John Casablancas Modeling School
To Whom It May Concern:
I have been reading your site for two days now, over
and over again.
My daughter was "scouted" by one of John
Casablanca's scouts, and a few weeks later
an agent called my house.
I have been aware of scams for some time now, but she
came at me with a different approach, or so I thought
until I looked on your site, and saw a post describing
exactly what my children did at this so-called "audition."
I live in the Pacific Northwest, and as evidenced by
the lack of diversity in the media, especially in the
NW, I thought this woman was being serious when she told
me two things.
One, my daughter had that 'bad girl' look that they
were looking for; and, two, my 11-year-old son could
quite possibly really go somewhere.
The only thing that encouraged me to even take my children
to the interview was that the agent told me that if she
thought my kids were ready, they would sign a contract
right there, and she would begin booking them out.
She told me her standard agent fee, which I thought
sounded reasonable, because, as a writer, I know that
a standard agent's fees vary from 10 to 15%.
So, we went through the interview... and... you know
the drill.
At the end my children were very excited, and actually
so was I.
The agent then said that she wanted all of her models
to be runway- and/or TV-ready, because she only sends
out the best.
So, she said, she was confident that she really wanted
my children, and that she had to consult with her other
agents.
Upon returning to the room, she told me they wanted
my kids, but that she highly recommended that they enroll
in the advanced modeling class since she felt that they
didn't need confidence work.
She said the advanced class was tied in with Elite,
and that their scouts came to the final fashion show,
and that many of their models go on to work with Elite.
When I expressed to her that I was very low income,
and told her the story of what I had been through, so
she would understand why I wasn't working, she was very
understanding.
Now, she talked to me about the money, and the classes.
I was encouraged. My children were happy.
Then, after thinking about things, I thought, "Well,
the classes could help them. After all, as she said,
in any trade, you need to take a class to be a lawyer;
you need to take a class to be this or that."
Then she told me she booked out 90% of her clients.
I was very encouraged, especially knowing that I myself
was confident the world was ready for my children.
On the phone, before the interview, she told me that
in no way was she going to try to "sell" me
anything. They wanted my kids.
But she did say she might "suggest" a class
or two. She also said that classes were not required,
however, for my children to be signed.
So I am buying into all of this, get home and start
thinking, because, of course, she gave me several payment
options (including one that she said she wasn't supposed
to offer).
So I talk with my daughter who is 18. Her self-esteem
was boosted so high that day, and I told her that since
they wanted my son as well, that if this is something
she wanted, she was going to have to help me, and get
a job to pay for her tuition.
She was more than excited to do this.
I thought about how I would pay for my son's tuition,
and concluded it was worth my last penny each month if
it could help send him to college, or do something he
wanted to do.
I have been a single mother of three for 20 years now,
and have lived in poverty for most of those years.
Now I was thinking, "Ok, she said 'bad girl look.'
I know she was politely saying, 'We want that new ghetto,
thuggish look, and your kids have it.'"
She told me my son looked like lil Bow Wow (my son doesn't
look like Bow Wow, although people say he does just because
he has long, beautiful braids).
I told her, "Well, thank you." (Laughing as
I think about this.)
Anyway, I knew that I really wanted this for my children,
but I could not afford it.
So a day or two later, I called her, and asked her if
the children could do some photo work, like ads or something
like that since the advanced class she was telling me
about was TV and runway focused.
She told me that she couldn't really do that, that they
needed to take the class. Which on the phone, as I said
earlier, she told me would not be a requirement to be
signed by the agency.
Next she asked me if it was the down payment, that maybe
she could work something out.
Then, in her bouncy voice, she insulted me (although
she probably didn't know how condescending she was),
by saying: "And R. is going back to work soon, too,
isn't she?"
I am R.; I am not a child. I was so angry when she said
that to me especially since I had told her the reason
for my being out of work was due to a major surgery I
had because of a severe assault that I was victim to.
After overlooking her comment, I told her that if they
wanted my children so much, why couldn't they work them?
And if she booked 90% of her clients, I was confident
that the children could make their money, and the classes
would be paid for. (Not to mention the fact that she
would still have her 15%.)
