Child acting scams and how to spot them
Most parents think their child has all the potential in the world to become the next big child star like Gary Coleman or Raven Symone. For this reason, many parents easily fall victim to scammers claiming to be legitimate acting or modeling agencies. If you don’t know how the scenario works here it is: A company posts an ad claiming to be looking for talented kids for commercials, TV shows, movies, and print ads, then arranges a meeting at a hotel or some rented office space so they can “evaluate ” to his son. Who can blame a parent for thinking her child has a chance to be on the cover of magazines, be a movie star, or be a national commercial star?
After these “acting and modeling agency” scouts entice you with their persuasive ads, they make you come to a hotel where they make you sit and listen to someone talk about the fame and fortune your child can get from acting and modeling. . they just make you excited when they do this. They sound even more legitimate when, during the meeting at the hotel, they write off some children as not having what it takes and decide to keep their son, raising their hopes for their son even higher. Once they tell you that your son stayed because he had “what it takes” they ask you for an “investment” so that your son can go further. Most of these scam agencies ask you to pay multiple fees, the most common “fees” they ask you to pay are for a session with “top talent agencies in Los Angeles and New York City”.
Just when it seems like this is your son’s big break, you head to the meeting to find no one there and just as you call the scammer “talent agents” to talk about the situation, his contact details are useless and you just put your car in debt between the range of $3,000 $4,500. Now, don’t get me wrong here, these so called acting and modeling agencies provide acting and modeling “lessons”, but they don’t guarantee your child any acting or modeling jobs, at least 99% of the time. So, if you fall for these scams, you will most likely not be able to get your money back because they will tell you that your child was not guaranteed a job.
A new way for model scouts to try to get their money is to go out and find their child at local malls and other public places. They come up to you and tell you how great your son looks and how he could be a big star, then give you a card and a little monologue for your son to go home and practice before visiting the “agency.”
The common question being asked is how to spot these scammers claiming to be acting agents and models, it’s pretty simple when you call the “agency” or are approached by a “scout” ask them for their credentials, ask them to list some from their customers and possibly give you their contact information for verification. Chances are, if you know how to spot a scam when you see one, you won’t have to worry about getting scammed by these guys.