SCAMAvantimandt.com Reports & Reviews (3)
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SCAM - Don't waste your time!
When the audition began, I realized it was a group audition with 25-30 other people as well as 2 executive directors of Avanti (Sabrina and Kimberly). Sabrina asked everyone to mute their mics unless directed, and gave us a rundown about the company: they were a company started by former high fashion model Jennifer Ames whose goal was to help aspiring talent get into the industry safely while avoiding "common mistakes", the pitfalls and dangers of the profession (how IRONIC). We were told to have a pen and paper ready, to write down information as they told us. First, when they called on us, we were to announce our name, age, height, city/state of residence, whether we were interested in modeling or acting, whether we had ever been represented, whether said representation was exclusive or non-exclusive, whether we had ever freelanced, how long we had been interested in the industry, and our current occupations. As each of us were called and answered the questions, they encouraged us not to share any other details about ourselves that they didn't ask for. There was one man in the audition who stated he already had exclusive representation, and Sabrina said "okay, please text Kimberly and send her your name and photo. You've automatically passed the audition, enjoy the rest of your night." He left the meeting, and the rest of us continued.
Next, we were given a rundown about how much money models and actors made who were of an amateur caliber, versus those of a professional caliber. Kimberly asked how many of us wanted to become actors, and maybe half the people raised their hands. She then told us how much money professional actors made, citing shows like Friends, emphasizing at the end of the series each actor was making $1 million per episode. She asked a second time how many of us wanted to become actors, and everyone raised their hand. She then went into more detail about various other types of acting work, and modeling work, and we were again called one-by-one to state what type(s) we wanted to pursue. At this point, most people responded "everything!"
Sabrina put into the chat about 5 short commercial-length scripts advertising a company, one of which we were directed to choose and say when prompted. As we were called one-by-one, each of us read our chosen lines in front of everyone, to each one the directors responded "great job!" regardless of how well the line was read. After that, we did the modeling section: stand as far away from the camera as possible, and when Sabrina said "1, 2, 3!" we would strike a pose. She did this 3 times, and we all struck 3 different poses, while Kimberly would point out certain people and praise them. After this, Kimberly and Sabrina told us to have our pen ready again while they told us the "recipe to success" and "qualifications to be professional", which were mainly 2 things: having the IT factor, and having the desire to succeed. Kimberly and Sabrina then asked us, one by one, how we would rate ourselves in the audition, and how badly we desired to succeed on a scale of 1-10. There were a couple of attendees who said 9, and Sabrina and Kimberly would spend a minute insisting them to change their answer to 10 until they would.
After this, we were told to wait in a waiting room again while they would bring us into one-on-one meetings with them to be told whether we passed the audition. I'm not going to lie, I did poorly in my audition, but when they brought me in they told me I had the "IT factor" and made a follow up appointment with me to meet with the executive director the next day! I was excited at this point: they had emphasized they were a safe company, they were highly successful, and had many connections to top agencies.
My meeting with the executive director (Kimberly, again) the next day lasted 40 minutes, and went like this:
1. A conversation with her about my potential, my talent, and my desire, during which she asked me if all decision-makers were present. Being an adult, I told her I was the decision maker, so yes. She told me they had accepted me into Avanti, and would tell me more about my responsibilities moving forward.
2. She shared a presentation on her screen, and told me the rundown: everything that Avanti could provide, how much value and investment they were willing to make on me (tallying it such as $300 for makeup, $1000 for a photoshoot, etc.), and the last slide would contain my "financial responsibility on my part". This threw me off, as I was already aware that any modeling agency that asks you to provide anything financially is not legit. But I wanted to know more, so stayed on the meeting through the presentation, nonetheless I started researching whether there is any way a modeling company that asks you to pay them is legitimate. (Spoiler alert: there is not.)
3. After going through the presentation, while asking me questions along the way ("what was your favorite part of your audition?" "do you have a strong support system?"), the second-to-last slide was about everything Avanti Model and Talent Management was willing to invest in me, totaling $3700 and long-term access to the materials I was given.
