Meet Brent Paxton | Talent Manager and Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brent Paxton and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brent, do you have any habits that you feel contribute to your effectiveness?
In many ways, habits are everything. I think something that people don’t realize is a habit — is choosing to be positive every day. In a way, it’s like choosing to be happy. While life deals us different cards, I think happiness is a choice. So, you have to show up every day with a positive outlook. If you can’t show up (whatever that means for you) with a smile, look around you and figure out why. That is the key. What is making you feel unmotivated? If there’s something that needs to change, change it. I also think this plays into the habit of reminding yourself that you are in control of your own life. The habit is the belief that you are in control, even if many things seem like they are not. Many things drag us down or make us feel helpless, but we are never truly powerless. There is so much more in our control than we think. It starts with what we think about throughout the day and how we reflect on our life experiences. If there’s one thing I can recommend to people, it’s that you can radically change your life by simply shifting your perspective. Another habit is not living in regret or mulling over negative things that have happened in the past. Learn the life lesson from the failures and move on. Don’t dwell on what went wrong. That is a recipe for depression and stagnation in your life. Don’t lick your wounds too much because it will prevent you from showing up the next day with an optimistic attitude.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

Here at Kreativ Media Partners, behind the scenes, there is a lot of magic happening. What sets us apart is our unique approach to how we view talent and foster it. There are so many ways to become a working actor and star. There’s no one road. But, I do believe we are a nebula where stars are formed. The magic comes from brilliant Eureka! moments from our managers and members of our staff. We spend countless hours on the phone with talent, casting, directors, and producers about what is right for the project…and if we have the solution.

Integrity is a crucial value to have long-term success. Integrity can mean so many things, but at the end of the day, it means telling the truth, to others and more importantly to yourself. When you tell yourself the truth you can achieve anything because you are operating from a foundation of honesty. I think people get too caught up in the dream or the end goal and it can distract from the mechanics of how to get there. So, we say “eyes on the prize, boots on the ground.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Atlantic Station is a great spot to spend time with friends and family in an outdoor shopping and dining experience. Ponce City Market is a fun place to go to get a bite to eat with plenty of options. Little Five Points is a lovely creative district where you can see great local artistry. Piedmont Park is where all the festivals take place and it’s a great way to stretch your legs and walk around with a great view of the skyline and is near downtown. Must-stop places are also the Georgia Aquarium, the Coca-Cola Museum and of course, the National Center for Civil and Human Rights as the great Martin Luther King, Jr is from the great city of Atlanta.

What do you find most challenging about your job?
The biggest challenge is bringing multiple parties into a shared reality about the merit of a project or artist. In short, it is getting the other person to look and see that the solution is right in front of them. I have sold many scripts and booked many actors on television and in film. It’s interesting how and why a script is sold and why an actor is hired for a job. Managers are salesman, mediators, therapists, and champions for artists.

What is your favorite movie?
I love classics like Rebel Without a Cause (1955), The Wizard of Oz (1939), All About Eve (1950), Charade (1963), West Side Story (1961), and many more. The list is endless. I have a huge affinity for the 90s. Everyone who knows me knows my love for Scream (1996) and the subsequent films. The successful relaunch this year in 2022 was very exciting to see. The self-reflective meta aspects of the original film written by Kevin Williamson hooked me at a young age.

Are there any clients that inspire you?
All of my clients inspire me. They are all stars in their own right and it is beautiful to see them in action bringing their gifts to the world.

How do you feel about new platforms like TikTok playing a part in the entertainment industry?
I believe there is room for everyone and that one type of media doesn’t necessarily compete with the other. There is currently a beautiful marriage of traditional entertainment finding talent on social media platforms. It is by no means necessary or the only way to discover new faces and voices. I think it is very important that we are not reactionary to the marketplace today. Fear-based decision-making is never good. No one should be rushing out to create a TikTok to stay relevant and TikTokers shouldn’t feel like they will never have a chance in traditional media because they are a TikTok star. Every artist is different and it depends on what you bring to the table. The question is this: what gifts are you showcasing and how can they be utilized? Broad discriminatory thinking is a rookie mistake because a good manager knows you can find talent anywhere if you know where to look.

Kreativ Media Partners has grown significantly over the past four years, what is your secret?
Lead with love. Tell the truth. Admit when you’re wrong. Believe in the power of new ideas. Trying new things…and if we fall, we fall forward.

You have a reputation for being down-to-earth and not being the scary agent, has that worked for you?
I don’t think I set out to be known as labeled as ‘the nice guy’ but I play fair and tell it like it is. I think that is the only way to play the long game and to leave a lasting legacy that fosters trust in this industry.

What is one piece of advice you would tell talent?
Prepare. Prepare. Prepare. If you want to play a game, you need to learn the rules. You must learn the rules before you start attempting to break them. Education/class is the first step if you are pursuing any endeavor. With that, after you’ve learned the basics, trust your own instincts and never let anyone prejudice you to an experience or person. Go off of your own experience because not everyone has your best interest at heart. You must listen to your gut and take calculated risks to make leaps and bounds.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

I wake up with a lot of gratitude each day because I didn’t, and don’t, walk the journey alone. Some people and institutions have been so wonderful to me that I would like to give them the shoutout they deserve here. One defining factor in my life was my involvement with Rotary International. If you don’t know what the Rotary Club is, please take a moment and look it up. It’s a wonderful organization and one of their activities is sponsoring international exchange students between countries. So, I was an exchange student in my last two years of high school and it was a turning point in my life. My nuclear family had fallen apart a few years before and I was admittedly feeling very lost. I found the Rotary Club through the help of my mom and grandfather. I lived in a small town in southern Peru and it was a magical experience. If I had not gone on that student exchange, I would be a very different person today and I thank Rotary, my family, and my host family in Peru for the experience of a lifetime.

I would also like to send a shoutout to the many people who have helped me learn the business that I am in today. Talent management and production are tricky businesses. It’s not something you can learn in school. It’s trial by fire. I even thank those who were beating me up while running the gauntlet. If you’re unfamiliar with the expression, I recommend you look it up.

Running the gauntlet is such a strong concept in my mind because of a moment in a television show I watched as a child. Growing up, I was obsessed with Xena: Warrior Princess. Xena’s character arch starts on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys with Lucy Lawless’s character Xena walking the gauntlet with her army beating her to a pulp because she decides to spare a baby’s life. For context, Xena starts an evil warlord who pillages villages for their harvests and changes her ways. Those around her, her very own army, viciously attack her because she wants to become a different person. Fittingly, Xena gets a spin-off television show that is entirely around the concept of redemption with the pilot titled “Sins of the Past.” Aside from this being a plug to go back and appreciate Xena and Hercules, I thank the producers for creating a show that I related to and that helped me frame key moments of my own life.

Website: https://kreativartists.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kreativartists/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brentpaxton/

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