Has anyone's child been to an open audition?

[Polyluvr]

I was driving my son-6 home from school today; and while listening to the radio a commercial was on- a company hosting "open" auditions for either modeling,acting~ some of their clients have been on shows like I Carly; zack and cody etc.

He said he wanted to do it; so I called and made an appt.

It's totally free; they sent me an email for some lines for him to learn~

Can anyone tell me what to expect? He is very cute and precoscious? sp; I'm not expecting him to become a movie star-
Just wondering if anyone has done this before.

Thanks!

 

[PatriciaH]

I went on an audition for a movie with my sister once in NYC. She was around 7 or 8 and read about it and wanted to do it. It was fine, lots of kids with head shots, portfolios already. She read some lines. I did have a friend/neighbor in NYC that was very pretty/tall for her age and her mom took her to a audition for some modeling. She got bit, pinched, threatened by the other little girls and never went back to an audition again! They were about 10.

 

[Polyluvr]

OMG!!! That's horrible! Talk about traumatizing

 

[sunnyday123]

DD went to an audition for Disney in Nashville. I wouldn't do it unless your kid realizes there is more rejection than anything in that field-their were kids tossing their cookies in the bathroom all morning. They went into a large room in groups, and went down the line and recited their lines. They pulled some kids who had the same look-blondish, short hair that Dd didn't fit. She was totally cool with it. I however wanted to join the kids in the bathrooms I was such a mess. If you have to pay for anything or go in some back alley I would strongly advise against it!

Good Luck!!

 

[ChrizJen]

Just be cautious. A lot of times those are just "agents" looking to scam you out of money.
They get you in, and then they prey on the fact that you think your son/daughter is cute. They tell you that he/she has what it takes. They tell you that he/she just needs a few acting classes, and of course they offer those classes!! They'll sometimes charge you thousands of dollars for what amounts to a photo shoot. And I've never heard of anything ever coming of it.
From what I've heard, it really doesn't hurt to go. Just beware and don't give them any money. If they're legitimate, they'll pay you (or your son, I should say) to model or act. They won't ask you for money.

 

[Polyluvr]

Thanks for the info!!! I am in no way going to get stressed over this; as long as he thinks he's having fun- great! I wouldn't want him to get that worked up That's just awful for kids to have to go thru.

 

[RunningGirl]

I would do some research on this company before taking my child there. So many of them are scams, as pp said, just looking to make empty promises while emptying your pockets for photos and lessons. I'd hate for you to take your DS there and set him up for disappointment.

 

[Polyluvr]

Just be cautious. A lot of times those are just "agents" looking to scam you out of money.
They get you in, and then they prey on the fact that you think your son/daughter is cute. They tell you that he/she has what it takes. They tell you that he/she just needs a few acting classes, and of course they offer those classes!! They'll sometimes charge you thousands of dollars for what amounts to a photo shoot. And I've never heard of anything ever coming of it.
From what I've heard, it really doesn't hurt to go. Just beware and don't give them any money. If they're legitimate, they'll pay you (or your son, I should say) to model or act. They won't ask you for money.

That's what my DH said~ Don't give them any $$.

I have seen the 20/20 where some of it's quite a scam!
Thanks!

 

[Feralpeg]

I was driving my son-6 home from school today; and while listening to the radio a commercial was on- a company hosting "open" auditions for either modeling,acting~ some of their clients have been on shows like I Carly; zack and cody etc.

He said he wanted to do it; so I called and made an appt.

It's totally free; they sent me an email for some lines for him to learn~

Can anyone tell me what to expect? He is very cute and precoscious? sp; I'm not expecting him to become a movie star-
Just wondering if anyone has done this before.

Thanks!

They advertize that here all the time. Call and talk to them. You'll find out there is a $200 fee associated. You have to agree to take a class. It is sponsored by John Robert Powers. Total scam!

 

[mjkacmom]

And when you get there, you will get the package for photos and classes - sounds like a scam. Trust me, I know legitimate agencies, and it's hard to even get an audition, and they don't charge you anything, but get a percentage of what your child makes.

