尽管创新艺人经纪公司实力强大，但好莱坞已不再是单调乏味的小镇，无论是崭露头角的演员还是功成名就的大腕，在寻找代理方面都有充分的选择。例如，威廉·莫理斯奋进娱乐公司是阿里·伊曼纽尔(Ari Emanuel)的老巢，这位48岁的瘦削男人，一头灰白的头发——是白宫幕僚长拉姆·伊曼纽尔(Rahm. Emanuel)的兄弟，他的长期客户包括马克·沃尔伯格(Mark Wahlberg)、拉里·戴维(Larry David)、和马丁·斯科塞斯(Martin Scorsese)，由于美国家庭票房频道(HBO)的热门剧《明星伙伴》(Entourage)中阿里·高德(Ari Gold)这一角色，他或许是好莱坞最著名的经纪人，这个角色是以他为原型的。伊曼纽尔像高德一样口若悬河；他的声誉还在于他愿意不惜一切为客户争取最佳合约。
作为前电视经纪人，他第一次自立门户是在1995年，当时他和3个同事离开国际创作管理公司建立奋进公司，这对好莱坞的震撼不亚于20年前的创新艺人经纪公司。最初的日子波澜不惊，奋进公司的总部设在某饭店楼上的一间办公室里，但它迅速蹿红。2001年它签下创新艺人经纪公司的帕特里克·怀特赛尔(Patrick Whitesell)，随后也将克里斯蒂安·贝尔(Christian Bale)和马特·戴蒙(Matt Damon)收入囊中，为奋进公司奠定了一流客户的信誉，而去年与威廉·莫里斯的合并则巩固了该公司在音乐和电视方面的力量，为公司提供了与创新艺人经纪公司抗衡的客户基础。
当创新艺人经纪公司与威廉·莫斯利奋进公司一决雌雄之际，机会降临到联合艺人经纪公司和国际创作管理公司头上。"我们的竞争对手卷入类似于可口可乐(Coke)与百事可乐(Pepsi)之间的品牌之战"联合艺人经纪公司齐默表示。然而，经纪公司所担心的远不止其竞争对手的行为：还有来自其它领域的压力，尤其是制片厂给客户的报酬问题。在整个好莱坞，制片厂正设法削减成本，以平衡DVD销量的急剧下滑——在过去10年里，DVD的销售为它们创造了绝大部分的利润。由于家庭娱乐产业的爆炸，给艺人的报酬在20世纪90年代直线上升，很快，明星们获得了"20和20"协议——2千万美元的片酬和20%的总票房提成。对明星或导演来说，一部轰动票房的电影，可以使这个数字达到1亿美元——而其中相当可观的一块将流入经纪人的腰包。
但随着DVD市场的迅速萎缩，制片厂被迫削减营销和制作预算。它们还减少了电影的发行数量：去年好莱坞出产的电影数量是520部，几乎比上一年下降了20%。经纪公司客户的工作减少了。
"制片厂正在收缩，推翻了许多我们已经为客户争取到的价格和利润分享条件，"齐默表示。仅仅给客户一个炙手可热的项目已经远远不够。"真正的经纪人不再是影院的票务登记人，他们是工作的创造者。电影出品更少了，机会也更少了。所以我们必须有创造性。"
而电影业的动荡时代给经纪公司带来了其它领域的收入：在电影制片厂削减开支之际，电视兴旺起来，为经纪公司及其客户带来巨大的机会。打造《迷失》(Lost)等电视剧的威廉·莫里斯奋进公司包揽了美国电视网络委托的80个改编剧和喜剧试播中的半数。于此同时，创新艺人经纪公司通过斡旋，帮助他们的客户西蒙·考威尔(Simon Cowell)将其在英国的电视节目《英国偶像》(The X Factor)移植到美国。国际创作管理公司有着不断增长的电视业务，其中的代表人物是网络热门剧《实习医生格蕾》(Grey's Anatomy)的制作人珊达·莱梅斯(Shonda Rhimes)和创作了《豪斯医生》(House MD)的大卫·肖尔(David Shore)，此剧已在欧洲和美国登上排行榜首。为家庭票房频道打造了广受好评的《黑道家族》(Sopranos)和《地下六英尺》(Six Feet Under)的联合艺人经纪公司，最近凭借吸血鬼连续剧《真爱如血》(True Blood)再现辉煌。
经纪公司也介入了帮助客户签订品牌代言和其它商务协议的事务：联合艺人公司帮助歌手格温·史蒂芬妮(Gwen Stefani)打造了个人服装系列，而创新艺人经纪公司近期签订了合同，赢得了为纽约扬基队(New York Yankees)的新体育场做市场营销的协议。
现年49岁、时常出现在最佳着装名单上的精干男人布莱恩·洛德是创新艺人经纪公司的管理合伙人，他的客户包括布拉德·皮特和乔治·布鲁尼。他说，近年来，好莱坞的业务环境发生了"真正的转变"。"技术和经济显然是两个最重要的因素。但有些东西并没有改变，最重要的是，市场永远需要伟大的艺人。"创新艺人经纪公司，他补充说，已经"发生了演变"。它在新的领域里开展了多样化经营：公司用过去三年的时间建立了体育业务，为篮球、美式橄榄球、足球和棒球的某些大牌球星做代理。"在同一个屋檐下，我们有众多资源和专家，帮助我们的客户在他们选择追求的任何领域取得成功，"洛德表示。
最近，经纪人的热门话题可能是《分手信》(Dear John)，这部击败盘踞票房之冠的《阿凡达》(Avatar) 的浪漫剧成为制作人艺术的一个最新例证。该电影由联合艺人经纪公司打造，由公司客户莱塞·霍尔斯道姆(Lasse Hallström)导演，查宁·塔图姆(Channing Tatum)主演、尼古拉斯·斯帕克斯(Nicholas Sparks)提供剧本原著。正如一位资深电影制片人在某个晚宴上对我说的："金钱法则是好莱坞的金科玉律。"精明的经纪人比谁都更明白这一点。
