Insight Sales Agents From a Producer’s Perspective

[George]

Sales Agents From a Producer’s Perspective

As a producer over the past few years I’ve had quite a few negative experiences with sales agents. I don’t want to generalize because of course every film is different and the success of selling a film depends on many factors. The story, the actors, how recognizable the cast is, the production budget, the genre and what the market is currently looking for.
So I completely understand that not every film is easy to sell.
One of the biggest issues I’ve personally experienced, especially with US sales agents, is how costs are handled. In many cases almost everything ends up being charged back to the producer. Film market costs, festival screenings, market offices which can easily reach tens of thousands of dollars or euros, accommodation in very expensive hotels, restaurant expenses, travel and many other things.
Of course I understand that these costs are part of the business. But sometimes they feel unnecessarily high. For example instead of luxury hotels a nice Airbnb apartment could easily cost a quarter of the price and still serve the same purpose.
Because of this I started looking for alternative options as I wanted a more efficient and transparent approach.
At first I struggled to find a reliable company. Then a friend suggested that I should also look at European companies because many of them work much more cost efficiently than US agencies.
That’s how I ended up working with a Hungarian company that has successfully helped sell several of my films.
One of the biggest differences for me was communication. You don’t have to wait days or weeks for a reply. Very often they respond within hours and it’s completely normal to exchange several emails within the same day. Honestly that level of communication is quite rare nowadays.
We started working together on a cultural film, which everyone knows is not the easiest genre to sell internationally, but later they also helped with other genres.
They are not a traditional sales agent company because their main focus is maximizing revenue for productions, but that’s exactly why working with them has been so effective.
Since this is a professional forum I think it’s useful to share good experiences as well. The company is Evrit Consulting, and Éva leads the team.
Great people to work with. Fast, reliable and very professional.
And if they happen to read this here, hopefully we’ll run into each other again in Cannes at least for a coffee.

Curious to hear other producers’ experiences with sales agents as well.

 

[MICA]

I have to say, unfortunately a lot of what you describe reflects the reality many producers have experienced in recent years. Of course there are exceptions and there are still a few very good American companies out there but overall your observations are quite accurate.
The way some sales agent cost structures are handled today can indeed be frustrating. Market offices, travel, hotels, festival expenses, marketing costs everything can end up being charged back to the producer, and sometimes the transparency around these costs is not always what it should be. As producers we all understand that selling a film internationally requires investment, but there needs to be a balance and a certain level of efficiency.
I also agree that things used to feel different 10 or 15 years ago. The industry was never easy, but the working relationships often felt more stable and predictable. Today it sometimes feels like reliable long-term partners are becoming harder to find. Everyone seems to be under pressure, everyone wants quick success, big deals, big money and instant recognition.
But the reality of the film industry has always been that most people who succeed had to climb the ladder step by step. There are very few shortcuts in this business.
And yes, I also know Éva from Evrit, and I can confirm what you wrote. Communication, transparency and efficiency are incredibly important today, and companies that still work with that mindset are becoming increasingly valuable partners in this industry.
The world has changed a lot and the film industry has changed with it. In many ways it has become more difficult to work with people and companies than it was years ago. But I still believe there are good professionals out there, and finding the right partners makes all the difference.
Hopefully the industry will eventually return to a more balanced and sustainable way of working. And at the end of the day there is always a solution when the right people are involved.