do you know of a good casting company?

Question

i am 13 years old and i am really interested in acting, i live in souther california and i know that there are many scams out there, i accually just got scammed, but we researched before we gave them a dime. phew!! i need to know of a good acting company that wont charge me for things that are free by law. Please let me know if you know of any casting company thats not a scam! please and thank you!

Answer 1

Good for you that you avoided a scam and that you're aware that there are many out there. What you need is not a casting company. You need legit classes first before you try getting an agent. A real agent will not take a newcomer with no training or experience. Check ads in trade papers like backstage west or lok here for a ton of classes for kids: http://www.workingactors.com/cgi-bin/page.cgi?g=Training%2FCHILDREN_S_TRAINING%2F&d=1

You and your mom should make a list of questions you'd like to ask, make several copies, then start calling. Write the name of the place and the person you're speaking to at the top, then write down all the answers so you can compare them later. One thing you should ask is if they allow you to audit (try) a class for free so you can see if you like it before committing to paying for several weeks.

Some other things you may want to ask are what classes they have for beginers your age, what days and time sare the calsses, who teaches those classes, what are their credentials, how long have they been teaching there, etc.

You should also get into theatre. Start auditioning at any theatre that has a show with a possible role for you that your parents are willing to drive you to. In SoCal the competition is fierce so in addition to acting, make sure you get into dance classes and voice lessons. Once you have a few roles under your belt (and a good amount of training), try adding student and indie films roles to your repertoire. There are tons of projects but again, in SoCal the competition is something else. Backstage.com and actorsaccess have audition info but you need your parents to help you with that since ultimately it will cost money. Have mom check them out, they are legitimate sites.

Once you have a lot of training and experience you can try for an agent. Don't forget to network while you're in class and working on projects. Talk to your teachers and other kids and see who's signed with what agency. Mom needs to jump on that bandwagon too so you guys can work on getting those industry referrals. You can find legit agents on SAG.org, Ross Reports (you have to pay but you get a lot of additional info), or here http://www.agentassociation.com/ but don't go that route until you're ready or it will be a waste of time. Get the training, the credits, and the referrals.

good luck!

Answer 2

The only one is for professional actors. So it wont help you. I reread your question. I think you are mixing up a lot of terms. A casting agent is not a talent agent and can legally charge for services, A talent agent is what you want. Look for a talent agency that represents kids. You have to live near enough to the agency that you can get to readings and auditions on short notice. The best one in LA is Abrams Agency.

Answer 3

Since you live in Southern CA, start reading Variety. Here is a link to their site:

http://weblogs.variety.com/breaking_in/

Post a resume and start watching for open calls.

Reading Variety will help you learn more about what is going on within the industry. Knowledge is power!

Don't waste your time waiting for someone to promote you. True agents have a list of experienced actors to pull from and are not likely to "waste their time" with an amatuer.

So go find an opening that you think is a good fit for you and start promoting yourself.

Good luck!