The Model Liaison team has worked hard to get a first-time model to be ready for a shoot – around seven hours of work spanning several weeks (for a model who has already appeared in a shoot, it’s around four hours).
How information is presented to first-time-AW models
A prospective model applies to work with us on modelfor.abbywinters.com. We qualify their application by email, a voice call, and some interactive questionnaires. Successful applicants are approved by the Creative Director, and moved to the Shoot Booking process. ✅
There are a lot of nuanced requirements we have from models, so we first have a voice conversation with her about the Shoot Type and our expectations from her. Then, the Model Liaison asks a series of open-ended questions of the model, about her grooming, her clothing, and other key elements that relate to the shoot from the model’s perspective.
For first-time models, this call is around 40 minutes long. The more shoots a model appears in, the shorter this call can be (for very advanced models, it can even be done by email), but around 20 minutes is the shortest.
After the Shoot Booking call, the model is sent a booking confirmation email (as the Shoot Producer, you’re BCC’d on this), which recaps the high points of the phone conversation, and has many links to our for-models site https://models.abbywinters.com/, with resources for models in working with us (an example FAQ answer, What happens when I arrive for my shoot?).
In all our communications with models, we work to “frontload” them with information so they can make informed decisions. When a model arrives for a shoot, she’s aware of all our requirements (for example, grooming and the grooming check, clothing, shoot context, Posing Level, payment).
We follow this exact same procedure for every single model we work with, and your team has your back! Don’t waver if a model claims they were “never told” something. 💪
When you’re offered a shoot with a model via this method, here’s the process to follow.
Consider if you’d like to make a shoot of this model
Estimate: 10 minutes.
A Shoot Producer can reject working with any model at their discretion. Before doing any more work on preparing to make a shoot of this model, consider if feel confident that you can make a 3-assessed shoot (at least) of her.
If you’d prefer not to make a shoot of this model for any reason 🙅♀️, let the Model Liaison know if it’s a “not right now”, or “not ever” situation for you – they will let the model know you’re unavailable, and find an alternative Shoot Producer to work with her. It’s no problem.
The model’s MDB record has all the information we know about this model. While some of the data will not be relevant to a Shoot Producer, there is plenty that is. Consider the following items before making a decision.
Model Assessment 💯
[top panel] All models are assessed on their suitability for the AW site, out of 5.
5: This model is the highest priority to be shot. Rare and valuable – top 5% of models
4: This model is a high priority to be shot. Top 25% of models
3: This model is suitable to be shot. Most models.
2: It’s very rare a 2-assessed model would be shot, only if we have no alternatives.
1: We never shoot 1-assessed models.
The more valuable a model is to the business, the sooner we’d like her to be shot, and we may be willing to make compromises to have her shoot created sooner. Consult the CD as necessary.
Images (Test Shots) 🖼️
Look for tattoos that may need to be hidden – the Tattoos field on the Bio Info tab has a definitive list of what the tattoos are, size and placement. If this model has appeared in shoots for us before (check the Shoot Log tab), their shoots on the AW site might also be useful.
Check for notes from the CD (flagged as “important”, showing in yellow background) for “Tattoos may be shown in this shoot” – though this is rare.
If not, standard practice is that all tattoos must be completely hidden for all media captured of this model.
Last few weeks of notes 📝
[Notes tab] Look for the note that begins the booking process for this shoot, then read up from there to understand the issues the ML dealt with. Some may affect your planned shoot, though most often this will be standard booking stuff.
All notes flagged as “important” 📑
[Notes tab] Scroll through all the notes and look for Important-flagged notes (that is, notes highlit in yellow). These are notes people in the organisation have identified as being very important to other people (often, to Shoot Producers).
Shoot at home 🏠
This is only relevant if you and the model are geographically close, of course. It’s always a priority to make a shoot of a model in her (actual) own home, and she is paid a fee for allowing it.
[Notes tab] On the Notes tab, search (Ctrl-f / Cmd-f for MacOS) for the phrase “shooting at their home.” This note is added by the “MDB Questionnaires” user, the computer program that asks models questions in a questionnaire format before their first shoot. The model’s response is recorded in the same note.
If the model indicates shooting at their home is possible, we need to check if her home is suitable for a shoot – it may not be. See What are the considerations for shooting models at their own home? FAQ for more info.
Address 🗺️
[Contact Info tab] Ascertain where the model is coming from. The ML team will provide info on flights if the model is not local to you.
Availability 📅
[Posing Info tab] For models for whom this is their first shoot, this information is fresh, added in the last few weeks most likely. For other models, this may be out of date, but is a good starting point for a phone conversation you’ll have with the model to organise a shoot date.
