News

Glam Scam?

Seattle Youth Complains of Modeling Rip-Off

by Sandeep Kaushik

Or so it seemed.

As 25-year-old Asian American "John" (he's too embarrassed to use his real name) lolled in Green Lake Park, a well-dressed stranger approached and said that John had a great look. The smooth talker was a scout for Options Talent, "the largest model-scouting company in the world," newly operating in Seattle. There was an open call coming up; John should go.

"It was very flattering," John says, so he went. When he arrived, the talent brokers complimented him profusely. His ethnicity was an added bonus: "The Asian look is very hot right now."

At the meeting, they admitted Options wasn't a modeling agency. Still, "They told me they scouted for Elite and Ford [modeling agencies], and dropped other big names," John recalls. All it would take would be $595 (and a $20 monthly "maintenance fee") to add John's photo to their web-based talent file. Under pressure to decide immediately, John caved.

No job offers ensued. Six hundred dollars wiser, John now believes he was scammed. He called Elite and Ford, and both told him they didn't work with Options (a Ford rep told The Stranger, "They've mistakenly used our name for quite some time.").

He's not alone. The "Scam Watch" section of the modelnews.com website prints a slew of angry anti-Options personal stories, all depressingly similar. The Better Business Bureau of Central Florida (Options is headquartered in Orlando) gives Options Talent an unsatisfactory rating, and journalists in several other cities have questioned the company's business practices (see www.bay-image.com/options_talent.htm).

Nonetheless, Katie Ludwig, director of Options' local office, staunchly defends her operation. "We just help people get exposure," she contends. "We never mislead them, never tell them they will become a model." She admits the company takes all applicants, asking, "Just because you're missing your two front teeth, who's to say you can't be an actor?"

But John feels cheated: "It's been a real learning experience for me, and I don't want other people to go through the same thing."

sandeep@thestranger.com