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The Los Angeles city attorney’s office has charged yet another Hollywood talent manager with violating the state’s Krekorian Talent Scam Prevention Act of 2009. Veteran manager Patrick W. O’Brien of Pat O’Brien Talent Management and Talent Marketing and Promotions Inc. has been charged with six criminal counts, including grand theft, false advertising, operating an advance-fee talent representation service and failing to file a $50,000 bond with the state Labor Commission. The charges stem from a complaint filed by an Arizona mother who came to LA with her 15-year-old son to audition in a teen sitcom upon invitational by O’Brien’s company. The mother alleges the audition was just a ploy to get her to sign a management contract with O’Brien and pay almost $3,000 for a photo shoot and acting classes. (The woman has since been reimbursed by O’Brien.) If convicted on all counts, O’Brien could face up to five years in jail and $51,000 in fines. In an interview with LA Times, O’Brien called the criminal charges baseless. “The city attorney’s office is trying to regulate the business so much, it’s making it difficult for legitimate companies to operate.”
O’Brien is the fourth talent manager charged with talent scamming under the Krekorian Act that prohibits talent reps from charging advance fees. The first one, David Askaryar of Hollywood Stars Management Inc. and VIP Talent Web Inc., last week pleaded no contest to one count of operating an advance-fee talent representation service and one count of operating a talent listing service without a bond. On the first count, he was sentenced to 36 months’ probation, ordered to shut down his businesses, and banned from owning, operating, or being employed by any talent service. On the second count, he was sentenced to 36 months probation, ordered to serve 90 days in jail or perform 30 days of community service, and ordered to pay $819 in restitution to three victims and another $3,000 in investigative costs. The other 2 charged so far are Ricardo Macias, owner of ActorsOnSet.com, and Nicholas (Nick) Roses, manager at Luber Roklin who operated his acting boot camp business through his own company. Those cases are still being prosecuted.
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Good.
While no longer working as a personal manager, I have great pride in our profession and those in it. And I’ve long hated when someone calls themselves as a manager but in practice is makes their living by accepting money as these four allegedly have.
I realize it’s hard to succeed if you call yourself a scam artist, but hopefully this will help get scam artists to call themselves something other than personal managers.
It would be nice if the City Attorney would also go after the so-called “casting workshops” that scam would-be actors and actors out of cash by promising an audition with a casting director or assistant under the guise of it being a class.
Much like these “Personal Managers” running scams, this is not to say all workshops run by casting directors are scams. Although really even an 8 year old could cite a conflict of interest in any CD teaching classes whether they’re actually teaching or just collecting for the chance to meet.
Whatever the moral concerns, certainly the few casting director workshop factories in town that “invite” casting directors and assistants to their “studios” paying them hundreds of dollars fleeced from hopeful actors for little more than a 1-hour meet and greet with 20 actors are nothing more than scams. The scam is the only-slightly clandestine promise the casting director or untrained, inarticulate, under-payed casting assistant will call the actor in for legitimate work. It’s the same scam these “person managers” are running.
Book ‘em Dano.
THANK you for mentioning these AWFUL so-called ‘workshops’! About a decade ago there was a big to do about them and a call for state labor officials to investigate and some sort of deal was worked out by which NOTHING CHANGED. Casting Directors who accept money for these ridiculous sessions are really to blame, at this point. If you’re a CD and you attend these workshops and DON’T carefully explain that you will not bring any of those actors in to read, you’re breaking the law.
Yes yes yes…. the casting director workshops. I am a manager and I constantly get emails from one certain Casting Director promoting her class/workshop, yet she will not bring my clients in for auditions. WTF is that? I can send you my clients for classes but you can’t give them an appointment!!? And this is one of the better CD’s.
