ADVERTISING AGENCY – creates advertising campaigns for clients, selects models.
AFTRA – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, union for all TV performers.
AGENT, AGENCY – third party negotiator, receives percentage fee of bookings; could be an individual person or a company.
ART DIRECTOR – artist who creates layout for ads, illustrates model’s poses.
BACKDROP – background used in a photographer’s studio.
BLOCKING – the actual physical movements by actors in any scene.
BLOW-UP – enlargement photo from a negative or slide.
BOOK – see PORTFOLIO; BOOK (verb) – to secure a job.
BOOKER – person at agency who sets appointments for models.
BOOKING – specific job assignment.
BOOK OUT – when you tell your agency that you are unavailable to work for certain day(s), for example, a vacation or another job.
BREAKDOWN SERVICE – a professional listing available only to agencies that lists movies, film, TV, and stage projects with what types of actors are being cast.
BUYER – retail store employee who purchases clothing from the manufacturer; models show the line of clothing to store buyers.
BUYOUT – advance payment for future use of a print ad or a commercial for a specific period of time
CALL – appointment.
CALL-BACK – second interview after go and see/audition which means they are narrowing down the selection and they are considering you.
CALL TIME – actual time you are due on set.
CASTING – choosing models/actors for a specific job.
CASTING DIRECTOR – selects suitable models to represent the comp or storyboard.
CANCELLATION – 24 hour notice before booking is to begin or money is due agency and talent.
CATALOG MODELING – posing for mail order items for major retailers.
CATTLE CALL – several agencies send many models of the same general type to a casting session.
CLIENT – company who hires the ad agency, pays the model’s fee.
COLD READING – a script that you are reading for the first time in front of the client, without time to memorize the lines.
COLLECTION – group of coordinated clothes being shown by a designer.
COMMENTARY – script used to describe clothes for a fashion show.
COMMERCIAL – promotional advertisement on TV, radio or other media.
COMMISSION – a percentage of model’s fee required as payment to agency.
COMPOSITE CARD, COMP CARD, CARD – card with 3-5 photos of model and their height, eye and hair color and size information to promote and distribute to prospective clients.
CONTACT SHEET – proofs of black and white film used to determine best shots.
COPY – written words to be spoken on a commercial.
CREATIVE DIRECTOR – ad agency employee who determines the model type.
DEMONSTRATOR – model who shows use of product at a trade show or store.
DESIGNER – creator of the fashion collections.
EXTRA – acting job where the actor has no speaking lines, but stands in the background and adds to the atmosphere of a scene.
FASHION COORDINATOR – puts fashion show outfits together in retail stores.
FASHION TRENDS – gradual changes in fashion styles.
FIT MODELING – modeling the original sample garment to test for sizing, clients chose a model whose measurements match the sample size exactly.
FITTING – trying on clothes to determine fit and style, usually before a fashion show.
FLIPPER – false teeth used for young children to temporarily fill in for lost teeth.
FORMAL FASHION SHOW, RUNWAY SHOW – invited audience, stage, music; models walk down runway to show designer clothing.
FREELANCE – modeling for clients without agency representation.
FULL-LENGTH SHOT – head to toe photograph.
GO&SEE – job interview, model meets a client and shows portfolio.
HAIR STYLIST – works on hair changes.
HEADSHOT – photo of head and shoulders.
HEADSHEET – agency sheet, poster, or book of models they represent that goes to prospective clients
HIGH FASHION – extreme, chic, sophisticated model type.
HOLD – when the agency puts you “on hold” for a job, it means the client is seriously considering you and wants you to keep the time available for them first.
ILLUSTRATION MODEL – poses for artists.
INDUSTRIAL – non-broadcast production, often educational or sales films & tapes.
INFORMAL FASHION SHOW – in stores or restaurants, walk around, no runway.
JUNIOR MODEL – youthful type.
LINES -script, words.
LINE-UP – position of model and garment in a fashion show.
LOCATION -assignment site outside the studio.
