In this blog, we will give you handy tips to make your registration successful and increase your chance of a booking. So for everyone who is interested in registering with Chicas Casting Agency, read on!
Let’s start right away with a common misconception – we are a casting agency. Not a modeling agency! There is a distinct difference between the two. A model agency is for professional models and a casting agency is for part-timers and any kind of talent who just think it’s fun (like a hobby!). Also, a casting agency does not work with exclusive contracts and everyone is allegeable. In fact, anyone between the age of zero and a hundred years old could try for casting. The only demand for registration is that you have an outgoing personality and love to be in the spotlight. That’s all there is to it!
Another difference is that we as a casting agency do not search for jobs for talents but a client contacts us with a casting request. We get specifics about what they are looking for and we will select talents who match all or most requirements from our database. Let’s say a client is making a commercial for baby food. In the script, there is a baby, a mother, and a grandfather. We’ll look for a baby, a mother, and a grandfather that also look like they could be a real family. This kind of casting is called ‘Typecasting”.
We’ll cover specific information about the type of casting we do and how to do your registration. But if you want more general information about our agency here on Curacao you can check out our info & FAQ page.
We have 3 different categories. Kids fashion models, semi and professional models & typecasting. Let’s start with the first one!
Kids Fashion Models (age 0 – 14)
We are specialized in booking children for Kids Fashion Shoots. Many brands have come to Curacao to shoot their spring/summer campaigns. Why? Well, it’s always summer on Curacao. And there is a wide range of locations and a great diversity in kids because of the many nationalities living on the island.
Not all kids are suitable for Kids Fashion Shoots. This has a couple of reasons we would like to share with you to prevent disappointment or unrealistic expectations:
Size & age:
Most of the brands make samples in just a couple (let’s say two or three) sizes. Those sizes represent the standard height & age. There are exceptions to the rule, but in our experience, this is almost always the case. Therefore to book a child for a shoot they have to fit in the size that corresponds with the correct age. For fashion photography, the clothing needs to have a perfect fit. It can’t be too tight or too loose otherwise it won’t look good on the final image. It’s all about selling clothes. Kids fashion brands shoot from baby (from 3 months) to EU 164 – that’s age 13/14.
Photogenic:
Your kid needs to be photogenic & talented. Don’t get us wrong. This has absolutely nothing to do with your kid not being beautiful. All kids, no – all people for that matter – are beautiful in their own special way! But being photogenic & talented has everything to do with a certain symmetry that makes the face photographable and has a natural “free” way of posing, moving. And just not everyone is born with the talent or photogenic-gen. This includes me, the writer of this blog. That is why I am a producer – behind the scenes – and not a model in front of the camera 😉
Character:
Children that are overly shy, difficult to handle, or just not into photoshoots are not suitable. The most important thing for us is that kids actually enjoy being on set and in the spotlight. In other words, have the time of their lives. And we can’t stress this enough. You might aspire your kid to be a model but if your child is not loving it, don’t sign up. The kids that do thrive well on a set usually have open, outgoing, sassy and social behavior. You know your kid best!
That all said. Don’t be disappointed if your little prince or princess might not fit the fashion model description. There is always the ‘typecasting’ option – that is for everyone! Register Now
Category 2 – Semi & Professional Models & Actors
We have covered kids fashion models and now we’ve landed at our second category semi- and professional models. For those of you who are looking for model jobs or aspire to be a model, keep reading!
First of all, let us explain the difference between:
A semi professional model/actor is someone who models and/or acts on a regular basis, but does not make a career out of it.
A professional model/actor is someone whose job is (mainly) modeling and/or acting.
Both semi & professional models/actors do have experience. And with experience, we don’t mean private photoshoots at home, a catwalk show at your local mall, or a role in your local theater play. We mean actual modeling or acting experience and in possession of a professional portfolio/book with actual published work.
To be honest the requests for local (semi) professional models or actors are minimal here on Curacao because our international clients usually fly in their own (fashion) models. However, because of the Corona pandemic, more & more clients have asked us for available (semi) professional models residing in Curacao. So we’re definitely looking for semi and professionals who are living or staying in Curacao and are available for potential bookings.
You have little to no experience as a model but you think you have the looks and you want to give it a try?
We’re going to be straightforward with you. The chance of getting booked via our casting agency for a modeling job for international clients is pretty small. They will generally book professionals, or fly someone in. Furthermore, lots of our clients are kids fashion brands. However, if you want to pursue a modeling career, registering with our casting agency is the first step!
If you really want to give it a try we advise you to book a portfolio shoot with a (local) professional photographer. It’s worth the investment. The better your photos, the better your profile and the greater the chance that you will stand out and be booked for a paid casting job. Do your research online how professional fashion model portfolios look like and find a photographer who understands what kind of photos you will need. Also, try to get as much experience by getting local brands and photographers to do (free test) shoots with you. This way you get used to it, know how to move. In this way, you can also try out if modeling suits you.
