Twenty years ago, Creative Screenwriting magazine published my article below. I thought it would be fun to revisit it and see what (if anything) has changed in the last two decades.
So here’s the original piece, mostly intact. Things which are no longer relevant have been edited out, and I have added new commentary in bold.
Enjoy!
–Jim C.
AGENTS’ HOT SHEET
SERIOUSLY, HOW DO I GET A #*@%#*! MANAGER?
Do you really need to shell out that extra 10%? What can a manager do for you that an agent can’t? And are these guys any more accessible than agents? The answers may surprise you.
By Jim Cirile
Boy, did I hit a nerve. Last issue’s ‘How Do I Get a #&%*#! Agent?’ was apparently what a lot of you folks have been asking. Many of our agent panelists asserted that the way to get their attention is to find a manager first, so it seems only fair to ask some managers their thoughts on this – and also maybe find out how in heck to get to them in the first place. But first, the basics:
A few important differences between agents and managers
While they’re both involved in the development and selling of scripts, generally speaking, agents tend to lean more heavily towards the selling side, while managers focus more on development of both the writer’s material and career. Hence, an agent and a manager can share clients and work synergistically.
Bear in mind that agents are licensed by the state and can negotiate deals, whereas legally, managers cannot. In recent years, many former agents who have been downsized often wind up hanging up their manager shingle — but in many ways still behave like agents, for better or worse.
The most important difference: in theory at least, a manager will be able to give you a lot more time. “A manager will generate new ideas with you,” says A.B. Fischer from Octane Entertainment, “nurture you and develop your craft through a million drafts of a spec. An agent only has so many minutes in the day to deal with that.” Melinda Manos from Manos Management says, “I handle 12-15 clients total; it allows me a lot of time for everyone. I don’t know any agents who have (a list) that size.” Fischer agrees, “A lot of agents look to managers (and) say, ‘Your part of the team is to help develop. That’s what I need you for.’” CMG’s Graham Kaye says, “I’m far more involved with my clients as a manager than I ever was as an agent. When you work at places like William Morris, it is a volume business. They do give you great service, but they have a limited amount of time to spend with you. Do you want them to take a long lunch with you, or do you want them to help pay your mortgage?”
This is all still on the money. The only difference nowadays is that there is far less development happening with managers. The ever-shrinking Hollywood bull’s-eye has forced some managers to only sign clients who are “there,” rather than take a flier on a promising writer who may need some development TLC.
The economics of the biz have really put the squeeze on managers as well as writers. Twenty years ago, a manager could make a living with a small handful of steadily working, mid-tier writers. Alas, those deals are now mostly gone as belts continue to tighten in the Hollywood Industrial Complex.
If you’re like me, all the above is starting to sound pretty appealing – someone who actually invests time with you, helps develop your script through draft after draft? That’s worth ten percent in my book. But there’s one more reason why you may wish to focus on landing a manager, not an agent:
Managers will find you an agent when the time is right
Those of you who’ve been querying agents and ignoring managers might as well be trying to attack Fort Knox with a Cheeto. A manager is often an important prerequisite to landing an agent. “Let’s say it’s a new writer,” says Fischer, “and I’ve been developing a spec with her. If I feel that the script is ready, and the marketplace is ready to buy something like this, at that point I would try to get the writer an agent. It’s great to have an agent onboard, and the power of an agency to help sell is really important.”
All still true, and I would emphasize that if anything, it’s even harder to get an agent now without a manager, prestige festival heat, or name producer interest first. Agents are generally just too busy, with their massive client lists, to even consider reading someone coming in cold.
Manos recently took a similar approach. “We didn’t show (a script) to an agent until I’d probably read a dozen drafts.” And then when the time is right, she makes her move. “It’s very important to team with an agent when you’re readying a script to shop,” she says. “They tap into their contacts, and I do the same. I think we achieve success faster. I can keep the heat under an agent just enough to not annoy them. I think I get the most out of my agents. (Marketing a script) can be done without an agent, but it’s pretty tough going out there.”
Yeah, and that was 20 years ago when there was still a vibrant spec marketplace and we were just entering the era of peak TV.
Great, so how exactly do I land a manager?
Well, wait just a sec—I must pound my drumhead here as usual. Before you do anything, make sure your script is ready! Regular readers of my column know I sound like a broken record, but it’s a simple fact: most scripts are nowhere ready for submission. Get that feedback from industry friends, analysts or coverage services first, and use that intel to buff your script before you knock on any doors. End tirade.
