Dear Fairy Model Mother: What's up With All the Agent Fees?

GQ India March 2013

Hello lovelies! It's your guardian angel here for your monthly dose of advice. I really appreciate all of your emails and I'm doing my best to get around to them. This question comes from a working model who's been thinking about switching representation. She met with an agency I'm familiar with who's interested in signing the beauty. The main booker gave her a contract to consider and upon further examination she said:

"I was reading over it and started thinking, they have alot of financial obligations...like $300 a year for a modeling website, 100 zed cards (which I'm not sure who even uses those anymore), new headshots from test photographers for $250-450! Almost seems kinda scamy...am I crazy??"

You guys already know I hate dealing with contracts. It seems like they are only designed to benefit one party and not the other, but it's a necessary working agreement. In order to get to the bottom of this, I pulled out every modeling contract I have. From my experience, somewhere in every agreement there exists a clause about expenses. One contract of mine states "Model understands that Agency will deduct 20% commissions as well as any expenses and/or reimbursements to the Agency." Another goes into further detail and lays out the deductions including comp card printing, courier charges, website fees, attorney fees, etc.

You would think that all these expenses would be included in the agent's commission for the jobs you book, but it's not. Your reps will argue that in order to properly market you, they need all of this stuff. This may be true. Maintaining your online portfolio and promotional materials takes money. The agency will front these expenses for you knowing they'll get it back somehow. Keep in mind you should never be charged up front for comp cards, test shoots, and the like. These get billed to you later or deducted from your checks. When you receive payment, the accounting department should itemize all of your expenses. And guess what? When you're doing your taxes later, you can write these expenses off.

Is this practice shady? Not really. Wouldn't you rather know exactly what you're paying for instead of getting a surprise later. But if you're feeling like it's risky business, you've got options. You can amend the contract and state that certain expenses must go through your approval beforehand or that you'd rather pay for them yourself. For example: I opted out of getting a portfolio printed and instead I have my book on my iPad, saving probably $200. What you have to remember is that you have control over this situation because in the end it's your money and your career on the line. Best of luck!

As always, if you've got any questions or you need a bit of advice, the Fairy Model Mother hotline is always open.

Dear Fairy Model Mother: How Do I Avoid a $3.3 Million Lawsuit?

Hello lovelies! Happy Friday. The sun is shining. The birds are chirping. It feels like wonderful things are just around the corner. But everything isn't ok for one beautiful model. Just when her future seemed so bright, the gray skies start rolling in. Earlier this week, blonde cutie Constance Jablonski was hit with a $3.3 million bomb from her old agency for breach of contract. Burn baby, burn! Talk about a bad divorce. So, what's the real deal behind the hefty price tag? Let's investigate.
In 2008, a young "virtually unknown" Constance Jablonski signed with Marilyn Model Management. A few years later, her pretty face lands her work for Estee Lauder, Dior and Victoria's Secret. The getting's good, so Constance extends her contract with Marilyn through September 2014.  She's making bank raking in nearly $5 million dollars and Marilyn gets its 20 percent cut. But somewhere down the line the milk went sour, and Constance decided to jump ship and go to DNA Models. Now Marilyn is ticked, and is suing for tons of dough and asking for an injunction banning DNA from representing Constance.

Models switch agencies all the time, so it's no surprise that Constance would do the same. But with her lucrative campaign deals, she's hitting her old agency where it hurts the most. Constance was a big investment that really paid off. So losing her from the roster means losing literally millions. Marilyn Models did the leg work of developing her and getting her name out there, but DNA will reap the benefits.



In response to the lawsuit, Jablonski posted this comment on twitter: “With a New Year comes new beginnings. After my bookers, many of those I began with at Marilyn and my dearest Marilyn Gaultier left the agency this past year, I decided to move on to DNA. I’m very excited with the move and I hope you are too!! Wishing all my friends from Marilyn all the best with their new beginnings. Thank you to all of you followers and fans, for always supporting me!!”

Obviously, Constance Jablonski is doing what she feels is best for her career. I totally understand. But her old agency feels like she's biting the hand that fed her. Marilyn was counting on making money off her for well over another year, so the agency is also suing for future earnings. No wonder I have a contract phobia. So how do these situations get handled? After consulting with a friend and mentor here's what will most likely happen: If Constance has a good lawyer, the parties will settle out of court. The agencies will probably end up splitting the commission for a period of time so that Marilyn's losses are covered. 

We may not all be high earning supermodels, but there's a lesson you can learn from this. Read your contracts carefully. You may not know what the future will hold, but you've still got to prepare for it. Think of your modeling contract as a pre-nuptial agreement. Make sure there's an exit clause that guarantees you won't get screwed.  So you've got to protect your neck and make sure your pretty little butt is covered in case of emergency. Like Biggie said "More money more problems."

Remember dears, if you've got questions I've got answers. Your Fairy Model Mother will waive her wand and sprinkle a little fairy dust on your problems. The hotline is always open. 

Now Represented By:

Hip hip hurray! Mama's got a brand new agent. I am now represented by Pinkerton Model & Talent. About a year ago, a friend mentioned that I should check out the agency. Even though it took a long time, I did my homework and finally decided to switch up my game.

My booker has me testing like crazy in an effort to update my book. So I'm currently on day five of my mad photo shoot spree. It's a lot of hard work, but my portfolio is going to look great! It's kind of fun to be a new face.

Dear Fairy Model Mother: My Agency Is MIA!

Hello lovelies! I received a message via twitter just days ago from a very nervous model named Tahira. She lives in Georgia, but wants to make the move to the Big Apple. Here's what she says:

"Hi Nikia! I was wondering if I could get some modelling advice from you. I signed a contract with this boutique agency in NY that my photographer friend recommended. Although my living arrangements for NY turned wacky they were still keeping in constant contact with me. Setting up test shoots near my location and so forth. Now, it's been almost a month and I have not been able to reach them at all. What should I do?"

Uh oh! Looks like your agents have gone rogue. Fairy Model Mother is on the job.

Can you imagine being in this situation? After months of searching for the right agency, you find one that's totally interested in you. And it's even better that a friend you know and trust referred you. Thinking you're on the right track, you even attempt to relocate yourself for work. Everything seems to be going well, then silence. It's the equivalent of hooking up with a guy, spending days hanging out, and then hearing nothing once you leave his presence. You've just been duped.

Don't feel stupid or anything, because you're not the only one this has happened to. There are a few warning signs that you might have ignored when getting involved with this agency. First of all, does the company have a website? What kind of clients do they work with and what models do they represent? Have you communicated to them by phone or email only? Have you visited the agency office? If these agents have been around for years, there should be a paper trail. Follow it.

When I did my own research on let's call it Agency X, I found very little. But I'd actually heard of it, but not very many good things. According to my sources, Agency X isn't the most reputable. It represents a lot of minority models but doesn't get them good paying jobs. Prepared to do some undercover P.I. work, I tried calling the agency contact number and only got a voicemail greeting. Finally after further investigation, I found that a modeling forum listed the agency as defunct as of late last year. Burn!

Now it's time for you to make your move. If all of a sudden your agents are flaking and not returning your phone calls, maybe you should get out. Look at your original contract for the exit clause. Email them immediately to terminate your agreement. If they still owe you money, pursue payment. Let's just hope they didn't take your money and run. You shouldn't have to do business with an agency that isn't going to keep you in the loop. Don't get hustled. Take you talents elsewhere, baby.

I hope that helps, Tahira. Don't let some bad agency waste your time. As always, if you have any modeling questions, I'm your mama!