Does Your Child Need an Entertainment Work Permit in States Other Than California?

Previously, I’ve discussed entertainment work permits for children working in the state of California. But there are many of you in states other than California who are wondering if you need an entertainment work permit for your child.

If you are looking for employment within the state of California, refer to my posts concerning entertainment work permits in California (see “Where Is the California Entertainment Work Permit Office in Van Nuys?“, “How Do You Renew Your Child’s Entertainment Work Permit?“, “Do You Need an Entertainment Work Permit for Your Child Actor?“).

Currently, about half of the 50 states in the United States require work permits for minors working in the entertainment industry. So you are wise to look into the laws that are specific to a particular state before your child obtains employment in that state.

If your child lives in one state and gets employment in another, you can certainly get assistance and advice on how to get that work permit quickly when it is needed. Often, the production company can advise you on what to do when the time comes.

So, “Does Your Child Need an Entertainment Work Permit in States Other Than California?”

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When Should You Join Screen Actors Guild When You Are an Actor?

When Should You Join Screen Actors Guild? sagindie via Flickr

So many actors and parents of child actors seem to be concerned about not being in Screen Actors Guild (SAG)  (See “What is SAG?” and “What Does SAG Stand for?” for more about what SAG is).  They wonder exactly how to join SAG and whether they will be seen for SAG projects if they are not in SAG.

When we first came to Los Angeles for my daughter to become a child actor, I was told that it was almost impossible to get into SAG. I thought being in SAG was essential and that my daughter would be passed over for just about everything if she were not in SAG.  Of course, I soon  learned that this was not really true, particularly for children.

I started researching how one goes about joining SAG (see “How Do You Qualify to Join Screen Actors Guild?” for more on what needs to happen before you are allowed to join SAG). I slowly began to understand more about it, and honestly, it was not until it became the time that we had to join and after that I understood the full implications of it.

I also learned that an important question to ponder is “When Should You Join Screen Actors Guild When You Are an Actor?”

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What Is a Callback After an Acting Audition? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

Acting Audition Callback

There is a chance that your child will get “a callback” after an acting audition if that acting audition goes well and your child is right for the part. When your child gets a callback for an acting audition for the very first time, you may not know exactly what that means.

My daughter got a callback after her second acting audition, and after the initial excitement was over, I realized I really did not know what that meant or what to do. I had to call her agent back a couple of times and ask lots of questions.

Since I knew very little about showbiz when we first got started, whenever we did something new, I had lots of questions.  And I was embarrassed to have to ask so many questions.

On the other hand, I knew it was important to find out everything I could about her first acting audition callback to make sure we did what we needed to do.

So, in case you are wondering exactly, “What Is a Callback After an Acting Audition?”

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