If an agent asks you to join their agency, and there is a sign-up fee involved... run away! You should never, ever pay to join an agency.

We have an agency at My Theatre School which is exclusive for Academy members. Like all good agencies, we do not charge anyone to sign up. There are of course some expenses so let me explain what they are.

An agency makes money by taking a commission from any work that they get for you. For example, let's say I'm your agent and I get you a casting opportunity. You are amazing in the audition so they offer you the job. I'll negotiate the contract for you and make sure you're getting the best deal possible, then you go off and do the job.

For this example, let's say they paid you £100. Agencies take a commission from your fee for their contribution in the process of helping you get the job. That commission varies for each agency, for this example, we're going to take 15%. So the agency would take £15 out of the fee and you'd get paid £85 for the project. That's how agencies make their money, they should not charge a joining fee.

Your agent may ask you to pay for new professional headshots that they can use to submit you for castings. Unfortunately, a selfie in the garden isn't what they're looking for (although they may ask for selfies throughout your time with them for different projects). A good headshot specialist will charge anything from £200 - £400. You might know someone who can do it a lot cheaper, which is great, but remember your headshot is the first thing a casting director will see, so we always recommend investing to give you the best chance of being seen.

Your agent may also ask you to sign up to a casting website like Spotlight. All professional projects are posted on Spotlight and although there are some open calls posted publically, most major projects are only posted on Spotlight. You can find Spotlights fee's on their website.

So to get started, you'll need professional headshots and the photographer is paid for these. You'll need a Spotlight account and Spotlight is paid for this. Your agent is not paid until you get paid.

I hope that helps,

- Karl

P.S. Every member of our Academy is invited to audition for our agency after a period of training. This way our agents know that every client has been given all of the resources they need to succeed in this industry. You're welcome to join us at 'The Academy', click here for more details.