Complaint Review: International Creative Artists - Irvine California

I was an employee at ICT, ICTalent, etc. It's all about money at this place. We were to look for people that seem to have money, designer bags, jewelry, type of stroller, etc. We were to scout at the high end stores at the malls, South Coast Plaza, Mission Viejo, Spectrum, no Main Place Mall, too many Mexicans who don't have money we were told. The office was so unorthodox, no confidentiality for employees, no safety or health precautions taken, no hot water in the building, the strangest office i have even worked. I was bit by a dog that is in the office everyday, had to climb over a dog gate to get to my office, i complained about the smell of dog urine, but was not allowed to work in another office. horrible, horrible working environment. When i was bitten by the dog, Helen, the owner told me not to seek medical attention or she would fire me. I got medical attention and she did fire me. I found out later the dog that bit me had not been vaccinated. Please be careful when taking your children in. Please research the company before spending the money.

I went to the ICA seminar as Helene herself approached me and my friends at a convention and asked us to come to this "audition seminar". I don't want to reveal who I am but I did go to the seminar and I felt that these classes were very expensive and completely unesessary. I thought that it acutally was some kind of audition but it ended up to be just an info session. I have friends who act and are with the SAG and none of them have ever took classes to "become" an actress. I am not trying to tell people what to do, but from my own personal experience I felt that they were pretty pushy about getting the money from me and my friends. I actually got to talk to Helene herself and she almost convinced me that I had "potentional" but being someone tht is skeptical I knew better than to fall for that. I think they just want people to sign up for their classes and pay big bucks for it. If someone wants to pay for their classes, well then let them but me, I won't waste my money on that. My advice to others is to do research before making ANY payments. Dropping hundreds, even thousands of dollars on classes that have no gaurentee to get you anywhere is something to think about. I was not impressed with Magdelena or whatever her name was, so what if she's been in those tv shows for what a few minutes? She's not really someone I espire to be like anyway. That's my humble opinion and I wish everyone luck.

Hi Larry, Congratulations on exposing this "Troy" person for what "she" really is. I will say she, but this "Robin from Waldron" has many aliases one of the lastest is "Darren from Nennah". She has nothing better to do with "her" time than to troll this site looking for any POSSIBLE reason she can to attack victims. Indeed she is sick and should be on medication. If I am not mistaken (and Im not) she has been shut down on many a topic on this site for her ignorant rambling. I am sorry you are not one of the mentally competent people of the world and are stuck in your basement room chained to your toilet and your computer. Tell your mommy what your are doing- maybe she will let you pop some more prozac. True the BBB might take a long time (if ever) to report anything negative about a person or business, but when they DO you can be pretty SURE that person or business has had A GREAT MANY COMPLAINTS... Good luck!

