Have you ever pondered on the fact that there are more child stars in the business now than there were 20 years back? People would get to know them early on, and they would grow up and be the patriarchs or matriarchs of their entertainment business family. And then when they’re all grown up, for some reason, they don’t want their age to be publicized on entertainment online databases. This is precisely the case regarding IMDb.com, owned by Amazon.com.
The case that I’ll be discussing is that of Screen ActorsGuild and AFTRA with IMDb and its owner Amazon.com. The aforementioned parties struck out at IMDb and consequently Amazon.com “condemning their practice of revealing ages of performers without the actor or actresses’ permission – and the refusing to delete or change it even when that person requests them to do so.”
Apparently there had been talks going on behind the scenes “about this practice that involved SAG, AFTRA and other unnamed guilds, but that the talks have now been broken down” reports The Hollywood Reporter.
My question about this all is: why is age so important to this business? Isn’t ultimately the talent that the person, (whether its an actor/actress, or a crew member) possesses what’s important when managing an artist? Am I the only person in this business who’s interested more in talent than in someone’s age? The best example I can give you right now is that of Stanley Tucci. He’s relatively low-key, he’s in his 50s, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone do for his craft like he does. He’s one of the greats, in my humblest opinion – of course.
But apparently according to a Texas-based actress, who is “described as an Asian-American but not named”. The woman filed a law suit against IMDb after the website took information she provided when signing up for the IMDb Pro subscription service and they used it to publish her age on the IMDb website.”
The woman continues saying that “in the entertainment industry, youth is king, that if one is perceived to be ‘over-the-hill,’ i. e., approaching 40, it is nearly impossible for an up-and-coming actress, such as the Plaintiff, to get work as she is thought to have less of an ‘upside,’ therefore, casting directors, producers, directors, agents/ managers, etc. don not give her the same opportunities, regardless of her appearance or talent.”
Now, I see her point very clearly and I agree with her. The sad reality of the business right now is that talented people, not just actors and actresses, but potential crewmembers as well, are being overlooked by production teams, directors, and managers.
The ones that do have the jobs already are looking for people with experience, but what if I don’t have the experience that they’re looking for? What can I do to get the gig that I’m applying for without being discriminated because of “age”, “lack of experience”, “our lack of talent” and/or whatever scheme they come up with these days.
All I know is that we have to keep trying as hard as we possibly can to actually get in the business. No one better than us, at least us Full Sail students know, thanks to our Professors, how hard it is to land a high profile job in the business.
So, my intention with this blog was basically to put these things out there so that some of you could read about the reality of our situation if we don’t pay attention to what’s going on in the business, how are the different companies moving. Do they have anything new coming up? Even if it is in an unpaid internship, we should always, at least try.
Hit me up in the comments section, I would like to know what your thoughts are…
Happy Sunday!
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