BizParentz Foundation

Supporting families of children working in the entertainment industry

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The BizParentz Foundation is a non-profit corporation providing education, advocacy, and charitable support to parents and children engaged in the entertainment industry. The organization promotes a positive public image regarding child performers and educates the public regarding the safety and rights of child performers including child labor laws and regulations.


BizParentz is a collaborative effort of parents, government, and industry organizations. Parent members actively help others by bringing legislative issues to the forefront, researching industry solutions, writing educational articles, and planning special events. Industry organizations provide the Foundation with a variety of resources including facilities and services.
BizParentz would like to thank all of those for their generous contributions to the Foundation!

 

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Updated for 2012  ..  FEDERAL INCOME TAX

 
Introducing...   THE A+ LIST 

Positive Examples of Former Child Actors


We've compiled a list of over 150 fantastic former child actors that moms (and dads!) can be proud of.  They aren't just the A-list celebrities - they are the A PLUS List. 

We have People's Sexiest Man Alive (Ryan Reynolds), 24 Oscar nominees, mathematicians, police officers, Ivy Leaguers, business owners ... you name it!  Our list includes the age they did their first job as well.  Next time you hear a child-actor-gone-bad story, be thankful that it is RARE and remember that these are the people that our kids can look up to. 
See the LIST here:  The A+ List

Do you know a former child actor that is not yet on the List?  Please email us and let us know!  We see the List as a work in progress and could use your help!



 
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over 250 pages on the BizParentz website!


 
BizParentz sends out quarterly newsletters to our supporters keeping them apprised of current information, legislative issues and industry events. Enter your EMAIL in the form below.
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BizParentz In The News
News Articles from 2003 to the present!

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Despite all of the serious and factual information we have provided on this website, please know that we have a great sense of humor, too!  Our thanks to Liz Briggs for her creation of the photo and caption compliation below. 

Getting Your Kid in the Biz?  Check Out
BizParentz on the NBC Today Show!
Anne Henry was live on the Today Show discussing with Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda about How to Break Into Showbiz. See the full clip below.

 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy


 
Announcing California Bill AB 1660 - Campos   
 The establishment of a permitting system for individuals offering services to child performers. Read more here.

 

Child Actor Safety

As parents and employers of child actors, we need to be especially concerned about the safety of showbiz kids.

It may be a surprise to some, but predators are rampant in our industry. Some are out to make money from exploiting kids’ images, others are servicing a clientele that are interested in darker things—pedophilia and child molestation. The danger is a lot closer than you think…in the last few years we have seen arrests of managers, photographers, publicists, directors and production assistants.

When BizParentz was founded, our goal was to provide an up to date resource for parents about the industry, including laws, guidelines and 'how-to's". Our vision was to help families avoid making the same mistakes we did, and help them shorten their learning curve. We wanted to give good, honest, unaffected-by-money information. Since then, we have come to realize that there is a much greater need for the sharing of information than we ever imagined, and it has to do with safety. While we still believe strongly that a young performer's career can be incredibly positive, we have to put emphasis on a “negative” that many people aren't aware of, and won't discuss.

Our intent is not to scare you. But please know that there is an element of risk when you enter this industry. You CAN control almost all of the risk, and you CAN keep your child safe. And if you start at the beginning of your child’s journey, it will be much easier!

Please take the time to read all the articles in this section for a full spectrum of information. 


Articles on our site dealing with pedophiles in our industry

Recent press coverage related to pedophiles in Hollywood

 

Current Events

$$$ "Show Me the Money" $$$
BizParentz invites you to help us find money!  You might have noticed a new "banner ad" at the top of the BizParentz web page.  Here's why:  too many young performers have trust fund money that has somehow been mis-directed -- literally millions of dollars!   Those earnings should be back in their trust accounts.  Please check The Actors Fund list for your child's name, your client's names, and for the names of kid actors you know. 

Let's join together as a child actor community and "Show us the Money!".  Here's how:   Click on the Actors Fund banner above.
 Go to the "Beneficiary" section and from there, choose the letter of your child actor's last name.  Look for their name, then we ask that you peruse ALL the names that start with that letter of the alphabet.  See if there is anyone you know on that list.  If there is, contact them and let them know you can "Show them the money" at www.unclaimedcoogan.org 

Coogan Trust Accounts and their reasonableness is something we have strong feelings about.  If you don't know much about the history, purpose, and current provisions in the law - or especially how it can all go terribly wrong, please read our NEW article here: Coogan Trust Accounts

Working together we really can make this better for our community.  It's time to raise awareness while lowering the balance in the "Unclaimed Coogan" account.  The latest information we have is that there is currently the following totals on the list.

 Child Actors: 30,051
Total Wages: $2,911,872
     


 
 

Updated Alert! 

If you are seeking information specific to currently operating
 "talent search" businesses...
please visit our info page
here.

 

Online Caifornia Temporary Work Permits Available

Bizparentz is pleased to announce that families can now get a FIRST, temporary 10 day entertainment work permit in California online--instantly. The link is here:
 
https://permits.dir.ca.gov/tewp/
We were supporters of the bill that is the first step toward putting all our permits online, and some of our Bizparentz members were pleased to help with the Beta testing of this system. While we realize that this won't affect most parents of child performers, since those children already have permits, please spread the word to those families coming for the first time to pilot season, or those just starting out in the industry. This means they won't need to get CA permits in advance (they can wait until they have an actual booking if they choose), and they won't need to pay a private service for a last minute permit.
 The new Temporary permit costs $50.


Read the text of the new Legislation here:   AB 1401 .pdf