| THE BIG QUESTION! |
We get questions asked of us everyday so we thought we'd put some of the most
commonly asked questions on this page and try to answer them for you. If you
have a question you think should be on this page, email us and it may get picked
as the Big Question.
commonly asked questions on this page and try to answer them for you. If you
have a question you think should be on this page, email us and it may get picked
as the Big Question.
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ThE BIG Question:
"What is the difference between an Agent and a Manager?"
AGENTS
A Literary Agent’s job is to sell his clients’ stories and screenplays,
elevate their sales, expose their work, and get them work on open
writing assignments. They must be signatory to the Writers Guild of
America and franchised by the state of California, meaning they must
follow certain laws and regulations. Some of these regulations include:
Basic Agreement(MBA)negotiated between the studios and
the Guild.
MANAGERS
Literary Managers are not regulated by the state yet and do not have to
be signatory to the Guild. However, there are certain regulations they
must follow:
A manager tends to concern themselves with their client's long-term
career goals - though some agents think in this way too. Agents may
lose interest if a client's work doesn't sell right away. Hopefully,
whether using a manager and/or an agent, they will be in it for the long
haul in developing their client's career.
These are just some of the differences between agents and
managers. Remember a good agent or manager is someone with clout,
who is well-connected, can get studio executives and producers on
the phone, and have clients' material get the attention of senior
executives. Writers shouldn’t count on their agents and managers for
all their work. They, too, need to be out there networking and utilizing
their own contacts with film professionals. But, putting the right team
together and knowing what agents and managers do is a good first
step towards choosing the right representation.
A Literary Agent’s job is to sell his clients’ stories and screenplays,
elevate their sales, expose their work, and get them work on open
writing assignments. They must be signatory to the Writers Guild of
America and franchised by the state of California, meaning they must
follow certain laws and regulations. Some of these regulations include:
- They can not charge more than 10% commission;
- They are allowed to negotiate deals;
- They can not produce their client's projects;
- Because they are signatory to the Writers Guild of
Basic Agreement(MBA)negotiated between the studios and
the Guild.
MANAGERS
Literary Managers are not regulated by the state yet and do not have to
be signatory to the Guild. However, there are certain regulations they
must follow:
- A manager is not allowed to negotiate deals - only an agent or a
lawyer can do that; - A manager can produce their clients' and other people's movies;
- A manager can not legally submit their clients' work in order to
procure employment - that is an agent's job.
A manager tends to concern themselves with their client's long-term
career goals - though some agents think in this way too. Agents may
lose interest if a client's work doesn't sell right away. Hopefully,
whether using a manager and/or an agent, they will be in it for the long
haul in developing their client's career.
These are just some of the differences between agents and
managers. Remember a good agent or manager is someone with clout,
who is well-connected, can get studio executives and producers on
the phone, and have clients' material get the attention of senior
executives. Writers shouldn’t count on their agents and managers for
all their work. They, too, need to be out there networking and utilizing
their own contacts with film professionals. But, putting the right team
together and knowing what agents and managers do is a good first
step towards choosing the right representation.
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