Acting career as a child

[thisisme2468]

Hi,

DD is 9. She is autistic. She really wants to get into acting. She already attends a drama class and loves it. She’s completed one LAMDA exam and got a distinction. Her teachers alway say shes doing well. Other than that I have no idea. No experience in the industry. Don’t know what they look for. So thought I’d ask Mums net for their experiences. How do you get an agent? What can I do to support her? How can I help her develop her skills further?

thanks all x

This might be late but I've got a daughter in the industry. She started off with weekly musical theatre training like your daughter with her LAMDA. If she's interested in acting, I would encourage her to get involved in school plays or community theatre to get started. If she still likes the idea of being an actor, you can approach agents on their website. For new talent, Top Talent Agency, Ardent Talent, Daisy & Dukes Agency, Middleton Talent, Mary Liz Management are some of the best. I can send some more over if you want. Agents mainly look for confidence, it's the biggest factor that Casting Directors, Agents, Directors etc look for when looking for talent. I would recommend you read articles on Backstage (www.backstage.com/) as well as Spotlight (www.spotlight.com/) as they are so helpful for parents and children who are new to the industry, that i s probably the best way to support at this stage. To develop her skills further, you could try finding a local theatre that do children's classes. I don't know where you are based but if in London there is a class that is known to have trained really good child actors. It's called DMA London.