KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The lights, the cameras, the couture.
It’s the dream of most every aspiring model to be surrounded by all this with a professional photographer shouting out cues.These can be the perks of a career in modeling.
But an NBC Action News Investigation exposed a much darker side to the bright lights of modeling.
We discovered these days,
it may be easy to find modeling gigs for almost any aspiring model. But many of those gigs can be littered with red flags.
Help Wanted
Craigslist has quickly become “the place” to surf if you need everything from a used washer and dryer to a dining room set, even a new job.
It’s become the online classified ads site of the future.
For anyone hoping to find a job that will make them the next top model, it may be tempting to log on and send a portfolio picture off to the many listings offering work.
There’s the ad titled “High Quality Modeling – Female Needed” where the poster is looking for someone with a good attitude who doesn’t mind modeling sexy or semi nude. Others advertise “Modeling Audition” and “Female Models for Website”. The titles may sound tempting, but the wording of the ad can be vague.
Experts warn those who answer modeling ads on Craigslist need to be careful, especially in states like Kansas and Missouri that have little to no government oversight of the modeling industry.
“As a general rule, I would say don’t count on the Internet to get yourself started”, explains Heather Laird, the owner of Wright/Laird Casting of Kansas City.
Laird has been casting models and actors in commercials and movies for nearly two decades.
She has a warning for would-be models.
“Anything you see on the internet… make sure you go into it with eyes wide open, and if anything doesn’t feel right, then go away from it.”
Red Flags
The NBC Action News Investigators went undercover and answered some of those Craigslist modeling ads to find out what the poster really wants to photograph.
With the help of our prospective model, we took pictures of her and emailed them to several ads we found on Craigslist. In no time, our model received responses that experts say should raise some red flags.
The ad looking for female models for a calendar asked to see pictures of our model wearing only a bikini.
“Front, side, back, and chest views are helpful,” the person behind the email stated.
Another ad looking for sexy female models wrote back and asked to see our model photographed only in a “sports bra and shorts or bra and underwear.” That is a big red flag according to Heather Laird.
“Right out of the gate, my response is no, that’s not appropriate.”
Laird points out that it’s not uncommon for top models to be photographed wearing very little clothing. However, professionals would not request those kinds of photos.
“A legitimate agency is going to say here is what we’re doing, come see us,” Laird explains. “Asking somebody over the Internet to send in lingerie shots, that’s a huge red flag.”
But those requests may seem tame compared to others our model received.
In the ad “Model Wanted for Paid Shoot”, a photographer offered to pay our model to pose for a private collector. The email stated the collector liked our model’s looks. So, the photographer went on to say he wanted to photograph our model in a series of shots taking off her clothes then “pleasure herself.” The model would be paid $200.
| Questions to ask when considering a modeling agent |
| What costs are involved for me to get started? |
| What type of jobs do you get your clients? |
| Can you provide references? |
| Do you get your clients jobs only for print or commercials or both? |
| Once I get a job, what percentage do you the agent receive? |
After responding to another ad for a model, we received a misspelled and poorly worded email from a man who wrote:
"I'm a part time photographer and have been doing the modeling www. web sites for a couple years now..”
He goes on to offer to shoot our model for free and post her pictures on his Web site in different poses including implied topless. Experts we spoke to say a legitimate talent agency does not work that way. They do not ask someone to take off their clothes in an email.
When we spoke to the photographer, he claimed to be new in the business and offering to help prospective models.
“We don’t require girls to do any of that... they don’t even have to do bikini if they don’t want to. But we are legitimate,” the man said.
