News Orgs & TV Production Companies
Besides being the Prez of the National Mascot Association, I’m also Queen of Fuzz at Avant Garb Mascots. Often we get calls at the mascot studio from news orgs and production companies that are thinking about doing a show, writing a piece about mascots or getting a quote about something happening in the mascot world.
When I got a call last week from a TV production company, I felt pretty blasé. I asked the woman to call me back this week because I was just heading out the door.
She called back, we chatted.
After about 20 minutes, she threw in the nugget. To be part of the costume program, we would have to cough up something she called an affiliation fee of $9700. It was to cover insurance and legalization.
I ended the conversation – knowing this was some sort of scam.
that’s nuts. Never heard of affiliation fees
I got in touch with a longtime friend in LA who had a production company – produced shows on MTV, NBC & now Dreamworks. She’s been in the business for decades. She’s never heard of an affiliation fee. Her exact response was, “that’s nuts. Never heard of affiliation fees.”
Be wary
Mascot makers – if you get a call about a costume TV show, be wary. Before launching into a chat, ask the person on the phone to tell you about the show, where it will be seen, if it’s a very remote cable channel or if they seem secretive in any sort of way, you may consider hanging up.
©Jennifer Smith 2019