作者马修·加拉汉是英国《金融时报》驻洛杉矶的通讯员好莱坞四大经纪公司
创新艺人经纪公司
成立时间：1975
主要成员：布莱恩·洛德、凯文·霍维恩、理查德·拉夫特和大卫·奥康纳
顶级艺人：史蒂芬·斯皮尔伯格、詹姆斯·卡梅隆、威尔·史密斯、乔治·克鲁尼、布拉德·皮特、汤姆·汉克斯、汤姆·克鲁斯、奥普拉·温弗瑞和大卫·贝克汉姆(David Beckham)
2010年奥斯卡提名：35项，包括5项最佳男演员提名：杰夫·布里奇斯(Jeff Bridges)、乔治·克鲁尼、科林·费斯(Colin Firth)、摩根·弗里曼(Colin Firth)和杰瑞米·瑞纳(Jeremy Renner)。最佳女演员：桑德拉·布洛克(Sandra Bullock)、梅丽尔·斯特里普(Meryl Streep)。最佳导演：凯瑟琳·毕格罗(Kathryn Bigelow)、詹姆斯·卡梅隆
威廉·莫里斯奋进娱乐公司
成立：2009，由威廉·莫里斯和奋进公司合并
主要成员：阿里·伊曼纽尔和帕特里克·怀特赛尔
顶级艺人：马丁·斯科塞斯、萨莎·拜伦·科恩(Sacha Baron Cohen)、马克·华尔伯格(Mark Wahlberg)、丹尼·博伊尔(Danny Boyle)、罗素·克劳(Russell Crowe)、拉里·戴维(Larry David)、杀手乐团(The Killers)、布兰妮·斯皮尔斯(Britney Spears)
2010年奥斯卡提名：14项，包括马特·戴蒙【最佳男配角，《成事在人》(Invictus)】、贾森·雷特曼(Jason Reitman)【导演，《在云端》(Up in the Air)】、李·丹尼尔斯(Lee Daniels)【导演，《珍爱》(Precious)】、昆汀·瓦伦蒂诺【导演，《无耻混蛋》(Inglourious Basterds)】
联合艺人经纪公司
成立：1991年，由领先艺人经纪公司和鲍尔-贝内代克公司合并而成
主要成员：杰瑞米·齐默、吉姆·巴克斯(Jim Berkus)、翠茜·雅格布(Tracey Jacob)、大卫·克莱默(David Kramer)
顶级艺人：欧文·威尔逊(Owen Wilson)、哈里森·福特、安东尼·霍普金斯(Anthony Hopkins)、格温妮丝·帕特洛、西格妮··韦弗(Sigourney Weaver)、珍妮佛·洛佩兹(Jennifer Lopez)、克里斯汀·邓斯特(Kirsten Dunst)、科恩兄弟(the Coen Brothers)、裘德·阿帕陶(Judd Apatow)
2010年奥斯卡提名：9项，包括科恩兄弟的《严肃的人》(A Serious Man)（最佳导演）、新人盖布瑞·希迪(Gabourey Sidibe)《珍愛人生》和导演魏斯·安德森(Wes Anderson)的《了不起的狐狸爸爸》(Fantastic Mr Fox)
国际创作管理公司
成立：1975年
主要成员：董事会主席杰弗瑞·伯格和总裁克里斯·希尔伯曼(Chris Silbermann)
顶级艺人：梅根·福克斯(Megan Fox)、碧昂丝·诺尔斯(Beyonce Knowles)、 乔恩·斯图尔特(Jon Stewart)、克莱尔·丹丝(Claire Danes) 、米基·洛克(Mickey Rourke )、艾尔·帕西诺(Al Pacino) 、保罗·吉亚玛提(Paul Giamatti)、史蒂夫·巴斯米(Steve Buscem)、乔·汉姆(Jon Hamm) 、詹纽瑞·琼斯(January Jones)、戴安娜·克鲁格(Diane Kruger)。
2010年奥斯卡提名：8项，包括克里斯托弗·普鲁默(Christopher Plummer)【《最后一站》(The Last Station)】和克里斯托弗·瓦尔兹(Christoph Waltz)（《无耻混蛋》）
译者/诸彦青
http://www.ftchinese.com/story/001032483
The might of CAA notwithstanding, Hollywood is no longer a one-horse town and there are plenty of options for both up-and-coming actors and established A-listers seeking representation. William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, for example, is home to Ari Emanuel, a lean 48-year-old with short, greying hair – and the brother of White House chief of staff Rahm. Emanuel, whose long-term clients include Mark Wahlberg, Larry David and Martin Scorsese, is probably the best-known agent in Hollywood thanks to Ari Gold, the character he inspired in HBO's hit show Entourage. Like Gold, Emanuel has a repertoire of colourful phrases; his reputation also rests on a willingness to go to extremes to get the best deal for his clients.
