Baker-Rowley

I wish I had found these reviews before I found Baker and Rowley. Like many of the other lovely people on here, I was taken in by the idea of actually making money doing what I moved to Chicago to do. I was young and full of dreams. I was the girl in the movie that is leaving the secluded cabin at night in high heels thinking she should investigate the strange sound on her own. NO! DON’T DO IT! DON’T GO! HOW ARE YOU SO STUPID! HAVEN’T YOU SEEN A MOVIE BEFORE?! But I thought I was different. I was not. I recited a few lines in her office and sang a line from Oklahoma while two movers gave me the side eye. She was probably moving to avoid the torch-​wielding actors who had paid her to be on the site. She said she liked me and I had to pay my one-​time fee to get on the website. Sure! Ok! I’m young and full of dreams and hopes and rocks, apparently. My older self is giving my younger self a pat on the head and saying, «SSShhhh, Just get your Master’s and a real job. It will all be ok.» I have since moved out of town and gotten a real agent in my new city. My advice to you, newbies, «DON’T LEAVE THE CABIN! THERE’S A CRAZY OLD WOMAN OUT TO KILL YOU AND TAKE YOUR MONEY!» And then, find a better agent.

This agency is a scam. A legit agency will NEVER as you for money upfront. It always comes out of a job you book.

LIARS!!! I met with a older lady name Roberta in April 2012 to see if my child would be accepted to their agency. It was very unprofessional. She walked my child down the hall alone without me & she came back and said I will accept her. She went on explaining to me that the way that the children are chosen for jobs is off of their website & she went on the explain the fee I would have to pay if I wanted to post my child picture on BAKER & ROWLEY SITE. I paid her to post 4 of my child’s pictures back in April it is now going on Sept. and my child pictures are yet to be posted. I called a few times & spoke to Diane & she promised if I re email them to her that she will get them up. Up onto the date no pictures. I see this is how they SCAM parents out of their money by getting them to purchase photo spots on their site & don’t deliver the service. I visit the site regularly and it seems like there has not been any upgrade to the site since I checked it the first day. BAKER & ROWLEY are a WASTE OF YOUR VALUABLE TIME & THIEVES!!!

This agency is not a reputable one! Two old ladies who tell you your kids is full of talent and pressure you into paying them on the spot to add your kid to their website. If you look at their work it is all very old jobs that they have landed. I paid the $ 100 for the website and then called the very next morning asking for the check not to be cashed — very long story but I was told they would send the money back but it has been 9 months and no return. I contacted the BBB and filed a complaint which Baker & Rowley never even responded to. Keep your money and don’t bother paying for their rent because that is all your money will go towards.

This agency is legit yes, but they are a scam… I signed with them in 2010 and it took 4 months to get my picture on the site and then they had the nerve to blame me saying I never emailed them some crap they never asked me to email. Then they still didnt put the picture up after that. Eventually it got up there but they never called and then they said I needed to call in and check up more often. They have way to much talent to focus on helping anyone. They were probably good in the 90s but they are busted now!

It seems as if everyone is having the same problem with this agency as I have had.
I paid the «fee» for their website and sent information to their «webmaster.» My photos are still not on their site (after almost 2 years) and a friend of mine who is not represented by them anymore due to negligence, still has her photo and resume posted on their website and has not been with them since 2009. They have called me and emailed me numerous times saying they ‘don’t have my information.” After a year and more excuses when they said they did not have my information, I said «You obviously have my phone number since you are calling me, and my email since you emailed me so I have no idea what other ‘info’ you need to book auditions for me. I have given you my info at least 4 times and requested that my HS and resume be posted for months.» They had some excuse about changing webmasters or something and still nothing. I had 2 auditions within this time. No one respects them.
All in all, something is not right with this place.
Their office has changed addresses once again and when you go in, their office is almost like a hoarding nightmare, not to mention dog hair and old chewed up toys all over the place. Photos are taped and glued to poster board and haphazardly tacked to the walls. I really should’ve walked in and walked right out because I knew something was wrong. This has taught me to listen to my instincts and better judgment.
Baker and Rowley need to wake up and close shop. They are a terrible company that I cannot even bring myself to call a ‘talent agency’. Maybe when they opened years ago they were on par professional, now they are falling by the wayside and are biting off more than they can chew. They have too much ‘talent’, however they charge everyone and never pay when you book something. Go somewhere else and do not listen to their faulty promises!

If I could give this «talent agency» zero stars and still write the review, I would! As an actress and promotional model, I thought I had enough sense not to be taken in by a scam artist. I guess I did not.
Diane Rowley signed me in 2009, and I booked a job immediately. This made me feel quite comfortable with her representation. Man was I WRONG! I worked a job in September 2009, and it is now July 16, 2011, and after many, many emails, and voicemail messages to her, have still not gotten paid.
When I finally received an email from her, in response to a threat by me (legal action), she blamed ME for not registering properly. She said I never contacted her. I informed this criminal that I had copies of emails about an inch thick that I had sent her. After that, she told me via email that I would receive my paycheck when she cut checks on June 10, 2011. As I previously stated, it is July 16, 2011, and I have yet to receive my money.
Also, this woman has moved her office many times in the past few years, which is also a sign of her not being able to pay her rent, or she’s running away from something.
This woman is a criminal in my opinion, and no person should believe her B.S.
I have filed complaints with the Better Business Bureau, The Attorney General, and will file a law suit to get my paycheck. It is not that I can’t live without the several hundred dollars she owes me, I just want her to live up to her obligations.
NEVER TRUST DIANE ROWLEY at Baker and Rowley Talent!!! You’ll be sorry!!!

Maybe they USED to be a good agency before they just piled and piled on new talents than they can handle. I was originally recommended this place by one of my dance coaches. However he is MUCH older and was signed with Baker and Rowley A LOOONGGG time ago… I sent my resume and pictures and got a call to come in. I performed skits and a song and they said they could sign me right there. I know you’re not supposed to pay an agency and upfront fees. But, I did because I thought they were legit. I payed a heavy amount because they said they would put my pictures in both the under 18 page and the 18 and up page on their website… It’s been almost SIX MONTHS and my photos ARE NOT ON THE WEBSITE. I’ve contacted the agency many times, including Diane Rowley herself… They keep coming up with BS excuses… I still want my money back.
Plus, their office is VERY UNPROFESSIONAL. They obviously have way more people than they can handle. There’s filing cabinets that could reach the sky filled with millions of folders for different people… They don’t have the time to actually pay attention to any of their clients.
I WANT MY MONEY BACK. DON’T FALL FOR THIS UNPROFESSIONAL AGENCY.

DONT GO HERE!!! As a child I had worked with several acting schools and talent agencies so I would hear about this agency every now and then. In college I worked at several reputable agencies as well so of course when I grew up and had a kid of my own, I thought why not, they’ve been around for this long it HAS to be reputable. I think they even say they are union-​affiliated so I just assumed it would be a good idea.
I submitted my daughters pics to several agencies and BR was the first to respond. They wanted us to bring her in for an «audition» (that basically meant that one of the agents would pick her up and see if she cried).
When we got there, we saw a beautiful young girl being «auditioned» by one of the agents, a.k.a. paying money and humoring the parents by looking at this poor girl’s headshots. While waiting, we looked around at their «brag board» of kids that were booked… all the photos were from the 90’s!
After they finished collecting the money from that girl, they went on to talk to us. My daughter supposedly «passed» so they wanted to sign her. We had to wait again while more new talent came in to pay their cash. Finally we paid our money, and we were made to fill out a tax form for our daughter which I now think is weird since we’ve gone through other agencies and they never had us do this.
They asked us to submit two pics of my daughter and they posted her pic up on what looked like a generic site. Each kid is assigned a serial number and potential clients can pick and choose directly from there. It’s really weird, kind of like a store setup. My daughters pic came out really dark but I didnt bother to have them fix it. by this point I just counted my losses and learned from my mistakes.
After a year, I NEVER heard back from them. Not even to have me update her portfolio. I never heard back from them when her work permit was expiring. In fact, they state in one of their handouts to the parents that if our children arent being booked or bein sent out on auditions that it’s our fault for not providing them with enough pictures.
Whatever, my daughter eventually got signed at Stewart and we’ve been so happy ever since. Don’t pay for anything when it comes to that stuff, even if they try to make it just a small amount for «computer expenses». i’ve never had to pay anything at Stewart and my daughter’s been on so many things with them and we have the best relationship with her agent!

Completely unprofessional, scattered, and worse than no agent.

I heard they were reputable. I was stoked when both my kids were «accepted» with the agency. I was taken aback when told that $ 170 fee would need to be paid to have my kid’s pictures appear on the website. Even more so when I paid the fee over two months ago and have yet to see their photos show up ANYWHERE on the above named site. I am being told this was a mistake and is being rectified. The agents were nice and have been throughout this whole process. I came via referral from a friend, whose child has booked thru this particular agency, so we know it’s not a scam. I do believe it was an honest mistake. I will post a follow up if and when they’re photos appear on the site.