Tag: pornstars

PornLaw on Bryan Callen’s Podcast

hangover

You might be asking so what ? And you might be saying who the hell is Bryan Callen ? Well you might not know him by name but I guarantee that you know his face. Bryan Callen is an extremely funny guy and he is my favorite actor from The Hangover I and II. You might remember him as the wedding chapel owner, Eddie, and Samir the strip club owner in Hangover II. And more importantly, he and I are fellow alumni from the American University in Washington D.C.

So when I got the call to meet him at his home to do his podcast “The Bryan Callen Show” I jumped at the chance to sit down and talk with him about the industry, being a porn lawyer, some of my clients and being married to Vanessa Blue. I obviously wont give away the show but I will link to it once it goes up so you can listen for yourself !

Click here if you want to listen to my interview with Bryan —

http://mixedmentalarts.libsyn.com/website/ep11-michael-fattorosi

And I also have to thank him for the very generous gift he bestowed on me after we were done with taping the podcast. When I told him I had a blog in which I also reviewed different brands of scotch he gave me a bottle of 18 year old Glenmorangie. That my friends is a very expensive bottle of scotch.

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Porn 101: Should You Incorporate ?

Now that you are getting into the adult entertainment industry you have to start considering the business aspect of what you are going to be doing whether that is being a content producer, director, performer, dancer or even a webcam performer. Instead of being paid personally you have the ability to form a company and have anyone paying you to pay that company instead. There are numerous advantages to having a company. Two of the best are to help lower your taxes and to increase your privacy.

There are several ways you can structure your business, i.e., Sole Proprietorship, Corporation, Partnership, Limited Liability Corporation, but which is the right choice for you. There are numerous reasons for choosing each entity, and there are associated tax consequences and benefits for each and therefore I recommend that you also speak to a CPA before deciding which to use.

Sole Proprietorship

By far this is the easiest and simplest structure. It only consists of someone setting up and operating a commercial business. This is also one of the least expensive types of structures to set-up. However, be aware, that even operating your business as a sole proprietorship might still require you to pay certain fees to register the business, secure a fictitious business name certificate and obtain other licenses that might be necessary from your county or city.

The only real advantage to a sole proprietorship is that it is inexpensive and that you are entirely in charge of your business affairs. However, on the other hand, you will also be personally responsible for all the business’s debts and liabilities. Which basically means that if something goes wrong, you as an individual will have to pay for it. Just closing the business will not relieve you from any liability.

Corporation

Corporations are the usual choice for most business in the United States, since this type of structure provides tax advantages as well as protection of your personal assets from the debts and liabilities of the company. Usually, corporations can be organized in two forms, C-corporation and S-corporation. However, in order to protect your assets, the corporation must be properly formed and maintained, otherwise it might be considered a shell and you will not be afforded the protections that you would be if the business was properly organized.

In order to properly form a corporation, California and most states require the drafting of Articles of Incorporation and payment of fees to Secretary of State in order to be recognized as an official corporation. You will also have to pay certain fees to the tax board of your state as well to maintain your corporate status. A corporation may be owned and operated by a single person, however, most involve several shareholders. Further those that own and operate a corporation have titles such as President, Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Secretary etc.

There are numerous websites that can form and register your corporation for a fee, usually costing around $750.00. I strongly recommend that if you are going into the adult business, you seek the legal advice of competent legal counsel when you seek to incorporate. It can be quite beneficial to start a relationship with your “corporate counsel” early on. While the online services can do it cheaper and perhaps quicker, they are not usually operated by attorneys and can not give specific legal advice.

Partnership

This is also a viable option for your structure, however, it affords less protection that a corporation. However, before you can call yourself partners, you will need a Partnership Agreement. A Partnership Agreement really requires the advice and counsel of an attorney. There are however different types of partnerships and even different partners within the same partnership. There are limited liability partnerships which protects each partner from each other’s wrong-doing or negligence. There can be general partners and limited partners in a LLP.

You can have just a general partnership without the protection afforded by a LLP from your partners. Which means that each partner will be responsible for the debts and liabilities of each of the other partners with joint and severally liability. Which means that one partner might have to pay the debts of all of the other partners by himself/herself.

