Emmanuel launched the indie firm in 1998, which has quietly grown in size and ambition.
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Camerimageruns until Nov 18.
DEADLINE:How many people are on staff at EBComs?
EB ComsEB Coms.
MEREDITH EMMANUEL:17, spread around the world.
Some of those are back office, database management, and assistants.
In terms of publicists, there are 10 or 11, and some junior ones.
For example, if somebody says I love directors, they can work in the directing department.
Do they love writers?
Weve had a lot of conversations about representing writers.
A couple of us are passionate about doing that.
Theres potential for a crossover between narrative writers and people who want to go into screenwriting.
We get approached by many film writers, and we just havent quite figured out how we represent them.
But I think thats an area we would like to expand into.
We decided to try directors and go above the line.
We started with Kate Woods, a very prolific Australian director.
We told her we wanted to learn on you, and she allowed us to do that.
Their brains work differently than anybody else.
DEADLINE:Why did you originally decide to focus on behind-the-camera talent?
EMMANUEL:It comes just from my life experience working with artists.
I started with musicians who were often session players or people who werent necessarily in the limelight.
I dont want people to consume blindly.
What was the process of working with the studio to set that up?
And often they dont, sometimes they do.
But theyve gotten better.
They even hire special teams and strategists to work below the line now.
They have learned that it is equally important.
Some studios dont pay attention, but we remind them.
We are often educating studios about what theyve got and why it is so special.
The possibility was something we recognized 18 months out.
With those two factors, we could use the power ofBlack Pantherto underscore her story as the cinematographer ofMudbound.
DEADLINE:The history of EBComs is intimately tied to the growth of Camerimage.
This festival has become a very important awards stop for studios.
When and how did you start coming here?
EMMANUEL:Ive been coming here for 15 years.
They signed them and had success.
To come here and see them so celebrated and appreciated, I realized that this was a unique proposition.
I went back to LA and said youre all crazy that you dont go to this festival as agents.
you should probably be at that festival because thats where youre gonna sign all of your great talent.
It was four or five years before anyone came.
I finally got someone from DDA to come.
Theyre here this year, and theyre here every year now.
Slowly, we have convinced studios, agencies, and publications that they should be here.
And to this day, were still educating all the time.
DEADLINE:Its rare for an indie your size to be so international.
How did that happen and why?
EMMANUEL:Ive been thinking about it since 1998 before I started the company.
And its partially driven by what makes me happy.
But Ive also lived in London and have a strong connection to Europe.
So it made sense to me that we had a presence in Europe, America, and Australia.
DEADLINE:Whats next?
EMMANUEL:Weve got a ton on the wish list we want to accomplish.
Weve just started talking to our first actor.
We will always be a below-the-line, behind-the-camera company.
But we experiment, too.
You cant just stay in your shell.
