Major Players Review: United Talent Agency V.S. Brevard Talent Group

Major Players Review:United Talent Agency v Brevard Talent Group

Edward SanchezFull Sail University

Product and Artist Management

Christine Winn

 The United Talent Agency (UTA) and Brevard Talent Group (BTG) are two agencies that offer similar services in the entertainment industry. One is a highly known worldwide name that caters to highly known celebrities. The other is based out of Florida and serves industry professionals who are not as famous. Both offer similar management services to their clients. Let’s compare them to determine what essentially sets these two companies apart; who they are, what exact services they offer, and their target market.

UTA:

•       A premier global talent agency who has offices in Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, Miami, Toronto, London, Malmö founded in 1991
•       Considered a Hollywood powerhouse
•       In the late 1990’s, considered an upstart challenger to William Morris Agency and Creative Arts Agency (two significant names during that time)
•       Represented Jim Carrey for the Cable Guy and made a 20 million dollar upfront deal
•       They cater to motion picture, television, music, digital, broadcast news, theater, video games, fine-art, live entertainment, and books
•       UTA has over 100 agents, each having more than 10 years experience, and operates exclusively by referral
•       They are recognized for offering film finance, film packaging, branding, licensing, endorsements, corporate consulting, venture funding, and strategic advice from startups to Fortune 500 companies.
•       UTA owns the news and reality based agency Bienstock founded in 1964
•       UTA Founded and co-owns a marketing firm called United Entertainment Group which handles branding
•       Partnered with Delta, Oakley, Barbie, DreamWorks, WebMD, American Girl, Fisher Price and Zynga to name a few
•       They have over 500 clients, a few high profile clients include:

o   Singer Songwriter- Mariah Carey, 50Cent, Kanye West

o   Actors- Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Kevin Hart Martin Lawrence, Barbra Streisand

o   Filmmaker & Screen Writers- The Cohen Brothers, Judd Aptow, Peter Morgan

o   TV writers, Creators, & Producers- Sally Ann Salsano, Shane Dawson, Chuck Lorre

•       The New York based firm United Entertainment Group caters to corporate clients such as Frito-Lay, AT&T, Starbucks, Nestle, and Avon. They offer services such as brand development, property development and multi-cultural marketing
•       They have strategically hired several of the top performing agents in all fields who have brought in highly recognizable clients to the agency

BTG:

•            Florida based company located in Orlando
•            Incorporated in 1989 by President and Founder Traci Danielle
•            Small Business with less than 5 Agents
•            Over a 150 clients
•            Affiliated with EQUITY and SAG- AFTRA
•            BTG serve Actors and Voice Over Artists
•            Several notable credits BTG has worked on are:

o   Film- Ace Ventura 3, Bad Boys 2, Baitshop, Battle Los Angeles, Dolphin Tale, Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, GI Jane, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Transformers 3, Waterboy, and Phone Booth

o   Television- All My Children, Army Wives, Bold & the Beautiful, Burn Notice, CSI Miami, Dawson’s Creek, Vampire Diaries

o   Commercials- AARP, ADT Security, Bud Light, Bush Gardens, Carnival Cruise Lines, McDonalds, Pepsi, Universal Studios

 After comparing them, it is simple to notice the difference between the two companies. They each serve the grand purpose of a talent agency in the entertainment industry, which happens to represent the client to the best of their abilities. UTA caters to a larger market and offers clients further exposure with additional services. The expertise brought in by United Talent Agency is also a sizeable difference. UTA has recruited high profile agents with over ten years of experience who have represented established clients. Their contacts alone are invaluable and would be a boon to any company. However, with UTA being so large, one can assume that a number of clients fall by the wayside or fail to attract the attention they may need to grow.

 BTG on the other hand remains a much smaller company. They do not offer the exposure, partnerships and expertise as UTA, nevertheless it’s easier to walk in the door with them. A fresh actor will have an optimal chance of being represented by BTG and will receive a personalized experience. A manager breaking into the business might also find it much easier to intern, or even land a job with Brevard Talent Group. As a budding “green” artist manager, I would ultimately prefer Brevard and gain experience. Using BTG as a springboard, I would find and nurture talent and develop a stellar roster to show UTA for a possible job in the future.

References

(1) ABOUT US. (n.d.). Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://www.unitedtalent.com

Finke, N. (2006, September 13). 2nd UPDATE: Jim Carrey Fires Long-Time UTA and Long-Loyal Nick Stevens.

(2) "The Fix Is In" For CAA To Sign Jim. But Nick Gave Ari Advice On How To Bag Carrey. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://deadline.com/2006/09/exclusive-jim-carrey-fires-agency-574/

(3) Finke, N. (2006, September 13). 2nd UPDATE: Jim Carrey Fires Long-Time UTA and Long-Loyal Nick Stevens. "The Fix Is In" For CAA To Sign Jim. But Nick Gave Ari Advice On How To Bag Carrey. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://deadline.com/2006/09/exclusive-jim-carrey-fires-agency-574/

(4) Graser, M. (2007, September 9). UTA, Moses taking brand stand. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://variety.com/2007/scene/markets-festivals/uta-moses-taking-brand-stand-1117971708/

(5) Submission Info. (2015, February 8). Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://brevardtalentgroup.com/submission-info/

(6) Brevard Talent Group located in Orlando, FL. (2015, December 2). Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://profile.infofree.com/biz/FL/Orlando/Brevard Talent Group/11132552819263

(7) BREVARD TALENT GROUP, INC. (n.d.). Retrieved December 2, 2015, from http://www.companies-florida.com/brevard-talent-group-inc-gx41/