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i was looking for an acting job and i came across universal talent in craigslist. they didn't have a number so i had to email them with mine...jim called:one of the agents and he asked if i could show for an interview the same day. i told him i would have to wait for my ride since my husband didn't get off until 2pm. he told me to be there as soon as my ride arrived. my husband and i made it to the place. john gave us an application and asked if we had pictures, we said no..my husband models as well.. then he said well how do you want to take care of it by cash or visa etc..and that it would be 20 dollars so that the agency could take the pics. we paid and jim called us in to his office. he grabbed the camera and took the pics. they were horrible and worthless. i couldn't see why they wanted to take photos of us when we didn't even tell them we were interested. so they got us there. then jim goes on and on about how they get good jobs for their clients and what not. so we're all happy after all his bragging on how good it was gonna be to join. then he says all he needed from us was $1000 for the both of us..for photos and acting classes.. i wanted to scream at the top of my lungs because i barely had enough money to drive 45 mins to the place...then give away $20 more.lol. i was like what happened to the good ole days when people were more legit with this stuff. even if i had the money they would'nt have gotten it..so i try to negotiate and say give me a job and i will pay you when you pay me. of corse it didn't work. then he keeps going "ok give me 400 a piece". i say we don't have it. then he says ok "600 for the both of you". i knew then something had to be wrong . then i say we don't have it AGAIN, jim keeps going i realize then this guy is a pro at being a con. so he says maybe i should do modeling..and that it's going to be better for me . i think he realized we we're really broke and then he said ok leave a $40 deposit to get started on those acting classes. how can you go from $1000 to $40...he wanted to get ANYTHING out of our pockets just as long as it was green. I Don't reccomend anybody to go to these people everything about them erks me. Don't waste your time or hard earned money. at least i didn't waste too much money but there are alot of honest people who did. i wish there was a way to fix this problem because i can imagine how many people they have scammed in counting.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
VIVIANNE WOODS IS ANOTHER SCAM. THEY LIE. TELL YOU THAT YOU HAVE POTENTIAL, AND SUCKER YOU IN TO PAY 100;S OF DOLLARS FOR ACTING CLASSES. ON TOP OF THAT, SEVERAL TIMES A NO SHOW FOR CLASS!
RIP OFF! CONS!
I got an Email from Universal Talents in the Netherlands, and they are asking no money for the service, but 15% from every gig they book for me... Do you think is a scam too?
I was looking for an extra income, since what i make with my job is not enough to support family...
Well, I went there, and filled in an application, after the application was done was time to speak to Jim and the process was absolutely the same as for Britney, bragging about the money these people make, the big commercials and what not, then he started to show me paychecks, and for some reason the newest was dated 2007.
I really cannot say if is a scam or not, but the reasons that made walk away are 1st of all my empty pockets, second there was no professionality in that place, the way people were dressed, the way they were interviewing.. Nothing made me think it was a serious company.
This joker blitzes craigslist with ad like this:
TELEVISION SHOW EXTRAS NEEDED ! (NJ/NYC/PA)
BACKGROUND TALENT NEEDED FOR A TELEVISION SERIES, MUST HAVE UPSCALE ATTIRE AND BE OVER 18 YEARS OF AGE, FOR AN INTERVIEW LEAVE YOUR NAME AND CONTACT INFO. EXPERIENCE NOT REQUIRED
and then expects you to "learn about the film industry" from him and his goons who try to get you to buy horrible headshots and acting classes. this dope has no idea there's actually a community of working background talent who
might know hucksters like this are ripped apart by the lawyers of legitimate agencies. he also didn't know my brother works for the IRS and apart from moving to a new country his life is just about to get real real.
Universal Talent in Wayne, NJ is a stepping stone for beginning actors. Think of the agency as a college; what you put into it is what you get out of it. I knew nothing about the acting business until I read their ad in the newspaper. I did do some small theatre and I wanted to make money with my acting. Within the last two years I have done numerous jobs for Universal and continue to get jobs. No one guarantees that you are going to make it big. It takes hard work, persistence, dedication, research and sacrifice. Once you get on the set you can network with people who will give you advice on how to improve your chances in the entertainment business. From my experience I have been to places in the past that wanted $3, 000 to $10, 000 for head shots and acting classes with no guarantee of getting jobs. My partner Steve and I have not only met a lot of people on the set but I also almost got a speaking part in both a movie with Queen Latifa and in 30 Rock. Most of the people who walk into the agency think they are going to become a big star over night, but it does not work that way. You have to be persistent, except rejection and perservere, unless you have an uncle in the business. Think of all the people that tried out for American Idol and have stormed out on Simon, Randy and Paula because of rejection. The same holds true for Universal Talent. Once on the set you have to work sometimes 10 or more hours but just that by itself goes to show exactly how hard it is to be in the business. Look at it this way; you go into Universal Talent to learn about the entertainment business. Accept it for what it is. If you wish to contact me or Steve visit www.chrisandsteveenterprod.weebly.com or email us at casactor@aol.com and filmguy21@gmail.com
Hello, my name is Cookie King and I worked at Universal Talent Agency. Just wanted to say that you are right, it is a doorway to getting into the business. I haven't worked there in over 10 years but I am still trying to get a job in the entertainment Industry. I made a lot of money with them.(Glenn) took a liking to me! I now live in Las Vegas and have been in a show with Tiffany Haddish.
I would love to follow you on what ever Social media you have.
My email address is classyactresscookie@yahoo.com.
Yes, you do need pics and acting classes, but the pics from Universal Talent are horrible and the acting instructor actually states that the so-called acting classes are not acting classes, just time for people to get used to reading from a script, which has been copied so many times it's virtually unreadable. He said the acting classes are on Sundays in Manhattan and cost extra. complete rip-off
ALL LIES... PEOPLE DO NOT REALIZE THAT U NEED PICS AND CLASSES, IF U WANT TO BE AN ACTOR! da!
ALL LIES!