Your partnership might also team up with another corporation or partnership to conduct a joint venture.

Limited Liability Corporation

A LLC is a structure that has the benefits of a partnership, in regards to flexibility and the protection of personal assets from the liabilities and debts of the corporation. However, not all states recognize limited liability corporations. For those states that do recognize this structure, sometimes the protection afforded them is not as complete as the protection afforded corporations. The formation and the operation of a limited liability corporation can be very complex and difficult to understand. Failure to properly organize and maintain the LLC can cause you to lose whatever protections you might believe you have with this type of structure.

If you are going to have several partners in the LLC you will need to have a properly drafted Operating Agreement in order so that all of the rights and responsibilities of all of the partners are clearly spelled out. The one issue that most partners in an LLC fail to do is to have an Operating Agreement. The operating agreement is significant since it will usually cover issues such as what will happen if one partner wants to sell his/her part of the business. Or even what happens if one of the partners passes away. These are all issues that you must plan for when drafting an Operating Agreement as well as a Partnership Agreement.

Whatever business structure you choose, do so based on the advice of a lawyer as well as a CPA. Owning your own company can provide tax benefits and write-offs that you might not otherwise receive filing your taxes as a single/married individual.

 

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Porn 101: Buying Website Domain Names – Part 1

Some of the most often asked questions I receive are about domain names. What domain name(s) should a pornstar, producer or webmaster purchase ? How many should be purchased ? Which ones are necessary and which ones are simply overkill ? Are the .NET, .ORG, .INFO, .BIZ and even the dreaded .XXX necessary to purchase and what if I don’t want to buy all of those domain names ?

These are all valid and important questions. My answer is buy as many as you can afford. Domain names are like buying property. Some are better than others. Some will be more valuable than others. And then there are some domain names you would like to purchase just so others cannot purchase them and set up a website to compete with your website.

Obviously, the most important domain name to purchase is the exact name that you intend to use to promote yourself or your business. For example, if your performer name is Suzie Suckems, you will want to purchase http://www.SuzieSuckems.com. If you have a business called Suckems Sex Toys you will want to purchase http://www.SuckemsSexToys.com. However, the issue then becomes do you really need SuzieSuckems.net, SuzieSuckems.org, SuzieSuckems.biz or one of the other many top level domain name extensions. The answer is simple, if you don’t mind someone else having the website SuzieSuckems.net then you shouldn’t purchase all of them. However, if you want to stop someone from competing with you then you should probably purchase all of them, or at least the more common ones.

What about .XXX ? There has been a debate raging in the adult industry about .XXX and the tactics that they have used in registering and promoting the .XXX domain names. My answer is rather simple, .XXX is really no different than .NET, .ORG, .BIZ or all the others. If you do not see the need to buy every single variation of your domain name then you probably shouldn’t buy it. However, if you are the type of person that will also purchase .MOBI, .TV and .US then purchasing the .XXX might be a good idea. It is a decision that should be based on finances and personal choice.

What about variations on your name beyond just the .NET, .BIZ and the others ? A lot of performers in adult entertainment also use variations on their name. A few years ago when ClubJenna.com was a popular pornstar website many other performers starting buying the Club variation as well. If you think that ClubSuzieSuckems.com is a domain name you believe that you can use then you should purchase that as well. Be aware though, if you are going to buy ClubSuzieSuckems.com then you should probably purchase the .NET, .BIZ and .ORG and so forth and so on versions as well.

What about SuzieSuckemsXXX.com ? Again, that is a variation that is popular with many performers. Often because they could not register their own domain name because someone else already had taken their main domain name and SuzieSuckemsXXX.com was the only domain name still available. Some performers also register the name variation Blog, for example, SuzieSuckemsBlog.com. As a performer you may want to have a free blog linked to SuzieSuckemsBlog.com and another paid membership site linked to SuzieSuckems.com. Again, this is a personal preference.

