{"id":365,"date":"2016-10-15T11:15:51","date_gmt":"2016-10-15T11:15:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/?p=365"},"modified":"2023-02-06T14:46:13","modified_gmt":"2023-02-06T14:46:13","slug":"freakonomics-and-the-acting-industry-and-why-you-take-it-or-leave-it-if-you-are-an-actor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/freakonomics-and-the-acting-industry-and-why-you-take-it-or-leave-it-if-you-are-an-actor\/","title":{"rendered":"Freakonomics and the acting industry and why you take it or leave it if you are an actor"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Please watch this video. \u00a0It explains one of the chapters in the hit book, Freakonomics by Levitt and Dubner. \u00a0It is counter-intuitive but it shows why, using a flat rate commission model, your estate agent is not really looking out for your best interests if you are a seller.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Truth About Real Estate Agents: Freakonomics Movie\" width=\"474\" height=\"267\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aFYlgqv3T-w?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>I am of the opinion that the Actor \/ Agent \/ Casting Director relationship is similarly\u00a0skewed against the interests of the Actor. \u00a0ie when he\/her is offered\u00a0a job, the system is skewed\u00a0against\u00a0his\/her (I will use the masculine pronoun henceforth) best interests.<\/p>\n<p>As we know, the hardest thing about an Actor&#8217;s life is getting work. \u00a0Barring the\u00a0famous and in-demand actors, who can open a show or film or carry a TV show \u00a0(like, say, Benedict Cumberbatch \/\u00a0James Nesbitt), there is not a high proportion of Actors,\u00a0who are offered enough work to keep them busy throughout the year.<\/p>\n<p>For\u00a0these\u00a0working\u00a0Actors, the majority of them rely on their Agent to find them\u00a0work and put them up for it. \u00a0The Agent (again, barring those Agents who represent the Cumberbatch\/Nesbitt\u00a0actors) has a stable\u00a0of say 100+ Actors, all of whom are looking to get a slice of what is available (incidentally, the money at this level is not very impressive either,\u00a0\u00a0having been decreasing\u00a0in comparative terms including inflation almost every year since\u00a0Equity membership was \u00a0no longer a requirement to work as an Actor. \u00a0A West End job today pays less than I was paid\u00a0in Miss Saigon in 1992).<\/p>\n<p>There are some Actors (most of the well known ones), who do quite well at this level &#8211;\u00a0and while not famous enough to be in the Cumberbatch\/Nesbitt order of magnitude, have a name\u00a0from previous shows, maybe, or simply a reputation for being good\u00a0and (impressively!) they\u00a0are making a living from the profession. \u00a0 Others make a modest living but do not have to do anything else. \u00a0I am more or less at this level &#8211; \u00a0my work as ChineseElvis subsidises my acting career and allows me to turn some acting work down.<\/p>\n<p>The vast majority of Actors (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thestage.co.uk\/news\/2014\/75-actors-earn-less-5k-per-year-survey\/\">if this survey is to be believed<\/a>)\u00a0 do not make a living solely from acting and are basically in a position, where they are expected to\u00a0be grateful for anything that is thrown their way.<\/p>\n<p>The Agents (feminine pronoun henceforth) are themselves trying to make a living (and pay for offices and staff) by taking commission from the ever-diminishing earnings of their coterie of barely-employed actors, and the ever-decreasing\u00a0smaller number\u00a0who make a living. The overall diminishment of these Actors&#8217; annual earning power is why Agents\u00a0have slowly pushed up the commission rate from 10% in the &#8217;80s to, in some cases, 20% and 25% today.<\/p>\n<p>It is therefore obvious that an\u00a0Agent would rather an Actor\u00a0were tied up doing a job in theatre &#8211; even if this in no way is going to enhance an acting\u00a0career (or even be interesting to do as an Actor). \u00a0A year&#8217;s contract in The Mousetrap playing to\u00a0uncomprehending Japanese tourists is not on many Actor&#8217;s to-do list, but 15% of a\u00a0\u00a3500 weekly wage is a reliable source of income for\u00a0an Agent as well as keeping that Actor\u00a0from hassling the Agent, moaning about not being seen for this or that. \u00a0Actors, especially the 75% of Actors earning less than \u00a35K a year, find themselves often pressured into doing things that are not \u00a0really good for them, but good for the Agent.<\/p>\n<p>How many times have I and other UK Actors done work for free &#8211; or for much less than what US Equity would call &#8220;Scale&#8221; &#8211; because of the &#8220;potential exposure&#8221; this might bring\u00a0in the future or the &#8220;doors this might open&#8221;?! \u00a0It is the idea that you scatter groundbait in the hope you collect later! \u00a0I turned 50 in March and if the doors are not open for me yet, then they never will be! \u00a0I should be in the\u00a0collecting stage of my career from all the free stuff I have done, surely?! \u00a0But I digress&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>What I want to address\u00a0in this post is that \u00a0I have realised that even when an Actor, who is among\u00a0the rarefied ones making a living from the industry, gets a decent\u00a0job offer on a TV or film, say, then their Agent is not really incentivised\u00a0to\u00a0negotiate any better deal than that initially offered. \u00a0Not perks, not billing, \u00a0not a better money offer &#8211;\u00a0but in the same way as the video above describes, is more interested in locking down the deal for the sake of the\u00a0commission &#8211; and to preserve\/enhance their relationship with the Casting Director \/ production.<\/p>\n<p>By way of another digression\u00a0and\u00a0to illustrate this\u00a0point, I was asked to go up to Granada Studios in Manchester to audition as\u00a0a doctor for\u00a0Coronation St in 2011, \u00a0I didn&#8217;t want to spend the approx \u00a3100 for the return ticket from London (they don&#8217;t even pay your fare any more, it is ridiculous) and waste an entire day for one day&#8217;s work, especially given I had played a doctor in Coronation St already twice before! I\u00a0had no desire to do it just for the sake of the day&#8217;s work. \u00a0So I decided\u00a0not to go. \u00a0My Agent (at the time) went completely batshit! \u00a0Given I had only just moved to this Agent, I agreed to travel all the way, wasting the whole day, in a bid to smooth the transition to her and demonstrate\u00a0goodwill to this new relationship. \u00a0My reasons for not going, (perfectly sensible given the part was less good than the two other times I had already appeared in this soap)\u00a0made this Agent no money and by me spending \u00a3100 of my own money it gave her the chance of making a few quid &#8211; and strengthening her relationship with Granada TV! \u00a0The same agent could not comprehend why I turned down 9 months work at Stratford Upon Avon and would not leave my 12 year old son at home alone!<\/p>\n<p>This youtube video below (to digress again) is a funny &#8211; and incredible &#8211; mashup of my very first appearance as a Doctor in Corrie intercut with almost identical scenes with me dressed identically in EastEnders from the same year (2008). \u00a0The scenes are identical! \u00a0FFS!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/VgVD1r9FpV4\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Back to the point. \u00a0In the same way as the Actor doesn&#8217;t want to compromise his relationship with his Agent (as recounted above), the Agent doesn&#8217;t want to compromise her relationship with the Casting Director or production. \u00a0The Casting Director is looking to place suggestions of actors in front of a\u00a0Director or Producer for some project or other and it is entirely up to the Casting Director who they pick for this. \u00a0So the Agent, understandably wanting her stable of actors to be in the frame, doesn&#8217;t want to compromise being on the Casting Director&#8217;s &#8220;For Consideration&#8221; list by causing problems and insisting\u00a0on\u00a0anything more than offered. \u00a0This compromises the interests of the individual Actor who has been offered a role via this mechanism.<\/p>\n<p>What may not be widely known is that the Casting Director also\u00a0negotiates the money with the successful Agents on behalf of the production. \u00a0I disapprove of this and feel this is where it gets opaque.<\/p>\n<p>In the case of the Casting Director negotiating the fee with the Actor&#8217;s Agent, the perceived wisdom is that the Casting Directors are merely the go-between, taking the hassle out of negotiating the cast&#8217;s fees for the production. I am sure that is true in most cases. However, I have noticed a flaw in this wisdom, which further compromises the individual Actor after having been\u00a0offered a role. Although it is only (perhaps) theoretical, it is\u00a0one which Actors should think about.<\/p>\n<p>Let us imagine I were a Film Producer and wanted to only spend \u00a3100K on my cast for the entire film. \u00a0To incentivise people to achieve that goal, would it not make sense to say to a Casting Director (who I had hired and works for me, don&#8217;t forget) that I would allow her to keep any money she had saved underneath this budget? \u00a0And let&#8217;s say I allow a 20% contingency from the budget to give me some wiggle room for one or two actors who are big enough to stand firm, making the Casting Director&#8217;s budget \u00a380k. \u00a0It would make complete sense for The Casting Director to try and cast the film spending only \u00a375K (or less) because of the \u00a35K bonus they\u00a0would\u00a0earn! \u00a0If targets were achieved, I would be delighted because I save \u00a320K! \u00a0This would actually be the clever &amp; Freakonomics way (from the Producer&#8217;s perspective) to carry out this task. \u00a0But the Actor is helpless if this is what is happening.