Occupation 🕴️
[Contact Info tab] Can be useful for ideas for the shoot. Yoga instructor, for example…
Model info ⛹️♀️
[Bio Info tab] Most of this information will be relevant to planning a shoot. Info here can set some seeds growing (especially Fitness and Flexibility, Hobbies and Props).
Safety Information 🧯
[Interview Notes]
Check her medical conditions, medications, and allergies. Usually there’s nothing to worry about, but if the model has a cat allergy and the likely shoot location might be a cat owner’s home, well, it’s good to know that early on, right?
Questionnaire responses 🤔
[Questionnaire responses] Models are asked to complete questionnaires before girl-girl, Girl-boy and Intimate Moments shoots. Info here is essential to know when planning those shoots. Let the Model Liaison team know if any responses are missing.
Subscribe to this model in the MDB
Estimate: 1 minute.
When you subscribe to a model in the MDB, you’ll get an email as soon as someone updates their MDB record. Often this will be useful information – when their flight arrives, or how their grooming is progressing.
After the shoot occurs, there are many other MDB updates that are not relevant to you, so you may wish to unsubscribe from their MDB record to avoid this annoyance.
Check your own availability
Estimate: 5 minutes.
In the upcoming call, you’ll discuss with the model a suitable date for the shoot that suits her and you, so check what other commitments you have before this call, so a meaningful discussion can be had about dates.
However, don’t delay making this call because you’re waiting for confirmation on some other job – models feel more comfortable and engaged in the process when they hear from SP’s well in advance of their shoot.
Contact model: Intro self; discuss props; set date / time / place
Estimate: 20 minutes.
The Model Liaison has sent an introductory email to the Shoot Producer and model, and has “primed” the model to expect a call from the Shoot Producer soon after that email is sent. Engaging the model as soon as possible (while the booking call is still fresh in her mind) is valuable.
We strongly recommend making a voice call with the model at this stage (as opposed to email, SMS, WhatsApp, Telegram, or similar). Models are concerned about visiting someone they know little about and working with them in a sexualised context.
A voice call can reduce a model’s concerns, and establishing a relationship contributes to the model bringing things that will make the shoot better (props, clothes) and being mentally prepared.
Intro self
Models may have checked your Bio page on People… but they also may not have. So, prepare a concise overview. For example,
Hey Mary! I’m Barry, I work with abbywinters.com! Model Liaison Jane introduced us by email yesterday, I’m your Shoot Producer in Rome, Italy for your upcoming Solo shoot. I’ve produced a few dozen shoots with the folks at AW, and I am particularly excited about yours because you’re a yogi! We have a few things to discuss…
Discuss props
Props can make a good shoot excellent (and a poor shoot good) and are especially useful in videos. It’s best not to lead a model (by asking, for example, “Do you skateboard?”). Instead, we recommend asking open-ended questions to engage the model. Some example questions include:
- What do you do in your spare time?
- What are your hobbies?
- What do you do for exercise?
- What personal grooming items do you regularly use?
- Tell me about your favorite styling accessories?
- How long have you had a diary for?
From this, ideas for props should coalesce.
Discuss date, time and place for shoot
If this is the first shoot a model is doing with us, her Availability info on the Posing Info tab in her MDB record will likely be up-to-date with relevant info (though it should still be confirmed). If not, this needs to be discussed from scratch with the model.
Considerations include:
Date
Shooting sooner is always preferred by the company, but is often not possible, due to her commitments, grooming issues, or just her personal preferences (plus, your own availability).
Seek a date that will suit you both. We have told the model that a Solo shoot takes a full 9 hours, but you should mention that again (don’t under-estimate it!).
Time
We recommend a start time of 9am on the shoot day, but that’s at your discretion. Models are told to allow 9 hours for a Solo, GG, or DIM-SIM day shoot (5 hours for a SIM if only she is on-set). These are deliberate over-estimations, to ensure models do not make plans that cause them to leave set early (very disruptive!).
Place
Unless the model is to be shot at her own home, at this stage, the specific shoot location does not need to be known – but models will always prefer an indication (for example, “I’ll organise an AirBNB” / “My lounge room is ideal for this shoot” / “My friend has a great backyard” / whatever).
Establish the best way to connect in the future
Ask the model for her preference for future communications from you.
You’re seeking the method she’s most likely to respond to the soonest. Your personal preferences are relevant too, but we need models more than they need us, so we need to acquiesce to their preferences sometimes!
Discuss what happens from here
The model has been informed of the process from the Model Liaison, but the more people who reinforce it, the more likely the model is to remember it, and act in our favour!
Depending on your relationship with the model so far, it can be useful to ask the model what she understands will happen now (with you correcting her as necessary). The more the model says the things we want her to do in her own words, the more likely she is to do them!