I can personally say that I’ve booked a dozen network and cable shows from workshops. Most of these companies invite thoughtful and insightful associates not the “untrained, inarticulate assistants” characterized above. In fact I’ve never once encountered an “untrained or inarticulate assistant”. Jennifer Lare, Scott David, Kendra Castleberry, Josh Einsohn and Amy Reece constantly attend workshops and are GREAT about bringing in actors whose skill sets are up to the task. Many of my friends have been cast on Criminal Minds, Justified, CSI:Miami, Castle and many other shows thanks to their exposure at casting director workshops. Sure there are workshop scams out there but you can’t call them all awful. Casting Network, Reel Pros and In the Act are all legit. If whoever posted the bitter tirade above has fallen prey to shady workshops then maybe he or she should do a little more research like a big boy or girl – the bad ones are not hard to spot. If he or she’s been going to legit workshops like the ones listed above and not getting results then perhaps the blame falls not so much on the associate or assistant but on the actor’s cold reading skills. Like…maybe…you’re just a shitty actor.
Working Actor–
Thanks for mentioning the 3 biggest Casting Workshop offenders and some of the Casting Directors by name. If I know City Attorneys, they love to read their own press and your outing the biggest offenders might streamline the process of shutting these illegal businesses down.
Thanks also for sharing your experience and being so clear in explaining that the big 3 are not offering workshops at all, but instead offer paid-in-advance pre-reads with corrupt casting directors– who then (allegedly) cast said actors on their Network series. That’s the violation of the law right there–accepting payment from an actor for an opportunity to work.
It’s the paying for a chance at employment that is the illegal part whether the casting director books you or not. That’s the charge the City Attorney is filing against these personal managers and hopefully will be filing against these illegal pay-to-play Casting Workshops.
Not to worry though even if the City Attorney is perusing this comment board. Actors lying about their credits isn’t illegal–it’s silly, it’s juvenile, but not illegal.
Oh stop your rot! Why not publish your real name ‘working actor’.
Better still how about our IMDB link!
Please don’t blame the victim. The point of regulating this industry is to prevent those in the know (casting directors)from taking advantage of those new to the industry who are paying someone knowledgeable to help them. If they are not actually helping, they should not be paid for that service. Period.
Yes! These “workshops” seriously need to be shut down. In no other business does a company pay their consumers to sample the company’s product/service.
Does Coca-Cola pay you to try their new soft drink? No. Why should actors pay for the shoppers/buyers of their service [of playing a role] to sample their product.
I’m sorry, but as an agent/manager or casting director, it is part of the job description to continuously seek out new talent. We are all busy, but it’s not up to the actors to find a solution; it’s theirs. With technology these days, and a little proactive thinking in their part, you can find a very easy solution.
Pursuing this industry can be much easier if we just take advantage of the tools we have and if everyone just did the job they are suppose to do.
Please show me the job description that says ‘continuously seek out new talent’.
You show your ignorance about the industry by believing that. And you obviously do believe that.
I am an actor also, and I think it would be GREAT if that were part of the job description.
But the job is about making money. Typically name actors make money.
I have no quarrel with the Workshop system. I don’t often attend, but it’s a great place to begin a professional relationship. The actors who are ready for work are often remembered by Casting.
And the actors who are not ready for work are also remembered by Casting for the wrong reasons.
By the way, almost all workshop facilities are owned and operated by actors. Not Casting Directors or Agents.
So all quarrels should be directed at the acting community who makes the most money off of these. Not the CD or Agent who is brought in for a few hours.
You are so right about those workshops. I could have thrown my money down the toilet with all the promises of auditions at the workshops. Even some agents are saying to go to these workshops because they know the CD’s personally and we would be able to audition.These are the people we trust and are there to help us? Bull……..
Perhaps the City Attorney will next go after the slavery mill aka unpaid interns. Many of the “internships” listed on pages like Craigslist are clearly in violation of State Labor Laws. But kudos to the Attorney’s office for cracking down on these management scum.
KNBC’s “The Filter” has had unpaid on-air talent for a year and a half in violation of state labor laws.
Relationships are built on trust. I CAN and WILL make you a star. But if you’re not willing to invest in yourself…to BELIEVE in yourself…then don’t expect me to. What’s that? Sure, I have a pen. Just make it out to cash, that’ll be fine.