A former TV agent, he first struck out on his own in 1995 when he and three colleagues left ICM to form Endeavor, shaking up Hollywood much as CAA had done two decades earlier. The early days were modest, with Endeavor based in an office above a restaurant, but it quickly grew. The signing of CAA agent Patrick Whitesell in 2001 brought Christian Bale and Matt Damon into the fold, giving Endeavor real A-list credibility, while last year's merger with William Morris bolstered the agency's strengths in music and TV, giving it a client base to rival CAA.
While CAA and WME2 slug it out, opportunities have emerged for UTA and ICM. "Our competitors get into these brand wars like Coke v Pepsi," says Zimmer at UTA. But agencies have to worry about more than what their competitors are doing: pressure is coming from other areas too – notably, the studios that pay their clients. Across Hollywood, studios are looking to cut costs to absorb sharp declines in DVD sales which, for the past decade, generated most of their profits. Talent pay soared in the 1990s thanks to an explosion in home entertainment and soon stars were securing "20 and 20" deals – a $20m fee plus 20 per cent of the gross. For a blockbuster movie this could be upwards of $100m for the star or the director – and a sizeable chunk would go to the agent.
But with the DVD market in sharp decline, the studios have been forced to cut marketing and production budgets. They are also releasing fewer movies: the number coming out of Hollywood last year was 520, a fall of almost 20 per cent on the previous year. There is less work out there for agency clients.
"Studios are retrenching and pushing back a lot of the gains we have made [for our clients] in pricing and profit participation," says Zimmer. It is no longer enough to simply place clients in hotly anticipated projects. "Real agents aren't bookers any more, they are job creators. There are fewer movies being made and fewer opportunities out there. So we have to be creative."
