FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
You’re trusting someone with your career. You should know exactly how they work before you
do.
We wrote this page the way we’d want it written if the roles were reversed, plainly, without the
vague non-answers most agency sites hide behind. Whether you’re an actor weighing
representation, a writer deciding where your next project lives, or a producer wondering who’s
on the other end of the email, the answers below are the real ones. If something isn’t covered
here, ask us directly. We’d rather have the conversation than leave you guessing.
For Actors
01.
How do I know if I'm ready for an agent?
You’re ready when you have the craft and the materials to back it up: real training, a headshot
that tells a casting director exactly what to bring you in for, and a reel that shows you working,
not a montage, footage. Booking-ready doesn’t mean famous. It means an agent can look at you
and know, immediately, which rooms to put you in. If you’re close but not certain, that’s a
conversation worth having. We’ll tell you honestly where you stand, even when the honest
answer is “not yet.”
02.
What's the difference between a talent agent and a manager, and do I need both?
An agent finds you work, submits you to casting, and negotiates your contracts. A manager
guides the longer arc of your career (strategy, image, the bigger decisions) and typically carries a
smaller client load. Many working actors have both; plenty thrive with just a strong agent early
on. You don’t need to over-build your team before there’s a career to manage. Start with
representation that’s actively working for you, and add as the work grows.
03.
Do you charge any fees to sign or stay on the roster?
No. Not to sign, not monthly, not for training, not for “administration.” We don’t take a cent until
you book. Our entire income comes from commission on work we secure for you, which is
exactly how it should be, and exactly why we’re selective about who we represent. If an agency
is charging you to be on its list, that’s not representation, that’s a subscription. (More on our
commission structure in the About YCAA section below.)
04.
Do I have to be a Canadian citizen to be represented?
To work on most Canadian productions, yes, Canada’s tax-credit rules require performers to be
Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or dual citizens, and you’ll generally work in the
province where you live and pay taxes. If you’re newer to the industry, you’ll likely begin as a
non-union performer. We can submit non-union talent to both non-union and union projects, and
once you book an ACTRA gig, ACTRA will invite you to join. We’ll walk you through where
you sit and what your next step looks like.
05.
Do I have to be a member of ACTRA to sign with you?
No. Although most of the actors on the YCAA roster are union, we represent both union and nonunion performers, and we’ll help you understand the path to ACTRA membership when the time
comes. Most careers start non-union. What matters to us is whether we can get you working, the
union status follows the work, not the other way around.
06.
How often will I hear from you, and who's my point of contact?
You’ll have a named agent as your primary point of contact, the person casting and producers
know to call about you. But you’re not signing with one person; you’re signing with YCAA.
Behind your agent is the full team. We tell you upfront how we communicate and how often, and
we mean it. If you ever feel like you’ve disappeared into a roster, we’ve failed at the one thing we
promise. We have many touch points, so poor communication is not really a thing here at
YCAA.
07.
How do you decide who to submit for which roles?
We submit you for what you can book, not everything that crosses the desk. Spray-and-pray
submissions waste casting’s time and yours, and casting directors remember which agents respect
their inbox. We get to know your range, your type, and the rooms where you land, and we submit
with intent. A focused agent who casting trusts gets you seen more than a loud one who doesn’t.
08.
What commission do you take, and on what?
Standard Canadian rates: 15% on film, television, commercials, and voiceover. For the
occasional theatre or print booking, the rates differ (typically 10% on theatre, 20% on print). We
follow the commission structure set out by TAMAC, the talent agents’ association, no surprise
deductions, no hidden math. You’ll always know what comes out before it does.
09.
Can I have more than one agent in different markets?
Often, yes, provided each agent covers a clearly defined, separate market (for example, one
agency in Toronto and another in a different city). We’re open to working alongside the rest of
your team when the lines are clear and it genuinely serves your career. What doesn’t work is two
agents competing for the same territory. If you’ve already got representation elsewhere, tell us,
and we’ll figure out whether it fits.
10.
What do you actually do for me between bookings?
