OnSet Talent Agency Unscrupulous charging of fees. Essentially a "portfolio mill" Toronto Ontario

Dear Anonymous et al,

I tend to shy away from involvement in such accusations, however in this case; I must reply to the accusations made against this agency,

First and foremost; I am assuming that "anonymous" did not attempt to make a connection with the agency to determine a corrective action and express their concern to the agent.  This assumption is based on my experience with the agency.  At any time that I have had a concern on set or with anything untoward that may occur on set, I have been able to make a call to the agency and swift and professional resolution has occured on my behalf.

A distinction that I have noted with OnSet is that talent are hand picked for submission based on the casting requirements.  This does not infer favourtism in any way, but professionalism and effort on the part of the agent to determine whom fits the criteria that casting is looking for.  Afterall, what is the point in submitting a blonde tall individual if casting is asking for a brown haired child.

Casting in general has moved towards very specific requirement and are no longer just wanting bodies to fill the scene.  Again, this is driven by casting not by the agent.

In my opinion, I feel that its respectful to talent to submit individuals as per casting requirements versus a mass submission or call out to their roster.  It helps me plan my work, my days and ultimately displays respect for my time.  As talent it is quite disappoting to be submitted for things and hope to be booked and perhaps turn down other opportunities that may fit better.  That is not to say that I do not have agents that do that as well, each agent adheres to their own business processes and opting to be involved with them is the talents decision. Some much larger days are less specific and for that a mass call is appropriate.

In regards to HST charges etc.  This is something completely unsubstansiated and in fact; in order to charge HST for a business such as this is required and to make an accusation that this HST is not being appropriately submitted as per CCRA requlations is grossly unfounded.

I persoanally benefit from the direct deposit option.  a small fee to have funds deposited into my account certainly outweighs the traffic, driving and ultimately my time going to retrieve a cheque from my agent.

Overall, I would like to commend the professionalism, ability to access my agent at anytime (yes, even at 530 am during an emergency) as well as the facetime that I can have with the agency at my request.

OnSet keeps in touch with their talent roster, encouragement when times are slow and keeping us working as much as possible.

April

Dear Anonymous.  I'm not sure where you receive your distorted information from but posting an anymous filing is virtually useless.  After workking wikth ONSet Talent for over two years I have never in this time felt they ripped me off.  To the contrary, this agency has given me some of the best jobs in background work.  If you feel that OnSet Talent has done you a disservice why not go directly to them to resolve your problem.  Hiding behind an anonymous posting really is worthless and insulting to the honest hard working staff at OnSet.

I am the owner of Twins Talent Agency and have been in business for 20 years.  Even though we may at times be in direct competition with each other,  I can unequivocally dispute the comments and accusations filed in this complaint.   Firstly, TTAA is indeed an association for reputable background agencies, of which I'm also a founding member.     Quite simply I can attest to OnSet Talent Agency's strong work ethnic and committment to their talent.    They have an amazing reputation in the industry but unfortunately it seems you can't please everyone, which appears to be the case here.    After reading this report and seeing all of the inaccuracies stated as if they are fact, it is clear that this anonymous individual simply is not well informed as to how things work.   Bottom line, OnSet Talent Agency is a well respected, reputable background agency in Toronto.

OnSet Talent Agency began representing background performers in 2002 and this is the first online complaint we have had to address in the thousands of people we have represented over the years; we appreciate the opportunity to rebut this posting. It is unfortunate that this person chose to post anonymously as we are then unable to resolve any individual issues.  However, we will attempt to address each issue raised in the posting – we apologize in advance for the length but feel it is important to be as thorough as possible.

Despite this person’s claim that we represent too many people, we are actually a smaller, boutique-size agency where all interested talent is individually and personally interviewed – we do not register or sign people up on line and we do not accept everyone that applies. All prospective talent must attend our office for a personal interview where all policies and procedures are reviewed together and given in writing.  Any and all possible fees are clearly posted on our website, as well as in our very straightforward, one page Representation Agreement. All information is put in writing to protect both the talent (individual) and the agency. Once the agreement is reviewed together only then would it be signed by both parties and initialed by the talent/client. All talent are given hard copies of this signed agreement. We are extremely transparent and open (while still respecting client privacy) and happy to answer and resolve any issues that any of our talent may have.

Our nominal registration fee is in line with current industry standards and has not actually increased in over 10 years. This minimal fee is in place with ACTRA Toronto's approval. Additionally, we offer the option, on an individual basis, of deferral so that talent do not have to pay out of pocket and only once they have been able to be booked for a production. We also provide the option to do free photo updates throughout the year. We do not charge for, or require, professional head shots.

If this individual was unsatisfied with our representation in the first year, we are unsure as to why they would have continued being on our roster.  We retain all records of work offered and submitted to production for each individual client. Again, since this person posted anonymously, we are unable to address how much work was actually offered to this person and whether they turned down or declined any bookings or, how often they actually worked on set. Aside from an individual’s work ethic and their own availability, the majority of background (BG) work is based primarily on what they look like and if they fit the scene the casting director is casting for. The final say as to whether we can book a person for a shoot is *always* up to the casting director, not the agency. Again, since this person posted anonymously we cannot speak as to whether they have a look that is generally in line with what the casting directors’ needs may be for a particular shoot or shoots.

We do not retain anyone’s financial information, and therefore cannot and do not auto-bill anyone.  If this person no longer wished to be represented by us, we are unclear as to why they simply didn’t just cancel their contract; all that is required is a simple request or direction in writing. As per their contract, we would have closed their file at any time with no penalty/fee/cost to do so.

The TTAA is the Toronto Talent Agent Association. The TTAA was not founded by any one person or individual. OnSet Talent Agency is simply one of the original (founding) member agencies and our agent currently sits as one of the co-chairs along with one of the other member agencies as well. At this time there are ten reputable background agencies that comprise the TTAA. The TTAA code of conduct, which member agencies have signed, is clearly posted on the website. The TTAA, very simply, is an association for talent agents/agencies only, to stay connected in the industry and maintain best practices within it. It is a resource and informational tool for agents. The actor’s union (ACTRA) is available as a resource for the talent and also meets with TTAA member agencies to further communication and facilitate best practices in the industry.

We, of course, have a registered HST number and HST is collected and remitted in accordance with all federal law as we are required to do.

We have worked very hard over the last 14 years to build and maintain our excellent reputation in this industry. We strive to be professional at all times and hold ourselves to the highest standard of professional behaviour – the same that we expect from any talent that we represent. We hold our talent to extremely high standards and expect them to be on time to each set and at work when they have committed to do so.  We also know that this industry is unlike any other and there are a variety of factors as to why one person would have more opportunities for being booked on a TV show or motion picture, and unfortunately most of those factors are outside of the agency’s control. Due to all of these factors, there are no guarantees in this industry and we certainly can never make any.

Once again, it is unfortunate that this person chose to anonymously post negative comments without, apparently, understanding or knowing all the facts of how things work. If this person will come forward and contact us directly we would be happy to work with them for a reasonable resolution.