What happened at this agency was shocking. It was in a nice small building (house actually) on a busy street so I felt safe going in, but once I got there I started to worry. Not only was it a rip off but not safe.
I attended auditions in large cities before so I know what they should go like. They are quick, you only get to read the lines ONCE and real casting directors don't give second chances, and you NEVER deviate from the script because people get paid thousands or millions to write those so they never want them changed.
I walked in to the room and they were taking anyone and everyone and telling people with no skills or no appealing physical features they could make them a star.
The agent even nervously and hurredly said "don't listen to those big city guys who say you don't have to pay for a modeling agency, they don't live in farmtown Ohio and have to occur the expenses we do to call out of state and fly directors in from out of town."
This movie audition was advertised on our morning news and I live way in another county so I thought it must be the real deal, wow, a tv spot, boy was I wrong.
The agency had an authentic newspaper article about one local person who was in one of their movies and it made it to the national movie theaters. Other than that they just had a typed list a high schooler could have produced on Microsoft Word of about 125 stores they worked with but no real proof.
I thought the AGENCY was producing this movie, here after waiting in a line of ONLY 20 people for 2.5 HOURS (real directors in L.A. See 150 people in ONE hour) I see it is some group of hoodlums who have rented out the space with a cheap Best Buy digi cam on a wobbly tri-pod and are 'auditioning' people and taking all these young girls personal information only a few guys showed up. They had baggy jeans, big sweaters, a bit of an odor, strange behavior and did not make eye contact.
All the actresses were confused on where to go, there was no organization, and each person read for like 3 different parts, and some girls read guys parts and vice versa, this never happens in authentic auditions. The hoodlums said they had other movies they had made and shopped to studios, none mentioned of which I had heard of. They said they could only do well if they had good actors, as if they were trying to hide their lack of success behind bad actors.
Two girls were asked to play lesbians and push the other one up against the wall. And I was told by actors equity members that you never audition in a violent or sexual role, you simply SAY it you do not ACT it UNTIL you are HIRED and have signed RELEASE forms. There was so much wrong with this audition. Never heard of the "movie" that they were "producing" ever again of course.
Then this loser agency whose head scheduler was strange and sweaty looking and all the staff looked worn out and unprofessional and wrinkled had the nerve to message me a month later to come in for some more jobs they had. I called back right away and the alleged jobs they had were somehow filled instantly. Then they said "oh, we told you it will be $80 to sign up right?" No they had not. Click. I hung up and never called them back. Beware these people are just local con men with no acting jobs.
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