Today I wanted to blog about some questions that people have been asking me about "terminology" used in modeling & acting. Here is a long list...and there's even more terms if we include INTERNET TERMINOLOGY in modeling (maybe another day...), but all models and actors should know these basic, helpful terms.
Here are just some of the many industry terms with definitions used by model & talent management companies, casting directors, actors, models and many others in the acting and modeling industry.
AEA: Actor's Equity, union for stage and legit
ADVERTISING AGENCY: Creates advertising campaigns for clients, selects models
AFTRA: American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, union for all TV performers
AGENT, AGENCY: Third party negotiator, receives percentage fee of bookings; could be an individual person or a company
ART DIRECTOR: Artist who creates layout for ads, illustrates model's poses
BACKDROP: Background used in a photographer's studio
BLOCKING: The actual physical movements by actors in any scene
BLOW UP: Enlargement photo from a negative or slide
BOOK (verb): To secure an assignment
BOOK (noun): Portfolio of pictures and tear sheets
BOOKER: Person at agency who sets appointments for models
BOOKING: Specific job assignment
BOOK OUT: When you tell your agency that you are unavailable to work for certain day(s), for example, a vacation or another job
BREAKDOWN SERVICE: A professional listing available only to agencies that lists movies, film, TV, and stage projects with what types of actors are being cast
BUYER: Retail store employee who purchases clothing from the manufacturer; models show the line of clothing to store buyers
BUYOUT: Advance payment for future use of a print ad or a commercial for a specific period of time
CALL: Appointment
CALL BACK: Second interview after go∫see/audition which means they are narrowing down the selection and they are considering you
CALL TIME: Actual time you are due on set
CASTING: Choosing models/actors for a specific job
CASTING DIRECTOR: Selects suitable models to represent the comp or story board
CANCELLATION: 24 hour notice before booking is to begin or money is due agency and talent
CATALOG MODELING: Posing for mail order items for major retailers
CATTLE CALL: Several agencies send many models of the same general type to a casting session
CLIENT: Company who hires the ad agency, pays the model's fee
COLD READING: A script that you are reading for the first time in front of the client, without time to memorize the lines
COLLECTION: Group of coordinated clothes being shown by a designer
COMMENTARY: Script used to describe clothes for a fashion show
COMMERCIAL: Promotional advertisement on TV, radio or other media
COMMISSION: A percentage of model's fee required as payment to agency
COMPOSITE CARD, COMP CARD, CARD, ZED CARD: Card with 3 to 5 photos of model including their height, eye and hair color, and size information to promote and distribute to prospective clients to show what model looks like.
CONTACT SHEET: Proofs of black and white film used to determine best shots
COPY: Written words to be spoken on a commercial
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Ad agency employee who determines the model type
DEMONSTRATOR: Model who shows use of product at a trade show or store
DESIGNER: Person who creates the idea for a garment
DRESSER: Helps models dress backstage for fashion shows
EXTRA: Acting job where the actor has no speaking lines, but stands in the background and adds to the atmosphere of a scene
FADS: An overdone fashion; passing craze
FASHION COORDINATOR: Puts fashion show outfits together in retail stores
FASHION TRENDS: Gradual changes in fashion styles
FEES: Amount of money per hour
FIT MODELING: Modeling the original sample garment to test for sizing. Clients use a model whose measurements match the sample size exactly
FITTING: Trying on clothes to determine fit and style...usually before a fashion show
FLIPPER: False teeth used for young children to temporarily fill in for lost teeth
FORMAL FASHION SHOW, RUNWAY SHOW: Invited audience, stage, music; models walk down runway to show designer clothing
FREELANCE: Modeling for many clients without agency representation
FULL LENGTH SHOT: Head to toe photograph
GO-SEE: a job interview, model meets a client and shows portfolio
HAIR STYLIST: works on hair changes
HEADSHOT: 8 x 10 size photo of head and shoulders
HEADSHEET: agency sheet, poster, or book of models they represent that goes to prospective clients
HIGH FASHION: extreme, chic, sophisticated model type
HOLD: when the agency puts you "on hold" for a job, it means the client is seriously considering you and wants you to keep the time available for them first (if anything else comes up for that time, you must notify the agency before accepting another job)
ILLUSTRATION/Artist's MODEL: poses for artists
INDUSTRIAL: non broadcast production, often educational or sales films tapes
INFORMAL FASHION SHOW: in stores or restaurants, walk around, no runway
JUNIOR MODEL: youthful type, animated
LINES: script, words
LINE UP: position of model and garment in a fashion show
LOCATION: assignment site outside the studio
LOUPE: small magnifying glass to see slides and contact sheet images eight times larger
