Movie About Talent Agent

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Talent agents and celebrity booking agencies, such as MN2S Agency, are an essential part of the industry, and several films have focused on the roles these more subtle figures play. Many movies have looked at the figure of the sports talent agent. Jerry Maguire is arguably the most famous film that deals with the life of a talent agent. Find industry contacts & talent representation. Access in-development titles not available on IMDb. Get the latest news from leading industry trades. Claim your page and control your brand across IMDb & Amazon.

A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, writers, screenwriters, broadcast journalists, and other professionals in various entertainment or broadcast businesses but also agents. In addition, an agent defends, supports and promotes the interest of their clients. The way old talent agencies specialize, either by creating departments within the agency or developing entire agencies that primarily or wholly represent one specialty. For example, there are modeling agencies, commercial talent agencies, literary agencies, voice-over agencies, broadcast journalist agencies, sports agencies, music agencies and many more.

Having an agent is not required, but does help the artist in getting jobs (concerts, tours, movie scripts, appearances, signings, sport teams, etc.). In many cases, casting directors or other businesses go to talent agencies to find the artists for whom they are looking. The agent is paid a percentage of the star's earnings (typically 10%). Therefore, agents are sometimes referred to as '10 percenters'. Various regulations govern different types of agents. The regulations are established by artist's unions and the legal jurisdiction in which the agent operates. There are also professional associations of talent agencies.

Talent agents are considered gatekeepers to their client's careers. They have the ability to reshape and reconstruct their client's image. They are dealmakers and assist their client by orchestrating deals within the entertainment industry, more specifically in the Hollywood entertainment industry.

In California, because talent agencies are working with lucrative contracts, the agencies must be licensed under special sections of the California Labor Code, which defines an agent as a 'person or corporation who engages in the occupation of procuring, offering, promising, or attempting to procure employment for an artist or artists.'^[1]

The four major Hollywood talent agencies are William Morris Endeavor (WME), Creative Artists Agency (CAA), United Talent Agency (UTA), and ICM Partners.

1Types of talent agents and agencies

Types of talent agents and agencies[edit]

Sports agents[edit]

Literary agent[edit]

Broadcast journalist agencies[edit]

Some talent agencies specialize in the representation of television news broadcast journalists and television news magazine hosts. The journalists and hosts represented by these agents primarily work at television stations in local markets or at networks. There are many job titles for broadcast news journalists such as anchors, reporters, weathercasters, sportscasters, correspondents and hosts.

Commercial and Theatrical agents[edit]

Actors may be interested in working theatrically (stage, film or television) as well as in commercials. Some agents will handle all types of acting work, while others may specialize in a particular area. Some agents work only in the field of television, or only in film and television. Typically, the larger the agency, the more specialized the agents within the agency.

An agent has two sets of clients: the 'talent' (actors, models, voice-over artists, etc.) and the 'buyer'. The buyer can be a casting director, advertising agency, production company, photographer, or direct client if the client has an 'in-house' production staff. Agents promote talent to the buyers, submitting talent who have the appropriate age, race, sex, look, talent, etc. that the buyer is seeking for his/her project. Usually, an agent submits the actor's head shot or the model's composite card or portfolio to the buyer. After the buyer has made choices, the agent then arranges an audition (or for models, a 'go-see' or open call). After the buyer has met the talent, the buyer will contact the agent if any of the talent will be hired. The agent will coordinate the details of wardrobe, directions, etc., as well as negotiate the contract or pay.

Note that the agent's job is to get the talent auditions; the talent is the only person who can get the job. For their work, agents take a 10 to 20% commission of the gross, depending on whether the job is union (such as SAG-AFTRA) or not. Union jobs are paid per negotiated guidelines, but in non-union jobs the pay is sometimes delayed.

A well established agent will have networks upon networks of contacts. Also, agents have access to professional casting services. Many of these casting resources are not available to the general public.

Although most of the successful agents are private individuals unknown to the public, some are celebrities in their own right. Notable current and former talent agents includes David Begelman, Ari Emanuel, Freddie Fields, Johnny Hyde, Irving 'Swifty' Lazar, Sue Mengers, Quincy Sims, Lew Wasserman, Jadin Wong and The Handbook.

Modeling agencies[edit]

Music agents[edit]

In the music world, booking agents are different from talent managers. Booking agents are the people who actually book shows for the artists they represent. These agents make all of the arrangements with the promoters of the shows. The booking agent presents the promoter or producer of the concert with a performance agreement, which stipulates the artist's requirements. Items may include lighting, sound, meals, hotel accommodations, and transportation. For concert buyers, they work to find the artist who will fit in the need and available budget.

