Agent Rant

I've been checking out agencies for Nic and Ivy - just out of curiosity mostly. I figured I can't really take off for auditions for myself - but I can take them! And there is one trend I'm noticing with Texas agents that I just don't get. What's with charging talent to be on the agent's website???? I don't understand that concept. The agent represents the actor - so wouldn't it be in the best interest for the agent to showcase their talent on their company website? Maybe someone can enlighten me, but in my opinion, the agent's job is to help find work so they can collect their percentage (- sometimes up to 20% if the actor is non-union!) by submitting them for projects and hopefully even pitching them to casting. They don't get paid unless the actor does, right? So why charge the actor to be on their own company site? If the purpose of the agent's website is to raise the profile of their actors and make it easy for casting to see who they represent, then why charge an additional fee to the actor? As an actor, I'm already doing my part by marketing myself with my own website, headshots, postcards, resumes, etc. Making sure I'm up to date on Actors Access, NowCasting, IMDB, etc.... How does it make sense that I have to pay to be on my own agent's website also???? That's always raised a red flag to me. Any agency that would ask for ANY money from the actors, aside from their percentage, made me worry. Even "strongly recommended" a specific photographer or reproduction company made me feel like they got a kick back or something. I wouldn't mind a list of photographers that the agency liked as choices to consider, but to say that you HAVE to get your headshots done by so-and-so or that you HAVE to pay $150 a year to be showcased on our website doesn't make any sense to me. At all. I never encountered anything like this in Los Angeles. I've had a few agents in those 10 years (4 actually - and a manager) and not one asked for payment to be included in their company's website. Am I missing something here????

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