» The price of modelling
Sandra Omo looks at the current trend of expecting models to work for free
Being a model sometimes means doing things for free. Whether it be a photo shoot, runway, commercial or whatever, my definition of free here is: ‘one good turn deserves another’ or you get something in kind in return.
Even here, there comes a point where one has to draw the line between being a professional model and continuously doing free jobs – if not, how on earth are we supposed to earn a living? Boy, we need money to spend and pay bills too, you know. And besides, how does one call something a job or a profession if you cannot earn from it.
“Is it the models who don’t care as long as it’s their face in the picture?”
Now there is another trend – I call it an epidemic – that has crept into the UK modelling industry: doing jobs in return for nothing apart from the perceived promotion one may get from it.
This is so common these days that 80 per cent of the casting calls you see on UK modelling sites are for free jobs which, promotion wise, have nothing to offer.
The sad thing is that models are killing themselves over these jobs. And it’s not just the new and unsigned models, as even models with top agencies do get a lot of calls by their agencies for free jobs.
This leads me to ask these crucial questions: is the UK modelling industry running out of properly paid jobs for her models; or is it becoming saturated with people who just don’t want to pay models because they think they get promotion in return; or worse still, is it the models who just don’t care as long as it’s their face in the picture? I just can’t figure it out right now.
Recently, I had a superb photo shoot, at the prestigious JAG (Julie-Anne Gilburt) gallery in Brighton, for my promotional campaign, publications in a coffee table book and as well as a montage for gossiptv.co.uk. Halfway through we got talking with the team about this no-pay issue and someone mentioned something that got my attention.
The shoot director said there are so many models out there that have no idea why they are models and what they want, let alone a planned career goal, so they throw themselves at any offer, thereby making life difficult for other models.
Organisers begin to think if they can get it for free then why pay for it? True, but can we blame these models since they have no bargaining power to influence organisers’ decisions or intentions? And how can models take a stand against this if there are no rules backing them up?
Organisers begin to think if they can get it for free then why pay for it? True, but can we blame these models since they have no bargaining power to influence organisers’ decisions or intentions? And how can models take a stand against this if there are no rules backing them up?
So it’s a question of knowledge and power, not indecisiveness. And that’s why the fashion industry ought to have firm rules protecting its models, which is in one area it’s badly lacking.
Don’t get me wrong, there are jobs worth doing for free, and freebies are a part of the joy you get from being a model. I have often heard famous models say the best part of their job is getting free stuff. Yeah, that’s fine when the free stuff is the ‘extras’ not the actual pay from your career. We all have fantasy jobs we won’t mind doing for free. I, for example, don’t mind doing a free shoot for Victoria’s Secrets, not because of the freebies but because of the promotion.
But then let’s look at it this way, since Victoria’s Secret is not a charity organisation, and have the money to pay me, why don’t I aim, instead, to do a paid shoot for them, that way I can get the promotion, as well as the fulfilment of being paid for what I do. How about this kind of thinking, models?
