Behind the Curtain: How Atlanta’s Entertainment Scene Is Evolving with New Talent and Technology

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studio in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for Atlanta Business Radio, brought to you by Kennesaw State University’s Executive MBA program, the Accelerated Degree program for working professionals looking to advance their career and enhance their leadership skills. And now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: Lee Kantor here, another episode of Atlanta Business Radio. And this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor CSU’s executive MBA program. Without them, we wouldn’t be sharing these important stories. Today on the show, we have the owner and head of the TV and film Division of Atlanta Models and Talent, Jason Lockhart. Welcome man.

Jason Lockhart: Hey, Lee. Thanks for having me, man.

Lee Kantor: Well, I am so excited to get caught up with you, especially in to talk about kind of Atlanta’s entertainment industry. It seems like it’s exciting times.

Jason Lockhart: It really is. You know, there have been a few years that weren’t as busy as we wanted them to be, and this year’s already kicked off in a pretty cool way.

Lee Kantor: So let’s start with Atlanta models and talent. Tell us about your journey to become the owner of this. It’s one of those kind of, uh, overnight success, right?

Jason Lockhart: Yeah, sure. It took 24 hours. Um, no. You know, what’s funny is there are three things that I really preach to actors that I think stretch far beyond helping just actors in business. And that is patience, persistence and positivity. And people joke with me that these three P’s come out of my mouth all the time, but even in this instance, it really helped achieve what I always hoped I could achieve, which was owning the agency, you know, and now I am a co-owner. But it really took a lot of patience And it kept. It kept happening. We kept. Kelly and I kept getting into these situations where we wanted it to happen and then it didn’t. So it took persistence and we absolutely remained positive through a lot of negative ups and downs that this would happen one day. And after eight and a half years, it finally happened.

Lee Kantor: So maybe let’s not talk about your specific agency, but just maybe in general advice for other people that are part of, you know, small to midsize organizations where they seem to be kind of a rock star. And it’s obvious to everybody that, hey, there is a, you know, like a path to ownership. Is there some dos and don’ts or some structure that you would advise people to take on if they are, you know, vying to be an owner one day?

Jason Lockhart: Absolutely. And what a great question, because I would love for, for these words to be able to translate and help anyone in any field. So I would say grab Ahold of the passion that the owner might have had for the company when they bought it and or at its height of success. And embrace that passion and make it your own. Because that truly is what I did and what we did. You know, we acted as if we already owned the agency and had that kind of passion. And with that passion came respect from all kinds of business to business colleagues and clients and staff within. And so I think if you can already act as if you’re there and you carry that kind of passion, people will respect and treat you like you already do own it. And that really will help when the transition comes.

Lee Kantor: Now, what do you tell the person that’s like, look, I, I don’t want to work for somebody else. I want to do my own thing. Um, you know, this is fine, but I don’t want to, you know, invest my time, energy and talents in helping someone else be successful.

Jason Lockhart: I would ask them if they’re really ready to run it on their own. Have they built enough relationships to foresee consistent income for the next five years? You know, relationships are a huge part of ongoing business. You know, who do they know and how well are they working together? And could they actually start something on their own and drive consistent income? Or is it better to hold on to a brand that’s already preexisting and has ongoing, consistent business? So that would be my main question.

Lee Kantor: Now, in your case, you were building a brand for yourself. Um, I guess side by side Amt you wrote a book. You’re obviously an expert at what you do. You’ve taken on a lot of responsibility. And, uh, so you had a brand maybe separate but adjacent, but it’s all together, right? Like it’s, it’s one big thing now.

Jason Lockhart: It really is. Yeah. And we joke, uh, Kelly Neiman, who’s the co-owner of Amt with me, uh, we joke, we joke that she partnered with the brand of Jason Lockhart, and I think that’s hilarious. But I’m also really grateful that that she values me that way. I value her, uh, immensely. Um, so yeah, I’ve, I’ve been very verbal and very passionate about behind the scenes information about the entertainment industry. Um, because I just get a lot of questions that people should know the answers to that take up time during the work day. And so I thought, wow, if I could really help my own clients with more education about behind the scenes, I might be able to help a lot of actors far beyond my reach with information behind the scenes based on real life experience.

Lee Kantor: So do you feel that having done that and, uh, establishing establish yourself as kind of a thought leader in this space that made you more valuable and it made the path to ownership, um, easier or smoother.

Jason Lockhart: I don’t know if it made me.

