We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Cory Dueger. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Cory below.

Alright, Cory thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

When I was 19 years old I was studying at the College of Charleston. I noticed an advertisement that there was a local audition for a modeling and talent expo in Atlanta, GA called Model Search America. There were top agents attending that were looking for new faces. I went to the audition and was accepted to the event. There was a cost to attend, but I made sure I saved up enough to take part in this opportunity.

I drove to Atlanta from Charleston and learned so much, met so many influential industry professionals, and most of all I had numerous agent that gave me callbacks. I had a few agents that were interested in signing me but I felt it was not the right time. But, it did give me a sense that this may be something I could really do well in so I continued to take photos and study the business. I then noticed that the same event less than a year later would be auditioning a Charleston Hotel and I showed up to audition again. The owner noticed me right away and chatted with me and offered me a partial scholarship to attend the next event and I accepted his offer.

When I went back I received callbacks by a much larger percentage of agents and many of them offered me representation on the spot. I chose an agent with Donna Baldwin Agency out of Denver Colorado and she scheduled me to take photos with a photographer in Atlanta and send out my composite cards to agents all over the world. She called me and let me know that numerous companies want to work with me and if this is something you would like to pursue please tell your parents as you will need to take a leave of absence from college.

I first went to the College of Charleston and they were very supportive and they let me know that there is always a place for me when I want to get back on track to graduate. This was also because I was a very good student and was committed to graduate from College. I then went to my parents and they were not supportive of my decision. The said if you take this opportunity you are on your own.

I let me agent know that I did not have that much money and she said if you have enough for your flight and a little travel money Arlene Wilson in Chicago will front you your lodging and other expenses including photo shoots. When you book work, you will pay them back. This sounded like a great opportunity and I was on a plane to Chicago within 2 weeks.

I showed up in Chicago, met my new agency and they were very supportive. The introduced me to my first roommates who were people getting into modeling and acting and from all over the US and world, and they were just like me. They wanted to develop their portfolio, they wanted to book jobs, and I was like, wow, I finally found my people, my people that really like to do what I like to do. We called those rooms, “Model Apartment that consisted of multiple models per room. The guys are on the top floor, the girls on the bottom floor, and some of my roommates ended up doing some really great things like me. One of the guys I met that all of you can recognize is Ashton Kutcher. I still have his comp card as I collected comp cards of all the models and talent to practice poses and to study to better my next photo shoot.

After Chicago, I moved to Europe as I then worked in Milan, Munich, Vienna, then back to the primary markets in the US, “NY, Los Angeles, and Miami,

Cory, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I also wanted to let you know that I know what it is like to be in your shoes and try to get discovered or improve your craft in the entertainment arts. I started as a child in the business and worked as a professional model and actor all over the world in my teens and 20’s including the markets of Milan, Munich, Vienna, NY, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Charlotte.

I loved the business side of the industry so much and had made amazing contacts, so I transitioned into opening several modeling and talent agencies. I booked talent all over the Southeast and placed others in all primary markets all over the US and Europe. It takes many years to develop a talent and have them make top day and project rates. I brainstormed this process and thought about how we can develop talent at a much quicker pace.

Due to having long lasting connections and relationships with all facets of the business including agents, scouts, casting directors, studios, models, actors, singers, we founded Discovery Spotlight LLC to help others like you break into the business much easier than I did and how others have done in the past. Because of the rapid change in technology, we have on-line live events in addition to in-person expos. Because of this, we can work with talent all over the US and World. Virtual Platforms are the new norm now, so get used to it as it has forever changed the entertainment industry as clients can have you audition from your own home instead of traveling to them. This was not like this when I was in the business as it has made it much easier for you as you do not have to move out to a market for a long period of time like in the past.

Discovery Spotlight is not an agency and we do not take a percentage of your jobs like an agent or manager would. This is one way we step apart from other companies as we do not want to limit any of your opportunities. If we did make a percentage, from our experience, it may limit some agencies from signing you. We also encourage you to have multiple agencies representing you as only certain agencies and markets receive auditions for a particular project. You can have a different agent or several agencies representing you in some markets. For example in NY you can have a Commercial Acting Agent, another agent that submits you for Film, TV, and Theater for major roles. We do not want to limit any of your opportunities in the near or distant future, so we do not want you to be bound by a contract from us. But, we will help you choose the right company for you. We will also help with your negotiations, contracts, and be here for advice and any questions you have before, during and after one of our events. When you sign with top agencies, and book top industry jobs, we will promote your successes on our social media channels to get you even more industry attention.

I’m one of the ones that make final decisions on who we accept for our upcoming rosters along with our Discovery Spotlight Development team. We will thoroughly review your audition, social media, and photos to make a final decision on those that are the right fit to be developed and showcased by our company. We limit the number of talent on our event rosters to make certain each individual receives an effective amount of exposure. We hold auditions for many months to take on the right roster. Our rosters are capped at 250 in person contestants and 100 virtual contestants.

Of course, there are many that do not make the cut, so don’t be hard on yourself and know you and anyone in the business can improve with hard work. Even celebrities get turned down for projects all the time. You must have thick skin for this business. There are many other opportunities out there, or you can always audition for a future event.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

I met my wife as at the first modeling agency I co-owned, X-Models in Charleston, SC. We would take our models on a trip to primary markets and introduce them to the top agencies. She went on a trip along with about 12 other models to Miami, FL and she sat next to me on the right back and we hit it off from the start. Within a few months I met her family in Atlanta, GA and then she traveled with me to modeling events and we traveled together to Los Angeles working as models.

She then started working for me at my next company, CD Models and Talent as a makeup artist, and that let up to our office manager and booker.

We got married in 2006 and have 2 children, Scarlett and Rusty. Rebecca. She is in your inner circle at Discovery Spotlight as together we founded Discovery Spotlight together and both oversee all operations. Rebecca is also our new faces director, and she will be one of your contacts as you will also hear from her leading up to the event.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

We are a very supportive and personalized company that helps our clients before, during, and after. We only accept the right talent for each roster. We will thoroughly review your audition, social media, and photos to make a final decision on those that are the right fit to be developed and showcased by our company. We limit the number of talent on our event rosters to make certain each individual receives an effective amount of exposure. We hold auditions for many months to take on the right roster. Our rosters are capped at 250 in person contestants and 100 virtual contestants.

We only bring in agents from the primary markets. Primary markets are areas that get the top jobs. These include New York, Los Angeles, Miami, and European Agencies and agencies that have European offices for models and some secondary markets like Atlanta, Chicago, and Texas. We only bring in the best of the best to see you all and in return we have so many success stories because we do it the right way.

We are also very selective with the scouts as we only invite the ones that the talent are happy with and the ones that get the big projects. No, I don’t mean extra or small roles, I am talking about day player roles that lead to leading roles on TV, national commercials, music videos, recording deals, Print and Fashion Modeling top paying jobs, and the list keeps going on. Many of you don’t know but if you have a top agent, they will negotiate residuals for many projects that means you will be paid additional as long as the project is airing.

Another very important thing is that we do not make a commission on bookings from the talent that we work with. Many other companies do this, but it will limit opportunities for the talent as they may not sign you if they have to share commission. You could sign with as many agents as you want, but we’re here before during and after to help guide our contestants. We are here to answer any questions including our opinions on who to who to sign with, and agent feedback lingo, contract help, and any other items that will help their journey to becoming a professional talent the right way.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.discoveryspotlight.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/discoveryspotlight/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/discoveryspotlight
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFYRw2r-bnnsRFRq4zMJWbA/videos