Adult Talent Managers owner Shy Love, who is also a performer and director, has nearly 10 years experience in the adult, while A-List owner September Dawn entered the business in 1994 and soon established herself as the go-to wardrobe stylist for numerous top producers. Their company will operate as Adult Talent Managers and is headquartered at the Studio City offices that have been the home to A-List for the past year.
“September and I have been speaking about it for quite a long time. We always joked about it because we’ve been friends for so many years and now was just the right timing,” Love told XBIZ. “We both wanted to do so much with branding our companies through the adult stuff and also adding the branding with mainstream to it.”
The duo also announced plans to launch a mainstream agency this fall called A-List Modeling which will represent both adult and mainstream models.
“We’d talk about things all the time, things that we don’t agree with or things we’re excited about and we would always joke that ‘we should just merge,’” Dawn told XBIZ. “We’ve always had the same agenda with the girls and we’ve always been trying to move in the same direction with the girls. We always got along great. I’ve known her since she first got into the business and we finally sat down said let’s do it.”
Dawn said the transition would be "easy."
"We have all these ideas. We want to get into the mainstream arena with the talent and this was just the right timing," she continued. "Utilizing the A-List Brand, we will be launching our mainstream division in October 2010. We will be helping adult performers to crossover, as well as representing non-adult stars in the mainstream arena.”
Love said with the combined rosters that Adult Talent Managers now represents about 230 female performers and some 30 male performers.
“The talent we have spoken to are very happy and excited with the changes going on,” Love said. “And the producers are understanding and loving the idea of it.”
“It’s a little bit busier and we both have a larger roster to deal with on a daily basis. I didn’t realize it would get this busy with the changes.”
Both top agents on each staff, Tom and Sandra, remain primary contacts for the new agency.
“With Shy and Tom and me and Sandra — Sandra’s been with me since I started the agency — we just have a really strong team here,” Dawn said. “We all have really strong relationships with producers, directors and photographers in the business. That’s what’s really cool.”
Love added, “The fact that the company is owned and operated by women certainly gives us a unique business advantage in a male-dominated industry. September created the first female-owned management company in the business back in 2004. She has long-term relationships with company owners and producers as do I being a director and former performer.”
For more information call 818.985.4944 or email Shy@atmla.com and September@atmla.com. Find ATM online at atmla.com.