Jason Lockhart: More valuable, but I think, I think it definitely makes the awareness stronger. And sometimes when people want to spend money or they want to do business, they just quickly go to Google. And if there’s more awareness to something, it seems like a more obvious choice or a a higher choice. And so I would imagine that it all kind of works together to form some sort of, of positive financial business. Um, but I wouldn’t say that it, that it absolutely correlates.

Lee Kantor: Now, is there anything different in your day to day now that you’re, quote unquote, an owner, like you were acting as an owner as if the whole time? So did anything really kind of dramatically change or is it just now, you know, you have skin in the game?

Jason Lockhart: Uh, no, some things have changed. Now I’m, you know, dealing with the bank and the lawyers and excel sheets and all this crap that I don’t want to do because I just really want to be a talented people in movies. Uh, so yeah, but but Kelly is an absolute rock star at that stuff, and she’s faster and more efficient than I. And we have two wonderful women that work in the financial department who are also rock stars. And so I’m just kind of cc’d on more emails and chiming in. Uh, chiming in when I can, if I think I can add value, you know, or help.

Lee Kantor: It’s a glamorous showbiz life, right?

Jason Lockhart: I mean, that’s all I want to do. Yeah. I just really want to be an agent. But this stuff is necessary to keep the lights on and keep everything going so that the actors get as many opportunities as possible.

Lee Kantor: So let’s talk about the Georgia, um, entertainment environment. We’ve heard a lot of things. There’s a lot more competition nowadays from other cities, other countries. How is Atlanta doing and what’s your kind of take on how it’s trending?

Jason Lockhart: I still feel really excited to be in the Atlanta market and be a staple here. Um, because the infrastructure is here, there’s a lot of studio space here. There’s a lot of gear here and there’s a lot of talent here both behind and in front of the camera. And I see that slowly expanding as well and more projects being created here on the ground up. I think we’re going to be seeing even more of that. The tax incentives are very much in motion here. So I still think that we’re one of the key cities in the country to shoot. And I think, uh, as the year unfolds and we get less politics, uh, kind of in the way of major entertainment industry decisions, Atlanta will be one of the thriving markets.

Lee Kantor: Now, do you see, uh, with the media consolidation, are you seeing more projects or does do you think there’ll be less? Like, how do you see this all shaking out?

Jason Lockhart: We did see a lot of projects, um, right as the new year began and all of these shows kind of slowed down and, and completed the season or the series in the past month or so. So now we’re kind of in this, you know, this, I would say there are peaks and valleys in all businesses. And this time of year is typically a valley for TV and film. But I foresee I see a new peak by June. I really do. There’s a there’s a lot that wants to be coming here.

Lee Kantor: Now, are you seeing any projects, maybe artists directed projects rather than maybe studio directed more indie, more, you know, actors and actresses saying, you know what? I’m tired of waiting to be chosen. I’m going to kind of build my own project.

Jason Lockhart: Absolutely, absolutely. And I’m seeing a lot of these producers who started doing smaller things, doing bigger things now. You know, they gained a lot of experience from working with the studios. Um, whether it was in a, in a small role or in an ongoing educational role where they could really shadow some important people. And now they’re doing things on their own and the budgets are going up and the crews are getting stronger. And it’s, it’s really cool to see here.

Lee Kantor: Now, what about the evolution to, um, online and streaming? Are you seeing a lot more independent streamers doing their own things, uh, creating their own media kind of properties and their own projects outside of kind of traditional studio ecosystem? Yeah.

Jason Lockhart: I haven’t really seen the streamer say, hey, let’s go ahead and greenlight independent stuff. Um, but we’re seeing a lot of the TV networks that make films like Lifetime and Shudder and whatnot, purchasing a lot of lower budget stuff from the indie filmmakers and then streaming them. And then we’re also in this space with just a massive amount of vertical content to be streaming on these apps, on phones. And it seems like every few hours, there’s another one of these 105 page or so series that’s casting all the roles, and it’s very soap opera with a hook at the end of every mini episode. And, um, they’re just there in abundance right now.

Lee Kantor: So you’re seeing that as a trend.

