Later
I did some research on the topic. It IS illegal
to charge actors to be in your movie, on two counts. First
off, acting, thanks to unions like SAG, and even if you’re
not a SAG actor, is considered a profession. So paying
for an acting job is considered bribery and therefore
illegal. This happened in LA and the District Attorney
took it on to protect the actors, as researched by our
Film Commissioner. Secondly, it’s illegal because
the wording in the contract that one of the actors gave
me stated that the money you spent on the role was actually
an investment in the production of the movie. Calling
it an investment broke several Federal Trade laws and
it’s a highly serious offense. If any of those actors
ever turned him in, WEDDINGMAN could go to jail and be
forced to make videos of a very different kind.
(FYI
– that was Nov. 2000, and as of six weeks ago, his
feature is still incomplete.)
EXAGGERATION
& PROMISING THE MOON
I
had done some music video and commercial work for a guy
who worked with a lot of local rappers. He was the impresario
of his own little record company empire. We got along
okay and he had always paid up front and was a good businessman.
I’ll give him a Dances With Wolves name like
HIM WHO TALKS IN 3RD PERSON, because he would always talk
about himself in the manner of someone else talking about
him. It was a quirk, and far funnier in person.
HIM
WHO TALKS IN 3RD PERSON had made a connection with a movie
and invested (since thus far, he’s the only one I’ve
known who ever actually HAD money). He got an “executive
producer” title, which he was excited about and got
to work on a straight to video feature film shot on film.
From there he met several people in the industry from
LA.
So
now he gets it in his head to try to something "good
for the community." We’re going to put on an
event for music, TV, models, and movies. HIM WHO TALKS
IN 3RD PERSON got some sales people to help sell booths
at the event and then convinced me to work on the TV commercial.
I
agreed to do this at a heavy discount because the star
attraction to this event is an “Agent from A BIG
TIME Talent Agency”. I get promised an hour alone
with this agent from A BIG TIME Talent Agency to pitch
myself, and any projects. In exchange, I do the commercial
for a fraction of cost. I get promised that movies I want
to make are going to be a reality because of this, and
blah blah blah. I want to believe.
On
the day of this event, a few people actually pay the $25
per person to show up. There are all kinds of booths,
some of which have nothing to do with anything. And it
turns into a great deal of promotion for HIM WHO TALKS
IN 3RD PERSON’s record company. I meet the “agent
from the BIG TIME Talent Agency”, who says she hasn’t
worked there in a while. Let’s just say I am surprised,
to say the least, since I just handed her a stack of my
screenplays.
After
the event, I spoke with several other people who were
upset that the promised agent was a “former”
agent from BIG TIME Talent Agency, not a current one.
Then came the e-mail of interest from one of the actors
who paid to go. It had the phone number for the BIG TIME
Talent Agency and said to call human resources and inquire
about her. So I did. It turned out that not only was she
was never an agent, she had only worked there for barely
a year--as an administrative assistant.
We
all got lied to. Then HIM WHO TALKS IN 3RD PERSON got
mad that people felt ripped off and complained. Of course,
I’m in the fray for calling the BIG TIME Talent Agency.
He assures me she was an agent, even after the BIG TIME
Talent Agency’s Human Resources said she wasn’t.
I
try to explain to him that I had submitted to her several
of my screenplays and samples of my work. An agent with
BIG TIME Talent Agency is an accredited agent, meaning
they can lose their license in California if they screw
someone over. Giving my work to someone who just works
there (or USED to work there as was the case) changes
the type of material I’d give, and I’d want
to get to know them better before putting myself in a
position to get stolen from. There is an assurance that
comes with working with an actual agent from BIG TIME
Talent Agency, that a former employee just won’t
have.
HIM
WHO TALKS IN 3RD PERSON assures me that I am now blacklisted
by the BIG TIME Talent Agency. He said that the former
“agent” took him on a tour there and that everyone
loves her, and that when he was there, my name was on
a dry erase board. No one in Hollywood will ever work
with me.
When
I heard this, I had to hit the mute button to laugh out
loud because I’m trying to picture this office on
Wilshire Boulevard with people who make million dollar
deals by the minute doing something as obtuse as writing
“Peter John Ross” on a dry erase board on a
list of people they’d blacklist from the industry.
Let’s
see if I can put this succinctly…
About
award winning filmmaker Peter John Ross & Sonnyboo Productions – Founded
in 1999, Sonnyboo short films have played on 3 continents and at over 50 film
festivals world wide. Projects directed by Peter John Ross appear on Tech TV,
National Lampoon Networks, Movieola the short film channel, The “U”
Network, and Vegas Indies TV. Sonnyboo films have been noted in such publications
as RES Magazine, Ain’t It Cool News, Camcorder & Computer Video magazine,
Film & Video Magazine, LA Weekly, Film Threat, the Village Voice, &
Internet Video Magazine. 
