Has anyone ever being to an agency workshop audition or there child has being? i have one on Wednesday for Scream in Manchester and i was wondering what a workshop audition is like? as this is all new to me i am used to going into auditions with one or two people sat there and a camera.
any advice would be great :-)
thank you
Workshop Auditon
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fartoomuchtodo
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Re: Workshop Auditon
Hi,
My DS is with Scream and had a workshop audition. There's a bit of improv, a bit of script reading, each person introduces themselves etc it's all very relaxed. He loved every minute and looks forward to the 6 monthly workshops which are part of his contract. Relax and have fun - the girls from Scream are all lovely. Good luck
My DS is with Scream and had a workshop audition. There's a bit of improv, a bit of script reading, each person introduces themselves etc it's all very relaxed. He loved every minute and looks forward to the 6 monthly workshops which are part of his contract. Relax and have fun - the girls from Scream are all lovely. Good luck
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irrelevant
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Re: Workshop Auditon
We're due there on Wednesday too ... (Coming up to decision time for existing agency, so I thought we'd see what the locals have to offer. ) DD is normally great with other kids, so I hope she has a good time ..
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irrelevant
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Re: Workshop Auditon - scream
Well.
It seemed a little bit disorganised. I wasn't expecting the "thanks, now go away" after they did the roll-call. (Nor were a couple I was stood next to.) I was expecting somewhere to sit and wait, hopefully with access to tea and coffee. Especially as they charged us £25 for this. Add another fiver for parking and a coffee elsewhere. They had asked for us to bring any certificates, etc., with us, but didn't ask for them when we got there, and the poor girl seemed reluctant to take them.
Tiddler did seem to enjoy herself however; she said they played games, let her sing a song, and they read lines to each other.
At the end they all got given a brown envelope and shoved out the door. No ensuring that there was somebody there to collect them. (I was in the building, but had nipped to the loo, so wasn't there for a hand over, and didn't see anybody before we left.)
The envelope contained a print of the same list of credits they attach to every email, plus bumf for various courses and classes, and a pre-printed sheet, with name hand-written in, inviting her to join. Conditional on £98 or £145 for their photoshoot, £35 for a disc if you want more than a single image emailed to you. No physical copies. £120 for spotlight. No details of any contract or agreement, commission rates, or anything else you would expect to see.
I don't know how well they do as an agency, but this just feels far too much like a way to make money off us up front. Apparently we've got 21 days to decide if we want to take up their offer.
(Maybe I should have put this in agency reviews ...)
It seemed a little bit disorganised. I wasn't expecting the "thanks, now go away" after they did the roll-call. (Nor were a couple I was stood next to.) I was expecting somewhere to sit and wait, hopefully with access to tea and coffee. Especially as they charged us £25 for this. Add another fiver for parking and a coffee elsewhere. They had asked for us to bring any certificates, etc., with us, but didn't ask for them when we got there, and the poor girl seemed reluctant to take them.
Tiddler did seem to enjoy herself however; she said they played games, let her sing a song, and they read lines to each other.
At the end they all got given a brown envelope and shoved out the door. No ensuring that there was somebody there to collect them. (I was in the building, but had nipped to the loo, so wasn't there for a hand over, and didn't see anybody before we left.)
The envelope contained a print of the same list of credits they attach to every email, plus bumf for various courses and classes, and a pre-printed sheet, with name hand-written in, inviting her to join. Conditional on £98 or £145 for their photoshoot, £35 for a disc if you want more than a single image emailed to you. No physical copies. £120 for spotlight. No details of any contract or agreement, commission rates, or anything else you would expect to see.
I don't know how well they do as an agency, but this just feels far too much like a way to make money off us up front. Apparently we've got 21 days to decide if we want to take up their offer.
(Maybe I should have put this in agency reviews ...)
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lostouthere
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Re: Workshop Auditon
This is a very interesting account! We have a few agency auditions coming up, though I also have had a knack for applying just a bit too late, maybe because it is our first time around. In fact we have recently had an exciting call up for meetings that proved to have already taken place by the time the email was sent to us. 
So I've resolved not to rush into the choice of agency and to try to be sure we get one that's right, since we are getting call-ups after all. My question really is if the process at Scream is as described, how would I know whether it IS the right agency?? Added to which of course they seem to be the only agency who want money for the audition, and I'm not sure whether to hold this against them. Is it an incentive for them to audition everyone? Or a reasonable admin fee which lets them give more kids the opportunity to be seen? Can't decide. I guess it just depends how good they are.
So I've resolved not to rush into the choice of agency and to try to be sure we get one that's right, since we are getting call-ups after all. My question really is if the process at Scream is as described, how would I know whether it IS the right agency?? Added to which of course they seem to be the only agency who want money for the audition, and I'm not sure whether to hold this against them. Is it an incentive for them to audition everyone? Or a reasonable admin fee which lets them give more kids the opportunity to be seen? Can't decide. I guess it just depends how good they are.Re: Workshop Auditon
I would never join an agency unless there was an opportunity for a face to face meeting - where you felt free to ask any questions.
I would certainly have a few questions I would want to ask in this instance.
a) being charged to audition for an agency (even if it's a workshop) is a big NO from me - others might decide that a workshop was worth the money anyway.
b) I would never join an agency if I HAD to use the photographer associated with the agency - it should be a choice (too much potential for creaming off a profit for the agency otherwise). I would be more than happy to have a photographer recommended or to be invited to use a specific photographer at a discount. Choice is vital, just on principle. I would certainly want to see the photographer's work before making a decision.
c) Why are they charging £120 for Spotlight? That is very worrying - they are making a profit out of something they should not be making a profit out of in my opinion.
The annual cost for Spotlight for young performers is £90 inclusive of VAT. Adult actors pay Spotlight directly. I would be inclined to ask Spotlight whether they know that this is what the agency is doing.
I would have lots of other questions too - about the sort of work their clients were doing, what sort of work they thought your child might be suitable for, how they communicate about jobs, commission rate - possibly lots more. There is so much that needs ironing out before signing with an agent to avoid problems later down the line.
I would certainly have a few questions I would want to ask in this instance.
a) being charged to audition for an agency (even if it's a workshop) is a big NO from me - others might decide that a workshop was worth the money anyway.
b) I would never join an agency if I HAD to use the photographer associated with the agency - it should be a choice (too much potential for creaming off a profit for the agency otherwise). I would be more than happy to have a photographer recommended or to be invited to use a specific photographer at a discount. Choice is vital, just on principle. I would certainly want to see the photographer's work before making a decision.
c) Why are they charging £120 for Spotlight? That is very worrying - they are making a profit out of something they should not be making a profit out of in my opinion.
The annual cost for Spotlight for young performers is £90 inclusive of VAT. Adult actors pay Spotlight directly. I would be inclined to ask Spotlight whether they know that this is what the agency is doing.
I would have lots of other questions too - about the sort of work their clients were doing, what sort of work they thought your child might be suitable for, how they communicate about jobs, commission rate - possibly lots more. There is so much that needs ironing out before signing with an agent to avoid problems later down the line.
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lostouthere
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Re: Workshop Auditon
Thanks pg, there are lots of very useful pointers here. I will have a look around the threads and see if there are any recent experiences with scream.