Sickens me. I have a friend who prides himself on being nothing but a legit manager. Due to the Writers’ Strike and Crash of the Economy he lost his cars and went homeless for almost a year and NEVER charged a client for not one thing. His clients coach with him for free and they even had headshots taken by him for free. Yet there are these scums who charge…
One thing I would like to see gone after are the Background Calling Services where you have to pay $60-$80 a month to get work as a BG actor. The scam is that the BG casting directors mostly fill their quotas through these companies. So if you can’t afford to be with one you won’t get much work. Rumor has it there are kickbacks to the CD’s involved.
There’s a lot of vitriol in these comments that seems misdirected. The problem is not with activities, it’s with misrepresentation. Yes, a pay-to-play manager is dubious, but it’s because he’s misrepresenting himself. If he was straightforward and acted like a submission service and allowed adults to make an informed decision for themselves, then there’s nothing wrong with paying for that service if you choose to.
Same thing with these CD workshops. If a CD workshop promises you auditions, then they are misrepresenting themselves. If they provide you with valuable feedback and a networking opportunity, it’s just like every other industry… I mean, I don’t see people decrying football camps that prepare college players for the NFL combine, or consultants who charge small fees to give feedback to individuals and small businesses.
Unfortunately, our legislators and AGs have to draw the line at tactics because it’s difficult to prove motive. That just makes it expedient, it doesn’t make it right. Informed adults entering into a clear arrangement should be above reproach.
The scumbags (like the four referenced in the article) ruin it for everyone.
A CD workshop is the best way to meet casting. Sometimes it’s the only way – especially if you are repped by lazy agents who are afraid to actually pitch you to casting offices. If an actor is talented they will definitely bring you in to read. That is a fact.
Why would an agent be afraid to submit talent? That sounds very silly to me. Is the casting director going to bite the agent!
i meant that the agent is not sending a talent that he is NOT proud of to the CD.
Dear Been Scammed;
Contact Mark Lambert at the LA City Attorney’s office. He wants to hear from you.
Mark.Lambert@lacity.com
if its a great CD, then hopefully they will take note. Most cd’s dont have the time to meet and do “generals” As an actor, i did all of a sudden start getting called into these offices. Was it my agent? who knows? or maybe a coincidence ….
Also, my internship with a CD after college did lead me to a “real” job. It was not promised, but definitely welcomed.
Leave legit casting director workshops alone. In this day and age of electronic submissions and fewer breakdowns it’s a great way for actors to be seen. These “regulators” need to go to a session at the good places and see that they are informing and teaching actors about the audition process. It’s no different than paying for a job fair or a headhunter to get you in the door. Casting directors don’t hire actors they simply make the introduction to the people that can really make it happen. I know plenty of GOOD ACTORS that have gotten work through workshops. I’m sorry for those people who have been scammed but go after the real bad guys.
It’s about time. This is a good year for busting scam artists who prey on kids and parents. David Askaryar: CONVICTED. Ricardo Macias: CHARGED. Nick Roses: CHARGED.
And let’s not forget CARL CARRANZA of Flashcast/Scooter’s whatever-it’s-called-now fame: FACING FELONY CHARGERS in Nevade. Thankfully, he’s been run out of Cali – after ripping off so many here.
And finally (and hopefully not the last of the scumbags to be taken to task): Pat O’Brien: CHARGED. Possible FIVE YEARS IN JAIL and over $50,000 IN FINES!
Like Carl Carranza, Pat O’Brien has been running his scheme for 20 years. It’s funny how he claims he’s been a in business for 20 years as some sort of accomplishment. But he’s been scamming since the start, beginning with O’Brien/Rottman (remember them, parents? Do a Google search for more info.). That company mysteriously disappeared from San Francisco, Dallas and finally went out of business in LA when the complaints became so numerous.
