Kym here. I have signed with agents and managers in Australia and in Los Angeles, and I have helped a lot of actors do the same.
So here is the method I teach in the Journey masterclass on representation, with the real numbers left in.
Yes and no.
You might be okay without rep for now. And it is better to have no rep than to sign with bad rep just because they are the only ones who said yes.
Bad rep is not neutral. I have seen reps miss phone calls, call something a cold read when the other actresses had five pages of sides three days earlier, and simply never pass an audition on. If your rep does not forward the audition, casting thinks you did not show up.
But going without is extremely limiting. Most professional auditions are not accessible without rep, and you need someone to negotiate your deals.
So pursue rep hard, and set your floor now. My floor is simple: the agent has at least a few working actors on the books.
Agents are not agencies. You are writing to a human being, so treat each agent separately and look each one up.
At a bigger company the newer, hungry agent is often the easier way in, because they still take development clients.
Vet on IMDbPro, not the agency website. Here is what I look at:
Then check their social media. If you think they are a dick, casting will too.
Getting the email address is usually easy. Most are on IMDbPro or the company website. Google the actors on their roster, because their sites often list their rep. Match the company’s naming convention, call and ask, or use a finder site (the class names uplead.com, getemail.io, rocketreach.co and aeroleads.com).
Free masterclass: the reason most actors stop at 10 emails is not the emails. It is what is going on underneath. Watch Clear Your Subconscious Blocks and Thrive, our Journey 3 masterclass, free, permanently.
No. Waiting for a referral is one of the five big mistakes.
A referral is the best way in, and a small proportion of agencies refuse anything without one. But most will read a cold approach, so do both at once.
When you ask for a referral, be direct, clear and pressure free. Do not butter someone up first. A friend once resurfaced after two years suggesting a hike, when what he wanted was a referral. The ask was never the problem, the run up was.
Here is the shape I use:
Hey [name], how are you? I know it’s been ages and I feel weird for asking out of the blue like this, but I’m on a manager hunt and I saw you’re with [agency]. Would you be open to me listing you as a referral on my pitch email to him? I looked at his list and he doesn’t have anyone of my type. No worries at all if not, I know these things can be awkward sometimes. Either way I’d love to catch up.
Check first whether they have booked recently. An actor who has not may not feel great about their rep.
The goal of every step is to get to the next step, not to close the deal. The subject line gets the email opened. The email gets them to click your reel. The reel gets the meeting. The meeting gets you signed.
So: a subject line built on your referral or your point of difference, a body under 300 words, one link to your best asset, two or three web optimised headshots and a PDF resume.
I have written the whole email up separately, with the subject lines and the follow up scripts, in how to email an acting agent.
This is where most actors quit, so here are the real numbers.
In LA it can take 40, 50 or 60 emails before you get a response, depending on your ethnicity and your resume.
When I was looking for a new manager I sent 30 emails, deliberately without referrals, and I had a pretty substantial resume at the time. My tracking showed two opens and one person who watched the reel. That one person signed me.
An LA client of mine sent 300 emails, roughly 200 to managers and 100 to agents, and got repped.
Each email done properly takes 15 or 20 minutes, so 20 agents is six hours or more. Send after lunch on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, because everyone is busy on Mondays and leaving on Fridays.
Then follow up three times, forwarding the original each time, and most responses come off emails two and three. After the third, call.
Keep going until you run out of reps of a decent standard. Not until you have sent 10.
Dress so the focus is on you, not the outfit. Jeans and a plain t-shirt is my default because it lets them picture you in anything. If you are flamboyant, wear that.
Bring a hard copy of your photo and resume so you leave something in their hands.
Let them lead, because you are in their space. They have already scanned your credits, so ask them things as a human being. How did you get into this? Did you start out as an actor? Then ask how the office runs: do you pitch or does your assistant, are you phone people or email people, do you text with clients?
It is fine to take time to think about signing. It is fine to say yes on the spot if you already know. Just do not fake deliberating.
In Australia, commission is 10 percent plus 1 percent GST, and most Australian reps take 5 percent of your US income. Get that 5 percent written in, because some will try to take more.
If they want a term, cap it at two years. Never sign three or four, because then you are trapped. Aim for a three month trial, and where there is a term, try for a clause letting you leave if you have not had a paid audition within a set period.
Understand residuals. You pay commission on residuals for the duration of that job’s contract, even if you move reps later.
Have a lawyer read it if you can, especially with a company that is less than reputable.
Then be a great client. Your rep is your business partner, not your employee. Email them once a month listing the casting directors and filmmakers you have met, because they cannot use a relationship they do not know about.
Want the whole class, plus the community that will read your pitch email before an agent does? Every SAS plan includes all 18 Journey masterclasses and a 7-day free trial. Start your free trial.
Harder than most actors expect, and mostly a numbers problem. In LA it can take 40 to 60 properly personalised emails before one response. Kym sent 30 without referrals and got one signing. A client of hers sent 300 and got repped. Each good email takes 15 to 20 minutes, so budget the time and keep going past the first 10.
Yes, if you have solid materials. You need professional looking headshots, a one page resume and a reel, and with no produced footage the class says cut self tapes together. Lead with training at a recognised school in the subject line, and target newer agents at bigger companies, who still take development clients.
No. A referral is the best way in and a few agencies refuse cold approaches, but most will read a well researched email. Ask friends who are repped by someone on your list, directly and at the start of the conversation, and keep sending cold emails at the same time rather than waiting.
Check their roster on IMDbPro, not their website. Look for clients with about three recent TV or recognisable film credits, and a few clients sitting under 40,000 on the StarMeter in America or under 100,000 in Australia. A roster stuck above 100,000 with old credits is a red flag.
In Australia the class puts standard commission at 10 percent plus 1 percent GST, with most Australian reps taking 5 percent of your US income, so get that figure in writing. You also pay commission on residuals for the length of that job’s contract. Cap any term at two years and ask for a three month trial.
Every SAS plan includes all 18 Journey masterclasses (over 26 hours), including this one, plus a community of 160+ actors, a 7-day free trial on Silver and Gold, and a 60-day refund. Gold members also meet a working film and TV casting director live on Zoom every month.