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Is This Agent Legit?
A plain checklist for the moment someone offers to represent your child. Run the offer through it before you sign anything or pay anyone.
Someone wants to represent your child, and you have to decide quickly whether it’s a real opportunity or a costly mistake. This short guide is built for that moment.
I’m Cameron Bright. I booked my first role a few weeks after my first kids’ acting class, at 5, and kept working steadily from there, and nobody taught my parents how to judge any of this. In my experience, many representation offers are legitimate. This checklist helps you say yes with confidence just as easily as you can say no.
What’s inside
- The Red-Flag Checklist. An unexplained upfront fee means walk away on its own. Any other box means pause and get answers. Several boxes together mean walk away.
- Questions to ask in the meeting, and what vague answers tell you.
- Where to check before you trust: licensing where it applies (for example, California and British Columbia), SAG-AFTRA’s franchised-agent list, and what other unions will and won’t confirm.
- How legitimate representation works: agent vs. manager in plain terms.
- What a fair fee looks like, with a commission and upfront-fee table for the U.S., UK, Canada and Australia.
- Worksheet: Contract Quick-Scan. Five fields to fill in from the contract itself before you sign.
Who it’s for
Parents of young performers who’ve been approached by an agent or manager, or expect to be soon.
What it isn’t
It isn’t a contract review. For anything unclear, a short consultation with an entertainment lawyer is worth the cost. Outside these four countries, check your local rules.
Good to know: This checklist is also Chapter 2 of The Stage Parent Clarity Kit and The Complete Stage Parent System. If you move up later, your code gives you the full $19 back.
What you get
- Is-This-Agent-Legit.pdf: 8 pages, with a fillable worksheet and checklist
- Two upgrade codes near the end of the guide: AGENTUP (Clarity Kit for $30) and AGENTCOMPLETE (Complete System for $100)
Questions
Do we need an agent to get started?
No. Many beginners self-submit to open calls and student or indie projects first. The guide explains when representation starts to help.
We’re in Ireland or New Zealand. Will this work?
The checklist and the questions work anywhere. The fee and licensing rules cover the U.S., UK, Canada and Australia only.
How do the codes work?
Upgrade codes are printed near the end of each guide (just before the Sources page). A code works only if you already own the guide it’s tied to. Sign in to Gumroad with the email you bought it with, then enter the code at checkout. One code per product.
Questions, or a problem with your file?
Email StageParentSupport@proton.me.
These guides are educational. They are not legal, tax or financial advice, and they don’t replace a licensed professional or the rules where you live. Laws, union rules and fees change, so confirm current details with the relevant authority or union before you rely on them. The facts in this edition were checked on 5 October 2026, and the sources are listed at the back of the guide.
The “Example” boxes are illustrative composites of common situations, not stories about specific real families.
Refunds: All sales are final. These are instant digital downloads. If a file is broken, I’ll fix or replace it. Full refund policy