Barbizon Modeling / Barbizon International review: they are cons... 51

Correction! Do not stop them because of diplomatic immunity

I can't agree or disagree with anyone being a 42 year old male. However Barbizon has had a cart in the shopping mall where I work. They've been interviewing girls for this and said they would fly them free of charge and get them free photo's ect... according to one of the girls working the cart.

I was really caught back with fear when they said they'd fly them free to somewhere. I distinctly got the image of human trafficing. I have feelings that this is a front for someone Turkish or Arab King in the Middle-East attempting to pick some girls for his harem.

They probably dress them up take photos and send them to the Kings the Kings then say which one they want and then they are flown out of the country. They are virtually kidnapped and the local authorities cannot stop them because of diplomatic law. Once the girl is on the plane she's history.

See this link describing what happened to a former Miss USA.

www.sauduction.com/12issue.html

I just made an investment in my child's future and enrolled her in Barbizon. First of all, I would like to say she is beautiful and has the height and body of a runway model, and that is what she wants to be. She doesn't know anything about the modeling industry, how to CORRECTLY walk, how to apply makeup in various ways, how to get over the jitters when doing an interview, and other important factors she may need to be competitive. We decided to take a realistic look at what her future may hold in a modeling career. At the end of her training at Barbizon she will not be a supermodel, she probably will not be modeling in Milan, and she may not even land a big modeling job with a well known company. What she will have is a foundation to start with, confidence to go out and compete for what she wants, and most importantly, some KNOWLEDGE of her chosen career path. Do I think she will eventually become successful? YOU BET! If she is able to go out and make enough money to take care of herself while she is pursuing her college degree (her plan "B" because you always should have a prepared back up plan) and she happens to stumble across her dream, I am happy. One day at a time people, take one day at a time and your dreams can come true (Plan "A" or Plan "B"). To be successful at anything you have to start with the inside of you and work your way outward.

I am on the fence about starting classes at Barbizon. I was all for it and was even willing to pay for classes if that came up for the 2nd call back which they did call back. After the 2nd interveiw I felt like I could be the next big star and that I had a great chance in modeling & acting (due to the scout), but the scout said I had to start right away with the classes because they are not always excepting students and I had to pay the tuition of $1395.00. I was willing to pay like I said before but she told me before I could start 425.00 had to be paid then 65.00 their after for EACH class session until graduation. This is not what I was willing to pay. I'm starting to fell that this just isn't worth it!

If someone knows that an agency is a scam there is nothing wrong with that. You can't criticize people because of an experience that they went through. Do you know how many models nowadays are taken advantage of because some people are just in it for the money? I'm sure you have been through a bad experience and you were mad also. Everyone has the right to express their own opinion, and if you don't agree with it...well that's your own idea on the issue but don't tell people to "get over it" because until you've gone through it you don't know. I'm not trying to give you an attitude, I'm just saying that you need to respect other people's opinions.

i dont understand why 'charles' has to be a 'scout' just because he doesnt agree with you;&+ you dont know him &+ you dont know which barbizon he went to;all of you doggin on barbizon;you need to grow up &+ get over it if you got played.

This is to Charles...Actually, they are a scam and your probably a scout anyway. There is nothing wrong with telling the truth, which is that they are a scam, thank you very much.

"trust me you dont want to deal with these people. Their all FAKE!"-

There is a huge problem in this world and it is people that are so negative, like the both of you. I went to Barbizon myself, in San Francisco, and learned the basics of modeling and acting. I got exactly what I paid for and Im 1000% happy with it. I'm not sure about the other Barbizons, so correct me if I'm wrong, at my audition with them they had a presentation and in it they stated that they do not guarantee work. In fact they emphasized it. They also emphasized that they were training, not representation. Although they did help me find my manager and the two agents followed. Maybe in your presentation they didn't emphasize it but that is a fact. It is general knowledge that there are no guarantees in the entertainment industry. No one is ever guaranteed anything when it comes to modeling and acting no matter who you are. You may be a famous actor but that doesn't mean you are guaranteed to always be successful and to be a good actor. In order to be successful in this world you must learn and practice what you are doing. You can pay people to help you, YES, you can get help for free but at the end of the day it is up to YOU to put yourself out there and be successful. I have been modeling and acting on the side for 6 months now and have made quite a bit of money. Every month I get a residual check form the one commercial I did for about $2, 000 from the first commercial I booked. And I will say this with no regret, that if it wasn't for Barbizon of San Francisco and the loving support they gave me I would not be successful in this industry on my own.