Also, if your name can be spelled multiple ways then you should also purchase the other spellings with the .COM, .NET, .ORG and .BIZ and the other variations. For example, Suzie Suckems can also be spelled Susie Suckems. Thus, you would also need to purchase http://www.SusieSuckems.com to stop anyone from registering that domain and starting a competing site to http://www.SuzieSuckems.com.

Why is it important to get all of these different variations ? The answer is also very simple – Google.com. The more that your domain name is a match to the search terms that are being used to search for you the more likely your website will come up on the first page of search results. This will result in more visitors to your website and possibly more sales. It is believed that the “organic” traffic that you will receive from a Google search is the best traffic you can get to your website. Those people are searching you out and are more likely to come back and buy.

If someone is searching for “Suzie Suckems” on Google and you own SuzieSuckems.com then it is more then likely your website will be on the front page of the search results. However, if other people own the .NET, .BIZ or .ORG versions they may also end up on the first page of search results. If someone is searching “Suzie Suckems porn” or “Suzie Suckems XXX” then those website variations have a better chance of making it onto the first page of the search results.

However, that is an oversimplification of how Google searches work. Google often changes their algorithms as to their searches however, the goal is to own the first page of search results so any traffic from Google will go to a website you own or a social media page you control. Is it easy to do this ? No, not at all. That is why there are consultants that are paid to provide Search Engine Optimization. However, if another webmaster understands SEO and has the .NET version of your website it would be easy for that person to compete with you. Thus, it is highly recommended that once you have your blog or website designed, built and launched that you work with an SEO expert to increase your Google traffic.

In conclusion, make sure you buy as many relevant domain names as quickly as you can once you enter the adult industry, whether if you are a performer or as a business. How many top level variations and extensions you should purchase really comes down to finances. Buying multiple domain names with multiple top level domain extensions can get expensive very quickly. For example, I have known performers that have spent upwards of $1000.00 in buying their own domain names. However, it is an investment in your career. I can also tell you that spending $1000.00 to register numerous domain names is much less expensive then it will cost to get a domain name back once someone else buys it out from under you.

And remember, if you are worried about your privacy and real name being linked to your website either use a privacy protect service when registering your domains or register the domain names in your company’s name, if you have one.

In Part 2 I will be covering what happens if someone else has already bought your domain names and you have to fight to get them back.

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Porn 101: Choosing An Agent – Part 2

hiremeIn part one of this article ( Please see: https://adultbizlaw.com/porn-101-choosing-an-agent/ ) I discussed whether a performer should choose a bonded and licensed agent, whom those agents are and what does a proper talent agency contract look like. In this article I will discuss what difference moving to and living in Los Angeles can have to a performer’s career and what your agent can and cannot do in regards to their representation.

Moving to Los Angeles?

The decision to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in adult is not an easy one. Los Angeles can be an expensive area to live. Rents are usually higher then in other non-metropolitan areas ($1000-$3000 per month for a 1-2 bedroom apartment). Food and dining out can be expensive in Los Angeles as well. Obviously anyone can live anywhere on a budget but for the most part it will be more expensive to live in Los Angeles then most places.

However, not living in Los Angeles will likely mean that the performer will be booked less than a performer that lives in Los Angeles. Living in Los Angeles means that you are more available to work. If a performer lives in Oklahoma and a director/producer wants to cast her in a scene, he/she would have to wait for the performer to come to Los Angeles. That is likely not going to happen, unless the performer is a “pornstar.” If another performer “flakes” on the scene then the producer/director will likely call the agent and ask for a replacement performer to be sent to set immediately. A performer not living in Los Angeles will not have the opportunity for that job. Agents will often push local performers more so then those that live out of state.

A performer living in Los Angeles will usually be booked more since he/she would be more readily available to be booked. Also, living in Los Angeles will allow that performer to meet and develop relationships with more producers/directors/talent in the industry. The more people a performer knows the more opportunities he/she usually has to work. Many new performers think that once they get an agent their work is done. From talent I have talked to over the years it seems as though they believe that their agent is going to be “pounding the pavement” looking for work for them. That is not usually how it happens.