Many of the major booking agencies refuse to represent clients who are not already signed to a major record label and have national distribution of their music. Because of this, artists on independent record labels often seek representation with an independent booking agency.

Movie About Talent Agent Search

Bars and nightclubs that specialize in presenting live music on a regular basis often employ an individual to assemble the schedule of events. This individual is the venue's buyer, and should not be confused with the booking agent, who presents a roster of available acts to the buyer. Booking agents may also have contacts known as free-lance promoters. These are individuals who agree to produce a concert by locating a venue, providing a sound system and assembling a staff. Producing a show in this manner, at a location rented out for a single evening, is called “four-walling,” as the process entails renting a venue and receiving no additional services or technical equipment other than the space itself. This has often been the only available option for underground musicians lacking enough popular appeal to gain access to more conventional performance venues (see: Punk rock), but is also used among the genre of raves and various DJ-related events.

The cost factor of having a booking agent must be weighed against what the agent can do for clients and buyers alike. Some agents represent several different types of artists, while others represent artists in one main area/genre.

Some music agencies deal exclusively with cover bands, listing exclusive and non-exclusive artists on their rosters. In addition, some agencies will also work with a third party company to build specific bands using their own database of vetted musicians, whilst other cover band agencies work with session musicians, that provide a 'flexible' line up for each act.

Cruise ship industry[edit]

Booking agents are also used for the cruise ship industry where several different categories of entertainers are needed. These can include individual musicians to be part of the ship's orchestra, small bands and ensembles as well as variety entertainers such as singers, instrumentalists, magicians, comedians and acrobats. Artists looking to work on cruise ships will sign an employment contract with the cruise line and a separate commission contract with the booking agent. The agent will usually be based in the country of origin for the artist.

Music managers[edit]

A music manager (or band manager) handles many career issues for bands, singers, record producers, and DJs. A music manager is hired by a musician or band to help with determining decisions related to career moves, bookings, promotions, business deals, recording contracts, etc. The role of music managers is extensive and may include similar duties to that of a press agent, promoter, booking agent, business manager (who is sometimes a certified public accountant), tour managers, and sometimes even a personal assistant. Responsibilities of a business manager are often divided among many individuals who manage various aspects of a musical career. With an unsigned act, music managers must assume multiple roles: booking agent, graphic designer, publicist, promoter, and accountant.^[2] As an artist's career develops, responsibilities grow. A music manager becomes important to managing the many different pieces that make up a career in music. The manager can assist singers, songwriters, and instrumentalists in molding a career, finding music producers, and developing relationships with record companies, publishers, agents, and the music-loving public. The duties of an active music manager will focus on developing a reputation for the musician and building a fan base, which may include mastering and launching a demo CD, developing and releasing press kits, planning promotional activities, and booking shows. A music manager will gain access to a recording studio, photographers, and promotions. He or she will see that CD labels, posters, and promotional materials appropriately represent the band or artist, and that press kits are released in a timely manner to appropriate media. Launching a CD with complementary venues and dates is also a music manager's responsibility.

Online voice talent agents[edit]

With the advent of the internet, established and new talent can have a thriving career in the voice over industry through online casting websites. Whilst there are sites that allow any person to join, a new wave of 'professionals only' casting websites is emerging. In an industry where radio and television voice overs can be recorded in home studios because of technology becoming so affordable, high paying jobs are no longer sourced exclusively through traditional voice talent agents.

History[edit]

Since the decline in viewership in theaters, from the 1950s to 1960s, a monumental shift occurred in how studios produced films and reduced the cost of exclusive and expensive actors. After the shift, actors and actresses were working for the studios but were not owned by one major studio entity, and so were able to work with other studios. This shift has meant that agents were now seen as a necessity instead of an option. Agents became third parties who negotiated between studios and clients, making the need for the agents' services an imperative for each party.

In the 1980s new agencies were established to compete with the 'Big five.' In 1991 Bauer-Benedek merged with Leading Artists Agency to form what became United Talent Agency. These agencies were Traid Artists and InterTalent. Traid Artist would eventually be sold to William Morris Agency in 1992, and InterTalent would diminish when its partners dispersed between UTA and ICM in the same year.^[3]

As of 2019 Hollywood's four major talent agencies are Creative Artists Agency (CAA), William Morris Endeavor, United Talent Agency (UTA), and ICM Partners. Except for ICM, each agency has its own affiliated production company, which may hire the agency's clients.^[4] In 1989 the three major agencies were William Morris, ICM, and CAA.^[5] During the 2000s, the majors were known as the 'big five'^[6] or 'top five'.^[7] In 2009 Endeavor Talent Agency and William Morris merged.