Companies like this because they give the kids false hope. If your child wants to model, and you're by a major city, you send a couple of non-staged photos of your child, with information like age, height, weight, size on the back, and they will contact you if they are interested.

 

[Polyluvr]

it's sponsored by ipop agents; I went to their website~ There wasn't any mention of a 200 fee~ the lady booking the appt specificly stated there weren't any fees associated w the audition.

 

[missypie]

Our friends went to an open audition advertised on the radio. The D has somuch talent that she was invited to Orlando to participate in further auditions the week of Christmas. HUGE cost, all on the parents. Have to stay at "their" hotel and buy a certain travel package. Needless to say, they passed on the tremendous opportunity.

 

[mjkacmom]

http://www.ripoffreport.com/Search/ipop.aspx

 

[KitKat_Tink]

it's sponsored by ipop agents; I went to their website~ There wasn't any mention of a 200 fee~ the lady booking the appt specificly stated there weren't any fees associated w the audition.

It appears to be a scam from what i see online. Just google ipop agents scam. You'll find tons of stuff

 

[Princess Nancy]

My DD sings. She really wanted to go to this "audition". You go to a hotel , the
agent spends about 10 minutes with you telling you how great you are, then invited you to go to thier website to learn about their "Convention". You go on your dime and they bring in casting directors. It would have cost us about $2500 and that was with us driving there not air.

RUN AWAY FAST

 

[pixiewings71]

It's not always a scam in the end. There are kids who get jobs from things like this but those kids are very few and far between. JRP & iPop are real companies and they do have classes and your kids will learn and your kids will get auditions but who knows if your kids will get work, that's the big thing. DD14 wants to be in show business, we took her to an audition, they loved her, the audition cost nothing, the classes were about $1500 iirc. We did sign DD up and she loved it, she didn't get any work out of it but she gained a lot of self confidence and she learned a lot about the industry. That was the point, we really didn't think she'd get any work out of it but it was a good experience for her and at the time we had the money for it. We wouldn't do it again tho, not now.

 

[endy]

Just be cautious. A lot of times those are just "agents" looking to scam you out of money.
They get you in, and then they prey on the fact that you think your son/daughter is cute. They tell you that he/she has what it takes. They tell you that he/she just needs a few acting classes, and of course they offer those classes!! They'll sometimes charge you thousands of dollars for what amounts to a photo shoot. And I've never heard of anything ever coming of it.
From what I've heard, it really doesn't hurt to go. Just beware and don't give them any money. If they're legitimate, they'll pay you (or your son, I should say) to model or act. They won't ask you for money.

Same thing here. My friend heard it on the radio & took her son. Ended up doing some acting classes which cost around $2000. Then they wanted him to go to Vegas for the next step. On her dime of course and several thousand $$. She didn't go for it.

 

[BeenHereB4]

I would do some research on this company before taking my child there. So many of them are scams, as pp said, just looking to make empty promises while emptying your pockets for photos and lessons. I'd hate for you to take your DS there and set him up for disappointment.

My sister got taken in by one of those kiosks at the mall where they stop you and tell you how pretty you are, etc. She did end up buying some photos to the tune of about $700 (after some hefty negotiations as the original quote was about $2k) and got one gig which paid $150 for which she had to drive to Connecticut (from NY), stay in and pay for a hotel/meals, etc. and that was that. It ended up costing her money, but she did get to see herself for all of 3 seconds on a cable tv show. And there was another audition that she drove herself to in the city, pay for parking/transportation, spent all day there and didn't get it. She never heard from her "agent" after those two.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

They advertize that here all the time. Call and talk to them. You'll find out there is a $200 fee associated. You have to agree to take a class. It is sponsored by John Robert Powers. Total scam!

I was just going to post this! They advertise on the radio here all the time. (Long Island) It is a scam. They are not auditioning for those shows. They are trying to get you to join their classes. So if an audition does come up they will tell you that they "prepared" you. It is a huge scam. Google them and you will read all about it.

 

[Polyluvr]

Thanks guys! I knew I could count on everyone here.

I'll have to talk to my DH and see what he thinks~ my son has said for a while he'd like to be on TV- I just wouldn't even know where to begin.

Thanks again everyone!