Barbizon Modeling School
To Whom It May Concern:
My husband and I just signed a contract with Barbizon for
$1,895 ($495 deposit).
This is for our daughter to attend their school one
weekend a month for six months. They say this is to get
her ready for work in commercials, acting, and modeling.
Could you please let me know if you have any information
on Barbizon Modeling? I hope we haven't been scammed.
I wish I would have found this website sooner. Please
let me know soon.
Thank you,
I keep finding modeling agencies which try to distance
themselves from modeling schools and prove they are reputable
or legitimate by saying they are not modeling schools.
I read another one saying they do not run modeling schools
yesterday. Here is that quote and several other examples:
Minx Models Modeling Agency: "VMH Models
and Minx Models are not modeling schools and
we do not require that you register in modeling classes
or pay fees to be represented. We earn a commission
on work that you perform through our agency."
Prestige Modeling and Talent: "We are not
a modeling school and we do not offer any
paid modeling classes at our agency."
Actors North West: "We do not charge a fee to talent
for representation or for larger-market agency placement. We
are NOT a modeling school, nor a photography
studio."
VIP Management Model and Talent Agency: "We
are not a modeling school, and do not try to sell training."
Dream International Models: "We are not a modeling school,
but an International placement agency."
AD Modeling Inc.: "We are not a modeling
school and we do not require you to register in any
modeling classes or pay fees to have your
portfolio posted on our site."
Ascension Models: "We are NOT a modeling school.
Most modeling school graduates NEVER become paid working
models."
Why do modeling firms say they are not modeling schools?
Because modeling schools have bad reputations and the
modeling school concept has a bad reputation.
Experts say you should not pay upfront fees. Modeling
schools require upfront fees.
One person observed: "Barbizon is a modeling school
and they profit when you sign up for their classes." So
true. They haven't even done anything and they already
have your money.
You really need to be clear about why you signed up
your daughter for classes. Why did you sign her up?
Most people whose children went to a modeling school
who wrote before you were basically pleased with the
confidence it provided their daughters, etc., but most
of them were basically not pleased with the fact they
never got any work.
Therefore if your only reason for signing up is to get
modeling work, get your money back and look elsewhere.
On the other hand, if your only reason for signing her
up was so she could learn manners, develop confidence,
and become more polished, it may be worth your
money and her time to attend the Barbizon classes.
Joan Scholz, director of the Cleveland office of the
Docherty Agency, which represents models and actors,
said: "You do not need to go to a modeling school,
but they have their advantages. It's a benefit for someone
who needs self-confidence."
Cindy Crawford essentially says the same thing. She
said modeling schools are misnamed because they are finishing
schools.
There are modeling schools which are upfront and clear
about what they are and others which are not, and instead
they try to make it look as if they will be able to get
the aspiring models work.
Some companies say their school is a "modeling
school"; others say theirs is a "finishing
school"; and others still call theirs a "modeling
and finishing school."
The fact is you do not need to attend a modeling school
to get modeling jobs. Cindy Crawford and other supermodels
never attended a modeling school. How could they get
signed with an agency without attending a modeling school?
How could thousands of models get signed without attending
or even graduating from a modeling school?
Simply because most aspiring models have enough self-confidence
to model, the agencies do not require a certificate for
representation, and the agencies teach their models the
little they need to learn after they have been signed.
If your daughter wants to model, find a modeling agency,
not a modeling school. Barbizon is very expensive. Indeed
it could be the most expensive "modeling school." Representation
by a reputable modeling agency, however, will not be
expensive, it will be free; and so will the training.
For more comments about modeling schools from industry
professionals see the link below.
To Whom It May Concern:
I used to consider myself an educated type of consumer;
however, since we have now been ripped off by Barbizon, IMTA,
and most recently Options
Talent, I guess I was wrong.
My teenage daughter wanted to do some modeling (she
is on the tall side, very nicely built, and very pretty),
so we contacted Barbizon.
She was invited to an open audition, and selected to
take part in a series of classes. We were also told that
the $1,700 we were spending would be all we had to pay
Barbizon for life. They said she could return anytime
in the future and take classes of all different types
for no extra cost.
Having been familiar with Barbizon through a relative,
we decided to sign her up with the idea that even if
she never modeled, she would gain self-confidence, which
she needed badly.
The classes were so badly taught that it took my intervention
and phone calls to Toronto, Canada, to get the teacher
changed and add extra classes to match the original schedule
we had been given.
At the end, the models attended a "graduation" which
cost a tremendous amount for us to watch, and we had
to supply all the various outfits she "might" wear.
The graduation was a joke and a disaster; however, our
daughter had learned poise, how to dress, how to properly
use makeup, and gained a lot of confidence.
We were told there would be the opportunity to audition
to be represented by Barbizon's own modeling agency,
ICE, when they set up their local office.
Five months after graduation, they called asking us
to allow her to audition for attendance at the International
Talent and Modeling Association's (IMTA) upcoming convention
in Los Angeles.
We had no reason to suspect that Barbizon seems to run
IMTA, so we were thrilled and surprised when they
selected her.
Along with her acceptance to attend IMTA, they were
signing her up for representation by ICE.
We were told it would cost around $4,000 (airfare and
the hotel were included in this plus special training
from out-of-town persons in the business, and a photo
shoot), but we could get sponsorships to defray
the cost.
We traveled an hour every weekend for two months
and then several times a week during the final weeks
of preparation before the trip.
We had to supply all her clothing, including an evening
gown, which had to be approved beforehand, and money
for food. We also had to pay for comp cards.
We received very little sponsorship money, but I console
myself by the fact that the trip was a once-in-a-lifetime
adventure she never would have had otherwise, and she
was able to see relatives in L.A. she had never met before.
Within two weeks of her return, we were shocked to find
that the Barbizon school at the location she had been
attending was closed down, all employees let go, and
there was no way to contact them.
We paid $25 for a video made on the trip, which we never
received, and were left with a massive amount of comp
cards on which were printed "ICE" which we
couldn't use.
Suffice to say, if I had known then what I know
now, I would have made some very different decisions.
To Whom It May Concern:
I was a student at Barbizon of Olympia (Seattle); they
put the classes in Olympia, because it was easier for
the girls in my class.
Well, I am surely glad that my mom found this site as
well as many others about Barbizon and their scams that
they are running.
Barbizon charged us a down payment of $495 at the beginning
of the classes; the total payment for the classes and
the audition near the end was $1,895.
That's just crazy.
After my audition with two ladies, Dana West and Renee
Eppers, I was called the following Monday and told that
I was picked to go to a convention in L.A.
The price to go is $4,495!
My mom found this site on Tuesday night before we had
to meet them on Wednesday.
So the next morning she told me all about the scam;
needless to say, we didn't go to Seattle to meet with
them; instead, we stopped a payment that was being sent
to them to pay for the classes.
Thanks to your site and others, and, of course my mom
for looking. We saved ourselves from paying $5,000 to
go to L.A. and be taken advantage of even more.
Thanks again,
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