Signing with an acting agent can feel like a huge milestone.
You’ve had the meeting. They like you. You like them. You sign the contract and think: Great! Now what?
While running my acting studio in London, I chat with a lot of actors about their agents, and I hear the same complaints again and again.
“My agent never calls me. I don’t even think they know who I am.”
Or, on the complete opposite end:
“My agent wants to be my friend. I just want to hear from them when I have an audition. I don’t have time for another friend!”
And the truth is, neither relationship is necessarily wrong.
We all have different needs.
Personally, I prefer a professional relationship with my agent. Of course I care about her, and if there is a big life event we will talk about it and be friendly. But we don’t have a WhatsApp group where we exchange puppy pictures.
And that suits me perfectly.
But I know actors who want a much closer relationship with their agent. They want coffees, catch-ups and regular conversations about their career.
The important thing is knowing what kind of relationship you are signing up for.
So when you sign with a new acting agent, don’t just celebrate, update your Spotlight and wait for the auditions to arrive.
Have some conversations.
Here are five things I think every actor should do when they sign with a new agent.
1. Ask: What’s Your Preferred Way of Communicating — and How Often?
I think this is one of the biggest causes of unnecessary anxiety between actors and agents.
You send an email. Nothing.
Five hours go by.
Still nothing.
And suddenly your brain starts going:
They hate me. They regret signing me. They’re going to drop me. I haven't had an audition in weeks. Should I email them? Am I annoying them?
Meanwhile, your agent might be sitting there perfectly happy with you and simply have a completely different communication style.
Some agents love regular check-ins. Some are happy to have a coffee every few months. Others are very much: I’ll contact you when there is something to talk about.
None of these is necessarily better or worse.
But you need to know which one you have signed with.
Ask them how they prefer to communicate. Email? Phone? WhatsApp? How often are they happy for you to check in?
Once you know, you don't need to create stories in your head because you haven't heard from them.
2. Ask: What Roles Will You Be Submitting Me For?
This is a really important conversation because you need to understand how your agent sees you.
What is your casting?
Where do they think you fit?
Are they seeing you as leads? Supporting roles? Guest leads? Comedy? Drama? Commercials?
And most importantly: does their idea of you match your idea of you?
You also need to be realistic here.
There might be things you would absolutely love to play, but your current skills, credits, playing age, accents, showreel or experience might make those roles harder to get right now.
That doesn't mean you can never get there.
It means you need to understand what you're currently being marketed as.
I think actors sometimes assume that because they have an agent, their agent automatically knows everything they want from their career.
They don't.
Talk to them.
3. Ask Them: What Can I Improve?
This is one of my favourite questions because it turns the conversation from:
“Why am I not getting auditions?”
into:
“What can I actually do?”
Ask your agent whether there are any gaps in your marketing materials or skill set.
Maybe they see you fitting into action roles but you don't have anything on your reel that shows it.
Maybe they think you need stronger headshots.
Maybe your Spotlight needs updating.
Maybe they keep seeing roles for you that require a particular accent or skill.
Maybe your showreel simply doesn't represent how they want to sell you.
This information is GOLD.
Because instead of sitting at home waiting for the phone to ring, you have something practical you can work on.
If your agent can see you in a particular type of role but your current material doesn't show it, create the material.
Don't always wait for someone to give you permission to show what you can do.
4. Ask: Do You Watch My Self-Tapes?
I think this is really useful to know.
Some agents are incredibly involved in the self-tape process. They watch tapes before they are submitted, give notes and sometimes ask actors to re-tape.
Others trust their actors to do the work and send the tape directly to casting.
Again, neither is necessarily wrong.
But you need to know how involved your agent is going to be.
Do they watch every self-tape?
Only tapes for bigger roles?
Will they give you feedback if something isn't working?
Do they want you to ask for advice, or do they expect you to make your own decisions?
Understanding this early means you know exactly where you stand when that first self-tape request lands in your inbox.
And speaking of that first self-tape...
5. Make Your First Self-Tape COUNT
This one is important. First impressions matter. Your new agent has just made the decision to sign you.
They've put their name behind you.
Now imagine that the first audition they send you arrives and you submit it late, haven't properly read the brief, the sound is terrible, the framing is distracting and the performance feels underprepared.
Not ideal.
Your first few self-tapes are an opportunity to show your new agent: You made the right decision signing me.
Read the brief properly. Learn the scene. Make strong choices. Make sure they can see and hear you properly. Deliver it on time.
And give the best performance you possibly can.
Because your agent needs to feel confident sending your work to a casting director.
I want my agent to feel proud when she sends my tape.
I want her to know that when an audition comes through, I will do everything in my power to deliver something worth watching.
That trust matters.
Your Agent Is Your Partner — Not Your Career
Signing with a good acting agent is exciting, but I think actors sometimes make the mistake of handing over responsibility for their entire career the moment they get representation.
Your agent has a job to do.
But so do you.
Your job is to keep developing as an actor. Keep your materials current. Keep understanding your casting. Keep improving your self-tapes. Keep creating opportunities to show people what you can do.
And communicate.
Don't spend six months quietly getting angry because your agent isn't giving you the relationship you imagined.
Ask the questions at the beginning. Find out how they work. Find out how they see you.
And then make sure you're doing everything you can to make their job of representing you as easy as possible.
And if it’s not your acting that you’re struggling with, but everything around it — agents, Spotlight, showreels, casting, marketing yourself or simply figuring out what to do next — you can book an Actor Advice session with me and we can talk it through.
Sending big hugs,
Natalia
Owning It Acting Studio
If you enjoyed my blog and it resonated with you, I’d be truly grateful if you shared it on your social media so it might support other actors as well. My goal is to create a safe, encouraging space where actors can feel seen and supported.
