Confessions Part 3: A Heavy Book And Long Casting Calls

By Agata Descroix – @agatacruz
An excerpt from her book – Confessions of An Autistic And Sexually Confused International Model

Being a model seems easy. But for me, it’s a whole tricky experience. You are confronted by obstacles:

First, people at castings:
They have NO logic whatsoever! Either they are so nice and sociable and you don’t get the job or they are silent and icy-cold and you book it. My first casting day is like being in Charlie’s Chocolate Factory: it seems all beautiful and exciting, but things are not that pink. I don’t get booked at the first two castings. I don’t know anything about modeling, so I feel like a huge fail! My booker reassures me and tells me that clients need to get to know you before they want to work with you. In Mexico, there is a fashion law: the more jobs you get, the more jobs you will have. I feel a bit better.

Second, you have to learn a new type of vocabulary:
It’s a little annoying, considering the fact that I want to learn artists and paintings names, and not modeling gibberish. But I try my best. Damian shows me the first steps but when I come home, I make a list of everything like a nerdy student. I always make lists. It helps me to visualize things. I open my old computer and I start to write on my diary:

The BOOK:
The book is a very heavy portfolio that never fits into your handbag and is supposed to show your work and your capacities to a client. It’s full of pictures from the jobs you’ve done, so mine is full of nothing.

The COMCARDS:
Do you know business cards? Well, imagine them 10 times bigger than you know, and then, tadaaaa! You have a comcard. It is the trace you leave behind when you do a casting. Pupils leave apples on their teacher’s desk; you leave posters of your face to clients. They always have a pile of comcards on their table and choose the model they want from it!

The MEASUREMENTS:
The first time they asked me my measurements, I said I was 5’10”.
No no no! You have to repeat the whole novel: chest, waist, hips, height, weight and shoe size! It seems to be a main reason to book you or not because the other models are always nagged about their measurements at the agency, however they seem to be all the same. Sometimes, clients might not believe you and stick out a measuring tape from their inside pocket staring at you with an evil “let’s see” look. They don’t reprimand you but they will probably call your agency later to tell them the dirty secret they have discovered.

The CASTINGS:
Yes, yes, everybody knows what is about casting, but has anybody an idea of what is it really? A casting starts with a couple of hours waiting, doing nothing, and then a quick hello to a whole bunch of serious people who ask you always the same questions. You give your book and the whole bunch of serious people goes briefly through it, before taking one of your comcards and hand the book back at you with a tired “thank you! Good bye!” THIS is a casting. I might live in Alice in Wonderland, but I imagined I would make a spiritual connection with the client and have a cup of tea with them, discussing my blossoming career. Definitely too Bali…

The CHART:
When you get booked, you might get a printed sheet that describes the job. Not always, but it happens. Basically, the chart is a little paper that makes you nervous before doing anything. It seems to be made for it. It describes all the people that will be present during the shooting or show, and mention the name of the photographer. If you Google this name, you will feel completely under experienced and intimidated, in front of all the flawless girls you see on the webpage. Then… You become aware of the existence of Photoshop… But that’s way afterward.

The NEW FACE:
Baby inexperienced model. Usually the “New Face” is 15 or 17. In my case, let’s not talk about the age. I feel like an innocent 7 years old girl, asking why earth revolves around the sun, gasping when hearing the answer and running randomly in the city…