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Acting Scams

There is a saying that applies in almost every opportunity you may seek—it’s a good one to remember:
“If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
In the acting industry, this phrase is worth more than a $20 million-dollar, big-budget film contract. Almost every actor will run into one type or another of there such acting scams. Con and scam artists, unfortunately, have great luck in the entertainment industry. In part, this is legal because people can scam you out of your money—taking advantage of your aspirations if you are inexperienced.
The acting scams we are about to discuss come in all forms, all shapes and sizes, and from all directions you can think of. Even if you go to a photographer with a good reputation or to a highly-recommended talent agent—you may find he or she trying to lure you into an acting class you do not need, or that is not legitimate, trying sell you something you do not need, or simply being dishonest with you. And they can make quite a large amount of mony doing just this. For the scammers, there is almost no police involvement, little legal action can be taken, and there is virtually no punishment—you let yourself be duped. But it is easy to do—they are masters of disguise.
Out of the gazillion acting scams out there, her are a few doozies we can warn you about. This is among our absolute favorites.
· “Suckers Wanted”
You see an ad in the paper, the ad seems like it is coming from an agency of good reputation. The ad says they have initiated and boosted the careers of so many famous people, or that they have booked an unbelievable amount of jobs for their clients. Now their ad claims that they are suddenly looking for new talent and new faces for show business—people just like you. They claim you do not require any acting experience. This is your clue. You can be almost positive that such an ad is an acting scam. They will claim that all you have to do, no matter who you are or how good you are, is go to their office for an interview and you will have a good chance of becoming a big star.
· Dead giveaways:
§ First, reputable agencies do not usually put ads in the newspaper or in magazines. These companies have so many headshots and resumes from experienced actors that they have no reason to look elsewhere.

§ Second, when such a so-called “agency” claims to have launched the careers of famous people, usually it is not true, not the way you think. They may only have had some brief affiliation with that celebrity. Celebrities change agencies all the time, the acting scam is that their abilities had something to do with this actors success. Often there was no affiliation at all, the “agency” could just be making the whole thing up. Usually, when they tell you things like this, it is to get you to envision yourself as a star, just long enough for them to take your cash.

§ Third, most actors need some acting experience before looking for representation. There are few exceptions. It is highly unusual for an agency to call for inexperienced actors in for consultation. Real agencies need actors who can nail their auditions and get booked for parts. A legitimate agency gets paid only after an actor is booked.