Easy Background Check International Creative Artists (ICA) TIP: Sit in on an International Creative Artists class before commitment or payment to determine if it is exactly what you want and the quality meets your standards. This web page contains a brief excerpt from the International Creative Artists website, a quote from an industry expert, a quote from a top industry leader, a parent's complaint, an excerpt from the BBB record for ICA, expert advice, and a link to related content on another website. CONSUMER COMPLAINT One parent wrote a complaint in which she said her daughter attended an ICA open call and was asked for money very quickly. After quickly giving ICA $400, she was then asked to give them $6,000. The complainant also said her daughter was interested in modeling, not acting, and was under the impression she signed up for modeling classes, but she ended up in an acting class, and, because she was not interested in acting, left the class. Helene Goldnadel, the president of International Creative Artists (ICA), was contacted about the complaint and she said the focus of ICA is acting, not modeling: "We are more acting than modeling oriented." Consumers are therefore advised to make sure they understand ICA is for actors, not models. They may want to sit in as guests at one class before they commit to tens, hundreds, or thousands of dollars, to make sure it is exactly what they want, as they could at a college class, because once payment is made, apparently there are no refunds after a deadline. The parent said ICA offered a refund within 10 days, but the first class started after the 10-day right to recission expired. Ms. Goldnadel denied this, saying: "Classes do not start eleven days after people sign up. They start upon schedule availability." Ms. Goldnadel was asked why she does not put the prices of her classes in advertising. She answered: "It would be impossible to discuss our prices in ads, or flyers, because we have different programs, and ad space is expensive." There is no additional cost, however, to include the prices for classes on the ICA website, which is used for advertising. At the time of writing the prices for classes are not on their website. The fair rate for acting classes according to a casting director in Los Angeles is $25-40/week. MODELING PROGRAM Ms. Goldnadel maintains ICA screens potential models for their modeling program. They do not accept everyone. The exact standards of the ICA model screening process, however, remain unclear. "Our fashion course teaches the few people who do qualify, how to walk on the runway and handle themselves in front of a still camera. It also allows kids to become less shy. They learn about hair, makeup, nails, etc. A lot of parents are told their teenager does not qualify for fashion, but they have the kids take the course as part of a whole program." The fair rate for modeling classes is nothing. QUOTE FROM INDUSTRY LEADER The person most qualified to speak on modeling schools or modeling classes is the president of a top modeling agency. Such a person knows exactly what is needed, if anything, to prepare a girl to be a model. Monique Pillard, as President of Elite Model Management, based in New York City, and one of the top modeling agencies in the world, said: If [a girl] comes off the street into Elite and we think she has potential, she doesn't need to pay for classes. Somewhere down the line, she may take runway classes, which she doesn't pay for. We absolutely bear the burden. If a girl has talent and potential to become a model, of course, we help. It's a scam of [the model] paying $1,000 or $2,000. That's [expletive]! -- THE IMPROBABLE DREAM, Robin Givhan, Washington Post, December 2, 1996; Page C1 Helene Goldnadel stressed: "I do let people know during a presentation that modeling classes are not really needed to become a model." "INTERNATIONAL" It is not clear to everyone how "international" International Creative Artists is. One critic of ICA alleged the company name implies offices in different countries, but ICA apparently has only one office. Some modeling and talent companies use the word "international" in their company name to make them look bigger and more successful than they actually are. The late Dott Burns, who was a veteran industry agent, once warned: "As in any business, there are greedy people and con artists who just want your money. Don't ever pay up front for an agent or a job. Never! And be cautious about people using the word international.(Breaking Into s****.). ICA is upfront by stating on their website home page they work directly with agents in New York, France, London, and Milan, although they don't provide the names of the agents. They don't say they have offices in France, England, and Italy. BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU RECORD (as of Nov. 11, 2003) We rate this company as having an unsatisfactory business performance record. One complainant contends that after paying $600.00 for a photo shoot, the company failed to deliver the photos. Another complainant paid a $300 deposit for photos; however, no photographs were ever taken, no refund was issued, and the customer experienced difficulty contacting the owner about these issues. A third complainant alleges that the ad in the newspaper led him to believe the company was an agency. However, when the customer arrived for the appointment, he discovered that the company was offering a seminar for classes which require a starting fee of $1,000. PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY The BBB file for ICA, as noted above, said ICA is involved in professional photography. Ms. Goldnadel countered: "We do not offer the service of zed cards and I explain to people that most do not need a zed card." Nina Blanchard of the Nina Blanchard Agency has previously advised: "Do not get a portfolio before getting an agent." Other agents at leading agencies have said the same thing. They want snapshots before they decide to represent anyone. SUCCESS STORY One of Helene Goldnadel's former students, Magdalena Zielinska, wrote to the site after seeing earlier comments by a parent: "This is a complaint against the person whose daughter dropped out of my school and is slandering it!" Shortly thereafter, Helene Goldnadel herself sent an email in which she alleged the same thing. Zielinska is heralded by Goldnadel as her five-star success story, having landed some work in popular TV programs. She praised ICA to the nth degree to the point where it appeared there might be more than simply a president-student relationship. "I authorized ICA to advertise themself through me," says Magdalena Zielinska. One insider maintains Zielinska is not simply a student; Zielinska and Goldnadel are like business partners. Ms. Zielinska was asked: "Do you work for ICA? Have you previously worked for ICA? Have you ever been paid by ICA, directly or indirectly?" Zielinska responded: "I am an ICA student. I have taken classes which I paid for." A closer look at the ICA website, however, reveals Magdalena Zielinska co-wrote a book with Helene Goldnadel: What You Always Wanted To Know About Acting & Modeling... But Never Got the Right Answers by Helene Goldnadel & Magdalena Zielinska. --- REBUTTAL BY Helene Goldnadel, Owner, International Creative Artists Where you say: "Posting prices on a site is free" My answer is: "We give a lot of scholarships, and our partial scholarships reduce the cost of our courses considerably. In addition, our students are able at no additional charge to come in and run lines on a one on one basis with myself and/or one of our coaches, before going to the first audition (casting), and the final auditions, (going to producers). This service would cost them elsewhere $25, to $50, up to $100 a visit. This private coaching is available to our clients at no additional charge, whether they signed up for one inexpensive course or for all the courses. So the posting of our price list would be inaccurate." Where you say: "The fair price for acting classes is $25 a class" My Answer is: "You definitely get what you pay for. If you pay very little for a course, you may not get additional support beyond general acting studies. Individual coaching per audition may not be included in that price. This site should write about Juilliard, or NYU, because they charge $200,000 for four years and more, and not every one with such credentials on their resume gets work. ICA students on our VIP programs, taking unlimited amount of classes pay less than $25 a class." Where you say: "The fair price for modeling classes is nothing" My answer is: "Our fashion course goes beyond fashion in terms of self-affirmation, developing the ability to use ones sensitivity towards zxpression (so one has the sensitivity as a tool verses, the sensitivity having them). And also nutrition, proper dieting, hair, nails, make-up etc... Finally our fashion course is always offered as part of a bigger program." Where you say "an insider" told us that Magdalena Zielinska co-wrote a book... My answer is: "When Ms Zielinska found out that I was writing a book about modeling, she asked to write a couple of chapters from the point of view of a model, and I thought it was the right thing to do to give her some credits on the book for that. I met Ms Zielinska in New York, when I was an agent, and helped her get work in the industry, she later on moved to LA and she joined ICA. This is a business of referrals, and favors, people that work together become friends along the line, and then partner up on other aspects of the industry. For instance, Ms Zielinska has a role on my pilot. She is a fully trained actor, why wouldn't she lend that part? Ms Zielinska is not a business partner of ICA, the simple way to check on that is by going to the corporate office and ask the name of the owner." Very truly yours, Helene Goldnadel LINKS Related: Helen Goldnadel answers her critics on Rip Off Report --- EMAIL (Questions/Comments) Easy Background Check

