It’s Just Child’s Play : More Youngsters Are Getting Roles in Films, but Picture Isn’t Always Pretty

Shane Sweet has got it all--an adoring public, a six-figure income, and a list of acting credits that prove he’s one of the most sought-after kids in Hollywood. But success comes at a price.

Moments after Shane gets home from school, his mother, Molly, loads the 7-year-old back into the car with faxed copies of scripts. In the hourlong drive to Downtown Los Angeles, Shane memorizes lines for as many as three separate auditions.

With acting credits from “Married with Children,” “Hard Copy,” “Cheers” and television movies, Shane has plenty of experience getting parts. When does he get to play? On weekends when he’s not doing a charity event, says Molly.

While Molly says that Shane loves show business, she acknowledges that it is hard work. And it leaves little time for the normal pursuits of a 7-year-old boy.

Millions of parents have considered putting their children in pictures at one time or another, experts say. The reasons range from visions of glamour and fabulous pay, to a general feeling that their children are the cutest. And now the entertainment business is throwing the doors open to potential child actors like never before.

There is a huge surge in films and television series aimed at--and featuring--kids, industry experts say. That’s because producers have found that the film industry’s biggest moneymakers are kid’s flicks, ranging from “Aladdin” to “Home Alone” and “E.T.”

Roughly 10% of all unionized actors are children under 18, adds Barbara Schiffman, founder of the Hollywood Screen Parents Assn. in Burbank. Children’s film agents add that casting calls for children--from 2 weeks to 18 years old--are becoming increasingly common.

Show business can provide compelling financial benefits for youngsters with the interest and stamina. A successful child can easily take home a six-figure income between union wages, residual payments and investment earnings, agents say. Even a commercial or two can start a generous college fund.

While payments vary dramatically based on the type of job, the child’s experience and whether its a union or non-union production, it’s standard for kids in television commercials to earn upward of $400 per day of “set work,” for example. Then, each time the commercial airs on television, the child receives a residual payment that ranges from $50 to $100, says Suzi Smith, a children’s agent with The Talent Group in Los Angeles.

In other words, one commercial that airs 50 times can pay the child actor between $2,500 and $5,000. If the child gets into a television series, he or she can earn upward of $2,000 a week.

Children also can get valuable work experience that may better prepare them for the postgraduate world, parents say.

However, show business is not all diamonds and glamour. Indeed, it can be grueling work, charged with rejection. And--despite what seems like a generous hourly wage--when all things are considered it’s usually miserable pay.

The average actor earns just $10,000 a year, according to the Screen Actors Guild. Take away the agent’s commission, possibly another commission for a business manager, miscellaneous expenses such as publicity photographs, gasoline and wardrobe requirements, and the net income can be very sorry indeed, experts note.

Moreover few people realize that more than half of an average actor’s time is taken up auditioning for parts that are never won. That’s particularly true for child actors, experts note. It’s common for a child to be rejected for 80 parts before landing a single job, Schiffman says.

And a kid’s acting role is actually a two-person job. Child labor laws vary by the child’s age and location--different states have different labor laws--but the minor’s parent or guardian generally must attend every audition and every day of filming. If nothing else, the child needs to be driven to jobs and auditions.

The bulk of the work is also in major media centers such as Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, Smith says. So those who live elsewhere must consider staying in one of these big cities for at least a few months each year. Often that means the child and one parent must leave home and family for “the season,” Smith says.

Not surprisingly, one adult in a two-income family generally must give up his or her day job to facilitate the child’s acting career. And such sacrifices can skew a parent’s perspective. Often, parents are far more disappointed than the child when the child doesn’t get picked for a role, experts say.

“Parents are the invisible partners in this process,” says Schiffman, who has worked in film and television development for 20 years and whose 14-year-old daughter, Risa, is also an actress. “It is very easy to get caught up in this, but it is up to the parents to keep acting in perspective.”