Actor Growth

When I was talking to the agent the other day, one pitch that he gave me was how he expressed that the difference between him and my current agent was that my current agent has a view that I work for them whereas his philosophy was that he works for the talent.

While I personally never exactly got that vibe from my current agent, that was a very good point I thought when it comes to finding an agent. I remember one actor told me once how it is so easy to forget sometimes that you are hiring these agents and so it should equally be important that when you are looking for representation that you are interviewing them as well.

Just like hiring anyone, if you are going to be working with them for a good part of your career then you owe it to yourself to make sure that the person is suitable and will do the job that you hired them to do. Just like how you shouldn’t barge into an agency thinking you are way above the agent, similarly they should not act as if they are way above you either.

Well here was something interesting. Recently while researching about agencies there was one in particular where it had a pretty good reputation as a whole. However, one person was complaining that most of the other agents in the agency were actually actors themselves and as a result they would be at auditions too at times.

Because of that, they think that is a key reason why they aren’t called that much for auditions and instead the agent uses that as a way to try and propel their own careers as an actor. I’ve seen this before personally. Guess there is not much you can do other than if you feel that they are not giving you the necessary dedication as a result then you should find a new agent.

I suppose that is an important point too as a lot of times actors are so caught up in trying to get into the biggest agencies in town when really a small agency with a good agent can be just as good if not better for your career I’d say. That’s why even for myself in my new search I am more focused on the person themselves and what type of reputation he/she has.

I was talking to a person recently who mentioned that although he has an agent, she isn’t really doing anything for him as he has been getting auditions on his own. He then made this comment on how the only good thing about having an agent for him is that it makes him sound bigger in terms of being a professional actor when it comes to short film auditions.

That might sound very silly, but in most cases that is true I thought. For example, before when I auditioned for simple independent films, during the camera slate I would always say “Self Represented”. Afterwards, when I decided to get an agent then during the slate I would slate the agency that I was represented by and you can see the heads pop up on how the people casting seemed more impressed.

It’s kind of a goofy way of separating a good actor in a group though I’d say. I guess it’s that whole mentality where if you have an agent then you are a big shot as the assumption is you get too much work/publicity to try and deal it yourself. That is so not true in the overall picture though from what I’ve seen. Is one of those things you have to work in the field to know I suppose.

I was talking to an actress recently and she was mentioning how she wasn’t too thrilled with her agency representation as most of the work she has gotten herself. Apparently her agent even told her that as the actor you have to work hard to promote yourself still as the agents can only do so much for you.

That is definitely true as I guess in many ways people who are new have the mentality that once they get an agent all they need to do is sit and wait while the agent scrambles to try and find you roles to audition for. You should always definitely be promoting yourself to try and land roles yourself as well.

At the same time, I personally believe an agent should be actively trying to suggest ways for you to try and get your career going while at the same time going out of their way to get you established as well as it benefits everyone in this situation. Kind of awkward if all the person is doing for example is negotiating contracts for you. The agent and actor relationship is definitely extremely important.

Even for myself, literally all the roles I have done so far were from my own efforts. I’m personally not just sitting there and waiting for things to happen.