. Viral media ensued.
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This photo is funny and when I saw it, I laughed. The point here is that you simply can’t get away with anything these days. I’m not just talking about celebrities. I mean everyone: drunken photos of your kid’s teacher on Facebook, the road rage that gets posted to YouTube, United airlines breaking a guy’s guitar.
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Social media has changed the game entirely for everyone, but especially entertainers. The era of the asshole ended with YouTube and flip-cams. You no longer have the luxury as a performer of being inappropriate. Just ask Michael Richards. Being in a bad mood publicly, whining about your life, complaining about a heckler, insulting a sound tech, making excuses why you’re late, treating women like crap, trashing a dressing room, etc., are all things that make you look like an asshole. When they are posted to YouTube (and they will be) and fed to all social media channels by a bartender, event manager, audience member or whoever, it does massive damage to your brand and business. Remember Christian Bale and his rant? Don’t you see that guy just a little differently now?
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Nobody is saying you can’t be in a bad mood or irritated, but you need to have an authenticity and a respect for the people around you as an entertainer. They are your life-blood. Make mistakes, but be honest, real and, most importantly, authentic in your reactions to those mistakes.
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There is no longer any room for error with regards to the respect you deliver to everyone you come into contact with as an entertainer.
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Good managers, agents, record label execs, corporate planners, publicists, and other industry professionals all have busy lives and want to enjoy their work. Nobody wants to work with an asshole. Life is too short and fortunately for us, it is now much easier to find out if you’re a prick.
3. Displays pictures of famous models or celebrities on the walls to make you believe they are represented by that agency, although they’re not.
