Looking for an actors agent, fashion model agent or television talent agency.

Help and advice for actors, models, dancers and singers new to the Film and Television industry in Australia and New Zealand.

What to look for... cont'd

Be wary of

• Advertisements in newspapers looking for talent. Unless there’s another "Lord of the Rings" sized project on in town, or unless they’re a new agency, they shouldn’t need to advertise. If they are a new agency, their profile and list of clients will be smaller. 

• Someone who claims to be an agent and offers to meet you "outside the office"

• Anyone making extravagant claims about the work they’ve received. Established agents go by their reputation and have no need to oversell their services. 

• An agent that doesn’t answer the phone with their company name.

• An agent that charges you to join their books. Unless it’s specifically for photos, comp cards or promotion (for which you’ll receive a tax invoice you may be able to write off against your income) there is no need to pay an agent who has not yet given you work. They get paid when you get paid.

• A company contract that doesn’t have any out clauses protecting you if the agency are not meeting your expectations.

• Someone who offers to manage your career when show business is not their main interest (eg – lawyers, photographers or advertising people). You may be signing yourself exclusively over to someone who just doesn’t have the contacts to sustain your career and will be unable to get work for yourself without them taking a commission on each job. Also watch for new agencies where the manager has not previously worked in the industry.

Here's Australian Actor's Equity Guide to the Rights and Responsibilities of agents and their clients.