"The woman who was the host told us how she used to model and now she is an actress. She was most likely lying. If she was really an actress she wouldn't still be going to Barbizon to learn about acting jobs. "

From what I know a lot of people that work at Barbizon have modeling and acting backgrounds. That means they have gotten modeling and acting jobs, that does NOT meant they are famous, it just means they have more knowledge of the industry than the average Jane! How can you say she was most likely lying when you don't know. And yes she is probably at Barbizon trying to help other young individuals who want to learn or enter the industry like me. I don't think she was there for training, more like there to train. Does that make sense? Why would Barbizon employ someone who has experience as a chef or a massage therapist? Duh.

"Why don't they have a list of clients on their website?"

Look again they do... Sean Farris and David Archuletta went to Barbizon, David Archuletta was on American Idol when I was enrolled in Barbizon and the staff was always talking about it... seeing someone who came from one of the Schools and is becoming famous. I also know that Lyndsy Fonseca, Carmen Electra, Ryan Phillipe, Katie Holmes, Elijah Wood, Jessica Biel and many other went to Barbizon. Try doing a google search with their names and Barbizon.

"They make you come into there little auditioning to look and judge you. After that they say you have so much potential."

I remember my interview and they did say I had potential, no disagreement there. This is because they believed in me just like they believe in everyone, its called giving someone confidence. It places like Barbizon that change people with low self esteem and stop kids from committing suicide. I'm happy that they helped me with my confidence and I have the ability to say NOW LOOK, I'm living on my own, going to college full time with hopes to be a doctor (and no one will tell me I can't) and working on the side. I have a brand new BMW convertible, a gorgeous girlfriend and more than I could ever want.

So you probably wonder why I wrote this, you probably think that I work for Barbizon but I don't. The reason I wrote this is because Barbizon of San Francisco and the family that runs it (yes it is family owned and ran) and the staff are like my family. I have stayed in contact for years and visit when Im back up there. They have always helped me when possible and I owe it all to them. I heard about some complaints found this on the internet and am passionate about letting people hear the other side. Sorry if other people have different opinions but you should speak for yourself. You had a bad experience, maybe with someone who had money symbols in their eyes and not simply the demeanor of helping people. I know that the principles of Barbizon are to help young individuals pursue something in modeling and acting but that is not just it, its to help with confidence which is the biggest tool in life. There is no way you can go to an audition without believing in yourself. Im disgusted by people thinking that they are guaranteed something. You always hear all the negative and none of the positive. Well here is some of the positive real TRUTH.

I completely agree. Barbizon is a complete scam. First of all, they make you audition in a hotel room and talk about their so called "agency". The woman who was the host told us how she used to model and now she is an actress. She was most likely lying. If she was really an actress she wouldn't still be going to Barbizon to learn about acting jobs. They tell you that people like Sean Faris and David Archuleta went to Barbizon. Yeah...okay. They also show you a cheap DVD that probably is bad quality, most likely because they put a bunch of scenes together and none of the people that they showed on that DVD are people that they worked with I bet. When they first call, they tell you it doesn't cost any money, but when you get their they use their "marketing strategy" so you can pay to go to their school. (The talent scouts may try to look all fancy but in reality they're probably people who couldn't get into the modeling or acting divisonThey probably don't even have an agency division of their school because:
1. Why don't they have a list of clients on their website?
2. Why don't their models have comp cards on their website?
3. Why do they mainly adverstise their school and not the agency division?
Obviously, they're money comes from the school, and they get paid on commission. The more people they scam, the merrier. They try to make it seem like some people no nothing about modeling, when in reality they make a bunch of nonsense terms up to make it seem like you need to go their school. Don't go to these people because they're a huge SCAM! I'm glad I didn't sign a contract with them. This is something that parents and potential models/actors should think about.