Dear Jack:
I moved to L.A. about a year and a half ago. I went to every audition I could get, every workshop I could find, and read every trade paper that seemed relevant. I got lucky and found a commercial agent to freelance with, and then I found a manager. This particular manager had a sort of an unconventional arrangement that he was very upfront about. He charges a monthly fee for public relations services. As far as I can tell, that adds up to sending out my headshots and occasionally writing to casting directors on my behalf.
The good thing is that I managed to land several roles in film shorts, the lead in a non-union indie feature, several commercials, and a couple of music videos. For the last several months--though I don't live like a queen--I have been able to support myself by acting. I feel like I have really accomplished a lot in the short time I have been here, and am pretty proud of myself.
My problem is that I signed with my manager for a year. After that, I have the option to opt out of the contract, but if I don't opt out, then it continues for three more years. While I am eternally grateful for all this manager has done for me, I am not sure that I want to be represented by him for the next three years. I don't think he "gets" me. He has sent me out on auditions for gigs I would never do just on general principle and others that were totally wrong for me. Frequently the information he has given me about various auditions has been wrong, including dates, times, addresses, and availability of sides. When I have had questions about certain aspects of a job, he has told me he doesn't make enough money on my gigs to spend time answering my questions. I have tried to set up appointments with him to perhaps give him a better perspective on who I am as an actor, but it's next to impossible to talk to him. Even with an appointment, he is always talking or making calls while you are meeting with him. I even tried taking him out to a late lunch once, and I asked if he couldn't put the phone away for 30 minutes so that I could talk to him uninterrupted. He said the phone was his—and his clients'—lifeblood, and that he couldn't miss a call. I understand that, but it seems like at some point—other than at 1 a.m., at which time he has called me more than once—he should have some time to sit down and listen to his clients.
I am not full of myself, but I have a very strong sense of what I will and won't do, and I don't apologize for it. My manager is someone whose demeanor can be pretty abrasive at times. While I know this can be a good thing in this business, sometimes it is so bad that I wonder whether I really want this person representing me to the public.
Recently, as time has come for that management contract renewal, I have begun to wonder about changing management and/or getting a theatrical agent. A good friend who is also in the business said having both is preferable, because two people working on your behalf is always better than one. That made perfect sense to me, but when I raised the possibility of seeking an agent with my manager, he vetoed it immediately, saying I didn't need one. He said he could do the same things for me an agent could and that I was too green for him to send to anyone he knew. My instinct said I should seek out other management, but I am honestly afraid that the only ones who might be interested in me are those who would cause me similar problems. I had interviewed with several other managers who clearly were crooked; one wanted me to open a bank account for my earnings, which only he would have access to—this was a Talent Managers Association member. My manager was at least upfront about the PR fee and seemed honest. He has also gotten me into some pretty good auditions. Beyond that, I have a certain loyalty to him because when I was getting started he took a chance on me. I have friends with other, larger, management who are afraid to call and ask a question for fear it will sound stupid. My manager is always accessible, even if he doesn't always listen very well when I get to him.
I have not gotten bites from the two or three feelers I have sent out. Was I crazy to seek other representation? The time for me to pull out of the contract is a few days away now, and, unless something radical happens in that time, I will re-sign with him despite a lot of trepidation. I am afraid of having no management at all and no access to roles. I don't want to move backwards after making so much progress. Should I be pursuing a theatrical agent? I think I am not the typical actor who just fell off the turnip truck but someone with a lot to offer the right management or agent.
Wondering
via the Internet
Dear Wondering:
I asked around about your manager, and his upfront PR fee of more than $50 a month is well-known and universally disdained among my sources. I have to agree with their assessment. You say the PR fee is for "sending out headshots and occasionally writing to casting directors." What do you think your rep is supposed to do? A PR firm might be a good investment down the line, but it would work on getting you media coverage, sending out press releases, arranging on-air interviews, and promoting you beyond the usual limitations of a manager or agent. Most actors don't get into this PR realm until they are a little further into their careers. For your manager to call regular old management a PR service is just silly. You also told me in later correspondence that the fee was for headshot and resumé postage fees. Wow! Does he send each of his client's resumés out individually? My agents have always sent mine out in a package with their other clients, or these days, via the Internet. Postage fees, submissions, and phone calls are not things you should be paying for. That's part of what commissions are for.
