The hard realities of the modeling biz
by Tamar Wilner
January 15—About 60 teenage girls, plus a few guys, children and parental support, are shuffling into a ballroom at the Church Street Hilton. A TV screen shuffles images of high-cheekboned models to a hip-hop soundtrack. "What does it take to be number one?" the song implores, over and over again.
Some of those present think, whatever it is, they have it.
"I've always been told that I should model, and that I should try," Tiffany Fullbright, 18, says.
"This is what I've always wanted to do," spiky-haired 19-year-old Josh Richardson says, noting models gain big bucks and worldwide fame. "People notice you more," he adds.
But as they wait for this Model Search America open call to begin, the teens let a few doubts surface. They snap gum and tap their feet nervously. Girls look into mirrors and tug at their clothes. "Gosh, I look bad," one sighs.
Our hosts walk smartly down the aisle, ponytails flying, garbadine swishing. Jean Fedora, Model Search America's director of scouting, introduces herself and scout Felicia Furman, and the selection process begins. The wannabe models form two lines to await "interviews," which last five seconds apiece and consist of questions like, "What year are you in school?" allowing Fedora and Furman to evaluate the girls' appearance and confidence.
Then comes the painful part. Fedora reads off the names of 30 people who've been cut and must leave the room. This clears her to let the remaining hopefuls in on why they're still here.
"You were just born, God looked down and said, 'good-looking.' Not that those who just left aren't good-looking. Let me tell you, they're all good-looking in their own way."
Fedora hands the chosen ones some free advice, telling them they have several ways to start their modeling careers. They could send their photos to major agencies in New York. If they ever hear anything back, they'll probably be asked to fly in for a five-minute meeting, and still may not land a contract. They could wait millennia to be discovered on the street, a rare occurrence.
Or, they could go with Model Search America. By plunking down $495 (including a $245 deposit, due in the next 10 days), they'll buy the opportunity to meet with top agents from around the world at an MSA regional review, April 6 and 7 in Atlanta. Obviously, Fedora feels this is the best way to go, noting the company has held 125 such events in nine years.
"Every one of those events, models will be discovered....What are your chances if you don't go?"
She may have asked the question rhetorically, but its answer is far from obvious. Many avenues beckon would-be Cindys and Claudias with the promise or at least hint of stardom. Some roads can lead to success; others can lead to disappointment or heavy financial losses. Unfortunately for the novice model, especially in a small city like Knoxville, few street signs point the way.
Industry insiders, including agents, models and scouts, can't seem to agree on the best way to break into the biz. East Tennessee offers mostly commercial work for companies like Goody's and Proffitt's. To hit the big time, one must move into a major market, and industry folks don't always agree on the best way to do that. Cindy Swicegood, president of the local agency 18 Karat, recommends models start locally to gain experience. Then their local "mother agency" can help sign them to the big Kahunas. She speaks from experience, having just signed two models to Elite Model Management's Atlanta office. Swicegood plans to sign a third model to either Elite or Next Model Management.
Katie Ford, CEO of Ford Models, Inc., says those interested in modeling should attend open calls at or send snapshots to reputable agencies in large markets. Most big agencies offer open calls at least once a week.
Knoxvillian model and actress Glenda Tangen, who is represented by SubZero Management in Toronto, recently landed a LaBatt's print ad over 1,000 other women. She started modeling with a local agency, moved to the Atlanta market, then went to Toronto with her Canadian husband. Tangen recommends that Knoxville models attend open calls in big-market cities like New York to save money and time, noting that high-fashion agencies look for girls as young as 14. "I recommend if anyone wants to do it, they get started young," Tangen says.
The vote is decidedly split over scouting companies like Model Search America. Some say the same amount of money is better spent visiting a major market. Others pan scouting conventions because few attendees end up winning contracts, and search companies make most their money off conference fees, not commissions.
"Scouting services are fine," Ford says. "They give people a chance to find out about the modeling industry. I don't believe that a scouting service should cost thousands of dollars and ask that you travel long distance in order to meet with them."
But some area hopefuls have done just that. Alley Wagner, 16, drove from Bluff City, in the Tri-Cities area, to attend classes at Barbizon, a national modeling school and agency with a franchise in Farragut. Modeling classes, according to Barbizon and most industry insiders, are mainly used to bolster confidence and are not necessary for all potential models.
Barbizon took Wagner to an open call for the scout company International Modeling and Talent Association (IMTA), which selected Wagner to attend a convention. Unwilling to wait months for a Southern convention, she paid $4,000 to fly to Los Angeles and meet with agents there. One week later, an agency named Christian Jacques called. They wanted her in Italy in a week. So the Wagners paid $600 to rent Alley a flat and $500 to upgrade her portfolio. Friends and family pooled frequent flyer miles to pay for her flight. After spending about four weeks in Milan and attending 60 to 70 open calls, Wagner was offered only one job, for a hair show that will pay about 500 Euros ($435).
It remains to be seen whether Alley's Italian holiday will pay off.
