Modeling Agencies in Chicago: Where to Apply, Board by Board

How to Apply: Digitals, Stats and the Agency’s Own Form

Start with digitals, the plain photos agencies also call polaroids or snapshots. Take them in daylight against a plain wall, in fitted clothes, with a clean face. Ford’s tips, for example, ask for no makeup at all, hair pulled back and an outfit like skinny jeans and a tank top. Option 1 adds a neutral background and says retouched photos won’t do. Our guide on how to take headshots at home covers light and framing.

Each form asks for a slightly different set. Option 1 wants a face close-up, a face profile, a full-length shot and a full-length profile. Lily’s asks for a headshot plus shoulder-up, waist-up and full-length photos. ONE goes further, with four photos and two short phone videos.

Then come the numbers. Most forms ask for your height, bust or chest, waist and hips, plus shoe and dress or suit size, so use a tape measure and ask someone you trust to help. For the bigger picture, from types of modeling to contracts, read how to become a model.

Open Calls in Chicago

Open calls are the exception here. 10 MGMT says it doesn’t hold them or see walk-ins, while Select keeps an open call page for Chicago with its age and height rules. The Rock Agency hosts an open model call during Chicago Fashion Week and, the rest of the year, sees people by appointment after an online submission. Times change, so check the agency’s page for current open call hours before you go.

Fashion and Editorial Modeling Agencies in Chicago

These five run fashion boards and take new faces through their websites.

Ford Models Chicago

Ford’s Chicago office is on North Elizabeth Street, in the West Loop. Its Chicago boards are labeled women, men, new, direct and image. To apply, open the Get Scouted page and pick the city closest to you. Ford’s recruitment warning says you should never pay to attend a casting or share nude or lingerie photos, and that its staff write from addresses ending in fordmodels.com.

Select Model Management Chicago

Select Chicago works from the Wrigley Building, at 400 N. Michigan Avenue, with boards for women, men and non-binary models and a digitals page. According to its site, Select was founded in 1977 and merged with MP Management in 2019. You apply through its online form and choose the office closest to you.

Its Chicago open call page asks for applicants 14 and older, and anyone under 18 has to come with a parent or guardian. It lists a height range of 5’8″ to 6’4″, or 6’0″ and up for male-identifying models, and asks you to arrive with a clean face.

ONE Management Chicago

ONE Management opened its Chicago office in spring 2021, on West Hubbard Street in River North. The women’s side has image, main, development, curve and studio boards, the men’s side has image, main, development and studio, and there’s a board called Engagers.

The application asks for four photos (full length, waist up, close up and profile) and two phone videos of 15 to 40 seconds. One shows you walking and the other has you talking about yourself. ONE says it has no height requirement and doesn’t represent children. Applicants from 14 to 18 need a parent’s or guardian’s consent. If the team is interested, you should hear back within one or two weeks.

Option 1 Models

Option 1 Models is on West Division Street, in Wicker Park, and calls itself a team-driven, socially conscious fashion agency. In Chicago, its women’s boards are main, direct, classic, lifestyle, curve and New Options, and the men’s boards are main, direct, lifestyle and New Options. The Get Scouted form says the agency is always accepting new faces. It asks for your stats and four JPG photos with no retouching.

The Rock Agency

The Rock Agency is on West Huron Street in River North and also has an office in Madison, Wisconsin. It works as both a booking and a mother agency. Its model boards run from Main Board, Direct and Next Gen to Generations, Lifestyle, Teens and Kids, and it also represents creators and artists such as stylists and photographers.

Its representation page explains the open call held during Chicago Fashion Week, which looks for women 13 and older and 5’7″ or taller, and men 15 and older and 5’11” or taller. Outside that call, you start with the online submission. The same page says digitals taken at its office are always free, and that its emails always end in therockagency.com.

Commercial and Print Modeling Agencies in Chicago

Commercial print covers ads, catalogs, packaging and brand content. These four agencies book it, and most of them represent actors too, which helps if you also want on-camera commercials.

10 MGMT

10 MGMT is a boutique agency on North Sangamon Street, in the West Loop, founded in 2013 by a former model and agent. Its site says it did away with measurement requirements. The model boards are main, commercial, direct and classic, curve and new faces, and the agency also has content creators, union and non-union actors and a Real Families division.

Apply through the submission form, since 10 MGMT doesn’t take walk-ins and asks you not to call to follow up. It doesn’t accept baby or kids submissions for now. If you’re 18 or younger, a parent or guardian has to submit for you, and if you don’t get an appointment, you can apply again after six months.

