Peggy Medberry

Peggy Medberry is a literary agent, and a true Hollywood veteran. Working for 15 years in one of Hollywood’s leading agencies Shapiro Licktman as a Vice President, her prospective into the Hollywood entertainment business gives you great insight if you are wanting to get an agent, submit scripts or produce projects in the industry. Peggy has guided over 200 producers, directors and writers to fame and fortune. She has been a featured speaker at many forums including the WGA, DGA, Flash Forward, and the Hollywood Screenwriting Conference, as well as a judge for the ACE and Humanitas Awards. Recently, besides teaching at Biola University, Peggy and her husband Chauncey have started a new management company Patrick Medberry Associates and are working with top Christian novelists like Bill Myers, Meldody Carlson, and Beverly Lewis in helping to bring their work to the mainstream audience. She is always frank and to the point and a true Hollywood professional.

Kathleen: Tell us about yourself and the accomplishments in your career that you are most proud?

Peggy: I came to LA in 1988, during the “Writers Strike”, thinking I was going to get a job, but there were no jobs. I came from Florida where I was a theater teacher at a performing arts school. I had a lot of friends come to LA and one brought a script that we had all helped with, that had gotten optioned. The option price was $250,000 dollars. This happened very quickly for him, so when he came back to Florida and told us, we all sold our stuff and moved to California. It was going to be so easy. I had just gotten divorced and my children were going into junior high and graduating high school. This is when I decided I was going to change my life.

My parents and friends were all asking me, “What was I doing?” “ Why would you give up your job?” Well, I wanted to see if I could do it. My plan was to come out here and visit a friend, Frank Cappello. He is a writer and director now. So I met with some people, I was 40 at the time, when I came out and an agent said, in the kindest way, that I was “too old and not cute enough.” He basically said that it was going to be difficult. I didn’t let it bother me. I went back, sold my home, packed up my kids and moved to LA.

I couldn’t get a job for 4 months and I told myself I was not going to teach anymore so I decided to do anything. I was running out of money and I had another friend that was volunteering for “Life Organization” that was spearheaded by Dennis Weaver and Valerie Harper. It was a hunger organization and my friend convinced me to volunteer with them, but they hired me in 3 days after volunteering! I turned down the executive assistant position for the receptionist job because I didn’t know what I was doing, but within a week I was promoted again. That was my first job out here.

We put together fundraising dinners and it was my chance to get over being “ga ga” over movie stars. I picked famous people up from the airport, and organized press conferences. About a year and a half later I decided this was not what I wanted to do, so I left the job and went to work on a film. It was an independent movie that my friend was directing but the money dried up within 6 weeks. I was without a job again and couldn’t get unemployment. I freaked out. So I temped. I kept sending resumes around, but my resume was very theater orientated, mainly directing and teaching theater. No one was interested. I went to a few places, and no one knew what to do with me. So that next year I temped all over town, Warner Brothers, Disney, NBC.

KC: What kind of temp jobs did you do?

PM: I was a secretary. I did data entry like excel. I didn’t know how, but they taught me. I worked in the video department in Disney, answered phones, but my worst job was at Warner International. They had already fired two temps on that day when I had arrived for work!

Now, I had told myself that getting coffee and dry cleaning was not beneath me because this was my learning curve. I walked in and there was an angry man waiting for me. He asked me if I knew what they did and I said, no. He had me start working on a stack of papers, but he didn’t say what or how to do it. So I went down the hall where I asked for help, and no one knew. The phone began to ring and everyone was speaking in different languages, it was my worst job.

Another favorite story is when I was working at Disney as a temp. As a temp you are invisible, no one pays attention to you. They decided that since I was a temp I could Xerox the budget for Disney Imagineering. I guess they wanted me to do this, because they didn’t want anyone to see it. It took me 3 days to do this, but while I was feeding the pages through, I read the budget. I saw how much everyone was getting paid. I learned all this information by reading the budget. You learn to use everything you can. While working at Disney I used to read the trades that my boss got, and everyday I would fax my resume to the ads in the “trades.” I changed my resume to look more interesting and to look like I was a career secretary. I took all the acting and directing off of it, and I put down all of my temp jobs.

During this time I also took some film classes at UCLA in their extension courses to give myself more confidence. I also started reading for a producer who thought I did a good job so I started freelance reading. Reading is where you read a script and write up a report. I probably read 1000 or more scripts during this time. I also did a little bit of acting on some commercials. However, my intention was not to be an actress. I just had a background in it. Finally one day after faxing my resume around I got an opportunity to interview at the Shapiro Lichtman agency. By this time my money was almost gone and I had my kids, so I thought I might have to go back to teaching.

I went and applied to LAUSD, Los Angeles Unified School District. They loved my teaching resume, and thought I was perfect. They called and offered me a job as the head of the English department at Claremont High School and would pay me a nice sum of money. On that same day, I had an interview at Shapiro Lichtman. When I arrived at the office for my interview all hell was breaking loose. Everyone was running around and the phone was ringing off the hook, and it was a mad house!