Other scouting companies, some with dubious histories, pass through area hotels frequently. For instance, ProScout of Scottsdale, Ariz., recently held an open call at the Radisson. A man who introduced himself as Aaron, the director of scouting, told those gathered how ProScout came into being. "The top agencies, like Ford, Wilhelmina, IMG, Karin...got together because they needed to get a way to find new talent. They chose three top scouts to head the project—Brian Marcus, Mel McFarland, and Greg Hartman," he said.
The problem is, both Ford and Wilhelmina say their agencies had nothing to do with ProScout's creation. "That [ProScout's assertion] I would say is a little sketchy," Wilhelmina Models director of women's modeling Ray Lata says.
Finally, there's that other way of hitting it big, the fairy tale experienced by Shalom Harlow, Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. All three were recruited in public: respectively, at a Cure concert, in an airport and on the street. But a girl waiting for Lady Luck to strike may allow Father Time to steal away her youthful beauty. Worse, one waiting to be "discovered" is particularly susceptible to scams.
The Internet teems with testimonials and warnings about unscrupulous businesses that milk models dry without any intention of finding them work. The New York City Department of Consumer Affairs has issued what they believe to be a clear-cut guideline for those navigating agency waters.
"Simply put, legitimate model and/or talent managers do not require or request upfront fees," reads the DCA's "Fashionably Aware: The Consumer Guide to Modeling & Talent Agencies." But some in the business think the DCA has oversimplified the criteria. Certainly, young models should not expect to enter the business without any kind of expenditure.
High-fashion agencies may ask for a test photo shoot, which Tangen says costs about $200, despite the New York DCA's assertion that "No reputable modeling or talent agency will charge you for test shots"(emphasis theirs). A model pays for a test shoot out-of-pocket or out of her first paycheck.
Once a model signs to an agency, she'll need to pay for professional photos, which vary widely in price. Charlotte Dennison is co-owner and print booker at Talent Trek, a model and talent agency with offices in Asheville, Nashville, Chattanooga and Knoxville. She says Knoxville models need pay only $350 for their photos. But Swicegood, who shops her models to the fashion capitals, uses higher-priced photographer Jean Philippe, who reportedly charges about $500.
Professional photos are then used to make 8" x 10" head shots or composition cards, the two major items models use to market themselves. "Comp" cards show a model's statistics and several shots of her in different poses or outfits, and run models about $1.25 to $2 per card, 18 Karat and Elite model Laurie Brown says. Most models will start with 100 cards.
The BBB says agencies should not require use of a specific photographer, although they may strongly recommend one. David Catanzaro, an agent for the Strawberry Plains office of the Charlotte, N.C., agency On Track Modeling, says he tells models to use a certain photographer because models might waste their money on pricier and less talented ones. But OTM receives money from its recommended photographer, raising questions of motivation.
Catanzaro says the photographer money is needed to cover the cost of setting up a shoot, and OTM president Robert David Ecksmith notes most OTM money comes from commissions, not photo shoots. But big-name agencies like Elite and Ford receive all their money from commissions and none from photographers.
The BBB report for OTM lists 37 complaints in the past three years, 16 of them in the last year. While the company resolved or made every effort to resolve all complaints, the sheer presence of so much discontent might raise a wary consumer's eyebrows. And customer dissatisfaction with OTM continues.
UT student Jeff Miller says he signed up with OTM almost a year ago. He spent $400 for pictures from the agency's recommended photographer and $300 for composition cards. He says the company's Strawberry Plains affiliate took about five months to deliver his comp cards, and he has not heard from the agency since. Miller wonders whether the company ever intended to find him jobs, or just to take his money.
Catanzaro acknowledges that comp card delays occur "one every blue moon." "Nobody's perfect," he says. But, he says, he only takes on models he thinks are marketable, and he makes it "painfully clear" to prospective models that he cannot guarantee work. Ecksmith says 80 percent of those who sign contracts with OTM are offered jobs.
Ultimately, according to many in the industry, evaluating agencies comes down to a frank evaluation of one's own marketability. Swicegood notes the same people may fall for scams again and again because they won't accept they're not model material.
Back at the Hilton, dozens of teenagers pay the kind of rapt attention their algebra teachers could only dream of as Fedora encourages them to ignore the "what if's" that keep them from pursuing modeling.
"How many what if's do you think Danny Devito had when he started in this business?"
She then shows a five-minute video to hammer her point home. "If you can dream it," the announcer proclaims, "you can do it!"
Well, not quite.
"We're hoping," Rhonda Dennis says, when asked whether she'll send daughter Tasha Hopkins, 14. "Money is the biggest issue."
Tiffany Fullbright says she's also undecided. "I'll have to read the packet [of information]."
Swicegood hopes more will take that cautious attitude. "[Knoxville has] been scammed until we can't scam any more...Everybody and their dead dog has been told that they can model."
A dog can dream, can't he?
April 4, 2002 * Vol. 12, No. 14
© 2002 Metro Pulse
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