Answering a Reader Question #338

Anonymous Wrote:

Hi Dania, i have a question. after you've submitted pics to an agency via email and snail mail ( i do both i want to hit them from both angles) and haven't received a response provided you've waited the right amount of time does it make sense to still go to an open call. I'm really ambitious about this so how long again should i wait until i resubmit pics or attend an open call. waiting is getting hard, i'm on MM but haven't received a response regarding castings or photo shoots. agencies don't want me right now i'm just feeling bummed. granted i have a day job so financially i'm fine but i'm miserable and very unhappy. i just want to be a model (preferably an agency signed model). I just want to make money doing something i love instead of something i have to do it's so miserable so you see i have to follow my dreams i have to make me happy. what should i do because i feel people are not giving me a chance :(

Hi, Anonymous! I'm sorry to hear about the current situation you're in and I definitely feel your frustration. I was in the same situation myself a few years ago, which is why I made the big leap to become self employed so that I could follow my passion for modeling and acting more seriously.

The typical time frame to wait for an agency reply is 4-6 weeks. But it isn't uncommon for it to take up to 8 weeks to hear back. If you don't receive any response after 8 weeks, it's fairly safe to say they aren't interested in you at the moment. I personally wouldn't recommend attending an open casting call if you haven't allowed the maximum amount of time to pass to hear back. However, you are allowed to resubmit after 6 months to 1 year.

It's also important that you're applying to agencies and for MM castings that you meet the requirements for (height, stats, age, etc.). If your look happens to be "overdone" or is too common, that could also play a factor into why you haven't been able to find agency representation or get hired through MM.

I know waiting is difficult but you do more harm to your cause by sending in multiple submissions to an agency and then showing up to their open call. It's like you're stalking them, lol. In their eyes, if you're this "in-your-face" about submitting, you'll probably be the same way with contacting them non-stop about castings, go-sees, etc, which would seriously irritate them. So for now do what you can to keep yourself occupied and allow for the right amount of time to go by. Only then should you go to an open call to see if that will improve your chances if you want to resubmit.

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