Note From Melody: "Personal Best: I Know I Can Swim Faster "
Feature Article: "13 Pros and Cons of Agents Versus Personal Managers"
Good Question: "What is the legal difference between Agents and Managers?"
Check Out Our Special: "THE MAGIC PACK 25” -- Agents, Managers, Casting Directors
"I Know I Can Swim Faster "
Did it strike you as funny (interesting funny) that when Michael Phelps won his Tenth Gold Medal, that he was a little annoyed? Later, when a reporter asked him about it, he said that he was upset that his goggles kept filling up with water. The reporter pushed for a little more and said, "But it seemed like it was something else." Then he responded, "I know I can swim faster."
So here was a guy who had just won his Tenth Olympic Gold Medal, just set another World Record, and he was thinking about how he could have swum faster. He did, in fact, acknowledge that he was very happy about winning, but he just knew he could swim faster.
The thing that struck me was the idea of Personal Best. Your accomplishment and your measure of success is personal. Too often actors compare themselves to such high ideals -- whether it's in the arenas of Looks or Star Power or Credits -- that you can't enjoy the amazing steps you are taking forward in your career. Sometimes, it is a Huge Accomplishment for you to do one small thing that you have been putting off or have been afraid to do. It is a personal win for you, even if it's a Baby Step.
I have completed two marathons. One was at 6:02:54 (not that I'm watching that close :) ), and the other was at 5:50:xx. Okay, that's pretty slow. But it's a personal best for me. I always wanted to run one, and I did it. Then I thought maybe I just got lucky and ran a second one to make sure I really could. It's slow, but I'm as proud of it as anything because it was a personal accomplishment for me.
I leave you with the idea of Patting Yourself On The Back when you do ANYTHING that is an accomplishment for YOU! Sometimes in Hollywood, appreciation from others is not easily found. So do yourself a favor: Pat yourself on the back once for The Gipper.
Peace!
Melody Jackson
"Dream Big and Do It Now"
"13 Pros and Cons of Agents Versus Personal Managers"
By Melody Jackson, Ph.D.
If you’ve ever tried to figure out the real difference between agents and managers and which one you should have, you’re not alone. They both represent you. They both want to make money off of you. They both help your career. So what’s the difference? The answer is that there is a legal difference, and that plays out into a whole set of pros and cons for each.
If you want to know the legal difference and the definition the The National Conference of Personal Managers gives for managers, go to the "Good Question" section below. But here, I'm going to just go straight to the heart of the matter of what you care about and tell you how the difference -- whatever it is -- affects you!
Most simply put, an agent procures employment for you so they have to be licensed by the State, and a manager advises you on all aspects of your career and does not have to be licensed by the State. On a practical level, here are the pros and cons of all of that.
- Agent Pro/Con: Since you can get a complete list of SAG-franchised agents and a bigger finite list of agents licensed by the State (some of whom only represent musicians or models), you have a comprehensive list of legitimate possible agents – if they’re not licensed, they’re not legitimate.
Using the two filters of a state license and a SAG franchise helps filter out some of the non-legitimate ones. Managers are not licensed by the State, so you have no legal foundation for creating your starting list. - Agent Con: Having a defined list of agents tells you exactly who you might want to target, which is nice. But that also means that everyone else can easily access this list of agents, so the agents will get more submissions than managers (since you have to dig to find a complete list of them). Agents then have more choices for their client list, and thus the competition is tougher for you.
- Agent Pro/Con: Generally speaking, agents focus on one thing – getting you auditions, (a manager does a bunch of things). So an agent could be good at getting you auditions, which is good, but they may not want to spend time advising you on your career overall.
- Agent Pro/Con: Agents tend to specialize, so, for example, they may have lots of contacts in television, but very few in film. So if they specialize in the area you want to work in, great, but they may have very few contacts in other areas you may want to work.
- Agent Pro: The standard fee for a talent agency is 10% whereas a Personal Manager’s is 15%.
- Agent Pro: SAG-franchised agents agree to the rules of the union, therefore if you are a SAG member, your interest is protected in that relationship, so you have less risk.
- Manager Con: Since personal managers are not licensed, anyone can decide they are a personal manager. Although The National Conference of Personal Managers and the Talent Managers Association have lists of members, some very reputable managers are not members of either one, so there is no definitive list of managers.
- Manager Pro: Since there is no definitive list, fewer people are targeting any given manager, so you may have a better chance of getting representation.
- Manager Pro: Managers are working to promote YOU as an entity, so they look at the big picture and engage in all aspects of your career. If you have multiple talents, they can help you find you strong agents for each area, thereby creating a very strong team of specialists for you.
- Manager Pro/Con: Personal Managers tend to represent fewer people so you may get more attention from them, but they may spread themselves a little thin because they have so many areas to cover. You could think of a personal manager as specializing in The Actor while an agent specializes in The Area.