Jason Lockhart: A huge trend. Yeah. And it’s interesting because some actors are very excited about it and want to work on it all the time and are happy with the rates, which range anywhere from like 150 a day to over a thousand a day, depending on the size of the role and the value that the talent may bring. Um, but then we have other actors who are like, I absolutely don’t want to do that. I don’t feel like it’s grounded in reality. I don’t think the content is is written as strong as, let’s say, something on HBO or Apple TV. So they just are holding out to do the content that they’re more excited or passionate about. It’s really interesting to, to kind of be in my seat and see, see this abundance of work and that some people want to do it and some don’t. And I have yet to really form a strong opinion myself on it. Just kind of, uh, kind of taking it one day at a time, seeing, seeing what happens.

Lee Kantor: So on those type of projects, how long are the, is the talent booked for to crank out that many episodes.

Jason Lockhart: Sometimes only 4 to 5 days. You know, um, we’ve seen actors book a lead like the lead villain and they’ll shoot five out of five days and the entire project is done in five days.

Lee Kantor: And then it’s rolled out every day for three months or something.

Jason Lockhart: Uh, pretty quickly on these apps and, you know, on the apps, some of the episodes are free and then you have to start paying if you want to see what happens. So they kind of hook you as an audience member, right?

Lee Kantor: I knew that was popular in Asia. I didn’t know it was penetrating here in the US.

Jason Lockhart: Yes, some of the Asian companies have absolutely made their way here with it.

Lee Kantor: Wow. I mean, the the fight for attention is just real. Like there’s no it’s the Wild West when it comes to attention. How are you seeing AI kind of trickle into this conversation?

Jason Lockhart: It’s becoming a conversation every day. I still don’t have any scary stories to tell or or seen anything bad happen to an actor. And I don’t foresee anything awful happening anytime soon. Um, but these conversations are happening a lot. I’m going to an interesting webinar, um, in about a week and a half with our TV film agents to kind of learn more and see what’s going on. I’ve recently heard that Val Kilmer’s life rights were sold. I guess I need to look into that. I don’t know what’s going on, but I’ll be real curious if if companies are starting to purchase actors likenesses to be able to use them in video games or whatever it may be, and what those contracts would look like, and how Sag-Aftra would prepare contracts for that and boundaries and safety. And, um, it’s going to be very interesting what happens. And I hope that whatever happens keeps actors employed, you know.

Lee Kantor: So you’re still seeing a high demand for actors.

Jason Lockhart: Oh, absolutely. Yeah. Well, I’m not seeing I’m not seeing any project out there saying that, you know, we need to cast half of this. The other half is cast with AI talent. Like, I haven’t seen anything even close.

Lee Kantor: Now, are you right now or is that something? You’re always on the look for new talent.

Jason Lockhart: You know what’s fascinating, Lee is right now as a new owner of the agency, I am very aggressively looking to expand. So yes, I really want to help blow up our youth department. So if there’s anybody listening and you’ve got really cute and talented kids, absolutely. Now we want to blow that up. So anyone that can play 12 and under is an area that we’re going to be really excited about in the Atlanta market really, really soon and see them flourish. And then also, I think older folks, people that are retired, that their kids are grown and they want to get back into this and they have 100% flexibility. And the, and the desire to be competitive with people who may have been doing this their entire career. I’m interested in those folks as well. And then, of course, just like really strong talent, you know, I’m not at this point in my career, I’m not really looking for people who are good, who are just really good actors who, who are like, want to get into the NFL. I like to joke, but but people that are good enough to win a Super Bowl ring and, and adamant about winning it, not just playing the game, but but being a champion. So I’ll always consider someone who’s just extremely good, even if I have a lot of people in their category.

Lee Kantor: Now, when it comes to Atlanta models and talent, does that also go to like writing, directing, or is it primarily acting?

Jason Lockhart: It’s primarily acting, but we are absolutely moving in that direction. I know some other agencies do that and it’s, um, kind of, you know, mirrored business to what some of the big ones in LA and New York do. Uh, I’ve got my hands and feet wet right now in some projects, and we’re looking at some pretty exciting announcements later this year.

Lee Kantor: Good stuff. Well, if somebody wants to connect with you or somebody on the team, what’s the best way to do that? Uh, socials and maybe your website.

Jason Lockhart: Yeah, absolutely. Um, our website is@agency.com and people can write to us through contact@agency.com and that will get to the appropriate person. Um, then yeah, anybody can follow me on Instagram. I use Instagram and try to check it at least once a day. It’s just Jason underscore Lockhart.

Lee Kantor: Well, Jason, thank you so much for sharing your story, doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Jason Lockhart: Oh, thank you so much. It’s happy. You know, I’m happy to be here.

Lee Kantor: All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Atlanta Business Radio.