Pay-to-play Statement
For more than 30 years, One on One / Next Level has helped thousands of actors forge their own relationships with the industry instead of waiting for the phone to ring.
Which means we’ve helped countless industry professionals find the most talented professional actors around.
Relationships are more important than ever, now that self tapes are the norm and production occurs world wide.
It is our responsibility to create an environment where actors and industry professionals feel safe, cared for, and appreciated. We do not take this job lightly and we strive every day to live up to it.
Our mission is to empower every actor to take control of their own success and push back on the outdated industry rule that actors must simply rely on their reps or just rolls of the dice.
And we pride ourselves on being a space for trained, committed actors to build a community and network, thereby being a bridge to their success.
HOW WE ROLL:
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We screen every actor before they can join our membership community and less than 40% of applicants get accepted. Our screening process protects actors so that no member of our studio wastes money or time meeting industry professionals before their craft is up to par. This protects folks in the industry by ensuring that every actor they meet is professional and ready to work.
We believe that any networking studio that does not implement a rigorous screening process does not have their members’ or their teachers’ best interest in mind.
But keep in mind, One on One / Next Level isn’t some weird, closed door country club. We celebrate the actor’s journey and any actor who is not accepted can request detailed, in-depth feedback about why they aren’t quite ready for our studio and what they can do to become ready.
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Since 2020, more and more casting professionals offer their own classes, paid self-tape services or even member databases for a fee. We believe that actors (and industry) deserve the protection of a third party to ensure that all parties respect one another, behave with extreme professionalism and abide by the CSA guidelines as well as the rules laid out in AB1319.
Simply put, we do not offer, nor do we endorse “pay to play” schemes. You’re better than that and so are we.
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We go to great lengths to inform our actors about every teacher and program our studio offers. We never misrepresent our classes as traditional acting classes or veil instructor information in secrecy. Actors deserve to know how much professional experience and expertise their teacher has before they invest in a class.
We strive to provide as much information about the industry instructor (including their projects, accolades / awards, professional experience, and professional affiliation) as possible. We do this so our members can make informed and empowered decisions about where to invest their time and money. On that note, we also do not invite industry professionals to host classes at our studio who do not have an established or current professional resume. Nor do we invite those who are “retired” professionally from active work in their field (casting, directing, reps).
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Our members are professional, level headed, and ready to work. We understand that if an actor misbehaves or displays a gross lack of professionalism, that ruins the environment for everyone else.
Which is why we do not hesitate to revoke membership from any actor who does not respect our studio, the community we’ve cultivated, or the industry professionals teaching our classes.
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We hold our staff to the highest possible standards. Customer service emails are answered 7 days a week for at least 12 hours on weekdays and 8 hours on weekends.
Every reader is carefully selected, screened, & onboarded to our specific list of expectations & protocols. When anyone on our team falls short, our office management team addresses concerns from actors and instructors promptly to make sure we meet the high standards we set for ourselves.
OUR CORE COMPANY VALUES:
Transparency:
We believe our actors should know exactly how our studio operates both within and due to the nature of the industry. As such, we have gone to great lengths to clarify our operations, expectations and rules of engagement on our policies page.
We hold every member, industry guest, and staff member to the same standards and we practice fairness by maintaining the same rules for EVERYONE.
Reliability:
We know an actor’s life is naturally unpredictable. We deeply value and respect the trust our members put in us as they continue their professional development.
As such, we go to great lengths to deliver the class experience promised on the class page. (This should go without saying… but sadly, it’s not the norm.).
Which is why we hold our guest teachers to their word insisting that they arrive on time, keep their scheduled commitments, stick to the class format, and follow through on their obligations to their students.
Professionalism:
We are obsessed with the details. And we pride ourselves in delivering a first class, premium experience for our members. That’s why we’ve been around for over 30 years.
Click here to check out countless well wishes from the industry on our 30th anniversary.
Keeping It REAL:
Do we love actors? Of course. But we don’t need to shout it from the rooftops. Our actions speak louder than words.
Do our actors learn at our classes? Yes they do!
Yet, We are not a traditional acting studio and we don’t pretend to be.
We’ve always believed that no matter where you’ve trained or who you know, you deserve real life, real time practice to bring your training to the industry in an applicable way.
And that’s the type of education we provide in every class we offer.
Yes, the CSA has very specific guidelines and limitations that we follow religiously and respectfully.
But we don’t go through the motions or purport to be something we are not.
We are proud to be the leading organization connecting actors to working industry professionals in a way that drives opportunities for all.
We are proud to be the bridge that helps the industry find actors so actors find success. It’s what we do. And we have done it well for 31 years and counting.