The work most actors never sees: building relationships with casting directors, producers, and
showrunners who decide who gets seen; tracking what’s shooting and what’s coming; making
sure your materials are sharp; and putting your name in rooms before a breakdown is even
public. An agent’s value isn’t measured only in the auditions you can count, it’s in the doors that
open because of who we know and how we’re trusted.
11.
What kind of actor does YCAA represent?
Serious, working actors, performers committed to the craft as a career, not a hobby. We’re a
focused roster. We ensure our YCAA family gets real attention, not a number in a database of
hundreds. If you’re training, building, and in this for the long game, you’re who we’re built for.
12.
How do I submit to YCAA for representation?
Checkout our Submissions page. Send us a headshot, your résumé, and a link to your reel or
demo, and a short note about you, not a copy-pasted “seeking representation” blast to forty
agencies. We read every genuine submission. We can’t take everyone, and we’ll always tell you
honestly where you stand. The actors who get our attention are the prepared ones.
For Writers & Creators
01.
Do you represent screenwriters, playwrights, and hyphenates or just actors?
Both. YCAA represents screenwriters, playwrights, and hyphenates (writer-directors, writerproducers, and other multi-disciplinary creators) alongside our talent roster. Our literary division
is led by an agent whose background spans production, music licensing, and creative
development across Canada, the U.S., Europe, and Brazil, which means we read your work as
material and understand how it gets made.
02.
I write for screen, not books. Are you the right kind of agent?
Yes and it’s worth saying clearly, because “literary agent” usually means book publishing. We’re
not that. We represent writers for film, television, and stage: the people creating the scripts,
series, and plays that get produced. If you’re looking for a book deal, we’re not your agency. If
you’re writing for the screen or the stage, this is exactly what we do.
03.
Do I need a finished script, or can you work with me earlier?
It depends on where you are and what you’re building. A polished feature or pilot gives us the
most to work with, but we also develop relationships with writers earlier — especially
hyphenates with a clear voice and a body of work. Bring us your strongest, most complete
material first. If there’s something there, we’ll talk about what comes next, including what needs
sharpening before it goes out.
04.
What does a literary agent actually do for a screenwriter?
We get your work in front of the producers, production companies, and showrunners who can
make it, and the ones who hire writers for their rooms (TV Series, writing rooms…etc.) We
negotiate your deals, protect your terms, and think about your career as a whole, not just the
script in front of us. For a screenwriter, an agent’s relationships are the difference between a
script that sits in a drive and one that lands on the right desk at the right moment.
05.
Do you charge reading fees or development fees?
No. We don’t charge to read your work, to develop it, or to be on our roster/list, ever. Like our
talent side, our income is commission-based: we earn when you earn. Any agency charging you
to read or “develop” your script before a sale should be a hard stop. That’s not how legitimate
representation works.
06.
What commission do you take on writing work?
Honestly, this one’s a little less black-and-white than the acting side. With actors, the commission rates are long-settled and the rules are clear, everyone in the Canadian industry works off the same numbers. Screenwriting doesn’t have that same tidy rulebook. The Writers Guild sets what producers have to pay you, but it doesn’t dictate what an agent takes, so the answer comes down to where a reputable agency chooses to land.
Ten percent of what you earn on a project, and never on your residuals or guild-minimum reuse
payments. Those stay yours. That’s lower than the rate we take on the talent side, by design:
screenwriting commission sits below acting commission across the industry, and we’re not looking to be the exception. We don’t charge to read your work, to develop it, or to keep you on our list, our income comes from commission only, when you get paid. You’ll know the exact rate
and exactly what it applies to before you sign anything. No hidden deductions, no surprises.
07.
I'm a self-represented Canadian writer. Why should I sign with an agent at all?
Honestly? Technically, you don’t need one. Plenty of writers carry themselves a fair distance on
their own. But here’s why it helps.
We only make money when we actually get you somewhere: a seat in a writers’ room, or an
option or sale of your work. So you really don’t have much to lose. What you’re agreeing to is
letting us put our industry relationships to work to speed the whole thing up.
