At The Hollywood Reporter’s 16th annual Power Managers breakfast at Spago in Beverly Hills, the conversation kept returning to one question: what does the Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. Discovery combination mean for the people who sell creative work?
Indie attorney Lisa Callif, founding partner at Donaldson Callif Perez, gave a direct answer. She said she and her clients are not excited about the merger for independent filmmaking.
Fewer buyers means less leverage
UTA CEO David Kramer framed the issue in market terms. “Like all sellers, you need more buyers, not less,” he said. “But you need those buyers to be healthy.”
The warning is about concentration. A merged studio can reset priorities, put projects on pause, and leave producers with fewer places to take a film.
An indie project already lost momentum
Callif said she is advising clients not to bank on getting deals with the combined company. She cited one film that Paramount Skydance initially seemed “bullish about moving full steam ahead” on, but its prospects at the studio died about two weeks ago.
She acknowledged that CEO David Ellison has made some indie film commitments, and said the restructuring could open space for others to work in a true indie spirit. But for producers like her clients, including Richard Linklater and the Safdie brothers, near-term uncertainty is the bigger signal.
Where AI fits — carefully
Callif also touched on generative AI in documentary work. For now, the technology is mostly used in postproduction for “menial tasks” such as enhancing graphics.
When AI does heavier creative work, ownership gets complicated. The US Copyright Office requires human authorship, so Callif said creators need to be transparent and detailed about what the technology did if they want protection.
For media planners and entertainment marketers, the message is similar to the one agents are carrying: a shrinking buyer set can shift release calendars, output volume, and negotiating power. The practical takeaways:
- Diversify buyers instead of waiting on the merged entity.
- Treat AI as a tool, and document its use for copyright filings.
- Expect greenlight turbulence as combined studios reset priorities.
The breakfast also honored Platinum Financial Management Inc. CEO Michael Ullman with the Business Manager Icon award, with tributes from clients including Sugar Ray Leonard and Brooke Shields.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
