So you got noticed and your request for a meeting was accepted. How to prepare yourself for this meeting? What should you do, and what you definitely shouldn’t do?
First of all, be sure that the meeting will take place physically face to face in our office (unless you are out of town, or out of the country). You will be surprised how many times we scheduled a meeting, and the potential client never showed up, but 10-15 minutes later we got an email that they are ready and are waiting online… So let’s clear that out – double check with the person who booked your meeting, that the meeting is in person! If you are in the NY or Try-state area, then definitely we want to see you in person. If you are on the West Coast, South, or in a different country, we will definitely schedule a zoom/meet call. You will get a confirmation with a link before a meeting and in most cases, you will get reminders about that meeting.
After our meeting is scheduled, we kindly ask you to confirm it, be on time, and in case an emergency happens, please let us know ASAP!
Being on time, it is very crucial. We schedule meetings during a very short part of our day. So if you are late, there is always a chance that we already have another meeting lined up or the agent has to leave for an out of office meeting or just simply busy with submissions, pitching etc.
What to prepare for a meeting? That is the question that should be asked when you are scheduling a meeting. It will vary from agency to agency, depending if it is legit, commercial or theatrical agency. Also, it depends if you are an established or upcoming actor, if you were recommended by someone from the industry or straight from a school graduation and you were seen at the industry showcase. Generally speaking we want to meet with you and learn about you and your personality. Yes, you always have to have your resume and headshots with you, as well as 1-2 minute monologue of your choice ready (unless you are meeting with a theatrical agent, and they requested a very specific monologue).
Personally, while meeting with a potential new client, I want that person to feel pretty comfortable. I try to learn as much as I can about that person, and I am also ready to answer any questions that person could have for me. That is why it is very important to prepare yourself for that meeting, like we are preparing ourselves for meeting with you by checking your materials. Do the research about the agency, about their clients, their booked jobs; have questions for an agent ready and discuss issues you are curious about. If you already have established some relationship with casting directors, a list of latest auditions, and “known” casting directors is very useful and helpful.
Many times, I got the questions about the size of the agency, our roster, and specific type of clients we represent. Yes, they are very legit questions, but always keep in mind that if we decide to meet with you, it means that we initially are interested in you. And doesn’t really matter if we have similar clients on our roster or not. In our case, we are a boutique agency, so our roster is not that big in the first place. Secondly, each of you is different. You can be the same type, but at the same time, you have different abilities, personalities etc.
I have to admit that I like it when the person I am meeting with is very professional, well read and has a knowledge and understanding of our industry; knows what is going on in our environment, about major problems, so we can discuss various issues. It is very easy now to navigate and get industry news and stories. Deadline News, Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Backstage, IMBD News etc., should be read by you on a daily basis. I am sure that the fracture of the time most of you spend on social media, could be spent on reading the industry news.
Well, at the end of our meeting we already have an idea, if we want to work with that person or not.
If there is an interest from both sides, then we talk about the details of our potential collaboration.
But that will be discussed in the next part!
Cheers