You might not have a meeting with an agent scheduled yet, maybe you’re not even looking for one, but it’s never too early to learn what you need when signing with an agent later in your career. If you already know how to get an agent and do have a meeting already coming up — wonderful; more reason for you to read this and take the advice of what to have with you and what to expect.
After you sign with an agent, they probably won’t request all of this from you right away. However, you must be prepared to get lucky and be sent over into auditions and maybe even booking a few from the get go. It’s always better to be prepared for whenever the luck strikes you.
Headshots. This is of course your responsibility number one; and the headshots must be current. The photograph has to represent the way you look right now and not what you looked like 5 months ago. If you go to an audition, and the casting director doesn’t see what he/she was expecting to see, they will call your agent and complain about you.
Acting CV/Resume. This one is no less important than headshots, and it also must be current, for your own sake. Make sure you update your resume with every single credit you receive — play, film, independent or even student project — anything goes (expect for background work). You’re the only one in charge here.
Material. Whenever you go for an audition, people casting the part will tell you what they’re looking for you to perform. However, it’s always good to have 2-3 at least monologues in your pocket, prepared and memorized to a tee. I would say usually the best choice for such monologues would be one modern dramatic, one modern comedy and one classical for those theatrical auditions. Keep working at them at home every once in a while too.
Passport. This one depend on what stage your career is at the moment. If you’re doing a lot of print, if you’re going for commercials and auditioning for independent films, there is a very big chance that you might need to travel abroad for filming, and not always within the EU. Have all your travel documents, including passport, already prepared so that the only thing you might need is visa.
Online profiles. This also includes your personal websites, if you have one (you better do). Keep all your online casting profiles, Spotlight, CCP, etc. updated and ready for your agent to review if need be. You never know what might happen — the agent might lose your CV in the huge pile of others, and he/she just got a call from a casting director about a part they need filled in. If your agent immediately thinks of you, they might need to glance over your resume if you fit the part — for such occasions, updated profiles/websites with current headshots and CV are necessary.
That should sort you out for your very first meeting with an agent in London. If you have doubt about whether you should bring anything else that you’ve got prepared, like business card with your headshot on it — just take those along. If the agent asks for something, it’s better to have it with you. Now here’s hoping you were reading this article because you do have a meeting with an agent. Break a leg!