LOUPE -small magnifying glass to see slides and contact sheet images eight times larger.
MAKEUP ARTIST – applies and changes makeup for photo sessions.
MARKET, JOB MARKET – any location where there is a lot of work.
MARKET WEEK – 4-6 times per year when seasonal collections are shown to buyers.
MODEL BAG – a large tote in which you carry all your makeup and working essentials.
MODEL RELEASE – contract in which the model gives permission to use the photo as the client specifies.
MODEL AGENCY – represents model for employment and receives a percentage of the bookings.
MONOLOGUE – a scene performed by one person for a client, that reflects a particular mood and demonstrates your acting talent.
MOOD – the feeling a model projects to suit the specific assignment.
OPEN CALL – casting when the client sees all models suitable for the type requested.
PORTFOLIO – main promotional tool for models – select photos in a vinyl or leather casebook which show the model at his/her photogenic best and samples of their work (tearsheets).
PRINCIPAL – main performer in the foreground.
PRINT – a photograph printed in newspaper or magazine form.
PRINTWORK – photography taken for catalog and mail order, books, brochures, ads for magazines or newspapers, magazine covers, commercial photography for household products, business products and services, glamour products.
PRODUCER – person responsible for the day to day decision making on a production
PROMOTION – publicity to advance a product, service or person.
PROOF – intermediate stage of photo development from which you can chose best pictures.
PUBLIC RELATIONS – creating an image of a product or service in the eyes of the public, mainly through newspaper articles.
RATES – fees charged by the model.
RESIDUALS – additional money paid when a piece runs in repeat, rates dictated by the unions.
ROUNDS -calling on prospective clients for photography and television.
RUNWAY -a narrow raised platform on which the model shows the clothing.
SAMPLE – piece of clothing from a line, one?of?a?kind.
SCALE WAGE -minimum wage set by the unions.
SCOUT – person looking for prospective models.
SET – arrangement of props and furniture in a TV or photo studio.
SHOOT – photo session.
SHOWROOM WORK – manufacturer’s showcase of a clothing line to buyers using live models ? when the seasonal clothing designs are being shown.
SIGN-IN SHEET – on cattle calls, lists the order in which each model arrived to audition.
SLATE – to state your name on camera before your commercial audition.
SPEC SHOT – photographer’s idea of a comp which he/she hopes to sell to the client.
SPOKESPERSON – person/model chosen to explain the features of a product/service.
STAGE PARENT – an adult who pushes and watches too closely over a child performer, gets in the way of the shoot.
STATS – statistical information of a model, including measurements, size, height, etc.
STORYBOARD -artwork that shows each scene of a commercial.
STROBE – light unit used by a photographer.
STYLIST – coordinates the fashions and accessories, checks fit of clothing, visual scene.
TEARSHEET – copy of a print ad that the model keeps in the portfolio as proof of work.
TELEPROMPTER – TV-like screen that displays the cue card words.
TESTIMONIAL – celebrity declaration to the value of a product/service; improvisational endorsement of a product or service that the actor has officially tested, used and approved.
TEST SHOTS, TEST PHOTOGRAPHY – photos used to build a beginning portfolio
3/4 SHOTS – photo from head to mid thigh.
TRADES, TRADE PAPERS – trade publications such as Variety, Backstage, NY Casting, Actor’s Resource Network, Ross Reports, Drama-Logue, Billboard, Hollywood Reporter.
TRADE SHOWS – industry promotional display of products/services usually in a hotel or convention center
TRANSPARENCIES – the slide forms of a photograph.
TRUNK SHOW – informal modeling of one specific designer line, usually in a store or small boutique.
USAGE – additional fees for higher exposure, like a billboard or national use.
VOICEOVER – background voices for radio or video recorded separately in a recording studio and dubbed onto visual.
VOUCHER – three-piece form with a model release on which client acknowledges hours worked by the model, agency copy used to bill and get paid.
WEATHER PERMIT – a location job that is dependent on fair weather, may be canceled the day before or that morning.