Somehow You Can Make It In The Entertainment Industry

ATHENS, GA--

Somehow.

One word, but (somehow) endless possibilities--Just get your foot in the door.


These simple words were firmly declared by Paradigm Agency’s celebrity agent, Norman Aladjem. Aladjem casually spoke to University of Georgia students about his personal experiences and recommendations to make it in the entertainment industry.


Assembled in a customary law school classroom, an audience member asked the simple question “How do you make it into the entertainment industry?” Aladjem responded, without hesitation, “Somehow.” He is confident that “if you get your foot in the door, you will make it somehow.” Aladjem aimed to alter the minds of skeptical students while he briefly held an open door to his life as a well-respected agent.


Aladjem grew up in Cleveland, Ohio having zero connections to the entertainment industry. He actually didn’t realize his calling in Hollywood until he tested and worked in other areas. He explained how he failed as a comedian during Law School at UCLA, but used the experience to succeed in gaining friendships that would jump start his future career. Aladjem tried the comedic route once more when he joked to his audience “I had 15 clients before I even passed the bar.” Needless to say, these clients included actor and fellow comedian Robin Williams and television series creator Larry David.


Aladjem stressed the necessity of acquiring experience in your dream career, even if it begins as being the “gopher that is constantly getting coffee and doing laundry for the people above you.” In Aladjem’s expert opinion, it is more beneficial to seek prospective employees who possess a quality of tenacity. He advised his audience to listen during an interview instead of thinking ahead about how to respond and to research a company before the interview. “You need to be a student of the industry you want to be in” he encouraged. A master’s degree and expertise in circumlocution won’t guarantee you the job.


“I don’t hire these people. What I really want to know is that they’ll do what it takes to get the job done” Aladjem said. Companies large and small alike seek individuals who will work hard at the job they receive, regardless if it is the job that lasts them their entire life.

“I won’t take it personal if the assistant or employee I had works for me and then figures out that he or she rather make films. If anything, I get credit because I can say I taught them everything they know” Aladjem confessed.


Aladjem also conveyed to his audience that he personally didn’t grow up dreaming of being an agent. He stated how his previous career trials and tribulations allowed him to “connect the dots” and obtain the CEO job he has now. After seven years of practicing law, Aladjem began to produce a film he co-wrote. With the lack of success accompanied by a loss of interest, he then decided to start a personal management company with a friend. This experience landed him a spot on the national advance team for future president Bill Clinton in 1992. He worked with Clinton’s campaign through the inauguration in January 1993 when he was offered another opportunity. Aladjem’s skills in networking were continuously paying off and he earned a job to control and lead the marketing development for the World Cup. His extensive array of careers helped him prove to the audience that job opportunities wait in all areas outside of the classroom and it is up to the student actively seek them.


“Everything is one big scavenger hunt- your job is to connect the dots” Aladjem repetitively stated as he provoked his audience to take action and follow a personalized path.


The underlying theme of Aladjem’s speech was straightforward in letting University students in attendance (spanning majors from law to magazines) that a dream job can be attainable. If you’re willing to work hard, you can do it.


“Making it is brutally hard, yet it happens every day. The real formula is there is no formula” Aladjem stated with ease. Although Norman Aladjem didn’t know where his future would take him and struggled in the career world for a few years, he somehow made it big and now encourages students to follow his redundant, yet realistic, words and do the same (somehow).