I had to wait an hour for Marty Shapiro. He was sitting in this huge leather chair when I walked in. It was the classic “big agent” office and it was very intimidating. He informed me that I would get no overtime pay, would put in a lot of hours, and not to expect a “ thank you.” The pay was half of what the teaching job had offered me.

Over the weekend I got a call from the school that had offered me a job. I had to make a decision, making $45,000 at a nice school or $20,000 in a madhouse. Any sane person would have taken the school. I decided to go with Hollywood. I took a deep breath and stepped out.

I started working at Shapiro Lichtman, where everyone had just recently been fired and it was indeed a madhouse. I started as an assistant to Mitchell Stein and within 3 to 4 months, I started reading the contracts that they sent out. On one occasion I noticed that they had added some extra language. They were floored that I had read the contract, and they were very happy with my catch. So he started to let me agent some people in animation. (There wasn’t enough money in it for him.)

The writer’s strike had just ended and there were a lot of dramatic writers out of work. At that time, Shapiro Lichtman had a lot of science fiction writers, and also, “Batman” animation was starting to get really big. I thought the writers of the science fiction stuff might like to write for the “Batman” animation guys. This wasn’t the perfect job for writers, but it was money. I called a bunch of animation houses and said I could give them these writers. In a very short time I made a lot of deals. I had kept all these clients really happy, and it made me look really smart. You just have to look for a way in, take the opportunity, and do what you have to do.

Then, the agent working with the “below the line” people, who are the crews on sets, got really ill, and I had assisted him. He left the company and then I stepped into his position. Within a year I was a full agent and was doing well. They gave me a very sizable raise with bonuses and I continued to build and build. Seven to eight years into this agency, Mitchell Stein left and I was promoted into his position of Vice President for Television. I was the first woman vice president at the agency.

I continued there until I became a Christian. I had gone to church in the past, but I did not have a personal relationship with Christ. As a result of some very odd circumstances I became a Christian. Money and power were the reasons I was out here, but there was never enough money or power.

I got married to my sweet husband Chauncey in 1999. He was a Christian, but I was drifting around in “New Age” stuff. We had money, trips, and lots of fun and I had a ton of clients. I was overseeing 250 clients from producers, to actors, and writers. The agency handled everyone all across the board.

I was at the top of my career, and then 911 happened, and I was really rocked by all those events. How do you deal with such sadness and tragedy? I was really questioning why God was letting these things happen. A friend of mine who had been a nun said, “God doesn’t make these things happen, you turn to God when these things happen.” I was shocked.

At the same time, my satellite TV had gone out for 3 months at home and my husband’s mother was dying of cancer and we were at the hospital all the time. No one had time to stay at home to get the satellite dish fixed. The only station available was this Christian station. We would come home and turn on the channel to these Christians, and there would be a pastor on, and my husband would sit and watch it while I just would get irritated. I finally yelled at him about it and then he asked me if I had ever watched it? I was so tired, and mad but I sat down and watched. Joyce Meyer’s show was on. Watching her was like a ton of bricks falling on me. She made so much sense, and she was funny, and I could relate to her. My eyes were opened. I said a prayer silently, and shortly later went to one of her conferences where I went forward at an altar call.

Suddenly my life was kicked up in super high speed. I was able to read the Bible. Everyone thought I had lost my mind. It was silliness, but I was excited. My eyes were opening up and I could see how horrible the programs and material that I had been selling as an agent was and I wanted to leave the business, but I felt God telling me that I was to remain, and that I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

I started reading Christian fiction, because I needed something to help me understand this new belief system. I read the whole “Left Behind” series, and other fiction Christian books. I came up with this idea. Why is this stuff not in movies? The old Christian movies were so awful. The only way people would watch it, is if they were tied to a chair. I did all this research and found out that the Christian music and book industry was huge. But there was nothing in movies.

I went back to my boss and told him he could make some money, because money is what speaks to Hollywood. There were 70 million “born again” Christians in America, and there was a market for Christian films. At the time Hollywood seemed to be against Christians, but it was beginning to change. “The Passion of the Christ” had just been released right around this time, then “Narnia” came out. Slowly things started happening, and I knew it was time to move in a different direction.

Through a set of miraculous twists and turns, I met Dan Rupple who handles Christian comedians. He came to see me at my office and we talked about how he taught some classes at Biola University and I thought it sounded like something I’d like to do. It turned out that Craig Deitweiler, an old client of mine, was the head of the media department at that time as well.

They offered me a job and I started working for them teaching about the Entertainment business and I now have my own business with my husband managing Christian novelists. “The Wager” based on the novel written by Bill Myers and starring Randy Travis is coming out as a film in a couple of months. “The Redemption of Sarah Cain” based on the novel written by Beverly Lewis and directed by Michael Landon Jr., was released this fall on Lifetime and is now available on DVD. We have made some pretty big deals with the studios to make movies from Christian books. Sam Raimi’s company Ghost House has optioned Bill Myer’s “Forbidden Doors” series and the first script has been completed. I am excited to get some material that is Christian out there, and happy to be teaching at Biola helping produce young Christian filmmakers. This is a dream come true.