Difference between agents and managers[edit]

The difference between the roles of agents and managers has become smaller and more blurred.^[8] A frequent definition of the role of a talent manager is to 'oversee the day-to-day business affairs of an artist; advise and counsel talent concerning professional matters, long-term plans and personal decisions which may affect their career.'^[9] Considerable overlap exists as talent agents may opt to fill exactly the same roles for their clients out of a financial interest in developing the careers of their talent and currying their favor.^[10]

Various state laws and labor guild rules govern the roles reserved to agents, as well as specifying certain special rights, privileges, and prohibitions.^[11] In the state of California, the labor code requires licensing of talent agencies and includes regulations such as criminal background checks, maintaining separate operating accounts and client trust accounts, and limits total commissions to twenty-five percent, among other regulations.^[12] In contrast, management companies are described as 'often unregulated.'^[13] Agents also have certain privileged powers in situations of verbal agreement and can legally agree to a binding employment offer on behalf of their client.

A prominent difference between agents and managers under California state law is that licensed talent agents and employment agents are the only entities legally allowed to seek work on behalf of their clients.^[14] This legal distinction has enabled artists such as the Deftones, Pamela Anderson, Nia Vardalos, Freddie Prinze Jr., and others to break contracts with their managers and avoid commissions owed according to those contracts by proving 'unlicensed procurement' in court.^[15] Because the enforcement against talent managers procuring work is largely carried out through civil litigation and not criminal penalties, managers directly seek out work in defiance of state laws, as clients out of self-interest will seldom object to them doing so and cases alleging illegal procurement are infrequent.

The Writer's Guild, Screen Actor's Guild, and Director's Guild, among labor guilds, strike agency franchise agreements that specify certain regulations and privileges reserved solely for agents including setting maximum commissions at ten percent of a talent's gross earnings. Managers do not face the same restrictions.

Entertainment unions[edit]

References[edit]

^McDonald, Paul.(2008) 'Hollywood Film Industry'. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. p.167-168
^When Does My Band Need A Manager?Archived 3 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine Getsigned.com 16 July 2003
^McDonald, Paul(2008). The Star System: The Production of Hollywood Stardom in the Post-Studio Era, p. 168-171. Blackwell Publishing, Inc., MA. ISBN978-1-4051-3388-3.
^Koblin, John (12 April 2019). 'Hollywood Upended as Unions Tell Writers to Fire Agents'. The New York Times. p. B1. ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
^Davis, L. J. (9 July 1989). 'Hollywood's Most Secret Agent'. The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
^'Though suits are still the standard at the Big Five agencies (C.A.A., William Morris, I.C.M., U.T.A. and Endeavor)' Laporte, Nicole. 'Let's Dress It Down, Ari.' Archived 14 April 2009 at the Wayback MachineNew York Observer, 25 September 2005.
^'Skirmishes among [Hollywood]'s top five agencies are escalating.' Horn, John. 'Summer battle royale for agents.' Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2008.
^'The Difference Between an 'Agent' and a 'Manager', Slate.com. 'http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/1998/12/the_difference_between_an_agent_and_a_manager.html
^26,900 results returned from search of quoted phrase on Google. https://www.google.com/#q=%22oversee+the+day-to-day+business+affairs+of+an+artist%3B+advise+and+counsel+talent+concerning+professional+matters%2C+long-term+plans+and+personal+decisions+which+may+affect+their+career.%22
^DAVID ZELENSKI. 'TALENT AGENTS, PERSONAL MANAGERS, AND THEIR CONFLICTS IN THE NEW HOLLYWOOD'(PDF). The University of Southern California. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
^Association of Talent Agents. 'Talent Agency Licensing,' http://www.agentassociation.com/frontdoor/agency_licensing.cfm^{[permanent dead link]}
^'Laws Relating to Talent Agencies,' California Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/talent/talent_laws_relating_to_talent_agencies.pdf
^'Agents and Managers,' SAG-AFTRA Website. http://www.sagaftra.org/content/agents-and-managers
^Busch, Richard (March 25, 2013). 'Walking on the California Talent Agency Act's Thin Ice: Personal Managers Beware,' Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardbusch/2013/03/25/walking-on-the-california-talent-agency-acts-thin-ice-personal-managers-beware/
^DLSE - Talent Agency Cases. http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/dlse-tacs.htm

Starting Out

BRANDON LAWRENCE(C.A.A.; agent since 2016; clients include the producers Misha Green, Mara Brock Akil and Will Packer) You have to subsidize a child who wants to work in entertainment. It takes a level of socioeconomic sufficiency that isn’t consistently typical for many families of color. Even mine. They weren’t able to bankroll me the entire time. I was in L.A. without a job, staying on my frat brothers’ couch. A lot of people of color in the assistants’ pools are first-generation college students. When they go back and tell their parents, “I don’t want to be a doctor or engineer, I want to push a mail cart,” the families are like, “What?”

