"Who's your agent this week?" is a common, if not very happy, joke in the industry. Some actors change agents like socks.
Agent-hopping is an exercise in futility, can speak poorly of the actor's judgement, and tends to frighten off prospective agents. After all, commitment is a two-way street. Establishing a relationship with an agent helps more than constantly changing cards in a Rolodex.
Agents know you can leave them at the drop of 91 days, and this can create a lack of drive. When asked if it drove him crazy to work for a client, only to be suddenly fired, one agent's answer was very telling: "No. I expect it."
Still, actors do outgrow their agents (and vice versa), and agents can "cool off' on a client, or not bother from day one.
WHEN?
A tough call. Your agent needs time to get you moving, but it shouldn't take forever for him to start the car. We'll give a basic time limit, but take into consideration union strikes, hiatus (the slack season - roughly, April through June), bad economic times and factors particular to you. (Did it take you six months to get him decent photos to submit?) Also, if you're certain your agent hasn't been working for you, there's no need to wait for any time limit.
Give him about a year and then ask two questions: how many interviews have you gotten, and how far up the ladder have you moved?
If you haven't been out at least a few times, something's wrong. And, if it's been years and you are still going out on three-line bit parts, it may be that the agent doesn't have enough "clout."
Is he working?
He keeps telling you he's submitting you - but no interviews. Is that the truth or is he just "feeding you wolf cookies"? To check, give your agent photos in relatively small numbers, 25 to 50, and see how long it takes him to ask for more. If you gave him 50 photos a year ago and there are still 49 on the shelf, some of those "submissions" are phantom.
Is he REALLY working?
There are submissions… and then there are submissions. "You like to think they're all out there pitching to get you in, but they don't," says theatrical casting director Bob Harbin. "Many of them 'submit' you for a project - they put your picture in an envelope with 40 others, send it in, and hope they get a call. There are a lot of agents in town that I've never talked to. Not because I don't call them back, but because they never call me."
"When an agent says he's put you up for a role, "says casting director Simon Ayer, "Try and find out specifically what that means. Does that mean your agent sent your pictures along with 40 other pictures? Does that mean the agent called the casting director and said, 'What about so-and-so?' Does that mean the casting director didn't know you, but the agent talked to him enough about you to get you a chance to meet him? If you're just starting out and your agent puts you up for the lead in [a series], more than likely it ain't gonna happen. That's one thing that does annoy me about agents. They'll get a breakdown and they'll see [age] 35 to 40, 45 to 50, and you know the guy's gonna be [a well known TV star], and they submit somebody that was just in the Owl and the Pussycat in Glendale."
Can he clicker?
Over time, your agent should get you more money and better billing.
Money
At first, you probably won't get paid much more than "scale plus ten" - union scale plus an additional ten percent, which serves as your agent's commission. And, since studios and casting directors keep records of your salaries (called "your quote"), no agent can increase your pay in leaps and bounds. (Any casting director can find out your quote, even from a different studio.) So, when moving from one job to another, expect a maximum increase of about $50 to $100 per day and $100 to $300 per week. If not, your agent may be a lousy dickerer or just too hungry to go out on a limb by saying no to an offer. It's maddening to learn you could have been paid more if only the agent had demanded it - and it happens.
Billing is dickered over as fiercely as money. (Better billing is often used in place of higher pay.) If your agent concentrates solely on dollars, he's paying more attention to his commission than your career and he's hurting you.
Does he really know the ropes?
"Come January, a smart agent will try to get an actor in to see me for a general interview because he knows the pilot season will soon be upon us," says one network casting director. (A pilot is the "selling" episode of a proposed new series. Pilots are actually made all year, but the "season" is February to mid-April.) If a network buys the pilot, airs it, and it's a hit, it means years of work, thousands to millions of dollars and possible stardom. Need we say it wouldn't be destructive if you are going up for a few each year?
But it's not just making contacts and selling you. It's his knowledge of contracts, union rules and regulations, and general rules of the game. For example, many agents (and actors) are woefully ignorant of what constitutes a "studio day" or what overtime actors are due under certain circumstances. We're not saying he should be a walking handbook of regulations, but he should know the basics.
As to contracts, he ought to be able to read and understand what he's asking his actors to sign or have someone he contacts for advice. "Frankly, more agents ought to get more guidance than they do," says entertainment attorney Michael C. Donaldson. Actors have literally signed away thousands of dollars because their agents didn't get that guidance.
HOW?
It's not a hot idea to storm out of your agent's office yelling "You're fired!" You might feel better for awhile, and it's certainly dramatic to slam the door and disappear in a cloud of dust - but, when the dust settles, you'll be the one left high and dry. Before you fire that @#!!?$*, have another agent waiting in the wings.
When interviewing with a prospective agent, if you feel the urge to badmouth your old agent, lie down till it passes. All the while you're talking about what a rotter your current agent has been, the new guy is going to be wondering what you'll be saying about him in the next few years.
Also, avoid saying you, not your agent, got all of your jobs, even if it's true. The prospective agent has no way of knowing that and might figure you're unwilling to give credit where it's due.
Actually, just say, "Well, my agent is wonderful for many of his clients, but with us, it just doesn't seem to be working out." And drop it. As theatrical agent Bernie Distler put it, "When an actor says 'My agent is terrible,' I think the actor is terrible."
SAG suggests telling the agent specifically why you're firing him, but on this we disagree. (If you've got something nice to say, certainly include a private note.) Not being specific doesn't invalidate the firing, and dropping him is eloquent statement enough of your opinion of his performance.
Sign, date and mail the letter to your old agent, send copies to the unions and your new agent, and keep a copy for yourself.
That's it. Just remember, a bad agent can set your career back; a good one can be a godsend. But no agent will ever be as good a salesman of you as you.