MAKEUP ARTIST: applies and changes makeup for photo sessions
MARKET, JOB MARKET: any location where there is a lot of work
MARKET WEEK: 4 - 6 times per year when seasonal clothing lines are shown to buyers
MODEL BAG: a large tote in which you carry all your makeup and working essentials
MODEL RELEASE: contract in which the model gives permission to use the photo as the client specifies
MODEL AGENCY: represents model for employment and receives a percentage of the bookings
MONOLOGUE: a scene performed by one person for a client, that reflects a particular mood and demonstrates your acting talent
MOOD: the feeling a model projects to suit the specific assignment
OPEN CALL: casting when the client sees all models suitable for the type requested
PORTFOLIO: select photos in a vinyl or leather casebook which show the model at his/her photogenic best and samples of their work (tear sheets)
PRINCIPAL: main performer in the foreground
PRINT: a photograph printed in newspaper or magazine form
PRINTWORK: photography taken for catalog and mail order, books, brochures, ads for magazines or newspapers, magazine covers, commercial photography for household products, business products and services, glamour products
PRODUCER: person responsible for the day-to-day decision-making on a production
PRODUCT CONFLICT: representing competitive products...this is to be avoided
PRODUCTION COMPANY: produces video for viewing
PROMOTION: publicity to advance a product, service or person
PROOF: intermediate stage of photo development from which you can chose best poses
PUBLIC RELATIONS: creating an image of a product or service in the eyes of the public
RATES: fees charged by the model
RELEASE: same as a MODEL RELEASE
RESIDUALS: additional money paid when a piece runs in repeat, rates dictated by the unions
ROUNDS: calling on prospective clients for photography and television
RUNWAY: a narrow raised platform on which the model shows the clothing
SAG: Screen Actors Guild, union for TV and film performers
SAMPLE: piece of clothing from a line, one of a kind
SCALE WAGE: minimum wage set by the unions
SCOUT: to look for prospective models from other, smaller agencies, other locations, or even in the mall or while on the beaches; finding model potential in a crowd
SET: arrangement of props and furniture in a TV or photo studio
SHOOT: photo session
SHOWROOM WORK: manufacturer's showcase of a clothing line to buyers using live models when the seasonal clothing designs are being shown
SIGN-IN SHEET: on cattle calls, lists the order in which each model arrived to audition
SLATE: to state your name on camera before your commercial audition
SPEC SHOT: photographer's idea of a comp which he/she hopes to sell to the client
SPOKESPERSON: model chosen to explain the features of a product/service
STAGE PARENT: an adult who pushes and watches too closely over a child performer, gets in the way of the shoot
STATS: statistical information of a model, including measurements, size, height, etc.
STOCK PHOTOGRAPHER: one whose work is not for a specific client or job, but whose photos get listed in a general catalog by number for any client to select (for example... a photo of a woman holding a briefcase or of a male model wearing a business suit)
STORYBOARD: artwork that shows each scene of a commercial
STROBE: light unit used by a photographer
STYLIST: coordinates the fashions and accessories, checks fit of clothing, visual scene
TEARSHEET: copy of a print ad that the model keeps in the portfolio as proof of work
TELEPROMPTER: TV-like screen that displays the cue card words
TESTIMONIAL: celebrity declaration to the value of a product/service; improvisational endorsement of a product or service that the actor has officially tested, used and approved
TEST SHOTS, TEST PHOTOGRAPHY: free or low cost photos used to build a beginning portfolio
TRADES, TRADE PAPERS: trade publications such as Variety, Backstage, NY Casting, Actor's Resource Network, Ross Reports, Drama-Logue, Billboard, Hollywood Reporter
TRADE SHOWS: industry promotional display of products/services usually in a hotel or convention center
TRANSPARENCIES: the slide forms of a photograph
TRUNK SHOW: informal modeling of one specific designer line, usually in a store or small boutique
USAGE: additional fees for higher exposure, like a billboard or national use
U-5, UNDER-5: in AFTRA contracts, a speaking role having 5 lines or less
VOICEOVER: background voices for radio or video recorded separately in a recording studio and dubbed onto visual
VOUCHER: three piece form with a model release on which client acknowledges hours worked by the model, agency copy used to bill and get paid
WEATHER PERMIT: a location job that is dependent on fair weather, may be canceled the day before or that morning
1/2 SHOTS: photo from waist to head
3/4 SHOTS: photo from head to mid thigh
INDUSTRY CRUSADERS! A.K.A. Models is Creating Alliances Within the Modeling Industry that Share, Educate, and Promote the Best Parts of the Industry while Striving to Make the Bad Parts a Little Better...YES, IT'S POSSIBLE. A Bit Controversial, but I'm not here as a model to post pictures of myself. I'm here as an educator and sometimes an advocate to help you educate yourself!