ANDREA NELSON MEIGS(ICM; agent since 2000; clients include the performers Beyoncé Knowles, Ellen Burstyn and J. Cole) Not a lot of people of color know what being an agent is, who have aunts, uncles or cousins who are agents. Once you know about it, how do you get in? Once you get in, how do you keep them there? I’m from L.A., so I lived at home when I was in the mailroom. I was never making enough money to live on my own.

TIAUNA JACKSON(The Jackson Agency owner; agent since 2014; clients include the actors Sam T. West, Arthur Richardson and Lucy Boryer) A lot of times those people of color at top agencies are the cream of the crop — they went to Stanford, Princeton, elite schools. I think especially people of color had to come from those backgrounds to even get in. I went to Chapman University. It’s a good school, but it’s not Ivy League. I was never able to get into the mailroom programs at the top-tier places. I’m told I’m not the right fit, and we kind of know what that is code for. I’m self-taught. I have to fight every day just to make $50. I have sobering moments of truth when interns I trained are now at those top-tier agencies. Both of those people are Caucasian.

LORRIE BARTLETT(ICM; agent since 1993; clients include the stars Michael Keaton, Regina King and Lucy Liu) There was no beacon for me to follow. I had parents who could help, not a ton, but I lived at home a couple of years longer. I worked really hard. Maybe as women, as people of color, we have to go one step further — 10 steps, 15 steps further — just to show our worth.

NELSON MEIGS When I was coming up, most people of color were dual degree, having gone to business school or law school. I think there is just the perception of, “Wow, if they’ve accomplished all of that, they are likely capable of handling the job of being an agent.”

ASHLEY HOLLAND(WME; agent since 2013; clients include the director Boots Riley and the stars Halle Berry and Janelle Monáe) High-achieving people of color today, coming out of universities — tech, financial service, Fortune 500s, every industry is recruiting them aggressively. Agencies are not participating in that kind of ecosystem. Historically, agencies hired friends or family of people in the business, until there was an infrastructural shift to focus on diversity. I was the beneficiary of that.

D.C. WADE (WME; agent since 2015; clients include the performers Hannibal Buress, Whoopi Goldberg and Jimmy O. Yang) Had I never gone to film school I don’t know if I would have been exposed to this being a career path. As an educated person of color, you typically have overachieved and excelled, and sometimes it’s tough to tell that person to take a step back and answer phones and get coffee.

Client Relationships

BARTLETT On more than one occasion, someone, when I meet them, goes,“Oh I didn’t realize you were black.” It’s like, “Um, O.K. What does a black person sound like?” That question is always met with silence and/or bewilderment.

JACKSON I’ve had an instance where an unknown black actress told me flat out that she wanted a white agent. She had no credits. But she knew that to succeed you needed to align yourself with someone white. That was her view. Look at the actors on TV and movie screens now. They tend to have agents who are white. And so because of that, it’s created programming where the only way you can find success is if you align yourself with someone white. This is pretty much what the business model and structure has been.

BARTLETT The reverse happens, too. I’ve had white clients who left white agents and came to me because they felt like it was a better fit.

LAWRENCE I personally make it a priority to represent talent of color, but I don’t necessarily only represent talent of color. I do lean in toward people who, like me, didn’t have the opportunities to be heard and have their voices expressed.

HOLLAND Sometimes people who aren’t like you want another option. I represent some straight white men who appreciate that I have a different perspective.

JACKSON I have Erick Avari, he’s in “The Mummy.” He works with us because he’s a man of color and wanted a team of color. He made a conscious decision to find somebody who would understand, and I commend him for that.

Inside the Agency

J.B. FITZGERALD(U.T.A.; since 2016, point person for clients including the actors Tyron Woodley, Dhani Jones and Vernon Davis) I wouldn’t say I was surprised by the lack of diversity. I wasn’t expecting to walk in and to see all people looking like me. Frankly I wasn’t necessarily looking at it in that way.

LAWRENCE When I was working as a banker on Wall Street, I could look around and count how many black managing directors or directors there were on one hand. So I wasn’t fazed [at C.A.A.]. I was able to navigate and not feel self-conscious. I buried my head in the work.

HOLLAND As a young woman of color, when I come into work, I’m probably more preoccupied about it than my colleagues are. My boss happened to be a woman of color. For me that was completely transformative.