Directors/Producers usually decide on who they may want for a particular movie or scene based on physical attributes ie., hair color, race, breast size or willingness to perform a particular sex act ect. That director/producer will go to the various agent’s websites looking for performers that fit that requirement. When the director/producer finds such talent he/she will starting making phone calls to the agent to inquire into the availability of a particular performer. The job will usually go to a local performer since the producer has less worry about a local performer showing up on the date of the shoot.

An agent does not and cannot sit on the phone calling every production company with potential work for their clients. Some agents do send out email blasts and some even still do what are called “go-sees.” Other than that performers should not expect much more from their agents in the way of promotion. That is something talent has to do for themselves either in person who using social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Many performers are also now hiring a publicist to also promote them within the industry. This is something that I highly recommend. A good publicist will be able to secure appearances and interviews that may lead to more work.

Obviously, living in Los Angeles and meeting the directors/producers will increase a performer’s circle of friends and increase their potential chances for work. However, living in Los Angeles does not guaranty a performer more work, just the opportunity to meet those people that might offer them more work. Moving to Los Angeles is a decision that has to be considered carefully. The increase in living expenses might off set the amount of income earned through any additional work that the performer receives. As a general rule though it is my experience that performers living in Los Angeles do get booked more often then those that are not.

What Can an Agent Legally Do ?

On January 24, 2009 an article I wrote titled “Balancing Talent Agents, Performers and Producers” was published on XBiz.com and in their XBiz World Magazine (Please see: http://www.xbiz.com/articles/104087/fattorosi ). Even though this article is over three years old many of the things I wrote about remain true. Below are some excerpts from that article. I would suggest that anyone reading this article also read my original article linked to above.

Kill Fees: Are They Allowed ?

Producers can charged performers kill fees in case the performer does not perform as required by the producer. Kill fees are a legally confusing situation. If a performer flakes on a shoot, the producer will suffer damages. A kill fee is a contract term between the producer and the performer, not between the agent and the performer.

Kill fees cannot be used by an agent to punish a performer for not performing the scene. Also, a kill fee cannot be charged to a performer unless they understood before accepting the job offer that a kill fee is part of the contract for taking the job. A performer can instruct their agent not to book them for any producers that require kill fees. Also, a performer should request all information pertaining to kill fees prior to accepting any scene and that information should be in writing.

If an agent attempts to charge a performer a kill fee without having the performer accept the kill fee as a term of that employment, the agent would be violating their duty to the performer and that performer could file a Petition to Determine Controversy to have any charged kill fees refunded as well as possibly challenging the underlying contract with the agent. Thus, agents charge a kill fee at their own peril.

Cashing a Performer’s Check ?

Some agents also request that performers sign an agreement called a “Power of Attorney” so that the agent can cash and deposit into their own bank account the money paid to a performer. This is done for two reasons. The first is that the agent wants to get paid his/her agency’s fees. The second is that many producers are now refusing to pay talent directly and would rather pay the agent. I assume that production companies believe this provides them some sort of insulation against liability to the performer. This is simply not true. None the less, performers are routinely having their checks sent to their agent and then they are paid by the agent.

If you give your agent the power to cash and deposit your checks that is an individual decision. Some performers would rather have the agent take care of paying themselves. Others rather control their own finances and pay the agent later. If you do sign a “Power of Attorney” realize that you can revoke the it at any time in the case of abuse by the agent. However that must also be done in writing. I would suggest that any performer that wants to revoke this to do so in an email to their agent so if necessary the performer will have evidence of it later. If the agent continues to cash their check without written authorization they will be violating their talent agency agreement with the performer as well as possibly committing the crime of forgery.

What if an Agent Violates the Contract ?

If a performer feels as though an agent has violated the talent agency agreement they do have legal recourse. However, it is limited. A performer cannot file a lawsuit against an agent. The only legal claim that a performer can make against an agent is to file a Petition to Determine Controversy with the California Department Labor Standards and Enforcement. That department has exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide all cases between talent and agents. On occasion, the DLSE does publish significant decisions that relate to cases between talent agents and performers. (Please see: http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/DLSE-TACs.htm )

A performer can file the Petition themselves, however it is better to retain a lawyer to handle any claim against a talent agent. However, be aware the process of filing the Petition to the final decision of the DLSE may be in excess of one year. The state of California’s courts and other departments are underfunded due to budget cut backs and cases now are taking much longer then usual to be resolved. It is often better for the performer to negotiate a resolution of any issue with their agent if possible.

Conclusion

Overall, it should be noted that an agent works for the performer and should be conducting business in a way that is in the best interest of his client. Often this is forgotten and at times it seems like the talent is working for the agent. Performers must remember that an agent also represents dozens of other performers with a limited staff and cannot always provide the personalized service that they wish they were receiving.

Performers must take responsibility themselves for finding work as well as promoting themselves. Hiring a publicist, using social media and attending industry functions are all ways to market their services. As the industry continues to shrink and less work is available the scenes that are remaining will go to those that work the hardest and smartest to get them.

 

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Discrimination Against Pornstars, Escorts, Kinksters and Swingers

One area of law that often receives much publicity in the mainstream media is employment law. There are always news reports of litigation about sex discrimination in the work place. Media loves reporting on multi-million dollar judgments in sexual harassment cases, especially those involving celebrities. They also love a story involving a pornstar getting fired from a job because of his/her porn-past.

Recently, I appeared on Taboo Fetish Radio, hosted by Sydney Screams and Whitney Morgan, to talk about what protections current and former pornstars, escorts, sex workers and even those with an alternative lifestyle such as Kinksters or Swingers have in regards to being singled out and fired from their jobs ( Please see:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/porn-star-radio/2012/09/20/taboo-fetish-talk ).

In a recent case that is still being litigated, Ms. Stacie Halas, a middle school teacher, was fired from her teaching position with the Oxnard School District in California on April 18, 2012 for her involvement in pornography movies. ( Please see: http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/jul/23/judge-to-hear-dismissal-case-of-oxnard-teacher/ )

“The school board voted unanimously April 18 to fire Halas, saying her continued employment would disturb the classroom environment. Halas appealed the decision to the Office of Administrative Hearing, a quasi-judicial tribunal that handles such disputes. In a notice of defense, Halas’ other attorney, Rich Schwab, says Halas did nothing illegal and is fit to teach.

In accusation documents filed with the Office of Administrative Hearing, the school district says Halas lied about her connection to pornography and about the reason she resigned from a neighboring district. In the days after the discovery of the pornographic movies, district officials said students talked about and watched the movies on campus, and a classroom where Halas once taught was vandalized.”

It appears from this quote that the underlying reasons for Ms. Halas’s termination was not actually her involvement in pornographic movies but rather the falsification of her employment application. This is a common way for employers, especially in California, to fire an employee at anytime for basically any reason. Many state and federal courts have held that if an employee lies on his/her employment application then they have basically defrauded the employer into hiring them and thus has no legal recourse even if they were fired illegally. The doctrine of unclean hands comes into play and that falsification can act as almost a complete bar to later claims by employee for being fired for a non-lawful discriminatory cause such as race, gender, sexual orientation, skin color or place of national origin.

Basically, if you lie on your employment application you will have a mountain to climb to even be able to sue your employer for any reason, even if your boss tried to force you to provide him/her sex on the job in exchange for not firing you ( You would still have a lawsuit against your boss individually though ).

Courts have generally adopted the following line of reasoning as noted in Summers v. State Farm Automobile Ins.,  ; ( Please see: http://bulk.resource.org/courts.gov/c/F2/864/864.F2d.700.87-1087.html )

Many of the courts have accepted an analogy posited in Summers : “The present case is akin to the hypothetical wherein a company doctor is fired because of his age, race, religion, and sex and the company, in defending a civil rights action, thereafter discovers that the discharged employee was not a ‘doctor.’ In our view, the masquerading doctor would be entitled to no relief, and Summers is in no better position.”

Courts are rarely sympathetic to employees that are less then truthful when applying for employment. A prospective employee that has a past in pornography, prostitution or even an alternative lifestyle may not be desirable hiring choice for many employers, especially those that have mainstream visibility or conservative clients. Even visible tattoos has been an issue in regards to being employment.

