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On the heels of the William Morris layoffs, I'm hearing that CAA's bonuses this year will be way, way down when they're handed out later this month. Shockingly so. To the point where some agents are starting to look around.
How Low Can CAA Go At Bonus Time...
By Nikki Finke | Category: Finance | Tuesday October 7, 2008 @ 9:58am
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Two Weeks of Posts Comments 1 THE END OF 'OPRAH' AS WE KNOW HER: Daytime Diva Giving Up Syndie … 648 2 UPDATE: Academy Picks Steve Martin & Alec Baldwin As 82nd … 174 3 Adrian Pasdar Let Go From NBC's 'Heroes' 132 4 VIDEO: Fox Releases New 'Avatar' Trailer 123 5 Joss Whedon Makes Bid For 'Terminator' 120 ‘This Is MORE Of It’ Spoof
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Hmmm, the thing that makes CAA so ’special’ is it’s devotion their cult/army mystique. U start stiffin the soldiers, and how far can a mutiny be?
what a surprise! agents acting like douche-bags! who would’ve thunk it?
Attention agents hunting for jobs at CAA,
Dissatisfied with your bonus?
There was a strike this year remember?
You should make less.
Like everyone else.
Man up bitches.
As much as people will comment with the schadenfreude of seeing guys in suits not making as much this year it all comes down to the fact that this was an incredibly inappropriate time to strike.
I am a wee assistant and I have not received an pay check that includes overtime this year. At least I still have my job.
I hope that the SAG situation can be resolved quickly and fairly. There are a lot of people in this city who rely upon the industry for their jobs and not all of us wear Prada and Armani every day.
Elliot: do you work at an agency as an assistant? I used to work at an agency as an assistant and the front desk receptionist uncovered all of this legal info re: overtime in CA and got the agency to fork-over back-logged overtime pay to all the current assistants, and many assistants that had come and gone. I ended up with a check for roughly 7K when all was said and done. You should look into it. One of the many reasons why I left the industry was that I never felt like I was compensated enough for my work. That, and the fact that Hell-A is a pit of despair and one of the scummiest, soul-sucking places on earth.
I wonder if any of CAA’s directors plan to take a hit? I can’t see Lovett et al. willing to reduce their comp.
Can you publish the WMA layoff list, would love to see who lost their jobs, kinda funny I always thought of WMA as a place where when they hired you, you could die there, or is it if you sign there your dead, I keep forgetting!
“Incredibly inappropriate time to strike…”
And the “appropriate” time to strike is when?
With comments like that, I see a long career of “wee assisting” in your future…
JD – for starters, a good time to strike might be during a time that isn’t a recession.
Nick said…
“That, and the fact that Hell-A is a pit of despair and one of the scummiest, soul-sucking places on earth.”
There used to be a trash bin in the alley behind Fairfax and Beverly that had “Los Angeles – 45% more broken dreams than any place on Earth” scrawled on it.
what I see is a lotta whiny bitches whining about a lotta whiny bitch agents
get a life, you hollywood degenerates…all of ya !
It’s always five o’clock somewhere, Elliot…
They’ve made so many fuck-ups,does anybody even care about this agency anymore???
When I see a CAA post on your site, it’s ALWAYS bad news! For years!!! Ugly decor in bldg., agent defections, clients leaving, kitchen fires, reduced first class airplane travel/expense accts. for agents, parking for assts, reduced bonuses.
I mean…really people, the cats out the bag already with this agency.
Conscientious Observer,
All agencies have agent and client defections from time to time.
And CAA doesn’t really know how to grow talent, yes…
But they’ve still got a hell of a client list and wield more power than any other agency in town. That’s why people still talk about this agency. Your comment is asinine. What cat is out of what bag? CAA is more dominant than WMA, ICM, UTA (especially now)…
These things are cyclical, and it might not always be that way. But that’s the way it is at this moment.
Bonuses get cut in light of a strike. Fine.
Tell Us How You Really Feel Nick said:
“There used to be a trash bin in the alley behind Fairfax and Beverly that had “Los Angeles – 45% more broken dreams than any place on Earth” scrawled on it.”
Sorry to disappoint you, no broken dreams here. I worked with Bruckheimer, Tony and Ridley, and farted around at an agency for a few years…it was fun but pretty slight in the long run. The only thing that I miss about LA is the potency of the weed, In and Out Burger, and Red Mango frozen yogurt. I’ll be laughing the last laugh when Hell-A gets hit with a nuke or some biological weapon or a 7.8 quake. To be honest, it was all of the illegal immigrants that was the main contributor to me leaving the city. That and the fact that it’s a filthy city. Love that air quality and the traffic, too! God, Hell-A really is awesome, isn’t it?
Since I have left town, I have landed a better, much higher paying job, landed a great apartment that wasn’t built in the 40’s and run like a slum, and I don’t have bums trying to solicit me for cash or crack or trying to break into my car while I am sitting at a stop sign.
