What We Can (and Can’t) Learn from Swimming With Sharks

Swimming With Sharks is a revenge fantasy about an abused assistant kidnapping and torturing his successful studio executive boss. It’s honestly not a very good movie and has some serious misogynist undertones (and overtones, at the end), but since the title has become synonymous with braving some of the more challenging industry environments, it seemed remiss not to comment on it on a website featuring insider information on industry careers.

So you’ll want to know, Is the depiction of Hollywood – at least some of the upper-echelon enclaves – accurate? And do the survivors get their just rewards?

I watched this movie for the first time much earlier in my career, and it was interesting to me how my perception of – and relationship to – the movie had changed over the years. The first time I saw it, I remember being amused, feeling slightly sorry for the new assistant, but mainly feeling that he asked for it by taking a position working for a notorious jackass.

This time, my older and wiser self, having interviewed and hired hundreds of assistants over the years to work for a variety of different people, felt somewhat ill from the very beginning of the movie. This movie not only depicts the “trial by fire” aspect of some work environments, but glorifies it with a triumphant, albeit twisted, ending for the protagonist.

Here’s the truth: Though most people working at all levels of the entertainment industry are good-hearted and fairly well-behaved, even if they have their quirks and stress-induced meltdowns on occasion, some of which can ruin a hardworking assistant’s day, there are Buddy Ackermans out there.

They take every frustration and disappointment out on their assistants.

They haven’t got even a minimal amount of patience (for instance, the patience it takes to allow someone to dial a phone and get so-and-so on the line for them).

They mis-speak and then blame you for calling the wrong person for them.

They forget to tell you do something and then get mad at you for not doing it.

They lie to others and then expect you to know the lie without having been told about it and play into it.

There are all sorts of dysfunctional behaviors these Buddy Ackermans inflict upon those down the food chain. And if you are thinking that you would never endure that craziness, I hope you are right.

But getting into the power seat working for a top agent or other industry heavyweight can be awfully seductive. You are inside the lair, privy to high level deal-making and behind-the-scenes machinations. And like any abusive person, these Buddy Ackermans often have their charms, and their moments of regret where they woo you just enough so you forgive and maybe even forget (a little). Lastly, the promise, however vague, of a payoff at the end in the form of a junior executive position or a glowing recommendation to other top-dogs when you are ready for a new job, can be just the ticket to keep you on the roller coaster ride.

The bottom line is they often fail to come through with the payoff at the end. And people like that can leave you so burnt out and bitter that by the time you leave, you are barely speaking to each other, much less maintaining the kind of relationship where the boss happily make calls on your behalf. Which is fine because by the time they are through with you, you might not want to work in the industry anymore.

So take these jobs at your peril. Do your homework and find out if they really have consistently promoted their past assistants or given them a big push up the ladder elsewhere. And whatever you do, don’t end up like Guy, the abused assistant in Swimming With Sharks. It’s not worth it. Take it from me.

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