Obviously, prior employment or self employment is a much larger issue when it comes to future employment applications. Those that are or have been sex workers, whether in adult films, as an escort, stripper, dominatrix, sub, unlicensed massage parlor worker or any of a number of related fields have the highest risk when falsifying an employment application. Anyone would be hard pressed to find a court decision finding that an employer, who terminated a such an employee, would be liable for a discriminatory termination. ( If any of my readers know of any such appellate court decision from any state in the United States I would very much appreciate that information.) Therefore, I am watching Ms. Halas’s lawsuit with great interest. Her claims may set a positive legal precedent as to protecting individual sexual liberties but I have my doubts.

As for lifestyle choices such as BDSM or swinging, since these do not apply to previous employment there is much less of a risk of not revealing these choices to a prospective employer on an employment application. However, if your involvement in those lifestyle choices did involve earning income from them such has producing content and selling it on a Clips4Sale.com store that might be seen as self employment by your employer.

There might be one exception to this situation. While I have found no cases on point involving sex workers or alternative lifestyle choices, there would be an argument for a terminated employee to make if the employer had discovered the falsification on the application and did not do anything about it immediately. Meaning that if you lied on your employment application and four days into your employment your employer or supervisor discovers your lie and takes no action but five years later tries to fire you for the falsification as a pretense for some other reason you might have a defensible position however I cannot state for certainty whether that would provide the basis for a victory against your employer.

The lesson in this is that if you lie on your employment application it can come back to haunt you, even many years later. Obviously being completely honest about your past or present may cost getting you a job. What you decide to reveal on an employment application is a personal decision. Just be aware of the law.

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Porn 101: Choosing an Agent – Part 1

cropped-ablOnce you have made the choice to get into the adult industry the next step is making the decision as to whether you need an agent and who that agent will be. Who you choose as your agent is probably one of the most important decisions you will make as performer. Your agent will shape your career and be able to use their mainstream and industry connections to help you further your career. Your agent will be the person within the industry that you have the most contact with at first. Therefore, its important that you choose your agent carefully and research who you may be hiring to represent you. Talk to other performers about their agent(s). Twitter makes it quite easy to approach and ask other performers in the industry what they like or do not like about their agent(s). And make sure you get more then one opinion.

After choosing an agent you will have to decide whether you will relocate to Los Angeles or will you simply visit Los Angeles and work while you are there. Living in Los Angeles or traveling there will make a difference in not only how much work you can expect but also what your life will be like and how your career will proceed. From a career perspective, living in Los Angeles will probably result in more work since you can be booked at the last minute if another performer isn’t available, refuses the job offer or “no-shows.” However, living in Los Angeles is probably much more expensive than where you may live now. Also, living in Los Angeles will allow to you develop relationships, business and personal, with producers, directors and other performers that may help and assist with how your career proceeds.

I would recommend that anyone seeking an agent in Los Angeles chose only a licensed and bonded talent agent. In California, all agents are required by state law to be licensed and bonded. Also, any agent booking work for talent in California also has to be licensed and bonded in California. Even if your agent is located in New York and that agent is booking work for you in Los Angeles, they too must be licensed and bonded in California. You can check to see which agents are licensed and bonded by searching on this database -> http://www.dir.ca.gov/databases/dlselr/talag.html

Who’s Licensed & Bonded ?

According the Licensed Adult Talent Agency Trade Association ( Please see: http://www.latata.org ) the provide a list of agents that are currently licensed and bonded in adult entertainment in California.

The agents on LATATA.org is merely provided as a starting point for your own research. Choose the agent that will best serve your needs as an performer. If you are an agent and want to know how to become licensed and bonded in California please see http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/Talent_Agency_License.html )

What’s a Talent Agent Contract Look Like ?

As a licensed and bonded agent, your agent is only allowed to use a pre-approved Talent Agency Agreement. A California Labor Commissioner MUST pre-approve and stamp all talent agency contracts. A sample of the current Labor Commissioner approved contract can be found here -> Talent_Exclusive_Contract

If your agent hands you a contract that does not look the above contract, has additional pages or is not approved by the state of California Labor Commissioner that is not a valid talent-agent contract and you should not sign it. As a part of being licensed and bonded, every agent is required to have any changes or additions to the standard contract approved by the Labor Commissioner before providing it to talent to sign. Without such approval those pages or parts are not enforceable.