Then, the last slide: what I owed them was $2,170 upfront (which was encouraged with a "bonus" given for those choosing this option) or $200 made through monthly installments. "You are investing in your aspirations and career" was their ending line, and then Kimberly asked me if I had any questions. My first question was "Why am I paying?" She unshared her screen, and tried to keep the tone light as she told me that it's the only way they are paid, since they don't take commission from anything we do. I followed up saying I had already done my research, and that I thought modeling agencies are not supposed to make models pay for anything until after their first booking, after which they receive a portion. Kimberly then looked more panicked and concerned, her body language became more tense, and she responded "we are not an agency, we are a modeling and talent management company, so we can get you access to those top exclusive agencies but you have to choose to invest in yourself first." Something smell like scam?
She asked if I had any other questions, and I asked her if the website they used to create their models/actors' profiles and send upcoming opportunities to their models/actors was a website you needed to pay for to access. She said "I think so, yes if I remember correctly there is a monthly or annual plan to use the website -- but since Avanti took it over, we take care of that for you, so it's free for Avanti talent to use." She asked me then if I was ready to take my first steps into the modeling industry with Avanti, and I gave a resounding "no." She asked if it was because of the monetary issue, and I said yes, and she responded by saying "investing in yourself is the first step to succeeding in this industry, and Avanti has a 95% success rate with talent being called back, so if you ever decide you are ready to move forward and invest in yourself, I hope you keep us in mind."
Folks, the first audition took over 1 hour and a half and the second meeting with Kimberly took me 50 minutes. Not including the time spent working around their schedule. Don't let Avanti Model and Talent Management waste precious hours of your life. They use a website called The Casting Depo to connect their models and actors with actual opportunities, and clearly use the money you give them to pay for continued use of the website, which uses a subscription system to allow access to these "opportunities". They phrase this payment as an investment to your future, but you should never be paying for access to opportunities like this. They told the truth about one thing: there are a lot of dangers in the industry. Avanti Model and Talent Management happens to be one of them.
To the team at Avanti, shame on you. Shame on you for marketing yourselves as a safe and reliable place for blossoming talent to go for guidance and leadership. Shame on you for using your knowledge in the field to market credibility while you take hard-earned money from their unsuspecting supporters. There was a 9-year old girl with her mother in the audition with me. She was adorable, a natural talent, and wanted to do "everything!" Avanti, shame on you for telling her that she passed the audition, for getting her little hopes up, and then for telling her parents that they need to pay two thousand dollars to make their little girl's dreams come true. There were other children there, students, unemployed graduates. Shame on you for making them believe the reason they had to give up on their dream was because they could not afford to make it a reality. You are the problem in this industry.
To any aspiring talent reading this, just go for it -- find a friend with a nice camera and ask them to take good headshots and bodyshots, record yourself reading lines, and reach out to agencies directly, or apply for the roles independently if you don't want someone to take a commission. Working your way up is standard, so gain credibility first by taking on background roles or ask a local photographer if they would be interested in expanding their portfolio. It is possible to get scouted by agencies, but you need to reach out. To those of you with a support system, work towards your goals and let yourself lean on them when you receive a rejection. To those of you without a support system, don't let anyone make you feel like it cannot be done.
Scammer's website www.avantimandt.com
Scammer's address 1204 Chessway Dr. Morrisville, NC 27560
Scammer's email [email protected]
Country United States
Type of a scam Employment
Initial means of contact Phone
Watch out for Jennifer Ames
Scammer's website avantimandt.com
Scammer's address CA, USA
Scammer's email [email protected]
Victim Location CA 91364, USA
Type of a scam Online Purchase
During the 1 on 1 interview with Daniella, the "national director" for the so-called company, immediately told me I was accepted into Avanti. Note, I barely did anything but sit on a Zoom call and speak for 30 seconds. Then she walked me through a presentation about what they do to help me get to the next level of me career. It started by her saying how much they invest in their clients, stating $300 for makeup and $500 for headshots, and $1000 for monthly meetings and rehearsals, then things changed. She mentioned I would have to pay $2200 to help pay the rest of the investment or do bi-weekly payments. SCAM. SCAM. SCAM. They are making everyone do this.
No management or talent agency should be asking for upfront fees and trying to sell workshops, classes, or showcase opportunities. These companies are supposed to only take a percentage of 15-20% out of anything that I book from them securing the audition. I feel bad for everyone else that doesn't have any experience because they will think this is right when it's not.