When a child wants to act, the most important job for parents is learning how to support that dream safely, realistically, and without losing sight of the fact that kids should still get to be kids.
There are plenty of do’s and don’ts that are helpful to know as you encourage your child to pursue their dream.
Legendary casting director Rose Rosen has lots of experience in this area, and discusses it in her podcast, “Casting Confidential.” She dedicated a 2025 episode of the podcast to this subject, and was more than happy to talk to Casting Networks about everything parents should know about their child’s journey and, of course, their own.
Key Insights
- Legitimate child acting opportunities start with vetted agents, not expensive “star-making” schools or upfront fees.
- Parents should focus on supporting their child’s enjoyment of acting rather than chasing bookings or careers.
- Successful child actors thrive in safe, well-managed environments where authenticity, protection, and fun come first.
The First Step Is Finding an Agent
Truthfully, the buffer between that talent agent and the job is what you need to make sure you’re not getting scammed. Avoid schools for children that advertise they’ll turn your kid into a star. “If you want to take theater [classes] depending on your age, that’s fine,” Rosen advises, “but don’t ever take from a place that says they’re going to make you a star. That’s ridiculous.”
How do you get an agent? Well, for starters, avoid anyone who wants to charge you money for anything. “That’s scam 101,” she says. “The best thing you can do is go to the SAG-AFTRA site, then find your area and check the list of agents. Then only go to those agents because at least they’re vetted.” Those approved agents will usually have portals for kids and offer specific ways for you and your child to sign up with them.
Headshots Should Look Like Your Child
If it seems crazy that this is an actual sentence, it’s because some headshots are airbrushed into something not even resembling a real human person. Your child’s headshots should properly represent your child’s look, and make them as current as possible, even if that means updating them every few months.
“The quality doesn’t matter nearly as much as exactly what they look like today, exactly what their age is, exactly what their height is, so we have an idea what we’re getting,” Rosen says. “We love a smaller child, an older kid who plays younger, because they have a bit more maturity and sometimes they can work a couple more hours.”
Make Sure You Know Local Child Labor Laws
Do your due diligence and check your local ordinances. “I know Florida has a very good site for that,” says the Florida-based Rosen, “and you want to make sure that the production is is adhering to these laws. This is so important.” Teams are important, but you cannot expect anyone else to do this for you.
There Is No Right Age To Start
Babies get hired for photo shoots, commercials, TV shows and films, but if you’re talking about cognizant acting, kids as young as five can start to understand what they’re doing and be brilliant at it.
“Every kid is different,” Rosen says about the desire to perform. “I’ve seen kids hit their marks and do the thing, but that is completely dependent upon the director and the environment they put these kids in.” That’s why having an agent is important, and also why it’s good to have a casting director attached.
“We do a lot of vetting to make sure that the kids are taken care of,” she says. “Particularly a commercial that comes in for a day, and they need kids, and they want this, that and the other, and I tell them, these are your rules, these are the things you must do, you must avoid. I think it’s really, really important. Point is, try to have different layers of protection for your child, regardless of their age.”
Classes Can Be Good, But Are Not Necessary
“I think if they want classes, then they should have them,” Rosen says. But she also cautions, “I really think kids needing anything in this process is a problem. I think we have to let kids be kids, and if they want to do anything within the scope of theater and acting, they should lead this train. Once I see the mom leading the train and the kid clearly not wanting to do it, I won’t hire him. I won’t even put that audition forward, to be quite honest.”
Don’t Be the Problem
Don’t push when they don’t want to be pushed. Don’t make it be more important to you than to them. Don’t be an issue with casting directors or agents who will then take it out on your child.
“I’m very into enabling kids to do things — go ride that bike, take a chance, you know what I mean?” Rosen advises. “When it comes to that stuff, it’s okay to push, obviously. But if it comes to acting, that has to come from them, because I feel like there’s a lot of parents that have their own issues to work out through their kids.”
Most importantly, those kids with problem parents don’t generally get that far. “If the parents are terrible, we as professionals see that and somehow throttle it,” Rosen says. “Sometimes bad parents get through and the kid’s a good actor, but it’s rare.”
Take the Sting Out of the Rejection That Goes With Acting
Don’t make booking the job the goal. Instead, make it about the audition itself. “It’s how you frame it,” Rosen suggests.
“We are going in to act for some people on Zoom, or possibly on self tape. The goal is to do the audition. That’s the fun part. Okay, if you get the job, you get the job. The parent needs to not focus on the job, they need to focus on the audition and make sure that kid is having fun and enjoying the process. And if they are not, they need to tap into that and let them stop.”
That way, if the child doesn’t get the job (and odds are that they won’t), there’s no sense of rejection, or being made to feel like they’re not talented or don’t have something that someone else does.
Ultimately, the Best Thing To Do Is Stress the Show and Not the Business
“None of this is rejection,” Rosen reiterates, “and if you’re using that word, or if that child is feeling that somebody in the process is mishandling the discussion or the situation, it has to be turned around to focus on fun.”
At this age, it has to be about fun. That’s far and away the most important thing. It’s about creating the right conditions for opportunity, to learn, and to enjoy performance. It’s not about creating a career.
Looking for acting opportunities for your child?
Browse current:
