FAQs

Thank you for taking the time to ‘read-up’ on ourselves as an agency. We appreciate that the children’s modelling agency industry can sometimes be a minefield from an outsider’s perspective and we’re here to answer any questions you may have.

We’re a ‘specialist’ children’s casting and modelling agency as opposed to a small division in a predominantly adult agency. All of our focus is on our amazing children and our passion is seeing them succeed.

Not only do we get a wide variety of amazing jobs for the children on our books but we have faith and passion in helping every single one of them achieve their dreams as we have personally in the TV industry and know first hand the pitfalls! We’re extremely selective about who we take on to ensure we have the very best calibre of children on our books. Casting directors know this.

We have a very positive, holistic view on life and all we do. One of our biggest aims is to fill each child with the confidence and self-belief that ‘there are no limits, just beliefs’ so they’re able and ready to take on whatever challenge comes their way. Whether this is in school, work or the TV industry, very few children will continue at a high level in the industry as adults so we want to prepare them for life too. We personally work with the children at our unique Casting Workshops on a bi-monthly basis to consistently encourage each child providing them valuable, practical advice on how to succeed.

Admission onto our books is via assessment only – for under 3’s please complete an application on our ‘Apply’ page, we’ll be in touch with successful applicants through to the interview stage. For ages 3+ please pre-register on our ‘Apply’ page for a specific Assessment Workshop which would be the step. Our Casting Workshops are either in Manchester or Leeds and can only be attended once you have pre-registered. For children based in London please complete an initial pre-registration form on the same page, we aim to be in touch with successful applicants through to the interview stage within 4 weeks.

Our books are open to all children age 0-21 who are able to travel to Manchester/Leeds/Liverpool or London for castings with very little notice. We aren’t currently accepting children onto the books who are based in Scotland or Northern Ireland. No previous experience is necessary, we’re looking for a range of attributes including natural charisma, acting ability and naturalism. To apply, children must have full support from their parents as it can be a very demanding and last-minute (although rewarding!) industry. Other than that, all children are welcome to apply! We look for much more than a ‘pretty face’!

For ages 3+ the first (and most important!) part of the application process is coming along to a Casting Workshop. Here your child will take part in a (super fun!) workshop, teaching casting techniques, improvisation skills, scripts and confidence building. We’ll also sit down with yourselves to provide you with more details regarding the agency and the industry in general as well a giving you an opportunity to ask any questions you may have. We like to know every parent and child on our books and this is the perfect opportunity to start!

Please send in two/three photos of your baby / toddler that are clear, with no dummy’s in, hats on or face paints on. Please do not send any photos with food on the face or with their eyes closed or looking away. We’ve seen it all(!!), but we’d ideally like to see your child looking exactly as they are in simple clothes, smiling (or not smiling) in a photo on their own.

All the children on our books are ‘not just a pretty face’. We’re looking for children with, personality, charisma and a positive energy. We know what the industry is looking for and require children for all the genres we work in; TV Commercials, Voiceovers, Acting and Modelling. We know which children are likely to be booked, this is a big part of our decision-making process. We only accept children onto our books who we feel we can find work. We’re looking for confidence, cheekiness, the ability to be comfortable in unfamiliar situations, sight read and who are able to take direction (do as they’re told on demand!). An important factor too is parents who are able and willing to travel at last minute (usually next day!) to castings.

To protect children working in the industry, each Local Education Authority (LEA) requires a licence to be applied for each confirmed paid booking. This ensures that the child does not work over the permitted hours and that the conditions are always appropriate. Every child under 16 years old requires a licence for a job. Each LEA currently has different lead times affecting how quickly a licence will be produced (which can affect children in certain areas regarding last minute potential bookings). As an agency, we pre-licence each child, which involves collating several documents, predominantly a school letter giving permission to ‘take time off for TV and modelling work’ – with most LEAs this letter will last six months. Although there are several LEAs which require a school letter for each individual job and this is also the case with certain schools too.

We realise that some children have prior commitments on certain days of the week and so we try to change the day of the week that our monthly workshops fall on as much as possible to make the workshops available for as many children as often as possible.

This is impossible to predict! We do, however, only take on children that we feel we can get work for. Sometimes there will be ‘dry spells’ where, even though we’re regularly submitting for castings, we don’t hear back from the Casting Directors regarding your child. Other times you might be hearing from us a whole lot! It’s unpredictable, but we will be submitting each child on the books for work day in, day out but we will usually only get in touch once we hear back from a director/client.

We have worked with a huge range of companies over the last 10+ years, from Disney and the BBC to Amazon, John Lewis, and Kellogg’s. Our children regularly appear in a variety of commercials, TV dramas, soaps, feature films, radio commercials and modelling campaigns around the UK and the world!

The majority of castings tend to be in Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds (in the North) as well as London. For children based in the North we require you to be able to get to Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds with short notice (usually the next day). There are also lots of castings in London for children based in the south and for those willing to travel who are based in the North.