KC: You didn’t have any formal training to become an agent, what would you tell someone who wanted to be an agent and work in that line of the business?

PM: Temp, and if you have a business background, it is helpful. You still have to start out as the receptionist. Even if you have a MBA or you are a lawyer, you still have to start at the bottom. Being an agent is really about selling. It is having an eye for talent and bringing people and deals together, this producer with that writer, this actor with that project. It’s a lot of instinct.

KC: Would you encourage people to get a college degree?

PM: Yes, and the best reason to get a college degree is to get the relationships for the business. That is what Hollywood is based on. Your film school relationships will help carry you throughout your career. Clint Eastwood has used the same crews from the 70’s to today. That tells you that relationships are gold. Who you know is gold.

KC: What is the single biggest thing you teach your students today about this business?

PM: How to “schmooze” and network, and the value of it. Get over yourself and approach other people. It’s being friendly, emailing, and maintaining relationships. The other thing is to do it. Just do it. Get out there and if you want to write, then do it.

KC: What is the hardest thing or biggest stumbling block that people have trouble learning?

PM: Fear, is the biggest stumbling block, or that they don’t think they are smart enough or pretty enough, or talented enough. That’s not true. It’s because they aren’t out there doing it! The people that are making it are more aggressive. There is a student here at Biola who just won the DGA (Directors Guild of America) student award. He has gotten successful because he has gone out there, and did what he had to do. He got a film together and sent it to several festivals. The fact that he is a freshman has not deterred him. People that are doing it aren’t letting things deter them.

KC: If you believe you are talented, how do you get your foot in the door to get an agent?

PM: Talent is not enough. Your relationships will help. If you have a friend that has an agent, see if they will get you in to meet with their agent. If you have done a few things that are fabulous you can send a query letter. It’s a letter that says I have a script, will you please read it.

KC: How do you go about getting experience?

PM: Schmooze!!! Go to the union meetings, go to “screeners”, find out who the DP or costumer was on the film you loved. Pay attention to who is what for what show. Track the area that you are interested in and if you like a movie “IMDB” (imdb.com) it and find out who worked on it, and then seek them out. Now finding some of those people can be somewhat tricky. Sometimes they will have their website and sometimes you can find them through the show that they are working on. If you sound intelligent, they might write to you, just don’t be a “stalker!” Just send an email or a letter saying I saw this certain episode, and thought it was very interesting. I liked the way you handled such and such. Just saying that you thought it was good is not enough. You want to let them know that you have a clue, and don’t talk about yourself or ask them to read your script or ask them for a part in their next film. If they reply then the next time you see something you like write them again. You are building a new relationship.

Your business is you. Getting your next job. This is a business of jobs that go from job to job. It’s not like selling tires, but your job is to get your next job. Even if you can’t go to film school you can study this business all by yourself. It’s all about what you want to put into it.

KC: What would tell someone who wants to get into this business but is living far from Hollywood?

PM: Get into the business right where you are before you come out here. Get some experience on a set and get a clue of what is going on. Before I came out I got some experience, so I knew what the basics were. After you have done a couple of things, build some relationships and then move out here. You could come out here and do it the way I did it, or if you are living somewhere where there is some business, learn there. If you aren’t then pack your bags and come here, but plan on being a waitress or temping, or bring a bunch of money with you so you can live off of it. But expect to work a bunch of odd jobs to pay your bills. Then start moving around and getting out there. Read a few books, try to find out everything you can, do your research, and prepare. I spent a year preparing. I came here for a visit and looked around. When you are daydreaming about your career, don’t just think about getting an Oscar, imagine how you will feel struggling to make ends meet. Are you going to be comfortable with that? Are you going to be comfortable getting coffee and picking up someone’s dry cleaning and doing it with a positive attitude? You have got to get rid of your ego because you will start at the bottom, and that is just the way it is.

KC: A lot of Christian parents believe that if their child moves out here they are going to be thrown into a pit of hell, and they won’t be able to climb their way out. Is that true?

PM: If you don’t come out and we don’t have Christians in the industry then it will continue to get worse. There are plenty of places here now to stay strong in your faith. There is no reason why you can’t come out here and continue to be a Christian. You will see tons of problems out here, but that doesn’t mean you have to be part of it. We are trying to change Hollywood from the inside out. It won’t change if we yell and boycott it. We can have an impact because Hollywood is very “sheep like.” If you stand up and say let’s do it like this, people will follow.

KC: Can recommend some books people ought to be reading if you are want to get into the entertainment industry?

Peggy: “The Hollywood Rules – What you Need to Know to Make it in the Industry” by an anonymous writer, it’s a “tell it like it is” book. Also, I like “Battlefield of the Mind” by Joyce Meyer, and “The Hollywood Standard” by Christopher Riley.