What We Are Actually Looking For: Inside the Submission Review Process
By the FAM | Florida Family & Kids Casting Experts
One of the most common questions we get from parents is some version of: what happens after I submit? What are you actually looking at? What makes someone a yes and what makes someone a no?
This post is the honest, inside look at exactly that. Here is how our submission review process actually works, what we are looking for at each stage, and what you can do to make sure your submission works in your favor.
Step One: The Application
When a parent visits famtalent.com and clicks Join the FAM, they can choose between an individual child application or a full family application. From there, the form walks you through every section you need to complete.
The most important thing at this stage is simple: complete the application fully. Every section is there for a reason and an incomplete submission makes it harder for us to assess whether you are a strong fit. Beyond the basic information, the single most critical element of any submission is the photos.
What We Are Looking For in Your Photos
We call these digitals, and there is a full guide on how to take great ones right on our Join the FAM page, just below the application buttons. They do not need to be professional photos. A clean, well-lit iPhone shot taken against a plain background is absolutely fine and in many cases is exactly what we need to see. If you have professional headshots, submit those in place of digitals on your application. Once you are reviewed and accepted you will hear from us directly, and at that point we welcome you to send along any digitals or additional professional work photos that were not included in your original application.
What we are actually evaluating in those images is more than just technical quality, but technical quality does matter and it is worth understanding why.
Clear, well-lit photos allow us to actually see your child or family. We are looking at features, natural coloring, and how someone presents on camera, the kind of detail that brands need before they make a talent selection. A blurry, shadowy, or cluttered photo does not give us or a brand enough to work with. Beyond that, clean clear images signal that someone is taking this seriously and understands what the process requires. Practically speaking, a family with strong photos is someone we can start submitting to briefs right away, which we simply cannot do confidently without them. This is the standard across the industry. It is what casting agents and brands want to see.
Beyond the technical, we are also looking at something harder to define and honestly just as important.
We want to see that the person in the photo looks comfortable on camera.
For individual children, that means a natural, genuine expression. A real smile, not a forced one, and a relaxed, comfortable neutral look. We are looking for a little sparkle, a little personality, something that comes through the frame without being over the top. If a child looks visibly uncomfortable, upset, or completely blank with no life in their expression, that is going to be a problem at this stage. It is worth practicing in front of a mirror before you take your submission photos, because getting a genuinely natural expression on camera is harder than most people realize.
For families, we assess the individual members the same way, and we are also looking at the chemistry between the people in the frame. Do they look like they genuinely want to be in a photo together? Is there a natural ease and warmth between them? That quality is immediately visible in photos and it is one of the things that makes a family submission stand out.
The Experience Question
On the application we ask about experience level, and what you put there matters in a specific way.
We work with talent across every experience level, from complete beginners who simply have strong potential to seasoned professionals with real campaign work behind them. Neither end of that spectrum is a disadvantage on its own.
What is a red flag is a mismatch between what someone tells us about their experience and what their photos show. If a parent marks their child as highly experienced, we are expecting to see that reflected in the submission, through professional headshots, real campaign imagery, or at minimum very clean, intentional digitals. Someone who has been working in this industry knows what a usable photo looks like and typically has them. If someone tells us they are highly experienced and then sends us photos that we cannot work with, that inconsistency raises questions.
Age and Opportunity Fit
When a submission comes in we are already thinking about the kinds of briefs we have in the pipeline, the clientele we work with, and whether this child or family is a realistic match for the opportunities we are actively casting for. This is not a reason to not submit. It is just part of how we assess fit holistically rather than in isolation.
A Note on Very Young Children
For infants and babies there is genuine demand and we love having them in the network. But babies and toddlers are most comfortable and most natural on camera when their own parents are present. So when we receive a submission for a very young child we will often ask whether the parent is interested in being on camera as well. This is not a requirement but it significantly expands the opportunities your child is eligible for, and for shoots involving infants it is often genuinely preferable to have the parent in the frame.
Siblings and Family Profiles
If it looks like a parent has submitted one child but has another, we will sometimes ask whether the other child or the full family might be interested in submitting as well. Taking one child does not mean we need the whole family, and we are always happy to work with individuals. But having siblings or a full family unit available opens the door to a much wider range of briefs. It expands opportunity, it never limits it.
How We Think About Your Family as a Whole
For full family submissions, beyond the unit itself we are thinking about what each individual member brings. We are already considering who has natural focal point energy, who brings strong supporting presence, and how the combination expands what we can do with you across different briefs. Sometimes the dynamic between everyone is exactly what a brand needs. Sometimes one member naturally anchors the story while the rest bring the world around them to life. A complete family profile with strong individual photos as well as group shots gives us the most to work with, and having everyone in the network is always a benefit, never a limitation.
What Happens After We Review
Once we have looked at a submission, we are essentially asking ourselves: could this person or family be a good fit? Do they have potential? And what do we need to move forward?
Sometimes everything we need is right there in the application and we can move forward confidently. Other times we might like what we see but need a little more to work with. In those cases we will follow up and ask for additional photos, different angles, or digitals if the submission only included professional headshots. We might also have follow-up questions about availability, experience, or other details.
When we do follow up, your response time matters. If we reach out and hear nothing back, we take that as a signal that this is not something you are actively interested in pursuing. We move on. Being responsive at this stage is not just courteous, it is one of the ways parents demonstrate that they are going to be easy and professional to work with, which is something we are assessing from the very first interaction.
The Agreement: A Step Parents Often Miss
Here is something that trips up a surprising number of families. When we decide we would like to welcome someone into our network, they receive a welcome letter and our participation agreement at the same time.
A lot of parents receive the welcome letter, feel great about it, and assume they are in. They are not, not yet. We cannot submit anyone for casting and you are not officially part of our network until the participation agreement is signed and returned to us. Many parents return it promptly and move smoothly into the next stage. Many others do not, and then wonder why they are not hearing about opportunities.
If you receive our agreement, sign it and send it back. That is the moment you officially join the network and the moment we can start working with you.
Once You Are In
Once the agreement is signed and you are officially part of our network, what we are looking for from you is straightforward. Keep your profile current. Update your photos as your child grows and changes, and email those updated photos to us directly when something significant shifts, a new haircut, a big growth spurt, a change in look. Let us know if your availability changes. Respond promptly when we reach out, whether that is for additional photo requests or availability checks. Stay engaged.
The families who do these things consistently are the ones who stay top of mind when the right brief comes in.
The Short Version
Complete application. Strong, clear photos that show genuine personality and natural chemistry. Experience claims that match what the photos actually show. Prompt responses when we follow up. Signed agreement returned without delay. Updated profile maintained over time.
That is what we are looking for from start to finish. From there, know that whenever an opportunity comes in and your child or family fits the brief, we are considering you. You will hear from us when there is a strong match. Availability checks are a good sign, and bookings come when the fit is right.
If you are ready to submit, we would love to see what your family brings.
