Child/Baby Model | Imamother

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2008, 1:48 pm

Would you make your child or baby a model?

itsme

Thu, Oct 02 2008, 1:58 pm

after my baby was born I received an offer from some company. go ask how they got my name. but no I didn't want to bring her into "that world".

amother

Thu, Oct 02 2008, 2:11 pm

I actually work in this industry as an agent for children. I am anon because I do not want other things I write judged if any of you think it is a 'past nisht' job for a frum woman. A frum woman recently contacted me about getting her children in the business and this was my reply:
"I have to say I just cannot see a shomer shabbos kid being successful in this business, for two reasons. One is that the thing about this business is people really do not have patience to work around a schedule. We expect our parents to always be available unless they have specifically told they have a vacation or something like that. If we call a parent with a couple auditions and are told the kid cannot make it in a few times we stop calling. The most successful kids in this business are not necessarily the prettiest or most talented, they are generally the kids whose parents can drop anything and get them anywhere, becaue we need to know that we filled the time slots the casting people give us. The other issue is that a scheduled job can change days or times at a moment’s notice and they expect the kid to still be available. Like if we book a kid in a commercial and it’s supposed to shoot Thursday if it rains Thursday they can easily say that they are changing it to Saturday and if we then say the kid is not available they go nuts and won’t want to work with us again, so there is a lot at stake. I know we are not doing brain surgery here and it may seem silly to take it so seriously but we try to impress upon parents that while they may be doing this so their kid has fun, like an after school activity, for us it’s a business and our livelihood and it’s all based on our relationships with our “buyers” so that is our main concern. So, basically, I am really hesitant to bring a shomer shabbos kid to the agency, knowing how rigid it is."

Now, I must add that this woman was asking about getting her child in to film and television, not modeling, and modeling is a bit more flexible than television, but I still think modeling agents would eventually get frustrated with restrictions imposed by a frum child's schedule.
If you are asking about the atmosphere and things like that, I honestly think it's not a bad thing to let a little baby do some modeling if they have no idea what is going on, but once they reach an age when they know they are being rejected I would stop immdediately. I see plenty of 4 year olds asking their mothers "did I get the job?" and it's sad . I see no need for a child to experience that. Also, you should know, the money for child modeling is not great at all, unless you work all the time you are not going to make much. I am happy to answer any questions you might have, if an agent approached you I can definitely tell you if they are legit or not. Rule #1 is not legitimate place will ever require you to lay out money. Real agencies make money on commission when you actually get a job.
Hope that was not too overwhelming!

shininglight

Mon, Oct 06 2008, 4:45 am

I just saw this thread - amother, what an interesting job! I always wondered about the baby and children models and how that whole business worked.

I mostly wonder about child actors, and how they get little kids to "pretend" that they have other parents or siblings and get them to say lines on camera.

How did you get into the agent business? Can you tell me more about what its like and what you do? Smile

amother

Sun, Nov 16 2008, 1:50 pm

Amother I was actually researching this topic for my baby (she is 14 months) and I may be interested. Can you tell me which companys are the best to work for? About how much do you make? I'm not too worried about her doing this now, she has no clue. And I would def stop when she understands more...Thank you

Ruchel

Sun, Nov 16 2008, 1:54 pm

People tell me all the time dd should do this, keyn ayn hore. Still, I dunno...

amother

Mon, Dec 28 2009, 1:53 am

bump

we are thinking of starting our daughter. amother in the business, is there any way I can contact you so I can ask some questions?

life'sgreat

Mon, Dec 28 2009, 1:56 am

amother wrote:

Would you make your child or baby a model?

No. I got more than one offer when my son was a baby, but we declined.

bnm

Mon, Dec 28 2009, 2:04 am

life'sgreat wrote:

amother wrote:

Would you make your child or baby a model?

No. I got more than one offer when my son was a baby, but we declined.

we keep getting approached in malls by a company called "New Faces" but I read online that they are a scam anyway......

Ruchel

Mon, Dec 28 2009, 5:43 am

It's your shomeret shabbes I say don't even try.

the world's best mom

Mon, Dec 28 2009, 7:56 am

We have been told many times that ds's face belongs on a mag. cover. But I would never want him to grow up as "the model baby." I want him to grow up as a Ben Torah who has good looks on the side. I would never try making a model out of him.