She then told me that it wouldn't work. That they had to
take the classes to be signed on with the agency, which,
of course, was in direct conflict with what she had previously
told me on the phone.
She assured me again that she knew my kids would be
working. That there were movies coming here to Portland,
and that they contacted John Casablancas for their extras.
She told me the kids could use that training.
So she gave me some more time to think about it, and
will be calling me on Tuesday.
She started telling me what the standard payments were
for jobs that models received were, and, yada, yada,
yada.
So I thought, "OK, how about I write her a letter
since she seems to want them so badly?"
I had a proposition: "What about if you let my
children take your class since you have so much confidence
that they will work, and then, when they graduate, and
are working, I will pay you the tuition for giving them
the opportunity to learn those skills."
Now, I know it is going to be fruitless to write this
letter. It isn't about my children's look, and I realize
this now.
I just know that there is a lack of diversity in the
media. I know that my children are absolutely beautiful.
And I know that this world is a little messed up, and
if my children have that 'bad' look, well, let them capitalize
on that because it might get them up and out of poverty
and oppression.
I told this woman: "I know you make money off this,
and I am trusting you are not going to take advantage
of America's poor by selling them a pipe dream you have
no intention on helping them achieve."
She countered: "I don't make money off the classes.
I am an agent, and I get paid when I send my models out."
Well, frankly, I know she is not being completely truthful.
She said she got no commission off the classes. If that
were so, then why has she told me she can't sign the
children without a down payment and contract for payment
for the classes?
I don't know what to do now; I do know that I will be
sending pictures to reputable agencies.
I am, however, extremely disappointed in John Casablancas
for what they have implied, and what it did to my children's
self-esteem that day, and then crashed it the next when
I had to tell them I couldn't afford to send them to
the school.
I know this is something they want to do —both
of my children —or I wouldn't even be encouraging
them. But I am disheartened by the phone conversation
I had with the agent at John Casablancas, especially
because of what she knew.
She knew I didn't have money. She knew I told her I
didn't want her to waste my time. She knew that I lived
on the other side of town and the fuel injectors in my
car are shot. And she knew I was taking a risk even getting
there.
Now I am beyond even knowing what emotion I am feeling
right now.
Any suggestions or comments from you would be very helpful,
and much appreciated.
Thank you,
R.B.
R.,
Thanks for writing and sharing your full story in rich
detail. It is going to help a lot of people. It is important
to see the inner workings of the sales pitch; I don't
think anyone has made this available online at length
until now.
Your story showed the struggle of being a parent who
really wants the best for her children, but really does
not want to be scammed, and all the torque that is involved,
trying to make the best decisions with the information
you have been given.
It is clear you saw right through it and asked the right
questions. A lot of people, unfortunately, neither see
through it, nor ask the right questions.
The conflict of interest for the John Casablancas modeling
school is something you made crystal clear and painfully
obvious.
Generally speaking, conflict of interest is a yellow
flag in the modeling industry. The industry is not policed
very well so whenever a conflict of interest is identified,
it is necessary to step back and check everything.
If you were giving the company the benefit of the doubt
before you noticed a conflict of interest, that has to
change; you cannot keep giving them the benefit of the
doubt.
Further, there has to be a shift in the onus. If initially
you feel the onus is on you to show yourself it is not
a scam, it changes to where the burden is on the modeling
business to prove they are not a scam.
In the case of the John Casablancas modeling school,
they did not prove they are not a scam. In fact, the
woman who called herself an agent was far from convincing
after she lied to you.
Regarding the saleswoman at John Casablancas, you wrote: "She
said, in any trade, you need to take a class to be a
lawyer; you need to take a class to be this or that."
This was a false statement. You were given misleading
information.
Modeling is fundamentally different from other kinds
of work. It is about 95% genes. Maybe more.
It could be easy to get tricked because there are aspects
of the modeling industry which go totally against the
grain of personal experience and common knowledge about
employment and preparation for employment.
The modeling industry is the exact opposite of most
every other industry in a fundamental way: with almost
every job you need to be trained or you will never get
work; with modeling even if you have never been trained
you can get work.
The example you were given or used was law. Obviously
we all know you will never be a lawyer if you don't go
to law school and graduate. There are standards in the
legal industry. It is of course the same for many other
industries, from accounting to engineering, etc., etc.,
and so on and so forth.
