Modeling Terms: Cover, Direct Booking, Dispo, Editorial

In the media industry, as with any profession, there are essential keywords that every aspiring model should be familiar with. I have gathered the most important ones for you, which you may encounter during castings, job inquiries, or casual conversations. While some of these terms may already be familiar to you, others originate from the world of agencies, fashion, and lifestyle, and some are abbreviations. Familiarizing yourself with this diverse terminology will enable you to grasp booking inquiries more quickly and minimize the need for further inquiries.

In the last episode, we talked about the keywords ASAP, booker, buyout, close-up, and casting. Today, we will define cover, cuttings, direct booking, dispo, and editorial. Let's get started.

What is a cover?

The cover is the very front page of a magazine. To be on the cover of a magazine as a model, that will help your image and the quality of your book. A cover shooting is a shoot where the model will only shoot the respective cover of the magazine. The payments of these cover shootings might be lower than with other photoshoot jobs, but the usage of the cover is one time and will not help the selling of the magazine. The publication of the magazine cover is a career boost for the model, because with the reach of the magazine, the fame of the model will also increase. Consequently, the model will get more jobs and also higher payments. A big magazine will also increase the image of the models.

Now we will define direct booking. A direct booking of a job is a job for the model without a casting or go-see in advance. The client books the model based on the sedcard and the modelbook. With direct bookings, there might be the danger that the client is not happy when finally meeting the model. A way to assure that for the agency is to send some latest Polaroids or a short introduction video of the model before the job. Usually, committed models with great pictures get direct bookings. The better the image of a model is, the higher the chances of getting direct bookings will be.

Let's talk about a dispo. The disposition, short dispo, contains all information for a photoshoot or a production. In the dispo, you will find all details regarding the production day. It is a usual PDF. The dispo will tell you shooting location, starting of the job, breaks, end, et cetera. You will also find all important contact persons and customer details. Also, all models from the respective agencies are listed here, as well as the team, assistants, employees of the client who will be on site. You should always save the dispo on your smartphone. Then you can always have a look at it in advance, and they are all the time available.

What are down days within the model industry?

Down days are a waiting period. If you have been booked for a bigger production, the commercial agencies have to do some great planning. In order to have enough time, buffer down days will be planned as well. These days are in between arrival, fitting, production, and end departure. For these days, you will get a lower daily rate. For models, these days are quite good because usually these jobs take place in Europe or worldwide.

Last but not least, let's talk about an editorial, which is very important for a model. Editorials are pictures which will be published in a magazine. A model will get a lower payment for these photoshoots, but similar to the cover shoots, they will get published within a magazine, and that will help their image. For a model, it is important to have tear sheets of these editorials. The payment might be lower, but the pictures of these editorials are also not used to promote a product. Many magazines are published internationally, and that will increase the image and value of the model. Due to these jobs, most of the models get better paid follow-up jobs.

That were five important keywords you have to be familiar with. In the next episode, we will talk about final rehearsal, fitting, go-see, payment, and introduction. Tune in.