The key items are:
- Model Liaisons will be in contact 4w, 2w, 1w, and 3d before the shoot for grooming images. Please respond promptly (they’ll let me know what’s up)
- I’ll be in contact a few days before the shoot to confirm the date, time, place, props and clothes
- Message me if anything changes or you have questions about the shoot itself
Ask if she has any questions
The best phrase is the presumptive,
What questions do you have for me?
This infers she does have questions, and is more likely to “rattle loose” some useful questions.
It’s possible the model will ask questions you’re not qualified to answer (for example, about their flights, or payment timing). Tell the model to consult the Model Liaison. Otherwise, answer her questions.
If she has weird / unusual questions that seem “off”, email the Shoot Producer Trainer and the Creative Director, as they are always interesting and may indicate a problem somewhere in our processes.
Update MDB
Estimate: 5 minutes
Any time anyone connects with a model, the MDB must be updated. This helps others in the organisation know what is going on.
The key info that must be recorded at this stage is about props, date, and place. An example note:
Connected with model on a voice call. Plays hockey, asked her to bring gear and uniform. We settled on March 23 for the shoot. As she is flying in, I will book an AirBNB where she will stay, and we’ll shoot there as well. We agreed to use SMS to communicate from here on in.
When adding notes, make them professional, brief and in English. If an opinion is called for, offer your professional (never personal) opinion, keep it objective and fact-based (for example, “I found Mary difficult to communicate with on the phone.😐 ” is good, but “Mary was a rude bitch 😠” is not acceptable). abbywinters.com BV is subject to EU data privacy laws, where people can request to see the information companies hold about them, and we must supply it. Let’s not embarrass ourselves. 😳
Each note has checkboxes that can be added – at least one must be selected, typically two in this situation;
[x] We attempted to contact her
[ ] She attempted to contact us
[x] She communicated with the right person
[ ] Admin note
Update Model Liaison
Estimate: 5 minutes
Model Liaisons deal with dozens of models every day, and they may not see your MDB update for a week or more.
Reply to the Model Liaison’s intro email (but don’t include the model) and let them know the likely date – they will add this to the company Shoots calendar, invite you, and start the grooming check-in process with the model based on that date.
Source location
Estimate: 30 minutes.
Based on the AW Shoot training for Location and Environment and our Location Allowance policy, source an appropriate location.
Inform model and ML of accommodation details, if applicable
Estimate: 5 minutes
If the model is travelling for the shoot and staying overnight, she needs to know where she is staying.
Model accom if SP sourcing separate shooting location
If the Shoot Producer is organising a location for the shoot that is not suitable for the model to stay overnight in (for example, shooting outside, or at a friend of the Shoot Producer’s home), the model will need to be accommodated in the Shoot City. The Model Liaison will organise a hotel for the model – this is never appropriate to make a shoot it. The Shoot Producer is expected to help the model find the hotel with supportive SMS / phone calls.
The Company will contribute to the costs of the Shoot Location in some circumstances – more info in the Location Allowance policy document.
Model accom if SP will make shoot in the model accom
If the model will be shot in the same place she’s staying (we call this “Accommodation and Shoot Location”), the Shoot producer is responsible for organising a suitable place – more info in the Location Allowance policy that has been shared with Shoot Producers via Google Docs. Let the model know the address, check-in info, and CC the Model Liaison. This info must be sent to the model at least four days before she arrives in the Shoot City.
Support the model
Provide info on how the model is to get from her Shoot City transport hub (that is, the airport or central train station) to the accommodation. An example message showing the expected level of detail, tips and tone;
You’ve got the Amsterdam Shoot City Guide from the Model Liaison team already. Following on from that;
When you arrive at Amsterdam Centraal train station exit to the south-west, to Stationsplein (if you see busses or a huge river, you’ve exited on the wrong side) and follow the signs to Tram 14. They run every 20 minutes or so. Please SMS me when the tram departs (on 06 1529 8159). After a bit of city travel, you’ll be travelling along Wibautstraat, a local shopping street in an inner suburb. get off at Stop 38, at the corner of Marcusstraat – you can ask the tram conductor to let you know when that’s coming up, or use Google maps to track your progress. It’s about a 15 minute tram ride from Amsterdam Centraal train station. There’s a tram stop every few blocks, so it’s no problem to get off at the stop after and backtrack a bit.
When you get off the tram, walk in the same direction the tram was going, it should take you less than a minute to get to the street Tegelweg on your left. Look for number 151 (note that in the Netherlands, each apartment has its own street number – cool, huh?). Check it out on Google street view, so you know what to look for. That’s where I’ll meet you, out the front on the street!
