channing L M Photo wrote:
Those of you who use model mayhem know what i’m talking about. Those people that reply to a casting with one word “interested” as opposed to answering basic questions required for any photo shoot. It seems like a waste of time for me to have to then reply and ask these questions, and then wait a day and a half at times, and maybe longer for a response, to then have to respond again to confirm a date to shoot…….IT’S JUST TO MUCH.
I among others in this industry don’t believe in the idea of the “stupid” or “dumbfounded” model who just sits and looks pretty and has to have someone to wipe their ass when done on the toilet. To be honest; to be a good model is freaking hard work. people like to say that modeling is different from acting, and i’m here to correct that. It isn’t very different; we’re asking you to do the same thing, which is to act out a role that doesn’t necessarily match you’re own personality. The simple difference is that acting, in most situations, requires interaction and the capturing of this role in a time based medium, where as photography requires all of that to be in one frame. it is still acting in most senses of the word.
I mean look a modeling shows on TV; look at Americas Next Top Model for goodness sake. There is a clear divide in the show between the models while on a shoot and the models while at home….and the part they really don’t show is that those women are smart as hell. you think they’re just sitting and being beautiful. No they’re studying all of the top model magazines in the country…in the world. you ask them for a certain look, the good ones can tell you what that look entails, and what each body movement tells their viewers. Modeling isn’t just siting there and being some stupid object….and until people entering the fashion/editorial industry know that….until models on model mayhem really know that…and until model mayhem promotes that as their statute of liberation…..that is professionalism….Model Mayhem will always be looked down upon as utterly amateur .
It’s great that your interested in what ever casting call that you reply to, but honestly we already know that. This is one of the reasons why model mayhem has the cheap, amateur reputation in the industry now, because people don’t think about simple things, such as submitting to a casting.
When you go to a live casting, you don’t just go in looking any type of way and say “i’m interested”…….everyone knows that the casting director might put you out. Look at your model mayhem profile…study your images and in comparison study images printed in fashion spreads. think about what about those images look good…….look at how the models are posing, think about the character they are playing.
So Lets get real with the mess, i’m not using model mayhem because I want to be an amateur, i’m using it because I want to expand my portfolio, my name as a photographer, and most importantly my professional skills. And the only way to do that is to hold yourself to a professional standard. A casting call on model mayhem is equivalent to a casting or an interview in real life. Your response is your practice in the game of professionalism.
These are basic questions to answer right off the back when submitting to a casting call
do you have particular dates and times you’re available to shoot
do you have clothes you’re able to bring
do you need example images of what i’m looking for
The simple question to ask yourself, so as to not make a fool of yourself is “what will they want to know from me” because if your responding at all…we already know that you’re interested, what we really want to know is how can you be of help
All this because someone wrote "interested" in your casting call?
REALLY??
Does anyway who actually shows up for your castings say anything about the diaper you must be wearing??
Why would you rant about someone who just made it easier to NOT CAST??
