Art of Agenting
T/F - Like talent agents, talent managers are also regulated and governed by the Dept of Labor
T/F - In rare occasions talent agents get a producer or production company credit on one of their client's projects
False
False
What agency acquired ICM and what did it cost?
Why are talent agencies raising outside money?
CAA / $750M
Agencies collect a cut of clients’ earnings from film, TV, concerts and on-field contracts. They want to make sure they get a cut of these other businesses and sponsorship opportunities too. So to earn more money from clients, they’ve used that capital to expand into new business units, like sports, and created divisions to incubate start-ups like Emma Chamberlain’s coffee company
The length of both strikes? And what did they cost California?
148-day WGA strike and 118-day SAG-AFTRA
The California economy is estimated to have lost $5 billion
What two TV buyers are conducting business as usual, even though it's a tough market?
1. Netflix
2. Amazon
CAA reported that over the last few years the demand for shows featuring 40% of the cast in diverse roles has:
Doubled?
Tripled?
Quadrupled?
Remained consistent?
DOUBLED
Customary fee commissions for agents, managers and attorneys are:
Agents - 10%
Managers - 15%
Attorneys - 5%
What company did Lionsgate recently acquire and how much was the deal worth?
Hasbro Entertainment/$500M
How often do labor contracts between the WGA, DGA, SAG and IASTE get negotiated with the AMPTP?
Every 3 Years
What is the total percentage of white talent agents working at the major talent agencies?
80%
90%
60%
75%
90%
What were the two main business practices that the WGA forced the talent agencies to end?
1. talent packaging
2. owning affiliate production companies
Which one of these people owns the majority interest in a talent agency and which one?
Tim Cook
François-Henri Pinault
Casey Wasserman
Jeff Besos
Ari Gold
Mark Cuban
What is Brillstein Entertainment Partners, and who purchased it?
François-Henri Pinault / CAA Management Company
Casey Wasserman
How was the issue of AI resolved to the WGA’s satisfaction after the strike?
Under the new contract, A.I. cannot "be used to undermine a writer's credit or separated rights." Additionally, companies must inform writers if material has been generated by A.I., and if a company uses a writer's material to train A.I. models, the WGA is allowed to deem that training as unlawful. Writers also cannot be forced by their employers to use A.I.
In terms of programming:
What does Amazon want?
What does Hulu want?
Across the board, what is everyone looking for?
Amazon wants? more action adventure series along the lines of Jack Ryan and Reacher.
Hulu wants? another show with a strong, female lead, a successor to The Handmaid’s Tale.
Across the board, everyone is looking for? An ongoing family drama, ideally from a diverse voice.
According to the Federal Reserve, the typical Black American family has eight times less wealth than a white family. The racial wealth gap has profound consequences, both for Black families and for the US economy and will cost the US economy in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) each year between:
$10B to $20B
$100B to $300B
$500B to $750B
$1T to $1.5T
$1T to $1.5T
The standard package commission is comprised of what three percentage amounts each derived from what specific revenue streams?
1. 3% base license fee
2. 3% deferred net proceeds
3. 10% modified adjusted gross
What's the approx. value of WME? What company did their predecessor entity acquire before becoming WME? Who is their primary private equity partner? What are the two sources of income for private equity firms?
$7.2B - WME
William Morris Agency
Silver Lake
PE Income
Management Fees and Profits (Carried Interest)
How were the residuals issues resolved for the WGA?
Streaming services now must share statistics about streaming data with the WGA, and writers will be compensated with significant residual bonuses for shows and movies that are viewed by 20 percent of a streaming service's subscribers within 90 days.
What do TV agents say about the industry's desire for limited series?
And what was the number 1 globally streamed show on the Disney+ app?
There's less appeal because they are one-off runs and astronomical A-list cast salaries.
Greys Anatomy - Billion plus views
DAILY DOUBLE
What are the four key steps that film and TV companies can take to advance racial equity in entertainment and beyond?
Ensure diverse representation, especially among off-screen talent and executives
Increase transparency and accountability
Seek and financially support a wide range of Black stories
Create an independent organization to promote diversity
Who did these management companies sell a stake to in order to raise more money?
3 Arts Entertainment (Mindy Kaling, Tina Fey) sold stake to...
Untitled Entertainment (Olivia Wilde, Naomi Watts) sold stake to...
Anonymous Content (Luke Evans, Julia Garner) sold stake to...
3 Arts Entertainment (Mindy Kaling, Tina Fey) sold a majority stake to Lions Gate in 2018.
Untitled Entertainment (Olivia Wilde, Naomi Watts) sold a stake to Boatrocker Media in 2019.
Anonymous Content (Luke Evans, Julia Garner) sold a stake to Laurene Powell Jobs in 2016 and is now looking to swallow Grandview Entertainment, yet another management company.
DAILY DOUBLE
What major streamer agreed to pay out in unpaid residuals to writers due to it negotiation of low license fees for the films it produced internally and what was the payout amount?
Netflix $42M
What year was the last WGA Strike and what was the reason?
The last WGA strike took place at the end of 2007 and lasted about three months until February 2008. Similar to now, issues in the strike focused on the uncertainty of “new media” and the lack of writer compensation.
Combined, the Disney+/Hulu streaming platform will place their total library in which order in terms of their total content (film/tv shows):
1. In first place, ahead of Amazon #2, Netflix #3
2.In second place behind Amazon #1 but ahead of Netflix #3 or
3. In third place behind Amazon #1 and Netflix #2
Second place
Barriers that undermine equity in content development, financing, marketing, and distribution come at a substantial cost to the film and TV industry. McKinsey estimates that the film and TV industry could unlock the equivalent of ________% in expansion of the $______________ baseline industry revenue
7% EXPANSION $148 billion