I've had a wonderful experience with Melissa at Big Fish NW. She's hardworking, responsive and thoughtful. What sets her apart is the strong network she's built. She often has exclusive casting opportunities through clients who reach out to her directly, and she works hard to create opportunities for her talent. As both an actor and a director who casts projects, I also appreciate the depth and quality of the Big Fish NW roster. Melissa has built an impressive group of talent and is a true advocate for her clients. Highly recommend! read more

I have been hiring talent from Big Fish NW Talent for over 10 years. The agents do an amazing job of preparing the talent to come to set with the proper industry details they need to know. I've worked with talent who've done a lifetime of work, I've hired their newbies, and I've even hired children. Everyone has been reliable, professional and done a great job. I've hired for on-camera and voice over. I would like to add that the agents have been very good about guiding me towards talent that will deliver what I need. In rush situations they have been creative about getting me materials fast. 10 out of 10. If you are a talent you want them as your agent. If you are hiring talent, you want them as your agent! read more

Big Fish NW has been a revelation. The quality of the talent has added so much to our productions and the casting process and working with Melissa and the agency couldn't be easier or more smooth. What used to be something I dreaded - finding capable talent, is now my favorite part of the process. Thanks Big Fish - can't wait for the next production! read more

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Melissa is a force ; she has great taste in talent and I trust her judgement. When she 'insists' I see someone I don't already know or I am iffy about for a project she stays on the case until I see them. She is smart, an incredibly hard worker and really takes care of her actors behind the scenes! Jodi Rothfield CSA, Jodi Rothfield Casting. read more

These folks are a joke. Their main focus is to sell you acting classes. They contacted me for a job, and the day before the shoot I had to contact them about the details. They then replied that they didn't need me. I asked them why they had not contacted me, as I had scheduled time off from my regular job. And the woman, with an.incredibly phony English accent, said she was just too busy to follow up. I keep unsubscribing from them, but they keep sending me notifications about acting / media classes for a tidy fee. These folks are a joke. Seriously, don't waste your time !!!!! read more

As a working professional actor with over a decade of film and commercial experience under my belt, I can attest to Big Fish NW being one of the top agencies for the Washington market. I've been represented by several well known local agencies over the years, finally landing at Big Fish NW about a year ago. I made the switch because I didn't feel like I was getting the amount of film auditions I hoped for with other agencies, and I had heard through multiple sources that it may be time to check out Big Fish. Melissa Baldauf is such an incredibly hard working agent. If you bring her name up to anyone in our market, they'll know who you're talking about. She's gotten me more auditions in a one year time frame than I've ever gotten before. She fights to make sure I'm paid properly for my time and usage. And she's extremely quick to respond and easy to get ahold of. I can understand why some of the past reviews make her sound brash - Melissa is no-nonsense. But I look at that as an asset. She gets the work done to help me have the career I want. read more

Melissa is rude and racist - she was totally a b---- about me having to travel during COVID and I know other actors she did this to as well. I had to go back to see family due to the indigenous issues arising in my hometown, as I am part indigenous, and she was very clear that her opinions did not see the discovery of the graves of thousands of indigenous children as a crisis I needed to return home to support family in as COVID was a concern. Meanwhile how many of her other talent were traveling - who know? Just go with someone who isn't this rude and abrasive - especially for young performers or kids. Other great agencies out there. read more

I don't know much about Big Fish- it is solid as a reputable agency. However I do not recommend working with child agent Melissa Baldauf. She is abrasive, and does not seem to have any idea as to what it means to be an agent who gives meaningful representation. She is NOT in your corner, and she is unable to have your child's best interests at heart. read more

Big Fish NW is a well respected agency among local casting directors, representing talent that I am proud to call my peers, and Melissa knows the business. She has repped me since 2008, and she is absolutely who I want in my corner as a performer. read more

This is a tough one to review. I'm giving at least some stars because the majority of the people who work there like Gordon, Becky and Elise are wonderful, positive, and nice people! Ever since they got Melissa though, it has had a negative vibe to the agency! There also appears to be a lack in communication in which over the years the lines get skewed and misconceptions are formed. For example, when I first reached out to the agency in 2005 I was told by one of the people there and I won't mention their name that it was "OK" for me to have two agents in the sense that my other one was actually my modeling agent and they said that Big fish mainly did acting. Years go by and apparently this is not okay anymore by another person whose name I won't mention. Not to mention they made me feel like it was my fault. Regarding Melissa, she does not seem to be a very tactful person at all. She really needs to learn tactfulness, professionalism and an open mind when talking to people rather than bluntly accusing them of things. Let me give you an example, she had thought that I had violated some sort of privacy thing when in reality I did not. A very PROMINENT person in the business was taking a poll on cool auditions talent have had lately. I, just like LOTS and LOTS of others including well known actors in the area answered his question. She apparently flipped out and got so mad and thought it was a privacy violation when in reality many of us actors were just answering his question in some cool auditions that we've done. Keep in mind these are additions that were way way in the past, nothing in the present. So rather than doing the thing that most professional people do which is asking "okay what happened"? She just flipped out and went off on me. I asked the person who did the poll and keep in mind this is a very very prominent person in the Seattle area and the acting world if I did anything wrong. He told me absolutely not and Melissa's reaction was absolutely ridiculous! Not professional at all! He continued to say there's nothing wrong at all with talking about cool memories we've done of things in the past. Nothing wrong with that at all. I am currently with a wonderful agent in Washington state, a different one and they treat people like family. Big Fish just felt a little cold. They just send the emails, wait for the response and then send the info. The agent that I'm with currently really really takes the time and care to really get to know the people who they work with on a personal level and really show their care and their interest in their talent rather than treating their talent like just a number. Big fish can learn from this. read more