John Robert Powers - Inner Focus Talent, Julie Zazueta Timothy O'Keefe Sandy Maksym Ripped off by Inner Focus - Julie Zazueta took money and ran! FORMER EMPLOYEE HAS PROOF!! Want to file class action lawsuit ASAP to get money back, thousands owed in refunds and unpaid wages Weston, Beverly Hills Florida, California

Modeling schools hold "open calls" for models in cities around the country, usually at a ritzy hotel or shopping mall. Stage moms take their starry-eyed daughters to these calls and are delighted to learn that, yes, Princess can be a model! All she needs is some polish. Enroll her in our school and we'll get her started. Some have age limits, some don't. This one took toddlers! Some simply send out agents to prowl for victims - excuse me, potential students.

Modeling schools as a whole are a ripoff. It is NOT necessary to attend one in order to become a working model. All one needs to do is have some headshots taken with a reputable photographer and start sending them to agencies.

I used to work for the Texas agency that licenses proprietary schools, including modeling schools. They operate legally, but their tactics are shady. Remember that they are operating a SCHOOL, not an AGENCY, so their objective is to get students.

The students they enroll should be a warning for the customers. Look around at your child's classmates: you'll see girls who are beautiful but only five feet tall (waaayyyy too short for modeling) or have obvious physical flaws, such as scars, acne, crooked teeth, even crossed eyes. So why do the schools enroll them? They have to. Otherwise it's discrimination. They must enroll anyone who wants to attend classes and is willing to pay tuition, even though the possibility of their ever working as a model is ludicrous.

Once enrolled, there will be other expenses: headshots, a professional modeling bag, and probably a trip to the International Modeling and Talent Convention, which can run into hundreds of dollars. They wanted a $400 non-refundable deposit for my friend and her daughter, and that's just the DEPOSIT.

John Casablancas Modeling School, for instance, draws students in by promising that each and every graduate will be reviewed for a contract upon graduation. John Casablancas (the actual man) is the owner of the Elite Modeling Agency in New York.

In response to a student complaint, the Texas Education Agency - Proprietary Schools Division (now a part of the Texas Workforce Commission) conducted an investigation and found that of 33,000 graduates in 1995, only 55 students nationwide actually got a contract with Elite.

Don't waste your money on a school or a talent scout who wants money to "train" you. Get some headshots taken and send them to an agent. A reputable agent WILL NOT charge you anything upfront. Going to a school is a waste of time and the odds are (and I'm sorry) that you do NOT have the right physique to be a working model.

Julie's personal phone number in Ft. Lauderdale, FL as listed in www.whitepages.com:
(954) 568-2105

New Inner Focus Talent address found on Southeast Better Business Bureau's website:

1040 Seminole Drive Apt. 1653
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304
(954) 446-6977