<\/p>\n<p>In this hypothetical case, the Casting Director would say to the Agent that the budget was low. \u00a0&#8220;Take it or Leave it&#8221;. \u00a0The Agent, because the relationship with the\u00a0Casting Director is more valuable than the measly extra \u00a3150 she might earn by demanding another \u00a31K on top of the \u00a310K already offered for the Actor (as explained in the\u00a0Freakonomics video) \u00a0would say to her Actor the exact same, &#8220;Take it or Leave it&#8221; and the Actor would be no better off than when the offer was initially made. \u00a0And while I am discussing the dynamics of negotiation, it is worth observing that no serious negotiation, Brexit included, starts off with a\u00a0best offer! \u00a0It is very common, however, for an Actor to be told what their money is and there is no negotiation whatsoever! \u00a0Take it or leave it!<\/p>\n<p>Whether the above hypothetical\u00a0scenario has actually ever happened or not, (ask yourself how you would know) the end result is the same for the Actor, who is told, \u00a0&#8220;It&#8217;s a small fee because the budget is low. \u00a0Take it or leave it. \u00a0It&#8217;s only a week&#8217;s work &#8211; so it&#8217;s better than nothing&#8221; etc. \u00a0All actors have heard this. \u00a0And all Actor&#8217;s just accept this and give everybody in the process the benefit of the doubt. \u00a0They will complain about their predicament &#8211; but never have I heard any Actor discuss and complain about this idea.<\/p>\n<p>The question is, would a production or Director really prefer to re-cast than add 10% to the fee? \u00a0If yes, then the\u00a0Actor\u00a0has\u00a0no leg to stand on and he is probably among the 75% who are not making \u00a3100 a week. \u00a0If no, and I postulate that this is the case in most scenarios, the Actor is able to negotiate a higher fee. \u00a0But this works only if the Agent actually asks the Casting Director for this and then again, only if the Casting Director relays\u00a0the same back to the production. \u00a0It&#8217;s a lot of hassle and the Actor is\u00a0trusting a lot of parties who, as explained, do not have his\u00a0interests at heart.<\/p>\n<p>It is worth thinking about.<\/p>\n<p>If an Actor is\u00a0relying on an Agent to simply find him\u00a0work he\u00a0would never have otherwise heard of, (which is my position) then\u00a0all\u00a0this is a perfectly acceptable situation. \u00a0If the Actor\u00a0gets offered work and is relying on the Agent to negotiate\u00a0more money, <em>he\u00a0needs to be willing to lose the job<\/em> to achieve these ends. \u00a0This is why some Actors don&#8217;t perceive their Agents as being worth the cost. \u00a0In the mere process of seeing whether there is any more money, the Actor is calling the Casting Director&#8217;s (and Production&#8217;s) bluff and putting his Agent in a predicament as described. \u00a0It is not a very powerful position\u00a0for the Actor &#8211; and now he has been offered the job he is better off without an Agent, arguably. \u00a0The idea that an Actor&#8217;s Agent is always looking out for his\u00a0best interests (especially when he has\u00a0secured a job offer) is NOT\u00a0the exact reality.<\/p>\n<p>To finish with another anecdote, I was once cast in a show and the money was agreed. \u00a0I was then asked to undertake understudy duties instead, while still appearing in the show, but now I was to be understudying the role I had initially been offered. \u00a0The new guy they had now\u00a0cast was too young\u00a0to do all the understudy duties\u00a0of the other parts that would have to be covered. \u00a0I agreed to this but the Casting Director made the\u00a0argument that I could hardly understudy a part and be paid more than the Actor playing it! \u00a0This was one I was willing to quit over, (and holding already an offer and agreed money) so I held fast. \u00a0I am now the only Actor\u00a0in the West End who has been paid more (50%) than the Actor\u00a0he was understudying! Actors, especially the ones making a living, need to be more brave about holding out for more money, because their Agents are not incentivised to do this.<\/p>\n<p>They will still take the commission, though, if you succeed!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Please watch this video. &nbsp;It explains one of the chapters in the hit book, Freakonomics by Levitt and Dubner. &nbsp;It is counter-intuitive but it shows why, using a flat rate commission model, your estate agent is not really looking out for your best interests if you are a seller. I am of the opinion that &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/freakonomics-and-the-acting-industry-and-why-you-take-it-or-leave-it-if-you-are-an-actor\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Freakonomics and the acting industry and why you take it or leave it if you are an actor<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77,11],"tags":[88,89,85,86,87],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=365"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":603,"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365\/revisions\/603"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.chineseelvis.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}