What Parents Need To Know About the film and TV business
They do not pull out of school at the drop of a hat to audition. Typically, agents will give you a days’ notice that an audition has been booked for your child. You are in control of their careers. Of course, the agents would prefer that you never miss an audition because their income is derived solely from commission on the work booked. However, there are appropriate ways to let your agent know that you are not available. It’s called, “Booking Out”. You simply notify your agent in advance that you will not be available on certain dates. Then, when you become available to audition again, you simply call your agent and book back in.
There are three types of agents:
Print, Commercial & Theatrical
Print: Macy’s Nordstrom, Broadway, Disney, Mattel. Print agents receive a 20% commission from your work. You get paid one time for your print campaign. There is no residual income from print. If you get paid $500 for your Disney advertisement, your agent will receive 20% commission or $100.
Commercials: Television commercials are very lucrative. If you are three seconds recognizable on the screen, you are considered principle. Commercial can pay from $600 to tens of thousand of dollars, depending on the campaign, the client (Sears, Target, McDonalds, etc.). Agents get 10% commission on the entire campaign. If you or your child were to earn $20,000 on a commercial, the agent would receive 10% commission.
Theatrical: Episodic television, movies of the week, feature film. Agents receive 10% commission on your work in any of these venues.
Only high-fashioned models need portfolios and only after you have secured agency representation by a legitimate agency (not a management company). There are many photo-mill companies out there that lead people to believe that they will get you work. Attempting to procure work for constitutes being either an agency or management company. Both which need to be registered by the state of California.