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AGENTS Why Would A Voice Over Agent Drop You? Sometimes The Decision Isn't Easy August 31, 2015  By Roger KingVoice Over Talent Agent Sometimes I feel like PN Agency is the equivalent of Hotel California – you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave. Percentage-wise, we actually do not have that many talents who have left the roster. There are a few who went union or moved out the city/country. There were a few who got too busy with other aspects of their lives/careers. And yes, in a few instances, we’ve had to let people go because they missed sessions or were generally unprofessional. But, on the whole, once people get on the roster, they generally seem to stay there. Of course, on any roster, you have a spectrum of voices - in terms of ability and how much work they get. Talent is obviously a big factor in your earning potential, but other factors come into play as well. WHAT KEEPS YOU ON ROSTER? First, is a person generally available? We have some creative voices who have very busy schedules outside the voice over world. We still keep them on board because they are good at what they do, but they just don’t get that much work because we can only submit them for things that fit that tight schedule. Now, if you’re only available every 3rd Wednesday, you’re probably not going to stay on the roster unless you have some incredible vocal skill that no one else has. On that note, there are niche voices who have their place on our roster, but they have to get used to the idea of the work being quality over quantity. The woman who sounds like a 12 year-old girl is valuable, as is the older "European sounding” gentleman - but neither can expect a plethora of casting calls in any given year. ARE YOU GETTING HIRED? But what about the voices who simply do not get much work? It’s not a question of talent per se, because we would not have brought them on board in the first place if we didn’t think they had talent. But sometimes it just doesn’t work - and not because of anything you can put your finger on, like a disagreeable personality or an opiate addiction. As an agent, I’ve had a number of experiences with talents where I’ve asked myself - why can’t I get her more work? It doesn’t cost the agency any money to keep a talent on the roster, but there’s obviously not much point in someone taking up a roster space if he/she is not booking gigs. TOUGH DECISION ... And that’s the toughest moment as an agent. How long do you stick with a talent? There are no easy answers to this. I know some agents who do an annual purge: parting ways with 8-10 talents who just aren’t getting gigs. Others just wait for talents to leave or seemingly don’t mind having a large roster with a mix of people who book all the time and those who only book every lunar eclipse. I have never done a purge - but I’ve sure thought about it (rubs his hands with a devilish smile). WHAT DO OTHER AGENTS DO? I’m curious to open this up to other agents.
------------------------- ABOUT ROGER Roger King is the president of Peformance Network (PN) Agency, which provides voice over talent to the radio, television, film, multi-media and animation industries. In 2004, he launched a sister agency, Ethnic Voice Talent (EVT), and now represents over 100 voice over talents and translators in more than 15 different languages. He also writes a lively and informative blog, Voice Over Canada. PN Agency: www.pnagency.com Ethnic Voice Talent: www.ethnicvoicetalent.com Email: pnagency@pnagency.com Blog: www.voiceovercanada.ca Twitter: @voiceovercanada |
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It's ALWAYS great to hear from your side of the equation.
I've always contended that EVERY talent should have to work in an agency for a month, before hitting the audition trail.
Oh...and I still think agents should get at least 15%. :-)
cheers,
dc
Hey Larry, When are we gonna have coffee dude!?
That said, you also might need to evaluate the clout of your agent. Some buyers might listen to the larger "A" list agent's submissions before the smaller boutique agencies. It's cool to be a big fish in a small pond. But there might come a time you need to take the gamble and swim in a bigger pond. Your career will not grow without risk.
No matter how big an agency you are with, you need to know how to agent your agent. First of all, don't just communicate with your agent when you have something to complain about. Put yourself in their shoes. Let your agent know when you are having fun, even if it's just an audition. Thank them from time to time. Your agent only gets paid when you work, which means they are working for free on your behalf most of the time.
Your agent should always return phone calls and emails in a timely manner. But there's a fine line between being proactive and being a nudge. Don't "just check in." Have a reason to touch base. It's never slow! Trust me, IT'S NEVER SLOW! If there are no commercials to audition for this week, there will be promos. No Promos? There will be games, or narration, etc. If you are a one-note talent, then get thee to classes and up the vo genres/demos so your agent has more TO represent. And every waking moment you aren't auditioning or working you should be marketing.
When you ARE having issues with your representation, communicate with them in a professional, and non confrontational way. Ask what you, the actor, can be doing to better benefit your career. Trust me, the agent gets it. Also, your agent is NOT a mind reader. They need to know what you want out of your career. And your agent gets 10%, you need to do 90.
When it is time to move on, it should not be a shock to your agent. There should have been many conversations leading up to this decision. Give them a chance to make good. And when it's time to leave, whatever the reason, keep that door open. You never know where you or your agent will end up some day.
Enjoyed your article. I'm having trouble hooking up with an agent. Visit http://www.wescunninghamvoice.com and tell me if I should quit my day job. Wait a minute...voiceover IS my day job!!!
Mark
Here is my question...because she deals in vo as a sort of subset of her main business, which is foto and models, etc., do voice seekers have a tendency to not even listen to auditions from her? I have no way of knowing what actually happens to my audition once it is uploaded.