Yup. Many’s the writer with a great idea who has sent out their script too early. I’ve certainly done my share of that over the years.
You’ll be happy to know that all of our panelists feel that managers generally tend to be more accessible than agents. And unlike with agents, query letters CAN still open doors with some managers. A.B. Fischer gets “a ton of queries, and I read every single one. I don’t respond to most of them, but if something catches my eye, I’ll absolutely read it. You never know where you’re going to find somebody.” He says that he’s always looking for exciting new talent to expand his list. “If I find somebody who’s never done anything before that I can get behind and develop, that works for me. Agents feel, ‘It’s hard enough to get jobs for their clients who have sold stuff. They just don’t have the time to develop somebody from scratch.”
I did actually get signed by a manager off a query letter around 15 years ago, so yeah, it can work. But just be aware, you might have better odds putting $10K on 00 at the roulette tables. Most are deleted unread.
While both Manos and Kaye say their doors are closed, they acknowledge that there are ways in. Manos says, “In general, I don’t look at (queries.) The only exception was once I got a query by e-mail, and it was exactly the genre I was looking for. It sounded really interesting in the logline, so I took a look at it. But I do look at almost every referral. Try to get a referral through a peer or lawyer or associate.”
So there it is. The power of the referral. An independent, third-party advocate can make all the difference. No one cares what you think about your script. But they may listen to someone else who has earned their trust.
Let me add one other very important way things are much better now than 2004. Well-regarded contests, coverage companies, and screenwriting service companies — like Stage 32, Roadmap Writers, Tracking B, and, yes, Coverage Ink — and many more — offer a way in and will often advocate for their contest winners to their industry contacts. Many managers use these services as their farm team and are receptive to reading the recommended scripts from these services. Again, this is a form of third-party validation — the manager knows the script won’t be a waste of their time. This is now a very important and effective way in.
The down side: all these contests and services cost money — and some are more effective than others. Of the 800+ screenplay contests listed on Film Freeway, around ten are worth the money.
Kaye says, “Call the development execs (at CMG.) Don’t call me. I mean it, too. If one of the young managers here feels that they’ve found somebody who’s very special, I will support them and go through the process of meeting them and finding out if it’s somebody we want to be in business with. I’ve worked hard to get to a certain place where I don’t need to sign clients, but younger managers who haven’t been in the business as long as I have, that’s part of their job.”
The importance of a short, tight query
And, guys, make sure those queries respect the rep’s time — and are personalized. Manos says, “(I get these) these long-winded, generic e-mail queries—‘Dear Management Company…’ I get ten a day. People tell you their whole plot in an e-mail. All I need is the logline and maybe something interesting about the writer. I can tell very quickly if the talent is on the page.”
CI offers a free query letter template. If you’re interested, just email us.
Now before you start querying managers, know well what these guys are looking for—and what they’re not. Says Fischer, “I want to see a fresh take on old material. You’re gonna be hard-pressed to find a new idea out there. Yes, when I’m reading a query, concept is important. If the idea is stale, I’m not going to request the script. When I’m actually reading something, concept is less important. If they’ve got chops to write and have an interesting take on the world, we can find that idea that’s going to sell.”
Manos would like potential clients to be working hard on their craft and not sit around waiting for the phone to ring. “But the other extreme is someone who’s out schmoozing, managing their own career. (In that case) there’s not really room for a manager.” She also prefers writers that come to her with some momentum, industry interest or connections. “That gives you something to work from,” she says. “Do your research. Find management companies that might be at your level and try to get that referral. Then submit your most marketable, most commercial script.”
Oh, and don’t be this guy
“I had a writer referral call me,” says Manos. “I said, ‘What you’ve got on the table sounds really interesting, but I’m on deadline right now. Do me a favor—send me an e-mail.’ He proceeded to call me three times in two days—no e-mail—and he left these long-winded, amped-up phone messages, telling me all about his screenwriting accomplishments, and quarterfinalist this, finalist that, and so-and-so is reading his script now, blah, blah, blah. I so can’t work with that guy.”
+++
Yep, not much has really changed, except there are now way more contests, festivals and services that break new talent every year. Remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint, so just keep doing the work, developing your craft. Hungry managers and even the occasional agent contact us all the time, ready to read. As tough as it still is to break in, there’s more opportunity now than ever. JC