It has been reported to the "badbusinessbureau.com" that, the BBB encourages and solicits money from the very businesses they monitor! How could this be beneficial to the consumer? Consumers have reported, the BBB DOES NOT report consumer complaints which are under investigation, even when they know the business is under criminal investigation and is about to be shut down. ......(see victim's story down below) What the BBB does, is give the business that is being reported the opportunity to respond. If the business responds many times this is enough to give the business a satisfactory rating, no matter what their response is! Most BBB offices do not report any past history of a business, even when that business continuously victimizes different consumers. Even when the business just continuously satisfies each costumer complaint, you will never know of this information in the future. All you might know is, ...."they have satisfied their complaints." ..GIVING THEM A SATISFACTORY RATING. Even when a business does have complaints that are unsatisfied, they still might get a satisfactory rating. The BBB Better Business Bureau will not tell you what the complaints were even when they tell you, they satisfied all complaints. The BBB must realize what a consumer must have gone through before resorting to filing a complaint! And for every consumer that did file a Complaint, there are 20 others that did not complain. And you can be next! When consumers see that Better Business Bureau plaque, this gives the consumer a false sense of security. Consumers need to be made aware of this rip-off & misconception nationwide. Remember, all you need to do to become a BBB member and get that very impressive, overrated BBB plaque, is to call the BBB and tell them you want to be a member. You can tell the BBB any lie you want about yourself, ...they will never check it out. That's correct! They never check it out. All that BBB plaque means is, they paid their dues. (Period) Services they provide? Services is an over statement! If they ever try to resolve your dispute by having mediation, the BBB decision means nothing in a court of law. The BBB does provide a mediation service, but the BBB cannot force the business to do anything for you to resolve your consumer rip-off. They can only make suggestions. And if the business does not comply, this will not insure an unsatisfactory rating for the business that ripped you off. Not too good for the consumer who has been victimized and not to good for future consumers who will call the BBB to see if the business has a good rating before they do business.. Even when many complaints are satisfied by a business, they can still get a satisfactory rating. Many times, all a business needs to do to satisfy the victim's complaint is just simply answer the BBB alleged complaint. Consumers put too much faith and respect into the BBB. The BBB is in the business of collecting fees from the very businesses they monitor. That's like the fox guarding the hen house. And we wonder why the courts are so jam packed? And we wonder why the Attorney General's office cannot give the consumer any attention. The AG's office only has time for the high profile cases. They are way-under-staffed. (Another subject for another time) The above information about the BBB may vary form state to state, where some BBB offices may be more scrutinizing in their efforts to check on business when becoming a member and some BBB offices might be more thorough and revealing in reporting than the BBB offices we have investigated around the United States. badbusinessbureau.com does recommend the BBB to consumers, because it is so hard for a business to get a bad report with the BBB, we always recommend for a consumer, when filing a report with the badbusinessbureau.com or before doing business, to check with the Better Business Bureau first. You know a business is really BAD if it has an unsatisfactory rating with the BBB!