However, your agent may ask you to sign a model release and a 2257 document to place your photographs on their website. Those are acceptable to sign since your agent will need your agreement to start promoting your pictures on their website.

As a rule, your agent should provide you will copies of everything you have signed so make sure you receive copies for your records. If your agent does not provide a copy make sure you take a photograph of every page of the contract with your phone and keep those photos for your records in case you need them in the future.

How Much Do I Pay My Agent ?

If your agent is not licensed and bonded they cannot receive a fee for booking you work. Often people will claim to be managers and or publicist and attempt to book work for you. If they do, legally they cannot take a fee for doing so. Only licensed and bonded agents may collect a fee for booking work for you. The fees an agent may charge is not limited however the standard in the adult entertainment industry is between 10-20% of the total gross fee paid to the performer for each job secured. The amount of fees that the agent will charge you must be stated on the talent agency contract.

If you would like to research the laws pertaining to talent agents in the state of California please see -> http://www.agentassociation.com/frontdoor/agency_licensing_detail.cfm?id=572

In my next article on this subject I will discussed living in Los Angeles, what you can expect from your talent agent and what they are allowed and not allowed to do.

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A Good Example of Why Talent Should Read Model Releases

cropped-ablBy now most of the world has heard of the film “Innocence of Muslims.” The clips of this movie prompted widespread violence and anti-American demonstrations across much of the Muslim world.

Video clips of the movie were initially uploaded to YouTube in July 2012. Videos dubbed in the Arabic language were uploaded during early September 2012. On September 9, 2012, an excerpt of the YouTube video was broadcast on an Egyptian Islamist television station. Demonstrations and violent protests against the film broke out on September 11 in Egypt and Libya, and spread to other Arab and Muslim nations and some western countries. On September 11, 2012 an armed attack occurred on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya in which the U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed ( Please see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innocence_of_muslims )

Originally titled “Desert Warrior” and shot in English. The film was transformed into the “Innocence of Muslims” by dubbing over certain lines in the movie and adding references to the Prophet Muhammad. This was obviously not what the actors had intended by their participation in the production.

So what does this have to do with porn ?

On Thursday, September 20, 2012, a Los Angeles judge denied one of the movie’s stars lawsuit to remove the videos from YouTube (Please see: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/actress-in-anti-muslim-movie-sues-for-its-removal-online-sues-filmmaker-for-fraud/2012/09/19/694e5cd0-02b7-11e2-9132-f2750cd65f97_story.html ). Without going into the legal analysis of why the judge denied her request what is important is the fact that this occurred in the first place.

What allowed the producer to dub over the actors’ voices was the model release and the fact that there was probably a clause in that model release giving the producer the right to do whatever he/she wanted with the movie. Now, many of those involved with the production of movie or starred in the movie are receiving death threats.

However, we may never know what the model release said since the actress who filed the lawsuit, Cindy Lee Garcia, admitted she didn’t have a copy of the model release.

In the day of the smart phones with cameras there is absolutely no reason for a performer not to have a copy/photo of every page of every model release, contract and talent agency agreement they are asked to sign. Performers should simply take photographs of the documents and keep them in their phone or email the photographs to themselves, organize them and save them on their computer. You may never know when you will need such a copy as I am sure Cindy Lee Garcia now wishes she had.

My point is not that a performer’s starring role in “Babyz Got Huge Backsides” will be turned into a religious movie that sparks international controversy but rather a performer should not end up like Cindy Lee Garcia, in court fighting about a contract dispute without a copy of the contract he/she signed.

All producers should readily provide a copy of the model release and 2257 documentation for talent. If they do not it might be simply because there is no copy machine available on set. A simple photograph of the contract can achieve the same purpose. If someone does not want to provide a performer a copy of the contract, now that’s a different issue and perhaps that performer should question their motives for not giving them a copy. In those cases I would recommend that a performer not sign anything until they allowed the right to photograph all pages of the contract.

 

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