Full details including what to wear as well as a detailed map with a location of the shoot in Manchester will be emailed to you once you have booked in for a photo session. Please note. that if you use Hotmail or Live for email this information may go into your spam folder.

Payment can vary so much and we also like to say to parents, don’t expect your child to pay for your mortgage. See the money as an added bonus to the amazing opportunities they may experience. If you’re money driven you will only get frustrated as many jobs, particularly for babies may not be particularly lucrative. Payments for modelling shoots can range from £60 to £1,000’s and for TV if featured it can be from approximately £100 to £20,000+. Payment not only depends on the type of job, hours worked but most importantly the usage for the photos, voiceover, video, TV commercial etc.

We always make payments and will forward remittance advice as soon as we receive it from the client. This can and often does take up to 90 days and very occasionally slightly in excess of this.

If accepted, there is a one-off payment of £150 (+ VAT). This is for the initial photo session (of which you’ll be sent approximately six of the best editorial photos for personal use, we’ll then choose a selection for the website). This also covers upload to the website, set-up costs and licence processing. We do not have any hidden, or annual costs.

Primarily, the workshops are fun! For the ‘Assessment Workshops’ our aim is to replicate a real casting situation. We’re all about positivity, encouraging and working with each child so they can be the very best they’re capable of. We cover important casting techniques such as improvisation, script reading as well as taking direction and confidence building, through games, exercises and peer critique. The children will join in the workshop with our fully qualified DBS teacher along with a director(s) of the agency. There is a waiting area at the venue for parents. The children will work in groups and will also be given the opportunity to perform individually. We will also speak to each child individually and work through a script with them on their own. The directors will also sit down with parents to provide more details about Ology Kids Casting, the industry in general and also provides an opportunity to ask any questions.

Yes, we have recently changed the process so everyone who wishes to apply and audition for the agency is required to pre-register so we’re aware that you will be attending the workshop. This makes the process at the workshop much easier so you can focus on your child instead of filling forms in. We will already have all your details.

Following the Casting Workshops or under 3 assessments we’ll be back in touch within two weeks via email whether or not your child has been accepted.

Workshops are led by a fully qualified DBS checked acting teacher and aim to build confidence and teach age appropriate casting techniques for agency members such as script reading through fun activities and games. Each Casting Workshop is themed, teaching specific techniques whilst also providing us with an opportunity to see each child on the books on a regular basis, work with each of them and allowing us to submit them for briefs that they are most suited for. We ask each member of the agency (based in the North) to join us at each Workshop so we can work with them on a regular basis – if three consecutive workshops are missed re-audition for the agency may be required.

For castings, presentation is extremely important, as such, for the Agency/Assessment Workshops we would encourage children to wear clothes that are simple and modern (smart/casual) and that they’re comfortable and confident in.

Nothing specific, no portfolio or CV is required. If there is anything outstanding about your child or previous professional experience please do tell us about this on the pre-registration form. Please do ensure young children have had their nap, snack/dinner and are happy as can be so we can see them in their best light. We hear, ‘she/he’s’ not always like this!! Remember we don’t know! If your child needs glasses to read a script please bring them and clothes that they’re happy to run around in, although there will be no dancing in the audition.

AGENCY – Little Ology (ages 3-5) (5.00pm – 5.45pm) – £10
AGENCY – Junior Ology (ages 6-12) (5.45pm – 7.00pm) – £12
AGENCY – Ology 1321 (ages 13-21) (7.00pm – 8.15pm) – £12

Unfortunately not, we require exclusivity with anyone on our books as it becomes too complicated if a child is represented by more than one agency and it can cause numerous difficulties. This is the usually the case with most larger agencies.

We ask all parents from age 3+ to wait outside the Workshops Studio. We set up the Casting Workshops to closely replicate a real casting, the majority of which the children will go into on their own – even at age 3!! We also find that the children almost always react and perform better without parents in the class. Don’t worry, if your child is upset or unhappy in any way we will call you immediately, their happiness is paramount to us. The assessment process is not meant to be a stressful environment and we do all we can to make the assessment a fun experience.

In both our Leeds and Manchester workshops there is a large space to wait with siblings and get basic refreshments (for an additional payment). We do ask you to stay during the workshops, in case we do need to contact you for any reason. We also ask you to be involved in a talk with us on your child’s assessment workshop. The directors will also sit down with parents to provide more details about Ology Kids Casting, the industry in general and also provides an opportunity to ask any questions. We also ask for you to wait outside the studio door five minutes before the end of the class for the ‘Little Ology’ Workshop (age 3-5).

Yes, every parent must accompany the children wishing to audition. As an agency we like to meet every parent and let you know what’s involved in the industry as well as providing further details regarding ourselves as an agency. We do need to meet the parent(s) rather than friends of the child or a grandparent for an Assessment Workshop.

Please be aware of photographers who insist that you need a modelling portfolio before approaching an agency. These can often be expensive and aren’t required by ourselves.