Confused! cover letter or not?

Question

some websites say to have a cover letter when sending to an agency and some say not to have one bc they won't want to read it. should i have one or not?

Answer 1

A cover letter to an agent, if written properly is a great way for the agent to see at a glance who they are dealing with. I learned a little trick that helped me a lot a few years ago when I was looking for an agent. I also used it in mailings to casting directors. I learned this from my career mentoring coach. First of all, the cover letter is short and to the point. The words are carefully selected and the main points I want to communicate are covered.

Just make sure that before you try and get an agent, that you are ready.

Do you know what to expect during the agent interview?

How many monologues do you have prepared?

Do you know what the most asked questions are by agents in interviews?

Do you know if you make any of the typical mistakes while performing your monologue?

Also, I hope you are not nitpicking as I call it, which means that you are thinking about what to write to this ONE agent you found.

I hope you have a strategy that is a winning strategy and that will most likely land you an agent very soon. Or is this a shot in the dark?

You must be prepared. Take the time to, first get some training. An agent will be more willing to work with you if you are trained and skilled as an actor, because he/she will have the feeling that you will be able to book work often. They ultimately want to make money and they can only do that if you book work!

Have a look at this page on my website for new and aspiring actors. On it you will find links to different pages about various aspects of starting out your acting career including yes, 10 tips about writing cover letters, how to get an agent, 23 benefits to taking acting classes and how to choose an acting school. http://www.actingcareerstartup.com/teen_...

Good luck!

Tony

Answer 2

To what kind of agency are you referring?  If this is a job application, you always want to include a cover letter explaining your intentions and as a way to introduce yourself other than just a resume.

Without knowing the details of your situation, it's hard to know.  When in doubt, call and ask!

Answer 3

Your cover letter is a separate document from your resume so you can easily attach either or both. These days with on-line application so popular the cover letter has gone the way of the dinos for the most part (but it's still a good way to make your info stand out). You need to have a well drafted cover letter on hand for those who don't explicitly ask that it be left out. If you send a cover letter to someone who's not interested in them then they have the option of not reading it - but I would send it anyway.

Answer 4

No.

I have went to many classes, and all of them said that a cover letter and thank you cards mark you as an unprofessional and someone who doesn't know about what they're doing.