I did not write the previous comments. I am being impersonated by the"Christine" before. There is absolutely no real complaint about our company. It is obvious that the "Christine" before read the names of some agents off letters of thank you from our students or students' parents which we post on our walls. Some of the agencies described above as coming to our school are not among the agencies that do come in to evaluate our students. Someone who came in to one of our auditions pretending to be evaluated as a potential student picked up a couple of agencies' names off such thank you letters. I would never call our students "customers". The agents that come in to evaluate our students, do not exclusively scout at our school. This is another lame attempt to slander and defame an honest business. I am keeping a copy of this "rebuttal", just in case the owner of this site would make the poor decision not to post this response. Our owner found out about this proposterous impersonation, as "Linda Miller" sent her a link on one of those harassing emails.

International Creative Artists 2646 Dupont Drive, Suite C-270 Irvine CA 92612 Business Started: 01/01/92 File Open Date: 04/10/02 Last Report Date: 03/08/04 Principal Contact: Helene Goldnadel Phone: (949) 515-2111 Fax: (949) 250-3222 Email: Not Available Web Address: http://www.internationalcreativeartists.com Nature of Business This company's business is providing modeling and acting training services. Bureau File Experience We rate this company as having an unsatisfactory business performance record. One complainant contends that after paying $600.00 for a photo shoot, the company failed to deliver the photos. Another complainant paid a $300 deposit for photos; however, no photographs were ever taken, no refund was issued, and the customer experienced difficulty contacting the owner about these issues. A third complainant alleges that the ad in the newspaper led him to believe the company was an agency. However, when the customer arrived for the appointment, he discovered that the company was offering a seminar for classes which require a starting fee of $1,000. ZAZOU MODELING 560 Sylvan AVenue 3rd Floor Englewood Cliff, NJ 07632 Local Phone Number: (732) 000-0000 TOB Classification: Modeling Agencies The information in this report has either been provided by the company, or has been compiled by the Bureau from other sources. Customer Experience Our file shows mail sent to this company was returned by the Post Office as moved, left no forwarding order, forwarding order expired, or unable to locate. Our file contains no other information to enable us to issue a report at this time. Educational/General Comments There are ethical and legitimate talent and modeling agencies in the entertainment business. Before becoming involved with an agency, know exactly what they should be doing for you. An agency should be engaged in the marketing and booking of talent. Usually a state license is required to book work for a fee. The agent's role is to promote the talent who has contracted for their marketing services, negotiate the most favorable contract for the talent and collect a commission from the talent. You should interview your agent as thoroughly as you would interview your doctor, lawyer, or CPA. Remember, the agent will be working for you, not vice versa. Carefully review your contract with your agent. This is your agreement regarding what the agent will do to earn the commission you pay. To help you detect fraudulent opportunities, the Better Business Bureau warns that disreputable agencies often: Ask for up-front money, which may be called registration, consultation, or administrative fees. Legitimate agents work on a commission. They don't get any money until you get paid for doing the work they have obtained for you. Pressure you to leave a check or cash deposit or sign a contract immediately. The agent may insist that you take acting lessons at a particular school or from a particular teacher; or may try to get you to buy expensive photographs, audition tapes, or other services or materials sold by someone he or she suggests. An agent's time should be spent finding work for his or her client, not selling products and services. Display pictures of famous models or celebrities on the walls to make you believe they are represented by that agency, although they're not. Use names which sound similar to well-known agencies. Fraudulent companies will sometimes do this to give the incorrect impression that they are connected to a legitimate entity. Place phony ads in the help wanted section of newspapers that say something like, new faces wanted for commercials, movies or modeling or claim that no experience is necessary. Problems or complaints about an agent or an agency may be referred to the BBB, state Department of Licensing and Regulation or consumer protection agency in the city where the company is located. To obtain helpful consumer information on a particular agency, you will need to contact the local BBB that serves that particular city. all looks a lil fishy to me if it smells like fish its fricken fish

my name is Christine. I work for ICA in Irvine. I am the manager. Yes...we do get a lot of complaints but, it's because people do not listen to what we say. No one is promised work. There's no way we could guarantee that. We try our best. We have legit agents come to our office, i.e.: Cunningham, Bobby Ball Agency, Daniel Hoff Agency, House of Representatives, Coralie Jr. Agency. They hire our kids all of the time. Some of these agencies use ICA exclusively. I beleieve Helene is going to get licensed and bonded as an advance fee service. She wants to do the right thing. She's a great person. We've lost a lot of business from the scam artist who owns the easy background check website. I guess he used to work with Helene. That's what she told me. The guy's a total loser. We do our best at ICA! I wouldn't be here if we weren't! We've tryed to answer all of the Better Business Bureau complaints. We do get a lot of them, but, again, it's because we do have some stupid customers that do not listen to Helene. Quit complaining everyone! Helene is doing her best! She's lost a lot of business from this. Sometimes she cannot even make payrol. She's really a great person.