The big agencies have to innovate to survive. At the moment it looks like:
CAA – on their way down. New building, old ideas.
ICM – out of action and stuck in traction.
Endeavor – spawn of satan but innovative up and comers.
William Morris – innovating to make a comeback after decades on the bench.
Wow Nick,
So you got out of LA and still troll the message boards of a site whose message board is nothing but trolls?
And you wish every citizen of LA a fiery or painful death.
Sounds like your move has made you a happy person.
Congrats!
You’re a jerk.
Had a mtg. at CAA a few months ago and they are great “In the Box” thinkers. All this power and they still have a hard time getting it up when it comes to innovation. Adding more depts (sports, consulting, etc) only spreads the risk around – it hardly means they get anything new on the horizon.
nick, are you for real? reading your cold-hearted, bigoted statements, I conclude it’s best for all of us you’ve left town.
Mr. Nick!!! wow…I just come on here sometime to see what everyone is saying and you “Mr. I have the world at my feet” – are quite a peice of work. I get that you don’t like L.A – but I think it’s pretty awful that you would wish such bad things on city where there ARE alot of good people -left in it, or just humans in general. Furthermore…it appears your life isn’t that great, it seems all you do is leave comments on a website that’s based on an industry – you no longer work for, in a town you no longer live!!! I would think your new world and great new life would be more fullfilling. Guess I’m laughing now!!
You can tell Nick doesn’t have one ounce of regret or bitterness about leaving the biz. So much so that he has no time to not only read but post his bigoted views on a website about a business and city he despiseth so much.
Probably driven out of the business with an attitude like that.
CAA may be going down but it won’t fall beneath any of the other agencies…it’s not as if there is another agency, corporate wise, will take it’s place.
…but as a practice, it’s where innovation goes to die.
That’s the definite benefit to Endeavor…although their business is a lot smaller, they have a stronger stomach for risky ideas…whereas CAA can’t shake off the “what earner did you do lately”…which was a good idea in the 90s…but now stars aren’t being relied upon as open movies, CAA indie can’t move beyond vanity projects, and management won’t let baby agents try to grow potentials, the agency is getting stagnant.
I was represented by CAA for nearly ten years…WAY TOO LONG! The only thing they seemed to understand was how to rip of ideas and inject them into their network and studio “packages”… They operate with a “If you’re not with them, you’re against them” mantra…
re: Nick – I don’t think he was ‘wishing’ nukes n’ earthquakes on LA, just that he’s glad he won’t be here when ‘the Big One’ (whatever form it takes) hits! & I can’t say I blame him!! What a place!! Yes, there are some ‘good pple’ here, but c’mon, have you ever seen a more self-centered, ego-centric group of folks gathered in one place in your entire life??!! ‘Cause I haven’t!! LA does need a ‘wake-up call’ – there is more to life than freaking out on one another 24/7 over stupidity! LA is a giant Stress Bucket!! Traffic sucks and throws even mildly dysfunctional pple over the edge! New York got 9/11 and I hear pple are much nicer to one another now! I HOPE LA doesn’t need something similar!! The Economy sucks and pple’re whining like I’ve never heard before – some pple’re even killing themselves and their families!! GROW UP, PPLE!! It’s ONLY MONEY!!! Find out what REALLY COUNTS!! This is tough, but it’s also a great opportunity to talk to your friends and family again; surrender!! -’cause there’s nothing else you can do!! – and take lots of deep breaths and walks on the beach and breathe in the rare beauty of this place!! (there are a few left that the developers haven’t cemented up!!) And, Grow a Backbone!! It may feel like the end of the world, but it’s not (at least we can hope!!:) The cars and ginormous homes are great, but they’re not what’s important!! Find your strength, your character, your loved ones, Nature, God and your Soul and you’ll find true Happiness that has nothing to do with the Stock Market!! Be thankful for having plenty to eat and a roof over your heads – that’s more than 90% of the rest of the world!! Things’re going to get worse before they get better – be prepared… and, be kind to a stranger!! You never know when you’re going to need that kindness returned! Best to All.
>>90% of the rest of the world
According to the latest census I think that figure actually has been dropping (to illustrate: World Bank figures show that 95% of developing country population lived on less than $10 a day, and using 2005 population numbers, this is equivalent to just under 79.7% of world population)..but who’s counting.
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2008/08/26/000158349_20080826113239/Rendered/INDEX/WPS4703.txt
Nick-
Ok, I get where you are coming from but try to dial down the malice you have for LA a little bit. I recently and very happily left LA and the biz, after a fun and successful career (which started in an agency mail room!). Believe me, I was done with not making any money and never being treated well or with respect, but pat yourself on the back for moving on (not easy to do!) and try to support all of those in LA still in the trenches. We all know that biz is shrinking… the writing it on the wall… I hope the good folks I know back there are doing ok. Hang in there.