Thank heaven for Paul Krekorian and the Talent Scam Prevention Act of 2009, and thanks to Los Angeles The City Attorney’s office for doing everything in their power to put these crooks in their place.
Note to Parents: It’s hard to admit when you’ve been ripped off. It’s embarrassing and feels bad. But sometimes you just have to admit you’ve been taken advantage of, and if so report anything that you believe is scammy to Mark.Lambert@lacity.com. If you REALLY want to help and want to keep Hollywood safe for those parents and kids who don’t know better, please speak up.
Keep up the good work, Mr. Lambert.
Good for the city attorney for going after scammers. And then seeing the defenders of the Casting Workshops brought up here shows how prevalent and accepted scams are in Hollywood.
Working Actor, Josh, and Jim, don’t even realize they are being ripped off. I’ve got news for you fellas, even if it has worked for you, casting directors demanding money from you to meet you is illegal. Their job is to meet and hire actors. If they choose to charge to meet actors with a mutual understanding that it will or might lead to employment they are acting illegally.
A workshop is a class for learning. These casting workshops in town including the ones mentioned here pretend to be workshops, but as each actor mentioned has noted they are set up only to be places where actors meet casting directors in hopes of gaining employment. In every state and in every profession that is immoral and illegal. I’m with those who hope the city attorney will enforce the law and shut down these fronts for illegal activity.
I’m in construction services to the govt. It’s not illegal and immoral in other businesses to have conventions/meet and greets/workshops etc to get a chance to meet with the decision makers. Yes, we pay to attend those, quite a bit of money actually. It’s called sales, and I have a huge budget for it. There are no ‘agents’ and ‘managers’ trying to skim all my earnings (whether they were involved or not – I still think that is uproariously funny about the entertainment industry) so that I can meet customers (read, casting agents). There is no guarantee that paying to meet purchasing and program managers will get me work, maybe not even the opportunity to quote. But meeting face to face and doing the sales pitch, can make all the difference in the world. Casting directors should be interfacing with talent directly, not this incredibly corrupt manager/agent system.
Marie:
“And then seeing the defenders of the Casting Workshops brought up here shows how prevalent and accepted scams are in Hollywood.”
Please explain how I am being ripped off? On average a casting workshop costs around $40. One day of work, even at scale for a “co-star”, results in a profit for the actor. If it’s a successful network/cable show it will continue to pay residuals for years. In the business world we call that ROI (Return On Investment). In this town, more often than not, business savvy, sadly, will get an actor farther.
On another note:
Please cost justify all the “acting coaches/studios” in terms of ROI for an actor? Perhaps the city attorney should look into that racket…
There are more than a few shady screenwriter workshops in town as well. Some of them should be targeted next.
Marie, Jim is never going to get it. “Return on Investment”? Hard to tell if Jim is an accountant or an actor. This is an industry where your talent is the investment. What Jim suggests, paying $40 to meet and read for casting directors, is exactly what is against the law. Sure it works sometimes – so does bribery, blackmail, BJs – but that is not the point. The point is that NO actor should have to spend money to meet the gatekeepers and NO actor should pay a fee to get through the gate.
For every actor who spends $40 and sometimes gets a job, there are 100 who get nothing. The more actors pay, the less opportunity ALL actors will have to meet casting directors without paying. Jim doesn’t care that he’s selfish. Jim doesn’t care that other actors suffer so he can pay for a job interview. Jim doesn’t care that charging for a job interview is illegal. Jim doesn’t care that paying casting people is exactly why Nick Roses and Patrick O’Brien can run their schemes. Jim cares about Jim.
Keep talking Jim. It’s posts like yours that will bring down the workshop industry. Better to keep playing the “education” game and pretend that what they do is not what they really do. Maybe you can buy an extra year before the hammer comes down on these places.
Jim, here’s a tip. Try paying the women or men in your life for a date. Return on investment? You might get laid, but does he really love you?
Dear ROI,
Way to jump all over an actor explaining himself to you.
Not interested in learning the other side of the coin at all, are you?