You can, however, become a model even if you don't go
to school. There are models who don't have college degrees,
don't have high school diplomas, and in fact haven't
even finished high school. There are 14-year-old fashion
models and other teen models who are not graduates of
either high school or a modeling school.
Another fundamental difference between many other professions
and modeling is what you look like has no bearing on
your job application. Indeed, if you are discriminated
against based on what you look like, the company can
get in trouble. They are not allowed to discriminate.
The whole concept of the John Casablancas Modeling School
gets twisted because the marketing, as you recounted
it, pitches education over looks. They have the cart
before the horse, if you are familiar with the expression.
Your face is your calling card, not a diploma.
Does every agency require advance training? No? Is there
an industry standard? No. Why is that?
If there is any value in education for models at schools
instead of through agencies after they are hired, it
should come after an independent agency with no conflict
of interest has agreed to sign them, not before.
If these schools were so valuable, then wouldn't other
agencies send models to them after they were discovered?
Do they? No? Why not?
I read or heard a rumour that a supermodel said you
don't need to go to modeling school to become a model.
I don't know if the rumour is true, but, at the same
time, I don't know one supermodel who ever went to a
modeling school, and I certainly don't know one who became
a supermodel because she went to a modeling school.
What do modeling schools provide which you cannot learn
in a book, from your mother, from the agency, or on the
job? In other words, much cheaper or totally free.
This runway stuff is unreal. Runway modeling is such
a small fraction of the total modeling work available
in the modeling industry. Indeed it is reserved for a
select few, relatively speaking, including supermodels.
How often are there fashion shows? How many models work
at them? In Portland?
The point being if so few models are ever going to walk
on a runway, why is it made into a central part of the
curriculum at or the presentation after modeling schools?
And if that were not enough, runway modeling is hardly
something which cannot be learned outside a school in
a short time. It is not so complicated, and it's not
so difficult. Put one foot in front of the other, and
you're half way started.
Have you ever heard a model say, "Shucks. I was
a model and they wanted me to be a fashion show model,
you know, on the catwalk, but, uh, I just never figured
out how to do it, so I lost the job. And I never became
a supermodel."
It seems as if catwalking is added to the curriculum
because it pumps the supermodel marketing concept and
helps move the models right along like cattle at hyped-up
events such as modeling conventions or model contests.
It could make the aspiring models feel like supermodels
because they see most supermodels working on a catwalk
at fashion shows. That image is burned into the mind
by the media.
Now, it sounds as if you have already reached a conclusion
about the John Casablancas modeling school, but if you
have not, or you were going to do further research, it
would be necessary to check all their specific claims.
You were told many of their models go on to work with
Elite. Don't take their word on it. It would have to
be confirmed by the main office of Elite in NY, not their
office.
You were also told the agent booked out 90% of her clients.
That success rate claim would also have to be substantiated,
too.
The entire sales scheme as you experienced it looks
very unoriginal.
There's the "I-shouldn't-do-this-but" line
to make you feel special.
There's the "I-m-not-going-to-sell-you-anything" line,
which somehow changes into "well-what-the-heck-maybe-I-will-after-all" correction.
Your plan to contact reputable modeling agencies is
good. They will not have silly prerequisites to signing
and they won't charge a signing fee. There will be a
clear line showing they make no money until your children
get work.
First of all, I would like to thank you for putting
the letter I wrote on your site. It wasn't until after
I wrote it and read it on the web (which was a surprise,
but a nice one), that I realized just how manipulating
the whole experience was for me.
The 'agent' did in fact call me yesterday, and I told
her that I was writing her a letter. When she asked what
it was regarding, I expressed my feelings and my thoughts
about her not being completely honest about her function
as an agent.
I also told her that if she truly was an agent, she
would be willing to work with my children, since I am
aware that a real agent is not going to sign on a client
that will not give them their commission.
Her response told me from where she really gets her
money. She told me that it was POLICY. That she could
not sign my children on unless I signed them up for the
advanced modeling classes!
This was in complete and direct conflict with all she
had told me. Again, I knew this was going to happen after
I read the letters on your site, and wrote my own.
Thanks again for your helpful feedback.
R.B.
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