Lily’s Talent Agency

Lily’s Talent Agency was founded in 1983 and is on West Washington Boulevard, in the West Loop. It’s union-franchised with SAG-AFTRA and Equity, and it represents talent of all ages, from infants to seniors, for print, film, TV, theater and voice-over. Its divisions include models (men, women and non-binary), a parts board and a youth division for boys, girls and non-binary kids. The Be Discovered form asks for your measurements, a headshot, and shoulder-up, waist-up and full-length photos.

Stewart Talent

Stewart Talent was founded in Chicago in 1984 and also works from the Wrigley Building. Its Chicago office represents adults for commercial print through an online print form, and it says you don’t need professional photos, only snapshots in natural light.

Kids have a separate commercial print form that a parent or guardian completes, with one headshot and one full-body photo. Stewart replies only when it’s interested. The same office also represents actors from 8 to 100 for film, TV and theater, plus voice-over talent.

BMG Models Chicago

BMG Models, founded in 1993, has a Chicago office on West Huron Street and also lists offices in New York, Los Angeles, Orlando, Miami and Atlanta. Its Chicago boards include mainboard, curve, men, trans and non-binary, lifestyle, youth, teens and new faces. BMG uses a single submission form, with two required photos and room for four, plus your height, waist and dress size.

Curve, Men and Non-Binary Boards

If you wear a larger size, start with the curve boards at BMG, ONE, Option 1 and 10 MGMT. Ford, Select, ONE, Option 1, Lily’s and BMG show men’s boards, and the forms at 10 MGMT, The Rock and Stewart take men’s stats too. Select, Lily’s and BMG list non-binary boards or divisions, and ONE says it represents models of all gender identities.

Kids and Teens in Chicago Modeling

If your child wants to model, a parent or guardian should handle every step, from the application to the contract. Stick to agencies that show a kids or youth division on their site. On this list, that means Lily’s, BMG (youth and teens), The Rock (kids and teens) and Stewart (commercial print). 10 MGMT doesn’t take kids’ submissions right now, and ONE doesn’t represent children.

Illinois also requires a permit. The Department of Labor’s child labor FAQ says all minors under 16 who work as models, actors or performers need an employment certificate, also called a work permit, before the job starts. A parent or guardian requests it through the local school district or Regional Office of Education, because the department itself doesn’t issue permits.

The FTC adds that the market for child models is very small and that real agencies ask for casual snapshots. Read our guides to auditions for kids and teens and baby acting and modeling before you sign anything.

What Illinois Law Says About Modeling Agencies

Illinois licenses agencies through the Department of Labor. Its Private Employment Agency FAQ says the law covers theatrical employment agencies, and that an agency can’t collect a placement fee until you’ve accepted a job. You can check a license by phone or on the PEA License List posted on the department’s Private Employment Agency Act page.

The list current as of January 15, 2026 includes eight of the modeling agencies in this Chicago guide: Ford Models, Select Chicago, 10 Mgmt, Lily’s Talent Agency, Stewart Talent, The Rock Agency, BMG and Option 1 Models, which appears under its company name, Option One Productions. The list uses each company’s legal name, so compare it with the name on your contract.

Red Flags and Modeling Scams

The FTC’s page on modeling scams sums it up. Never pay an agency up front, because real agencies get paid when you get paid. An agency should also let you hire your own photographer, and there are never any guarantees. Several modeling agencies in Chicago post similar warnings on their own sites. Walk away if any of these happens.

• They charge you to sign up, to get on a board or to attend a casting. Ford says you should never pay to attend one.
• They require a class or a shoot with their own photographer before they’ll represent you. The Rock says the digitals it takes at its office are free.
• They contact you only through direct messages or from a personal email address. Ford, ONE and The Rock say their staff write from their own domains.
• They ask for nude or lingerie photos. Ford, ONE and The Rock all warn you never to send them.

When someone claims to scout for an agency, call the office using the number on its official site. For a step-by-step check of any offer, read how to spot a fake casting call.

More Ways to Find Modeling Work in Chicago

Commercial shoots also cast people directly, without an agency. Browse commercial casting calls and open calls in Chicago. If you act as well, our guide to auditions in Chicago covers the theater and screen side, and acting classes in Chicago lists where to train. You can also read how to get a talent agent or browse acting agencies near you.

Looking beyond Illinois? Start with our guide to modeling agencies near me, then compare agencies in New York, Miami and Atlanta.