FITZGERALD In meetings or on calls, I still often am the only African-American in the room. In moments, where I wanted to express an opinion, I found myself struggling with an internal dialogue of “how will my opinion be received?” I can recall a couple instances where I missed my window to speak up, because I was taking too much time struggling with that internal dialogue.

LAWRENCE I’ve had an African-American male director ask me, “How did you survive a place like C.A.A.? Back in my day there was nobody like you there, especially as a black man.” It’s a lot of self-sacrifice for the greater cultural good.

WADE Unfortunately you become used to being one of a few if not the only one. When I got here there were a number of black assistants at the company, but what I quickly realized was no one would stay or no one wanted to pursue being an agent. In general, agencies can be training grounds for people to go to different parts of business.

HOLLAND There are hundreds of assistants starting a year. Very, very few will become agents regardless of gender or race. A lot of people come in, start at bottom, and very few will ever get promoted. People have to realize if they really want to see more people of color, you have to overinvest at the bottom and have lots of choices for the statistical odds to be on your side.

LAWRENCE With colleagues that are older, that came from a different era, you have to massage and make people understand the nuances that they may have missed. What people sometimes fail to realize is their kids are digesting material that I think years ago people deemed urban, whereas now it’s just culture. Drake is in every kid’s earphones.

FITZGERALD Most businesses are like this on a scale, even though a lot are trying to change. I think that’s what is so exciting about what’s been happening over the last few years.

BARTLETT One of the things we’ve talked about is really trying to create a pipeline, a sort of mentorship program to help retain people as they’re moving up the ladder, whether they’re having financial challenges or saying, “Hey, I’m the only one, this is too isolating for me.” We only have 10 African-American agents here and that’s not enough.

NELSON MEIGS A lot of people come in and stay for a few years and then they’re gone. They don’t make it up the ranks because of financial reasons, and because there’s not the support. Real mentoring is not somebody saying, “I am your mentor.” It’s someone who is as invested in you and your success as they are their own, bringing you to meetings with executives and talent, someone who makes sure to tell you if what you’re doing is right or wrong and at the year-end review if you’re not up to snuff.

WADE I don’t think I had that. I had people I looked to, like Charles King [the first black man to make partner at WME, and now a producer]. Just him existing in the world meant it was possible for me to do that as well.

HOLLAND Charles King was a huge mentor for me when I was an assistant at C.A.A. and he was at William Morris. We’d have drinks, he’d give me advice. The same with Andrea [Nelson Meigs] and her husband. The Andrea Nelson Meigs and the Charles Kings of the world were representing black people when they weren’t popular, having to explain to people who Beyoncé and Tyler Perry were. I had informal mentorships like that with a lot of people.

LAWRENCE It’s a testament to the black community, their continued support. There were some very powerful people who would call my bosses and say, “Hey, why isn’t Brandon getting promoted?” I’m very thankful for the community support internally and externally. It props you up in so many ways.

HOLLAND I know all the black agents at C.A.A., ICM and U.T.A. We meet and encourage each other.

LAWRENCE C.A.A. didn’t typically recruit from [historically black colleges]. I asked why are we not going? Send me, don’t send someone who doesn’t look like me. Now C.A.A. sends me to HBCs, and we have alumni who are in the pipeline to getting promoted one day. There are luncheons with 65 black assistants at C.A.A., where we have executives of color. I didn’t have that coming up. That’s the impact that makes me stay here as long as I can.

Now in Demand

HOLLAND When I step into a conference room, I’m aware that I’m 32, that I’m black and that I’m a woman — all [points] for potential discrimination. But today in 2019, it’s more of an asset to me than a deficit. At the end of the day I’m relating to clients and buyers on so many different levels. I’m speaking as an older millennial, a person of color, a graduate of a top university, all of these different ways for me to relate to other people.

WADE I’ve had different versions of the conversation where people say, “Are you going to be in the room? I want to make sure someone who looks like me is in the room.” I think we’ve come to a time where talent of color are finding their voice and understanding the potential importance or significance of having someone who looks like them on their team. In 2019 I think it would feel and look very strange to try to sign a woman and have a roomful of men. I think it’s equally important when you try to sign an artist of color and have a roomful of people that don’t necessarily share their experiences.

LAWRENCE I get to work with people like Will Packer, Misha Green, Jas Waters, Kenya Barris. These people who are creating dope content around the world. It’s life-changing for me, and my own outlook on my own life.

HOLLAND I feel very lucky that I came of age at the right place, right time. I feel very lucky that I represent artists who I think we should showcase. It’s something that’s trending. I think there’s never been a better time to be a black agent. The demand is higher than the supply.