I hate this job title, and I don’t like Directors’ “rep” much more. It sounds reductive, inaccurate and also puts off the exact talent that has the potential to thrive in the role.

The job of spotting director talent, nurturing their career and hunting down the right opportunities, is essential to the creative production space. It’s a hard role, always on in many ways but hugely stimulating as a career that endures. In the last two years, about 30% of the enquiries I’ve had started with “I’m looking for a new sales rep”. I had no idea it would be that many when I started. I even have to turn down companies sometimes, which is hugely frustrating; but there just aren’t enough candidates for me to work for multiple companies at the same time.

At last count, there are 167 people that have the basic qualifications to do this role. Within that number there is a lot of variety:

⏱ Some have one months experience 🆚 some 20+ years.

🏆 Some have been in small, startup companies 🆚 some only worked with the most established companies.

👀 Some want to move companies 🆚 some are very happy where they are.

👋🏽 Some want a certain type of company culture 🆚 some want the total opposite.

If we apply just those filters and we’re potentially talking about three people in London that might be, qualified and up for your role. That’s a niche search by anyone’s standards.

I reckon there are loads of twenty-somethings out there with the smarts, creative curiosity and charisma to make great “Sales Reps”. The thing is, most have no idea whatsoever that the role even exists and wouldn’t be caught dead looking for a “Sales” role on LinkedIn.  I’m really interested to see if there’s a way to create a more obvious pipeline for talent in this area, in the same way that there is for producers and directors and everyone else in the game…

“Sales Rep” roles are specific to Production Companies really - in other areas of the business I find that people that are responsible for nurturing client relationships, fostering new opportunities and helping to steer pitches to conversion are called Business Directors or Business Development, but most commonly the Sales rep/Directors Rep is the title for production companies certainly at the early stage of a career. In recent years The more experienced are taking the EP moniker or EP/Sales which does improve matters in terms of gravitas as far as I’m concerned but I definitely have to work hard to understand what EP means to every candidate and ever client as it’s different for pretty much everyone. So arguably its too opaque as a title

I think its a great role, I actually think in another life maybe I would have loved the variety, the trust and the relationship with the talent and enjoyed the buzz of bringing in new jobs. Thinking back, to be honest I just didn’t want to be called a Sales Rep. I reckon there are loads of twenty-somethings out there with all the smarts, creative curiosity, passion for ideas and charisma to make great “Sales reps” but they have no idea about the role, how to get into it and wouldn’t be caught dead looking for a Sales role on LinkedIn. 

There are many wonderful mentor organisations out there working hard to build gateways for talent to enter all spheres of the advertising industry from producers, directors and no doubt account management and strategy - but no mentorship for “Sales Reps”. I think that’s a missed opportunity - for instance think of all the wonderful emerging directors coming out of Shiny, many vivacious, driven, articulate creative ambassadors - with the best will in the world not all of them are going to have long-term careers as directors - they could, however, have a career as a “directors rep” that fulfills. They’d remain near the craft of directing and in many cases, don’t have to give up filmmaking completely - it can be done in parallel.

Also, I’m sure there are loads of similar would-be producers coming out of Brixton Finishing School or Creative Mentor Network that would flourish in this type of job. It can be lucrative, adrenalin boosting and long-lived.

Shiny is holding a panel talk at Iris on 6th July with a brilliantly curated panel of experts from Chief production officers(the client)  to “reps” at various stages of their careers. What a great chance to debate the importance and potential of the role.

Yes, the future of the production landscape is changing, maybe there will be fewer roster-only production studios in the long term, but I can’t see a world where ambassadorship for a company that offers film-making talent isn’t totally essential.

For me the only title that works is Directors Agent - actors have one, photographers, sports, influencers, artists, you name it - it has all the cache and glamour that the job entails. Surely that is the next best starting point? What do you think? I’d love you to take my poll!