This week's topic comes to you by request from reader Krystal…
I would love to know more about seeking representation - i know you've covered a little bit with following up and being consistent, but seems many of my actor friends are either dissatisfied with their representation or don't know how to go about seeking it in the first place.
How to get representation. On the pie chart of 'What Actors Think About,' this topic would take up... a lotta pie. As Krystal points out, actors at all levels of experience can be unhappy with their representation situation, from seasoned pros to those tackling representation for the first time.
I'm breaking the answer to this question into two parts, because most actors bring a lot of hidden assumptions and baggage to the question of representation, and it's important to get that stuff out in the open and dealt with before you get anywhere near signing on the proverbial - or actual - dotted line. (You know that friend who keeps having terrible romantic relationships and can't figure out why, when it's obvious to everyone but them that it's because they're sabotaging themselves with bad choices, unreasonable expectations, screwy boundaries, etc.? Same thing.)
So this week, we're going to unpack the most common manifestations of representation baggage so you can set yourself up for success and start your next agent/manager relationship clean & healthy. It may be a little uncomfortable, but that's what thick skin is for, right? Right. So here we go.
- Understand the relationship
Probably the biggest cause of conflict between actors and their representatives is a misunderstanding of what the other is supposed to be doing. Specifically, we actors think our reps should be spending most of their time trying to get us auditions. We are wrong. An agent's primary job is to negotiate the contract once you book a job. A manager's primary job is to 'manage' your career (the meaning of which is open to major interpretation.) Agents and managers typically do spend some time trying to get you auditions because if they didn't, they'd go broke… But in fact, the person primarily responsible for getting you auditions is YOU. This is reflected in the fact that our reps get 10-20% of our total earnings, meaning they should only be doing 10-20% of the work. Even if we generously estimate that 50% of our job is doing the actual acting, that leaves us responsible for 30-40% of the non-acting, audition-getting work of our careers - twice as much as our reps. If we're not living up to our end of the deal, the cause of our dissatisfaction isn't our representation - it's us.
- Do your part
If you aren't doing 30-40% of your career work, it's probably not because you're lazy; it's because you don't know what to do. This goes back to the fundamentals of doing one thing every day and focusing on what you can control. When it comes to agents and managers, it helps to think in terms of empowering your representatives; giving them something to sink their teeth into. You expect your agent/manager to pitch you? Ask yourself what you're giving them to pitch. Talent and type aren't enough, anyone can claim those. Give them skills, relationships, and credits. If your goal is to work in comedy, get into improv classes, hit the stand-up circuit, and create your own sketches and post them online. Love dark cable dramas? Target those casting offices in workshops, make sure you have some serious training on your resume, and seek out free/student projects that will give you reel material that shows your dramatic chops. Instead of being the actor who emails their reps to say 'please pitch me for Role X', be the actor who says, 'For Role X, I met the casting director in a workshop last year, studied in the same program as these three people they've hired, and have a similar character on my reel.' That gives your representatives something meaningful to work with, and shows them you're taking the business side of your career seriously.
- Know what you want
We tend to focus on finding representation, rather than finding the right representation. Signing with the first person who offers and expecting the auditions to come rolling in… is like going home with the first person who hits on you at a bar and expecting to marry them. Possible, but not likely.
Agents and managers are not all the same, and in order to find the right one for you, you have to know what you're looking for. Agents' activities are pretty strictly regulated, but they're all over the place in terms of style. For example, some don't want their clients doing workshops or mailings or having access to breakdowns or contacting them about specific roles they want to be submitted on; if you're the proactive type, that's probably not for you. Managers' activities are regulated very loosely, so there's even more variety in terms of how they work. Some will help you find an agent, some won't. Some do a lot of hand-holding (reminding you of your audition time, reading you the breakdown, suggesting wardrobe, etc.) If you're notoriously disorganized, that might be great; but if you're a control freak who's on top of everything, you're probably better off looking elsewhere. Some have strong relationships in certain areas of the business… You want someone who knows people in different circles than the ones you and/or your agent already know.
It's a lot to think about, but most working actors will tell you that a) the wrong representation is worse than no representation, and b) the only way to get the right representation is to be clear about what you want, and ask for it.
So tell me… Did any of those hit home for you? Do you see an opportunity to work with your current or future reps in a new, potentially more successful way? And are you ready to start your next agent or manager search with a fresh approach?
Then tune in next week!