Jim is absolutely right. And btw, the law is not written to put an end to ‘meeting and reading’ for a Casting Director. The law is written to make sure you are not paying to audition for a Casting Director.
The Casting Directors do not, by law, bring in sides from projects they are currently casting. Nor can they predict what types of roles will be released in the weeks and months to come.
If an actor performs well in the workshop it does not mean they are going to get cast in a show. But it does help the agent secure an audition if something is released that the actor is right for, and that actor is now on the CD’s radar. That actor still has to come in and audition for the role, and as you know, its then up to the Producers and Director to eventually cast the role.
If the actor from the workshop gets cast, it is certainly not BECAUSE of the workshop. It’s because the actor was right for the role and the workshop is what alerted the Casting Director to the existence of that actor.
And no one can disagree that it would be so much better if Casting Directors went out of their way to do more generals or see plays or attend showcases…but that’s not how it works.
Again, if you have grievances about the workshop system (and believe me…I see both sides of this subject and can point to all the ways workshops are wrong as well) you should take it up with the actors owning and running the workshops. Not the people who are being paid to be there for an hour or two.
Bottom line, it is an individual actors decision to participate and see the value of these workshops. Some will benefit and some won’t. That does not make it a rip off.
ROI,
I have no expectation of being called in when I attend a workshop – nor do I expect employment. My goal is to learn how that specific office functions. Do they cast off tape? How do they go through submissions? What they look for in actors that they’ve hired in the past?, etc. I pay a fee in return for an educational workshop – which is what the people who host them (usually proactive actors) advertise and deliver. I don’t see anything wrong with it. The CD’s are extremely professional as are the attendees. I go up and I do my best. If it results in an appointment – great! If it doesn’t – oh well…
It’s also one of the only ways to gain a competitive edge in an industry where relationships with casting or agencies can begin very early in an actors life. The people who are working constantly or who are stars usually have been doing it since childhood. Or a lot longer than your average guy or girl who graduates drama school at 22 and moves here to pursue a career.
This business is a tough nut to crack and any actor reading this, I think, would agree. If you are committed and are serious you will strategize and target shows that are right for you and try and work on them. I see so many people who are in class “studying” but never approach the industry as a business. A little hustle can go along way.
Personally, I don’t think it’s very fair that the sons and daughters of Hollywood’s elite are able to get repped or seen for larger roles just because they were born into the business. Do you think Kate Hudson had a difficult time getting an agent? I hope you get my point.
Also, please provide me with insight on how one is even able to compete for roles without a SAG card? I know, I know … that’s what the agent is there for, right? Good luck getting an agent to sign you when you’re not in SAG. It’s all a Catch – 22, but hey, this is what we signed up for!
I’m just giving my two-cents. No need to be crass ROI. I just wanted to present the other side.
And to your comment about having them love me – I don’t want them to love me – I just want to work.
Josh;
I do blame the casting directors and associates for perpetuating a system that pays them to meet actors, and I am not alone in believing that that it’s a greedy and selfish practice and demeans the casting profession. And while it may not be illegal for these casting people to meet actors for a fee, there is a reason that every major studio and network has language in their employment contracts that prohibits its employees from taking a penny from actors for ANY reason. Even the appearance of impropriety on this level is meant to be avoided at all costs.
And the State of California has already made clear its standing on the issue, ten years ago, when it issued the following statement from the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement:
“Single session workshops where a group of veteran and/or aspiring actors pay a fee, submit headshots and resumes, and perform cold readings of sides for an invited casting director or his assistant representing a producer with current casting needs for film and/or television are presumptively in violation of the provisions of section 450 of the Labor Code. This is so even where the casting director or assistant gives some incidental direction or suggestions to some or all of the participants during the course of the session.”
What part of “Violation” isn’t clear to you by this statement? They don’t care that actors are not reading for current shows. They understand the intent of the workshops with regard to looking for a job in a movie or TV show.
