Hi,
My daughter is ten years old. She recently went to a few showcases and was called by several agents and managers to come in for interviews. We are deciding between a manager who will send her out across the board (TV, film, theatre, commercials, print) or an agent who will represent her only for TV, film, and theatre.
The agent claims their commercial/voiceover department has many girls her age and they wouldn’t be able to service her properly. Both agencies are not top agencies, but reputable. For a ten year old starting out, do you go with agent or manager?
Any input would be great.
Thank you,
Confused Mom
Okay, you didn’t mention which market you’re in, but in Los Angeles (and most other markets, from my experience), there is no exclusivity that covers the rosters of agents AND managers, which would mean you could choose to have both an agent and a manager on your child’s team, with no conflict. In LA, an actor cannot sign with two theatrical agents (but could sign with one commercial and one theatrical, for example). An actor could, however, have an agent and a manager, each developing the same area of an actor’s career.
I strongly recommend that you check out the five-part series on agents and managers I did back in March and April of 2006. Even stronger is my recommendation that you read up on the rich (and free!) resources for parents of young actors at BizParentz.org, while asking questions of fellow parents of young actors at the Professional Actors Resource Forum (PARF). There is so much good information available and generous sharing going on at those sites. And my archived articles will help you discern the difference in the types of representation and what you should expect from each party.
Congrats to your daughter for having popped on the radar of some reputable representatives. That’s fantastic and I hope you’ll get good guidance about the specific agent and manager in the running! Without knowing who you’re dealing with (or why there’s concern over choosing just one, rather than both, in your situation), and especially without knowing your child and her level of talent, I would never attempt to suggest the best course of action on what is, truly, a partnership akin to a marriage. Far too many variables to do more than just point you to some resources you may find helpful.
Bonnie Gillespie is living her dreams by helping others figure out how to live theirs. Wanna work with Bon? Start here. Thanks!
Originally published by Actors Access at http://more.showfax.com/columns/avoice/archives/001303.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.