Does anyone have any opinions on Fresh Agents agency ?

[jrtmum]

Hello there
I am a newly registered mum who was wondering if anyone has had any experience with the Fresh Agents agency in Brighton ?My 16 year old son has just been offered representation with them and I would appreaiate any feedback anyone could give.
We are completely new to this, and although my son has been interested in drama for ever and has attended youth drama since he was 10 he has never done any "professional" work.
He has been offered representation both as an actor and as a model so any opinions on either sector would be gratefully received !
I have spent many afternoon reading through the fascinating info available on the various forums and am delighted to have found this website which seems to answer many questions.
Thanks

[pg]

I don't know anything about them, but there are no upfront fees and although they have a recommended photographer it appears that you don't have to use them, so there are no loud warning bells ringing for me. (though I would just watch out for that partnership with the photography studio - don't get sucked into that if you don't want to, I suspect there will be a kick back to the agency from the photographers, if there's any pressure, suspect a scam!).

My cynical self just wonders whether there might be a temptation to sign people up, wait a few weeks, tell people that they don't think their photos are doing them justice and that might be why there's no work and then suggest a new portfolio with their partner studio...

Did they approach you, or did you approach them? Have they seen your ds perform? I'm always a bit cynical about approaches from model agencies.

Where are you based? Are you in Brighton? Can you travel easily to London?

[jrtmum]

Thanks for the reply

We actually approached them ,though whether that's better or worse I don't know. We sent them 4 or 5 photos that we have had taken by a professional friend and they ask for £25 to set up a web page.They did mention in the email that they could recommend a photographic service if we were interested but there was no obligation !Hmmm , I guess that remains to be seen ,and I ,like you err on the cynical side when services are offered .

We live in Guidford and can easily travel to London. Do you have any suggestions of other agencies we could try? He has already been rejected from Elizabeth Smith and have heard nothing from Starfish. .Ideally a London agency would be our preferred choice.

Strangely when I checked out their Facebook page I noticed a chap I vaguely know from my local area was working for them . I knew he did modelling as I have seen his picture once or twice.Do you think it would it be rude to solicit his opinion about them ? I don't want him to feel I am invading his privacy.

[pg]

I think, if you vaguely know him, I'd make the most of that and ask his opinion! He always has the option not to reply. It's always useful to know what someone else thinks of an agency - even though each person's experience with an agent is likely to differ: what works for one will not necessarily work for another.

I know that £25 isn't much, but I still think that's wrong. (Especially considering the much vaunted "ethical approach" on the website). However, I am well aware that my view is not shared by lots of people, so I'm not expecting you to share it necessarily either! The thing is, it does not cost £25 to upload someone's photographs to a website, so they are making a profit out of this and there is absolutely no guarantee (of course) that any work will be forthcoming. I'm not sure how many they have on their books, but it does look as though it's several hundred, so that's thousands of pounds they have "earned" just for creating a website. Many/most of these people won't get any work (because there are not several hundred jobs available and of course this isn't the only agency touting for work for clients - there are hundreds and hundreds of agencies throughout the country).

In my opinion, an agent should earn money from commission, not from website creation. Of course Fresh Agents is by no means alone in using this business model and £25 is heck of a lot less than some other agents charge. Still think it's wrong though

I don't know much about children's agencies, but if you search round this site you will certainly find some names to try. You could also get hold of the book "Contacts" published by Spotlight and/or "Actors Year Book" which list agents. It's always difficult, recommending agencies, because what works for one doesn't necessarily work for another.

If your son is interested in acting more than modelling then I would recommend trying to find an agent with far fewer clients and one that concentrates on acting rather than extra and modelling work. If he want to try modelling, then perhaps £25 isn't too big a gamble. I don't know much about modelling to be honest, you many get much more helpful advice about that from others on this site.