Trust me when I say I know how difficult it is for an actor to meet the decision makers. But the bottom line is that it’s NOT the “actor’s decision to participate” as you say – not when almost every other door to free opportunities has been closed. Hmmm…let’s see. Pay for access? Or don’t pay, and never be able to compete on a level playing field.”
That’s not a choice I think most actors should have to make.
Let’s talk about the cd’s who also manage. What a nightmare…And don’t forget all of the showcases they attend and are paid very well to do so………
And Josh, sorry if I come off snarky. I wasn’t trying to jump all over Jim – or you. I’m just passionate about the way actors are treated, and I don’t think workshops “empower” actors, but that they do exactly the opposite. They have evolved to a point where there’s just no other way for an actor to get a break. The pendulum has swung way too far in one direction and it’s time that actors got a break.
When I see statements on workshop websites from major casting offices like “Last season, our office used 170 workshop actors. You can imagine how many more got auditions! We NEED workshop actors as we don’t have time to have endless pre-reads at our office. The workshops are your pre read for us” – well it makes me sick.
I just think that there must be a better way.
I know I could always open up the phone book; but does anyone know how to contact the City Attorney’s Office directly? – I’m signed with a “manager” who charged me an up front “listing” fee. I’m realizing now after reading about the crackdown and the posts, that I’ve been scammed. I was told the “listing fee” was to cover administrative costs and filing, it wasn’t much, but it’s the principle. I should not have been charged anything. Right? Thanks in advance for your help.
What about managers who charge a small fee so they can pay for script codes? Does that count? Or is that legit?
Wow. It is really hard for me to comment on this at all, because I don’t know where to begin…
I’m interested in whether any of the folks vilifying workshops are working actors, because from my 2 decades of experience in this profession, that is the ONLY way to get credits when you are first starting out, unless you A) have familial connections, as noted by Jim, B) perform some well-placed sexual favors, as I have known MANY people to do, or C) move down from Canada, already possessing a truckload of Canadian TV credits. I chose the workshop route, as I didn’t qualify for A or C, and am morally & physically repulsed by B, but I’m not judging…
If you are a good actor, workshops work. It’s that simple. I say that from experience and from observation. And you know what does *not* work? Sitting around waiting for your agent to call. OR doing SHOWCASES, which, by the way, charge WAY MORE than any workshop I’ve ever heard of. THOSE, my friends, are the real scams. Not to mention that every showcase I’ve ever attended has been permeated by this frenetic air of desperation, which is both demoralizing and counter-productive. Perhaps some people feel that way in workshops, but when I used to do them, I always felt like I was meeting with colleagues: able to interact, ask real questions, have the CD get to know me, instead of just putting on a show, literally.
I thank God every day to be a working actor, with health insurance, and without a day job. I have a marvelous manager who works tirelessly for a small client roster, which is Incredibly Rare. But you know what I did immediately previous to finding my manager? I paid a submission service. And I am here to tell you from my heart that I got 10xs more WORK from PAYING those people to submit me than I got from any “legit” agent I had ever been with, and that is the truth.
So, yeah, Jim, I’m with you 100%. I did used to feel “empowered” when I did workshops, because when I’m paying someone, they’re in *my* house, under *my* employ, just as the submission service was. Workshops allowed me to amass a credit list substantial enough to attract representation that could/would actually do something for me, and to demonstrate a track record that inspired confidence in CDs. If workshops didn’t WORK, they would have faded away long ago.
Good riddens to the scumbag managers! I almost signed my child with Nick Roses buy my gut told me not to. He just had too many clients for a manager.
As far as CD workshops though, I’d say chill out. They are useful. If someone tells you these CDs are going to cast you from the workshop then thats wrong. But we have gotten lots of useful feedback from them, and a few well known CDs did get to know my kid on a first name basis. As long as you aren’t paying too much for this, I think its a valuable service. The site we use charges about $20 for a CD workshop. I think that was worth it- less expensive than acting classes. We don’t do it anymore because we aren’t newbies anymore, but it was useful during that phase of our adventure.