What's more disheartening is your description of your manager's behavior. Sure, most agents and managers are busy, but they are, after all, supposed to be helping you advance your career. Believe it or not, you are the client. Good managers work with you, and mutual communication is key. I wouldn't ask them to look up directions to your audition site for you, but you can surely expect a correct address. You should be able to get basic information about a project from them, and while they might not have time to answer 20 questions about every single job, they should give you more than a simple where and when. That your manager said you didn't make enough money for him to spend time talking to you about these things says quite a lot—not only about his character but also about how serious he is about you. If he were interested in you and in advancing your long-term career, he would most likely be more respectful of you in the here and now.
As for the agency question: Yes, I believe you should look for an agent. Many managers and agents don't like the idea of their talent finding additional representation. Most of the time that's because the new rep will often encourage the talent to leave the old rep. Sometimes the old rep just wants to avoid the additional work that communicating with another person on your behalf is inevitably going to create. Yet your manager's response to your idea of seeking an agent sounds extreme. His assertion that you are too green to see any of the agents he knows begs the question: Why did he sign you in the first place? It appears that he is trying to keep you locked into the arrangement you two have--with his monthly fee going on indefinitely. A legitimate agent might--rightly, I believe--encourage you to get out of this situation. As for the statement that he can do for you everything an agent can, I take issue with that, as well. An agent and a manager should be providing different, if complementary, services to a client. It is illegal for a manager to engage in much of the kind of work that an agent does.
To operate in the state of California, an agent must be licensed by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE). These licensed agents meet more, and stricter, criteria than managers do. In return, only agents are legally allowed to procure work for talent. This means that only agents are allowed to get you jobs, submit your headshot and resumé, and negotiate contracts on your behalf. We all know that managers do this stuff, too, but this kind of day-to-day job-hunting is outside of their official domain. Your manager's charging a PR fee makes him an advance-fee talent service, which makes him responsible for meeting even more stringent guidelines. These guidelines include offering specific cancellation rights, which may supercede that three-year contract you are worrying about signing. For more information about these regulations, go to www.dir.ca.gov and click on California Labor Code. The section number covering talent agencies is 1700 and the section number covering advance fee talent services is 1701. You can also use the site to check if a particular agency is registered by going to www.dir.ca.gov/databases/dlselr/talag.html. Or you can call the DLSE at (415) 703-4846. Your manager's business practices sound suspect, and if you find he is not on the up and up, you have recourse through the DLSE.
Legal questions aside, managers ideally look at the lifetime trajectory of your career. They usually have smaller client pools than agents do and thereby provide more personal attention to the actors they represent. Good managers would want to get to know the actors they were working with to best strategize for their long-term success. Your manager, conversely, seems to be interested solely in how much money he can make off you in the present. Do the math. Say this manager has 100 clients. This makes his monthly PR fees more than $5,000 before he submits even one of you for a job. That doesn't give him much incentive to work for you or think creatively about your future.
Let's talk a little bit now about common courtesy and respect. It sounds as if this manager is disrespectful to you. I know from experience that agents and managers are often curt or easily annoyed by actors and their needs. They are usually handling too many clients, have too little time, and their days are much too hectic. I take this stuff with a grain of salt because I understand that they are under immense pressure; making a living as a talent representative is not an easy path. But your manager's behavior sounds like it crosses the boundaries of normal rep irritability into plain old rudeness. It even verges on petty meanness. Only you know your limitations for tolerating this kind of treatment, but I want to encourage you not to feel stuck. There are many decent managers out there. There are many talent reps who, while not perfect, will not charge you upfront fees or refuse to turn their phones off for 15 minutes when you have gone to the trouble and expense of taking them out for lunch. There are hundreds of talent reps who would never even consider making business calls at 1 a.m. That's just embarrassing.
I know it is hard to let go of the bird in the hand, but this bird sounds toxic. If you don't master your fear and take control of your career, who will? Leaving this manager will be a testament to your belief in yourself. You can find another manager (or an agent), one who is respectful, hardworking, and honest. Pick up a copy of The Personal Managers Directory (Acting World Books, $15) or go to the Talent Managers Association's (TMA) Web site at www.talentmanagers.org for manager listings. Start sending your materials out. Two or three feelers are not enough. You should invest in a full-force effort to put this person, with his fees and negativity, behind you.
By the way, you mentioned a seedy business arrangement another manager—and TMA member—suggested to you. You should consider alerting the TMA to this person's behavior. Call (310) 205-8495 or e-mail concerned@talentmanagers.org. The more we, as actors, speak up about these things, the less of these swindlers we will have to deal with.