We’ll go in to the apartment together and get you settled, I’ll answer any questions you have so far. As I leave, I’ll walk you to the local supermarket, about 8 minutes’ walk away, so you know where that is. As you know, we’re make your shoots at your accommodation. I’ll be back at 9am the day after for the first shoot!
Let me know if you have any questions so far, otherwise I’ll wait for your SMS when your tram departs – I’ll be tracking your flight’s landing time as well, but an SMS when you clear customs at the airport would be helpful as well.
A reminder to make sure your phone is unlocked to work in the Netherlands / Europe – it’s worth double-checking that as it’s a common problem models face when they travel to us. To be safe, you might want to print out this info? In the worst case, you can ask anyone you meet to send an SMS to me – pretty everyone speaks English and is pretty friendly, and if you explain that you just arrived and your phone does not work as you expected, they’ll be happy to help. Once we meet up, I can help you get a local prepaid SIM, or you can use my phone to call your carrier to ask for help.
Review MDB record / Grooming info
Estimate: 3 minutes, several times over a month.
The Model Liaison will update the model’s MDB record when grooming images are asked for, received, and what their grooming status is. If there are grooming issues, the ML will let you know (and if you subscribed to the model in the MDB, you’ll get updates anyway). If they seem fixable in time, the ML will advise the model on the best ways to fix them.
If the grooming issues do not seem fixable in time for the scheduled shoot, the Model Liaison will contact you and ask you to reschedule with the model.
At any time, your input on dealing with grooming issues is welcome.
Confirm date / time / place / props details a few days before shoot
Estimate: 20 min + notes
A few days before the shoot, communicate with the model using the agreed method, and confirm the date, place, time and props to bring.
Communication is a two-way street, so don’t assume the model has got the message until she actually responds! Try to engage the model in a conversation about what’s she bringing (for example, “Hey, what colour are the rollerskates? I want to make sure I have some complimentary colours in the set dressing!” – this will encourage the model to bring the rollerskates, and be less-likely to “forget” because they are heavy and awkward to bring!).
Update the MDB with a note to say this has occurred.
Ask model about food prefs
Model’s food preferences are recorded in the MDB on the Interview Notes tab, Food Preferences field. See also, How am I expected to provide model lunches? Using the agreed communication method, a few days before the shoot, let the model know;
For lunch, I plan to get [snack description], [main description], [side description], [drink description]. Does that work for you?
Update the Interview Notes tab, Food Preferences field for this model with what you and the model end up agreeing on.
Model Liaison’s confirmation call
A few days before the shoot, the Model Liaison will voice with the model and confirm a bunch of things, including shoot type, Posing Level (and what it means), ID, payment, location, time, date, and her transport method.
The Model Liaison will update the MDB with the results of their call, and email you with a list of the questions asked / answers given.
Make a shoot plan
Making a shoot plan is required for the first few shoots a SP makes with us, and is strongly recommended for subsequent shoots so Shoot producers can Level Up (earn more money from shoots; have more creative freedom).
A template for a Shoot Plan is included in the Shoot Producer Reference Guide emailed (search for the email subject “Shoot producing for abbywinters.com, reference guide”, or ask the Creative Director for a copy).
Shoot Producers are always welcome to run their plan by the Creative Team (CD and Shoot Producer Trainer) for additional ideas. Using the Fetish Finder is also strongly recommended, as are the Posing Level Pose Ideas books for each Posing Level.
Check model in to accommodation
If the Shoot Producer has organised a shooting location that is also serving as the model’s accommodation, the Shoot Producer is responsible for checking the model in to the location. This is for a few reasons;
- We don’t know who the letting agent / location owner are – what if they ask the model for a “check in fee” (in cash) – or sexual favours?
- We don’t know what the model will say to the letting agent / location owner about the nature of her stay – an unguarded comment could cause problems (“Only Solo on the first day, but then the hardcore girl girl shoots after that…” 😬)
The Shoot Producer ideally meets the model at the accommodation/location, at street level (or, at their tram / bus stop or similar), and travels to the accommodation/location with the model, does the checkin process, collects the keys, and enters the accommodation/location with the model.
Alternatively, the Shoot Producer checks into the accommodation/location before the model arrives, perhaps leaving a key in the lock box / sharing the code, or otherwise getting the model the means of access.
However, a in-person is always preferred.
If several models are staying in the same accommodation/location, it’s fine to ask the first model to let the second model in (or, the SP can do it themselves), so long as both models know what the plan is.
Prepare equipment
Charge batteries, clean lenses, format cards – the usual stuff.
if you are renting equipment, we strongly recommend practising with it well before the shoot day, and write down the settings to be used (best to do a “factory reset” before starting to use camera gear, as who knows what weird settings the last renter used?!