In the meantime, you can register with us and you can gain some experience with casting jobs. And who knows… Again, we can’t make any promises – but we realize you have to start somewhere. There aren’t that many options on Curacao, so we will do our best for you!
Category 3 – Typecasting
How do you know you are the right person for typecasting in general?
If you have a shy personality or have any kind of stage fright we would not recommend casting for you. For any casting job, it is expected that you are confident in front of a camera. Whether it’s for a photoshoot or a film shoot. You don’t have to be a professional actor or model. However, you have to be able to step into the role you have been cast for. Also, you will have to do that in front of a crew that will be present on set. Nonetheless, a little tension – or maybe even adrenaline – before a job is healthy, so that won’t be a problem as long as you get into your groove and will be able to perform in the end.
What kind of casting jobs can you expect?
Local Talents ‘typecasted’ for the Kooyman K-Paint commercial
For typecasting, it could be literally anything. Well, of course, you can only get casted for roles that fit your description. So it completely depends on what’s coming in and that can vary from playing an extra in a movie play a little role in a commercial or a photoshoot for a resort, or any other local company.
Corendon needed a lot of extras (“figuranten”) for their commercial to shine next to their main characters (professional actors) ‘Cor & Don’. Besides extras, they also booked a couple of local talents for specific roles (“edelfiguranten”).
When you read the blog up to this point you have figured out that casting is something for you and you would like to register and give it a try. Yes! Here are some helpful tips to make your registration successful and increase the chances of a booking. Here we go!
We work with a pretty fancy casting database. And in this database, we can find all your information. When we get a casting request we can do an extended search. So the more accurately you fill in the registration form, the greater the chance your profile will pop up in our search. For example, we get a request for kids with a height between 146 cm and 152 cm (EU clothing size 146/152). We will make a specific search on these measurements. If you have not filled in the correct height, your kid will not pop up in our selection. Our advice is also – very important! – to regularly update your kid(s). Every 6 months is desirable. For adults once a year or every 2 years will do, as long as you have the same appearance (hairdo, size, weight). You can always send (preferably via WhatsApp +5999 6706475) some new photos if your looks has changed drastically.
Now we get to the most important thing… photos! We need 5 to 10 for your casting profile. You can send as many as you like, and also update your photos when you got nice new ones. We are always happy with fresh updates.
What kind of photos should you send in and what kind of photos won’t be accepted…
Let’s start with the Big No-No’s first!
Too much Photoshop and/or filters: The client needs to see you as naturally as possible to decide if your looks meet their needs/wishes. Too much Photoshop and/or filters will not give a realistic look.
Make-up on kids: If you have a look on our website you see that the shoots we do with kids are all very natural looking. Kids look their actual age. Our experience is that kids who have photos with make-up & too much posing as an adult – do not get booked for our kids fashion shoots.
Sunglasses, too far away, too dark: the point of a casting profile is that a client can get a good idea of your looks and info. If your face is not visible because you are too far away, wearing sunglasses, or the photo is too dark – we can’t use the photos.
So what are good portfolio photos?
Don’t worry – for casting, it’s not a necessity to have professional photos. You can make them at home by following the next steps;
Background & styling:
- Find a white or solid (preferably one color) wall. But if you don’t, work with what you have!
- Make sure you have good light. Daylight is the best. Artificial light is ok, as long as it’s bright enough.
- Simple clothing is the best way to go. A white t-shirt or tank top combined with jeans. Shoes are not needed, you can go barefoot.
- Natural make-up is advisable for women. Please don’t overdo it! Kids no make-up!
- If you have long hair, please make photos with down/open hair and with your hair up.
Posing & shots:
Posing on photos is ok as long as it looks natural, not too posy & not too sexy. It should look comfortable. Of course, some poses will enhance the features of your body, so find the poses that work for you and still look relaxed.
Then you should make a couple of different shots;
- Head shots – are very important and you should take a couple where you have different facial expressions. Bright big smiles, smiling with teeth, without teeth, small smile, serious looking. Try different ones. Show that you have lots of expressions!
- Full body length shots – here you can try different poses and you will be on the photo from head to toe. It’s to see your physique.
- 3/4 or medium shots – here your body posture should be with different poses and different facial expressions like in the headshots.
Here are some samples of usable portfolio photos:
We hope that this blog was helpful for you and if you’re ready… let’s get you signed up!
Click here to go to the registration page!
For more information about casting you can also check out our Info & FAQ page.
And don’t forget to check out our portfolio where you can see what we have produced over the years.