And then there’s the negotiation, which is where it really matters. When you negotiate for
yourself, you’re negotiating for something personal, a project you’re emotionally invested in and
tied to. That’s human, and it’s also exactly the spot where it gets easy to be taken advantage of.
Producers and network executives can tell when a writer is negotiating from the heart, from the
place of I just want this thing made. We’re not. We negotiate from experience, from knowing the
proper practices, and from a real relationship with the people across the table. More often than
not, that means we get you more than you’d get on your own, and the difference tends to more
than cover what we take. The service has a way of paying for itself.
Because the work of selling your work is a full-time job that competes with the work of writing
it. We carry the outreach, the relationships, the negotiation, and the protection of your terms, so
you can write. Self-representation can carry you a certain distance, but it caps out exactly where an agent’s relationships begin: the rooms you can’t email your way into.
08.
How do you decide which writers to take on?
A clear voice, real craft, and material we believe we can place, plus a writer we want to build
with over years, not one project. We’re a boutique, and our literary division is built deliberately,
not stacked. That means fewer clients and more genuine attention to each. We’d rather represent a
writer well than add a name to a list.
09.
What happens to my projects if I leave, or if my agent does?
Fair question, and one every writer should ask any agency. You’ll always know where your
projects stand and what your agreement covers before you sign. We believe a representation
relationship should be clear enough that this question never becomes a crisis, and transparent
enough that you’d never be afraid to ask it.
10.
How do I submit my work to YCAA's literary division?
Send your strongest completed material (a feature, a pilot, a play) with a short, genuine note
about you and what you’re building. We’re actively developing our literary roster, including a
focused effort to find self-represented Canadian writers who deserve a real shot. We read what
comes in, and we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s a fit.
About YCAA
01.
Are you a TAMAC agency?
We operate to TAMAC’s standards, and our membership application is in. Here’s the honest version: TAMAC is the Talent Agents and Managers Association of Canada, the body that sets the professional standard for how reputable Canadian agencies operate. We’ve followed the TAMAC structure since 2019 and run our agency exactly as a certified member would, on every point that matters: commission-only income, no hidden fees, and the association’s code of conduct. We’ve been encouraged by existing TAMAC members to formalize it, and as of June 2026 our application is officially submitted and awaiting approval. So: not yet certified, but operating to the standard and on the path, by choice, not by accident.
02.
Do you charge any fees at all: administrative, training, or otherwise?
No. None. Not to sign, not to stay, not for training, not for “administration,” not for access to
casting platforms (which are free, and you should never be charged for them). Every dollar we
make comes from commission on work we secure for you…full stop. This follows the TAMAC
procedures we operate by, and it’s the single clearest sign of a legitimate agency. It’s also exactly
why we’re selective: we only sign people we believe we can get working, because that’s the only
way we earn anything at all.
03.
You have multiple agents — if I sign, am I stuck with just one?
You sign with YCAA, not a single agent. We have three agents but one roster. Think of how a
strong law firm works, or a major U.S. talent agency: you have a lead, but the whole team is
behind you. The name attached to you exists to keep things simple for casting and producers, so
they know exactly who their point of contact is for you. Behind that one name, we work as one
for the roster as a whole. You get a dedicated agent and the full weight of the team.
04.
What makes YCAA different from a larger agency?
We’re a boutique by design, not by limitation. Larger agencies measure success in roster size; we
measure it in how well each client is actually served. A focused list means casting and producers
hear from us with intent, not volume, and they trust the call more because of it. We’re based in
Toronto with a presence in Los Angeles, we represent both actors and screen writers, and we
think in terms of a long game: building YCAA into a name that carries real cultural weight in
Canadian entertainment. If you want to be a number, we’re not your agency. If you want to be
represented, we are.
05.
Where are you based, and who do you represent?
YCAA is a boutique talent and literary agency headquartered in Toronto, with a presence in Los Angeles. We represent serious working actors as well as screenwriters, playwrights, and hyphenates through our literary division. Founded in late 2018, we’ve built primarily within the Canadian industry while developing the relationships (in casting, production, and beyond) that get our clients seen on both sides of the border. In short: actors and screen creators who are in this for the long haul, represented by a team that is too.