Criminal charges have been filed against Premier Casting, a Hollywood-based agency accused of running a movie and television casting swindle in which victims were charged fees and guaranteed work as extras that they never got, Los Angeles City Attorney Jim Hahn recently announced.
The case grew out of an investigation conducted by the Los Angeles County Department of Consumer Affairs which launched a probe in response to consumer complaints. The case is being prosecuted by Deputy City Attorney Mark Lambert, a member of Hahn's Consumer Protection Unit.
Matthew Leo Frederickson, 35, of Orange, who did business as Premier Casting and other company names, is charged with 14 misdemeanor violations. The case against Frederickson centers on allegations that he misrepresented Premier Casting--located at 3151 Cahuenga Blvd., Suite 215--as an agency casting extras for movies and television and offering guaranteed jobs, when, in reality, it was operating as an employment agency, Hahn said. Arraignment for the case was scheduled for July 8 in Los Angeles Municipal Court Division 83.
Persons who responded to Premier Casting advertisements in the Los Angeles Times, Daily News, and PennySaver, alleged that they were charged a fee of $129 and promised acting jobs they never got, according to Hahn, who said they further alleged that their requests for refunds were denied.
Victims also alleged that there was an effort by Premier after they initially signed up and paid their $129 fee to enroll them for an additional fee of between $300 and $400 in an acting class at Hollywood Way Studios, another business operated in an adjacent office suite by Frederickson, who has done business under several other names in the past, including Premiere Casting, LCA Casting, Charles Matthews Casting, Universal Casting, and Universal Extra Casting, according to Lambert. Lambert added that victims alleged they were pressured to sign up for the acting class by being told it would enhance their opportunities for speaking parts and ensure their priority handling by Premier Casting.
The investigation of Frederickson was launched by the County Department of Consumer Affairs after the agency received 20 consumer complaints about his operation, according to Lambert, who said investigators discovered that the Better Business Bureau received 70 complaints about Frederickson's operation in the last three years.
Frederickson and his company are charged with three counts of false advertising, two counts of failing to have a city tax permit, and nine violations of provisions of the state Civil Code that regulate employment agencies. Those alleged violations are, specifically, three counts of publishing false or misleading information about services being provided and one count each of failing to post a bond with the Secretary of State's office, failing to provide a contract to a fee-paying jobseeker prior to payment, failing to return a fee within 48 hours of the request, failing to indicate the correct business name in an advertisement, failing to use the words "agency" or "personnel service" in a business name, and failing to keep records open for inspection.
--From L.A. City Attorney Jim Hah