Model and talent searches have been around for decades and have evolved alongside the industry and society in general. What started as pageants or ‘cutest baby’ competitions, has now morphed into social media-based competitions or searches.

Talent searches and competitions are now used by brands and agencies, both big and small, as a way to find new talent in less-traditional ways. Most entries come via social media channels, where parents have come across posts on Facebook and Instagram.

The beauty of these searches is that they are a great way to see if your child has what it takes to be a part of the industry. Agents will usually look for children who look happy, smiley, and confident in their entry photos. Parents need to remember that agents and clients want kids who look like kids!

The winners of these competitions often receive prizes, including photoshoots, complimentary representation, and modelling or acting workshops. These prizes give them a crash course into the world of child modelling and prepare them for any potential work. Even if your child is not the winner, other entries will often still be considered by the agency, especially if they are actively looking for new talent in certain categories.

You might be wondering why if the agency cannot guarantee work, or talent on their books isn’t getting work, why have a competition? Often this is because the agency is looking to fill the gaps in talent on their books. This is one of the main reasons that agencies will host competitions If an agency has particular categories that aren’t full or are lacking in talent, a great way to find new talent for their books is through competition.

Our Face of Bettina Search has been running now for several years and has produced some amazing winners who have gone on to work for big brands across Australia. As the industry changes, so does what we look for.  Each year we see clients requesting more diverse looks, so we are constantly trying to have a healthy and varied talent pool with different looks, ages, and ethnicities, hopefully, to always have what a client is after.

Meet some of our previous Face of Bettina winners and see what they have been up to since:

Dakota

Dakota won way back in 2016 as a 12-year-old. She has since modelled for Cotton On, Seed, and Smiggle just to name a few. While Dakota is no longer with Bettina, she has continued her modelling career and we look forward to seeing her around for many years to come.

Ivana

Also won in 2016 at just 2 years old. The gorgeous Ivana has worked consistently in the industry since then. Walking in VAMFF, booking jobs for Myer, Peter Alexander, Cengage Learning, Australian Country Spinners, and has become a regular for Cotton On Kids. You would most likely have seen her across our social media pages over the years.

Teddy

The adorable Teddy won in 2019 at 1-year old after his mum saw an advertisement and had a friend whose daughter was with an agent. Despite the disruptions since he won, he has now worked for Aldi, A2 Milk, and was last year’s cover star of Aspire Magazine.

Ebony

The beautiful Ebony from Sydney won our most recent competition in 2020 and has shown that she is made for the industry! Ebony has now worked for Kmart, The Little Mag, Aspire Magazine and has been requested for countless castings, with no signs of slowing down.

Austin

Our second winner from 2020, hails from Melbourne and has already made his mark in the industry. Austin covered the most recent issue of Aspire Magazine and has already worked with Kmart, all in such a short amount of time!

Do you think your child could follow in the footsteps of our previous winners and be the industry’s next star?