And in turbulent times for the film industry it pays for agencies to have money coming in from other areas: while movie studios slash costs, television is booming, creating big opportunities for the agencies and their clients. WME2, which put together shows such as Lost, packaged more than half of the 80 scripted drama and comedy pilots commissioned this year by America's TV networks. CAA, meanwhile, helped its client Simon Cowell negotiate the transfer of his UK show The X Factor to the US . ICM has a growing TV business, acting for, among others, Shonda Rhimes, producer of network hit Grey's Anatomy, and David Shore, who created House MD, which has topped ratings in Europe and the US. UTA, which put together acclaimed shows for HBO, such as The Sopranos and Six Feet Under, recently scored again with the vampire series True Blood.
The agencies are also involved in helping their clients sign branding and other commercial agreements: UTA helped create a clothing line for the singer Gwen Stefani, while CAA recently won a contract to secure marketing deals for the New York Yankees' new stadium.
Bryan Lourd, a dapper 49-year-old who regularly appears in the best-dressed lists, is a managing partner at CAA, where his clients include Brad Pitt and George Clooney. He says there have been "real shifts" in Hollywood's business environment in recent years. "Technology and the economy have clearly been two of the most important factors. But some things have not changed, most importantly, that great talent will always be in demand." CAA, he adds, has "evolved". It has diversified into new areas: the agency has spent the past three years building a sports practice that represents some of the biggest stars in basketball, American football, soccer and baseball. "We have many resources and experts under one roof to help our clients succeed in any areas they choose to pursue," says Lourd.
So though the Oscar-nominated clients of CAA and the other big agencies will spend the next few weeks anxiously awaiting this year's ceremony on March 7, when the statuettes have been handed out the talk will return, as it always does, to deals and packages. One hot topic may be Dear John, a romantic drama that became the latest example of the packager's art when it knocked Avatar off its perch at the top of the box office charts. The film was put together by UTA with clients Lasse Hallström directing, Channing Tatum starring and Nicholas Sparks writing the book on which the screenplay was based. As a veteran movie producer put it to me at a party the other night: "In Hollywood, the golden rule is that gold rules." Talent agents know that better than anyone.
Matthew Garrahan is the FT's Los Angeles correspondentThe top four talent agencies
CREATIVE ARTISTS AGENCY
Founded: 1975.
Chief players: Bryan Lourd, Kevin Huvane, Richard Lovett, David O'Connor.
Top talent: Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Will Smith, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, James Cameron, Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Oprah Winfrey, David Beckham.
2010 Oscar nominations: 35 including all five best actor nominees: Jeff Bridges, George Clooney, Colin Firth, Morgan Freeman and Jeremy Renner. Best actress: Sandra Bullock, Meryl Streep. Best director: Kathryn Bigelow, James Cameron.
WILLIAM MORRIS ENDEAVOR ENTERTAINMENT
Founded: 2009 via the merger of William Morris with Endeavor.
Chief players: Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell.
Top talent: Martin Scorsese, Sacha Baron Cohen, Mark Wahlberg, Danny Boyle, Russell Crowe, Larry David, The Killers, Britney Spears.
2010 Oscar nominations: 14, including Matt Damon (best supporting actor, Invictus), Jason Reitman (director, Up in the Air), Lee Daniels (director, Precious) Quentin Tarantino (director, Inglourious Basterds).
UNITED TALENT AGENCY
Founded: 1991 following the merger of Leading Artists and Bauer-Benedek.
Chief players: Jeremy Zimmer, Jim Berkus, Tracey Jacobs, David Kramer.
Top talent: Owen Wilson, Harrison Ford, Anthony Hopkins, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sigourney Weaver, Jennifer Lopez, Kirsten Dunst, the Coen Brothers, Judd Apatow.
2010 Oscar nominations: 9, including the Coen Brothers (best director) for A Serious Man, newcomer actor Gabourey Sidibe for Precious and director Wes Anderson for Fantastic Mr Fox.
INTERNATIONAL CREATIVE MANAGEMENT
Founded: 1975.
Chief players: Jeffrey Berg, chairman, and Chris Silbermann, president.
Top talent: Megan Fox, Beyoncé Knowles, Jon Stewart, Claire Danes, Mickey Rourke, Al Pacino, Paul Giamatti, Steve Buscemi, Jon Hamm, January Jones, Diane Kruger.
2010 Oscar nominations: 8, including Christopher Plummer (The Last Station) and Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)
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