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Modeling:
Classic Perspective.
By Actor, commercial print and fashion model Bryan
Kent
To read
beyond these opening words you should first suspend your
belief that the world's modeling industry is made up of
only 14-34 year old gorgeous females and the dashing young
men that make them look even better. Secondly, you must
believe that this same world has in it a population-majority
of people thirty-five and older. Whoa, Whaz that you say?
And, these people are in control of more than 75 percent
of the world's assets, money!, Buying Power!!
Oh,
yes I’m talking about Senior Citizens, the Adult Population,
The O - Generation (older). Now I ask you, can you believe
models, men and women ages 35-70, comprise the "classic"
category of commercial, lifestyle and editorial on-camera
talent, and dare we say it, an occasional fashion shoot.
If you
accept this then read on. For this is truth. In fact there
exists hundreds, maybe thousands of individuals over the
age of 35 who make their living posing for/with hotels,
restaurants, consumer products, residential developments,
travel accommodations, cars, food, medicine and variety
of other day to day necessities. And yes, some fashion too!
I know.
I am 50. And at the tender age of 44 I was "discovered"
and entered the modeling industry.... and became the oldest,
fresh face in the business. It was exciting! Certainly more
exciting than what I'd been doing. Driving limo's around
L.A.
I had
just dropped clients at the 9255 Sunset Bldg., looking real
good in my black three-piece limo driver suit. A very pleasant
looking lady approaches and asks if I would like to go on
a two week all expense paid cruise to the Caribbean, and
earn 500 dollars a day to have my picture taken. Oooooooh
yeah, right. In LA you have to ask "what do I have to do
and who do I have to sleep with! "Noh, noh", she says in
this slightly French accent. Her name, Judith Fontaine;
a SAG franchised modeling agent whose client list included
Crystal Cruises. "I have been searching for weeks to book
someone like you" she said, and I never looked back.
Three
days later I was on the pier in Miami Beach being assigned
my outside cabin on the Crystal Symphony, a ship on its
way into the Caribbean through the Panama Canal. Heaven!
There is a heaven! For me it was the First time out of the
country. First time on a cruise. First time in the Caribbean.
First time as a model and first time I earned so much for
doing what comes naturally…having fun. "Just act like your
enjoying the trip. Have fun, be a passenger, and smiiiiiiiiiiiiiiillle!!!",
they told me. I was shocked that people could make a living
doing this. Where had this been all my life? Why now at
44 had I finally fallen into that which I was meant to do?
As it
turns out the "work" is not the hard part. Getting the work
is what's hard to do. For every working model out there,
there is an estimated 75 looking to. When I thought about
it later I realized why my time had come. At 38 I made a
decision to fight against the ravages of time and spent
the last 6 years in the gym and on the track two hours a
day. Sun was also an integral part of my life, and I wore
the tan to prove it. Eating a good diet was a pain, but
I stuck to it no matter where I was. The real challenge
however turns out to be finding the right attitude. For
every different shoot you are hired and every shot therein
you are asked to have a specific attitude. Anyone can smile
(say cheese); the challenge is to display life behind the
eyes, personality behind the teeth, an engaging character
reflecting between the ears. To portray an emotion, an idea.
A feeling, which captures the attention of the viewer, the
reader, the target market audience for the final print campaign.
That is what separates the full timers, the working models,
from the rest.
My immediate
acceptance into a work schedule, I owe all to the efforts
of the booking agents at Fontaine Agency. Don't ever underestimate
the importance of a "mother agency", especially if you're
new. It is a great advantage to position yourself with a
strong, protective agency to nurture you and introduce you
into the right level of casting people, ad agency and photographers,
as well as other agencies in the U.S. and around the world.
The
Right Card ?
Home
Bryan
Kent bkent1@gte.net
Actor, commercial print and fashion model and performing
talent Bryan Kent has been cast in television episodic and
longform dramatic programming, starred in televison commercials
for national network tv and cast in motion pictures. His commercial
print and fashion magazine work has made its way to covers
of national and international magazines, newspapers and billboards.
Visit his website at: http://home1.gte.net/bkent1/index.htm.
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