Do not sign a contract with amp talent group.
Anne Marie Perrault, the owner of the agency, is extremely manipulative and condescending, and will take advantage of your money. During my audition with her, she told me how I had such a great look and how I should be on tv - which she says to everyone. Before my audition with her, I had made sure to research about scams to notice any warning signs.
These are the warning signs I noticed:
-She recommended a VERY expensive photographer for my portfolio (David Chang, davidchang.ca).
-She promised me work, saying that she already had castings for me, before I even joined.
-She listed a bunch of names of successful people in the industry that she has worked with (for example, Melinda Shankar of Degrassi)
These are BIG NONO'S in this industry!
Being naive, and after discussing it with my parents, we decided to join with her. HOWEVER, this was after she called my house asking for me to join the agency (after the audition, as she had "upcoming auditions" for me, and didn't want me to miss out). I never received a casting until MONTHS LATER.
When I went to take my pictures for my portfolio (the location was downtown Toronto in a sketchy neighbourhood, and occurred at night), my mother and I were stuck outside in the freezing cold (it was winter), as Anne Marie told us to call her cell phone when we had arrived. After waiting outside for half an hour, as she never did answer her phone (she claims it didn't ring - we called MULTIPLE times), a man exiting the building finally let us in.
At the portfolio meeting, Anne Marie got us to sign the 2-year contract (which she FAILED to mention at the audition). At the end of taking my pictures, and after signing the contract, Anne Marie tried to force me into taking a comedy acting class. Due to financial reasons, we said no. This did not sit well with her at all. We also paid Anne Marie a very fat cheque for over a thousand dollars [which included the $800 portfolio (bad pictures, with horrible hair and makeup, which was an additional $50- I turned out orange), and some other fees which included $15/month for appearing on her website (which I've yet to appear on), and another amount for appearing on a casting website (which according to her, she MUST use)]. My mother let her know that she may not receive the money right away, and possibly a week later, to which Anne Marie agreed. The next day, she called my mother FLIPPING OUT on her, demanding she receive the money right away.
When my portfolio was available for pick up at the office, we had let her know that we would not be able to pick them up, and asked her if they could be mailed to us, to which she refused. Eventually, she ended up mailing it, however it did not include any copies of my acting resumes (which I continue to print-out using my own paper and ink).
While on lunch one day at school, a few weeks after the portfolio shoot, Anne Marie called me to see if I would like to take some other acting class. We told her we could not afford it, so she offered it for half of the price ($800 originally, $400 half-price). We still said no.
Communication with Anne Marie is non-existant. She DOES NOT care about getting you work, she only cares about getting your money.
Please do not be ignorant if you are reading this, and choose to ignore my experiences with this agency - I am only trying to save you time and money. AMP Talent Group does not appear on Actra's No Cheque List (which includes scam agencies), however it very well should!
Do not sign a contract with amp talent group - go elsewhere! (see the actra website)!
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