The Real, Low Down, Dirty Truth About Hollywood Agenting: The Day-to-Day Inner Workings of Hollywood from a Seasoned Talent Agent's Point of View (Paperback)

by Rima Greer (Author)
Key Phrases: production bonus, development hell, studio exec, The Art of the Deal, George Clooney, Steven Spielberg (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
In this book you'll find everything you always wanted to know about the real, honest-to-not-so-goodness day-to-day inner workings of Hollywood. Not the glamorous Oscar-winning-Spielberg-red-carpet Hollywood. The daily grind of working Hollywood.
For the very first time, a Hollywood film agent has opened up her phone sheet and crackberry to show us how agents, writers, and directors function in a world of producers, development executives, and studio executives. They only want to make a living, and sometimes get a movie made.
Sometimes even a good movie.
This isn't another book dishing the dirt about the rich and famous. It's a fresh tell-all translation from Hollywood-speak to plain English, a peek behind the wizard's curtain into a culture that's rarely captured without cliché and hyperbole.
You'll learn how to get an agent, how to keep one, what they do, what they don't do. You'll learn how agents navigate through the murky politics, and even why agents are such infamous liars.
The last time a Hollywood agent talked about his job in a national magazine, he lost his biggest client, and almost lost his job. There are secrets and lies that everyone in the Biz knows, but nobody wants to talk about; lies that everyone tells so nobody has to admit the truth.
That's all over starting right now.
This is The Low-Down Dirty Truth About Hollywood Agenting.

About the Author
Rima Greer began agenting in 1984 and built her client list, selling such projects as "Memphis Belle," "Highlander", "Backdraft" and "Milk Money". She was President of Literary from 1989 to 1994, when she started her own company, Above the Line Agency, established in September 1994. At Above the Line, Rima has been involved in studio projects like "Charlie's Angels" (Columbia) and "Timeline" (Paramount), and the upcoming "Nowhereland" (Paramount), as well as shepherded such independent projects as "The Prophecy" (Dimension/First Look), "Slow Burn" (Artisan) and "The Poker House" (Cannell Studios).

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Quill Driver Books (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1884956696
• ISBN-13: 978-1884956690
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #328,215 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The REAL Hollywood Story!, November 4, 2007

By	J. Batdorf (Southern California) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Rima Greer says it all, very openly, and honestly.

She writes about the people she represents and the studios she sells scripts too. The truth (and difficulty) of being paid. The real "get eatin' alive" world of the movie business. If you love to read about the "behind the scenes" of Hollywood, you'll find it hard to put this book down.

Rima's natural writing feels like she's in the room with you. She holds nothing back as if having a personal conversation, even anticipating your questions.

Rima has lived, and is living, what she wrote about. She shares true life stories that are energenic and alive. You will not find a more candid book about the life of today's Hollywood agent.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Secret agent's business, April 22, 2008

By	Dominic Hughes (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I've always liked books written by people in the trenches of the film industry rather than watching the battle from a safe vantage point. Art Linson's books on producing are great. Director Bruce Beresford's recent memoir - Josh Hartnett Definitely Wants To Do This - was so good I knocked it over in a day. Same with writer David Mamet's book, Bambi vs Godzilla. All offer different takes on the struggle to get a film on the big screen.

The person in the trenches I hadn't heard from until now was an agent. I picked this book up on the strength of seeing author Rima Greer's name in the trades quite a bit over the years. The book doesn't have as much personal anecdotal stuff as those I've already mentioned. Rima's deliberately vague about a lot of the incidents and examples she quotes as cautionary tales.

But she does offer a good account of what life as an agent is like in Hollywood. This book attempts to put a human face on the Hollywood agent - the kind of complex surgical procedure not seen since Face Off. There's a chapter on lying that could have been written by George Costanza. To her credit, Rima doesn't sugarcoat anything. Everyone will screw you over in Hollywood, and the best character reference you can expect is for the person who will do it the least number of times, and in the nicest possible way.

For new writers this book will be especially brutal. Which is exactly what is required. The all-time FAQ of FAQs - "How do I get an agent?" - is addressed, but don't expect to hear anything too encouraging. Truth is, there is no silver bullet for that particular monster.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Eh..., April 2, 2008

By	M. Rowe "Kevin Arnold" (Hollywood, Ca) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I wish I found this in a book store. It's one of those books you can flip through standing there and get everything you need from it in like twenty-minutes.