If you’re new to the modelling industry, it’s important to learn the job roles and responsibilities of those within the industry and how they can help progress your career. The British Model Alliance is here to help you achieve that.

Design houses, brands and directors employ casting directors to source the most suitable candidates for upcoming jobs and projects. Their job involves interviewing individuals for the role and presenting the shortlist to the director who makes the final decision. 

For those with agency representation, it’s the agent’s job to get in contact with casting directors to find work for their clients. However, it’s also common for models to contact casting directly and send over their portfolios. The British Model Alliance insists that this helps increase your chances of finding work and gaining exposure within the industry. However, it should be noted that all casting directors accept portfolios differently. Some require images to be sent over through email while others request them via post. If you have access to a casting director’s telephone number, the British Model Alliance agrees that giving them a call is worth a try, but they tend to have extremely busy schedules. 

Prior to contacting casting directors, the British Model Alliance highly recommends models conduct thorough research. They are not likely to give the time to someone who sends them generic emails. Take note of their name and the areas of the industry in which they typically cast. Some casting directors are CDG Members. This means that they are part of the Casting Directors’ Guild, a professional organisation of casting directors located in the UK. Here, they work together in recognising a standard of professionalism in the industry to ‘enhance the stature of the profession, provide a free exchange of information and ideas, honour the achievements of members and standardise working practices within the industry’.