My agent sucks. I hardly get any auditions. I haven’t been out in months! Should I look for a new agent?
Have you ever been there? I know i have! I feel like most actors go through that once they first sign with an agency. They look at an agent as an answer to their prayers and expect a bunch of auditions to just start floating in, right?
Nope. Doesn’t typically happen that way. It takes time for agents to introduce you to casting, build relationships and prove that you are capable, committed and professional.
Through my personal experience as well as talking/coaching other actors, they are typically 3 main reasons WHY your agent is not sending you out or it seems that way.
Your materials (headshots, clips, etc) are not MARKETABLE. Actors Access is the #1 website that agents use (in the states) to submit actors for TV/Film auditions. If you have no media clips on there( or bad quality), no slate shots, only a couple headshots ( cause you wanted to save the money) or in general your marketing tools don’t fit your TYPE and the MARKET, agents will have a really hard time getting you auditions. They might love you and believe in you, but if they don’t have the necessary tools to SELL/PRESENT you to casting, you are not going to get called in. Casting directors don’t have time to talk on the phone with each agent to hear their pitches for actors, casting profiles/your materials is the first step that determines whether they want to see you for a particular role, so HELP your agent.
You didn’t build enough relationships with your representation. How often do you communicate with your agent? Do you know their birthdays/pet names/hobbies? Are you following them on social media? How often do you thank them for their hard work or ask them if they need any help? Do you notify them of your progress ( on-going classes, self-submissions, theater/festival invites ,etc.). You don’t have to bombard them with a bunch of emails, but checking in every once in awhile, giving them an update and not making it about YOU all the time. We tend to get a bit selfish and wrapped up in our own head as actors, so we forget that an agent is part of our team and it’s a team effort. They have their own lives and problems and they also gotta pay bills, so they WANT actors to book. P.S. I’ll do a separate post on building relationships in this industry, cause its truly CRUCIAL!
Your agent may not have an ACCESS to the types of auditions you want. Have you checked your agents IMBD PRO profile? What projects do they book their actors on? What shows and which casting directors are they working with? Does your market have a lot of productions/casting happening? If you are in a primarily commercial dominated market or in a small town, then you have to realize that you won’t be able to get the types of auditions you want, because typically agents only get an access to their local markets and see other bigger opportunities during the pilot season, which is extremely busy and competitive. So CHECK your agent and what they can do for your career BEFORE you even bring them on board. And if they are solid, then look at the first 2 reasons above.
And if you are still unsure why you are not getting any auditions, ask your agent for a submission report! It’s no big deal! Don’t be afraid to ask for it! It should be pretty easy for your agent to send that out to you and you have a FULL right t request it.
This is YOUR career.You are your own BUSINESS. An agent is a part of your team,so make sure your team WORKS for you!
Where is your missing gap? Let me know!
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