- Manager Pro: Since there are way more managers than agents, you are more likely to get a manager, and they could, in turn, help you find specialized agents.
- Manager Pro/Con: Some management companies (and big agencies) also produce projects, so they can boost your career by putting you in their productions. However, the con – which has been a sticking point between SAG and SAG Agencies – is that there is a conflict of interest if someone is both representing you (trying to get the max dollars for you) and then hiring you in their position of producer (wanting to pay you as little as possible).
- Manager Pro: A manager is typically more approachable. More hands-on. You might find yourself talking to your manager a few times a week – or every day – whereas agents mostly just talk to you to tell you about your auditions or when they need more pictures.
So there you go, a handful of pros and cons. If you’re still wondering which you should have, my recommendation is to get BOTH. When you’re not working much, you’re not paying much out, even at 25% for the two.
It is CRITICAL that you get as much “air” time as possible, meaning get people pitching you. If you have an agent and a manager, that’s two people pitching instead of one, and as everyone knows, in this business you need all the help you can get!
The most important thing, no matter who you go with, is that they “get” you, and that you have confidence in their ability to do what you need.
There are good people and unscrupulous people as in any business, so do your due diligence. Then use common sense, listen to your instinct, take action, and rock on!
© 2008 Smart Girls Productions, Melody Jackson, Ph.D.
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEBSITE? You can as long as you include the following complete blurb with it: Melody Jackson, Ph.D., publishes “Plugged in Hollywood,” the Bi-weekly E-zine on Marketing for Actors. She has helped thousands of actors break into show business over the past 16 years. If you are ready to jump-start your career, increase your confidence, and have more fun pursuing Hollywood success, get your free subscription now at www.SmartGirlsProductions.com
Setting up for television season which kicks into high gear in a couple of weeks, many of our clients are getting a headstart by putting new agents in place and creating their casting director plans. To those of you already reaping the rewards for your early efforts, we send you a big, fat Greek Wedding type congratulations!
We start with the very charming character actress MISS SHIRLEY BURNS for booking a Guest Star Role as "Harriet" at The Last Supper on David Alan Grier’s new Comedy Central series "CHOCOLATE NEWS." Shirley has been a Smart Girls client for years and recently took advantage of the Half-Day Marketing Intensive. We love you, Miss Burns!
Congrats also goes out to the young, spunky, and ambitious ERIN GOLDMAN, who is seeking representation for the first time ever and is now meeting with the agents who called her from her Agent Mailing. She's also getting her drivers' license for the first time -- good luck on that test, Erin. Be on the look out for pedestrians!
And for getting Too-Many-Agent-Calls-To-Count, we congratulate the handsome and debonair TIM PEREZ, who travels back and forth between Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. He was referred to us by the oh, so hip and cool and cute top Hollywood photographer Bradford Rogne, who referred Tim and many other actors to Smart Girls (and also took Melody's photo for this e-zine and our website)! Thank you, Bradford.
And finally, for this edition, congrats to the beautiful Los Angeles/San Francisco actress HEATHER GODDARD, who received 7 or 8 calls from her Agent Mailing and is in the enviable position of having an abundance of agents interested. She is currently meeting with them to determine who is right for her!
What is the legal difference between Agents and Managers, you ask? Good Question!
- To become a Talent Agency (but not a management company) in California, you must be licensed by the State, which includes posting a surety bond of $50,000. (Until 2004 it was only $10,000, but because too many agents never paid their clients, the State raised it to $50,000.)
Although the agent can pay around $500 - $1000 a year for a bond company to post the $50K, a manager, on the other hand, does not have to be bonded at all.
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The second difference (but related to the first) is that a Manager can counsel you on your career, but they cannot procure work for you as an actor without working in conjunction with an agent. A talent agency is treated like an employment agency by the State, which is why a bond is required. To get you a job, a manager should be working in conjunction with an agent who is licensed by the State (designed to protect your money).
Here's the National Conference of Personal Managers' description of the manager’s function:
“A personal manager advises and counsels talent and personalities in the entertainment industry. Personal managers have the expertise to find and develop new talent and create opportunities for those artists which they represent. Personal managers act as liaison between their clients and both the public and the theatrical agents, publicists, attorneys, business managers, and other entertainment industry professionals which provide services to the personal manager's clients.”
"THE MAGIC PACK 25 " -- You Only Have Till The End of The Month!
Our Magic Pack 25 Special! has been specifically designed to get you in action and on track! It includes:
- An Agent Mailing to as many as 125 Agents, hand-picked for you!
- A Manager Mailing to up to 125 Managers
- A Casting Director Mailing to 125 CDs -- We can pick TV shows you are right for!
All for Only $425! If you want to kick some butt this TV season and could use some assistance in doing it, check out the 'Magic Pack 25 Special." If it's not quite the right mix of services for you, give us a call and let's discuss what you need. We're standing by for you!