I cannot imagine why people would believe any or all these reports against Helen Goldnadel or ICA. I initially chose to have my niece attend International Creative Artist after I carefully investigated these reports and made a decision based on my findings. I am not sorry for making that decision. Truthfully, I have not once seen any truths to any of these accusations against Helen, ICA or any of the staff. My experience has only been positive with everyone there at ICA. I have seen a tremendous amount of growth in my nieces abilities which I thought previously would be near impossible to develop at this juncture in her life. You see her mother; my sister had a stroke April 2003. They removed her left side of her brain and through all this my niece has lost some of her child hood. ICA has given back something of what she lost over the last year and a lot more. The teaching staff is so dedicated to their students. They really do care! All the extra time that they spend on their students is never mentioned in ICA class programs. My niece attends classes twice a week from 7pm to 9pm. But the classes remain in session overtime till 9:15 or 9:30 pm. Once classes end the teachers just keep going. Dedication to your dollars doesn't stop their, their entire staff goes completely out of their way for you. I have not seen once a unhappy ex-student come through the front doors of International Creative Artist, in fact why would Helen stay late in the evening every evening at her office if so many people were unhappy. I just don't see it. Two BIG thumbs up for ICA and Helen. I will continue to report my experiences on this website if you choose to follow. What we need here and more in this world is HONOSTY. You will get used to it here because I only write what the truth is. Troy

I cannot imagine why people would believe any or all these reports against Helen Goldnadel or ICA. I initially chose to have my niece attend International Creative Artist after I carefully investigated these reports and made a decision based on my findings. I am not sorry for making that decision. Truthfully, I have not once seen any truths to any of these accusations against Helen, ICA or any of the staff. My experience has only been positive with everyone there at ICA. I have seen a tremendous amount of growth in my nieces abilities which I thought previously would be near impossible to develop at this juncture in her life. You see her mother; my sister had a stroke April 2003. They removed her left side of her brain and through all this my niece has lost some of her child hood. ICA has given back something of what she lost over the last year and a lot more. The teaching staff is so dedicated to their students. They really do care! All the extra time that they spend on their students is never mentioned in ICA class programs. My niece attends classes twice a week from 7pm to 9pm. But the classes remain in session overtime till 9:15 or 9:30 pm. Once classes end the teachers just keep going. Dedication to your dollars doesn't stop their, their entire staff goes completely out of their way for you. I have not seen once a unhappy ex-student come through the front doors of International Creative Artist, in fact why would Helen stay late in the evening every evening at her office if so many people were unhappy. I just don't see it. Two BIG thumbs up for ICA and Helen. I will continue to report my experiences on this website if you choose to follow. What we need here and more in this world is HONOSTY. You will get used to it here because I only write what the truth is. Troy

Troy, I hate to burst your bubble but I exist as an individual. I occassionally check up on ICA's status, and can assure all that I have only posted once. Even the photographer who took my headshots through ICA (I hope he has since left) danced upon the issue of her inadequacies as a "manager." He never came out and said anything blatantly against her, but it only substantiated what I already felt. Please do not fall for Helene's ego stroking and bullying, as opposing as those traits are that is what she does. And anyone who has met with her can agree to that. She claims to provide agents. In over 3 months I only saw one agent who didn't give anyone more than 10 seconds. What are these traits we all possess, I'd like to know. Capital lettering? That's rich. Isn't that one of the only ways people can get their point across via text? The reason I entered only an initial is so she doesn't come after me, she is a psycho and would not be surprised if she did. So I guess I'm bitter. But I am a lone entity, Troy.

Further proving my point.Cynthia, K etc. Whoever you are.You have been exposed once again, the term you use Sleaze bag was also used by K from Westminister California in the first complaint issued against Helen. You are now going to witness justice in its original context since you abuse the right of every American everyday your complaints are posted on this website. Our Freedom which you are abusing will end. Ripoffreport.com has promised to investigate my findings. Please refer to New ripoffreport against ripoffreport.com I posted March 3,2004. Search for ripoffreport.com titled Rip off on ripoffreport.com. HELEN IS INOCENT.

This company is a complete rip-off. Stay away from them! All of these so called "positve" letters are most likely from Helene Goldnadel herself. She is a sleaze bag! This doesn't know her a*s from her elbow! She also ripped of people in New Jersey but was banned from operating in that state. I received negative information about her from the Screen Actors Guild. They have received many complaints about this idiot scammer! Get a life Helene!