FILM
The Negotiator
ANDREW KRAMER is making his mark at The Weinstein Company, one deal at a time
{LOS ANGELES, CA}
By Marisa Kagan
From working as a teenage production assistant who had a knack for bartering "special thanks" credits and set visits in exchange for craft services supplies, location clearances, or anything else needed for his sister's low-budget films, to President, Business and Legal Affairs and General Counsel for The Weinstein Company (TWC), Andrew Kramer is a self-made success story.
Kramer knew at an early age that he had a knack for negotiating. As a boy, he asked his mother for a new dirt bike. Her response? Find a way to earn it – a message he has carried with him throughout his career. Accepting the challenge, young Andrew knocked on the doors of about 50 of his neighbors in his small Long Island community before the start of winter. He was able to get them to pay him about $60 per driveway in advance in exchange for shoveling the snow from their driveways for the whole season. Then when it snowed, Kramer paid other kids $10 per driveway to shovel the snow. As he had hoped, it was a light snow season that year and Andrew made the nice profit he was planning for. He earned his dirt bike that winter and, more importantly, learned that he had the power to create opportunity for himself.
On the subject of his most valued mentor, Kramer calmly and without hesitation says, "my mother," rather than some Hollywood power player with whom he has worked. After all, it was she who instilled in him values that he believes has separated him from the rest: the meaning of tenacity and persistence. She escaped Germany with her family during the Holocaust to start a new life in America, "starting out with nothing other than her brain and an opportunity to sell Tupperware door to door in Queens." She eventually became a successful businesswoman and entrepreneur in her own right and she "taught me to never take no for an answer if it is something you believe in." Losing his father at a young age and growing up in a house with six "strong-minded, highly opinionated, dynamic and wonderful women," including five older sisters, taught Kramer to be independent and fight for what he believes in. "I've always had to fend for myself, and I think that's what makes me fight so well for others.
"I believe," he theorizes, "the strongest traits of parents become even stronger in their children." Kramer's natural humility causes him to pause when discussing his success in the entertainment industry, as he much prefers to talk about the "deals," hard work, and the dedication he has put in along the way, and continues to put in to stay at the top of his game. The manner in which he describes the various negotiations he has handled can be as dramatic as the projects themselves.
Kramer, who was feted by Variety as one of the top dealmakers in Hollywood in its 2011 Dealmakers Impact Report, looks at each challenge "as an opportunity to find creative solutions and break new ground in situations where others might give up." Fresh out of Southwestern University School of Law at 24, Kramer began his journey by hanging up his own shingle when the studio and law firm jobs he wanted weren't available. He borrowed a small office with no windows at his friend's Century City law firm in exchange for supporting the attorneys on the floor until he could land his own paying clients. His first client was a small motion picture production company. Soon thereafter, he was able to pay rent for an office with windows and thus began his flourishing career. A short time later, after working as co-counsel with the law firm Mitchell, Silberberg & Knupp on a multi-picture deal for his client, Kramer was invited to join the entertainment department of MS&K.
After succeeding working for law firms and production companies over a period of 10 years, Kramer was offered the position of Executive Vice President, Business Affairs and Operations at the newly established Warner Independent Pictures, the "independent" arm of Warner Bros. At the Sundance Film Festival, Kramer made the midnight deal for WIP to acquire its greatest success, a small documentary film about arctic fowl, of all things. March of the Penguins was a Sundance acquisition that exceeded everyone's expectations. It became an event film of sorts, says Kramer. "It was great to watch its commercial success grow. "
Now going into his seventh year at TWC, what Kramer finds most gratifying about his job is that "it's never boring!" One could imagine endless adrenaline rushes, while working with industry legends, Bob and Harvey Weinstein, who have produced and/or distributed some of Hollywood's biggest successes, including this year's Academy Award winning pictures, The Artist and Undefeated.
"Whether it is a creative idea, formulating an 'out-of-the box' solution for a deal-breaking business issue, or a new marketing strategy, I never cease to learn from my interactions with Bob and Harvey, who have the brilliant ability to see the whole 'chess board' at any given moment. They drive our team to perform on all cylinders at all times…but it always starts the same way: with Bob or Harvey saying, 'I want to make this movie.' Then the work begins."
Being one of the key executives of an independent motion picture company comes with around-the-clock expectations, which can sometimes be tough on a growing family. Andrew admits that his phone is always on and in his hand, because so much of his and TWC's success depend on getting information first and reacting with speed, strategy, and precision. However, he is confident his "she amazes me in every way" wife, Tanya, and his daughter Alexa, 10, and stepson Jake, 19, understand that dedication and hard work pay off, and is appreciative that he is able to instill this unwavering work ethic into his own kids.
Kramer's talent for negotiating and closing innovative deals helps TWC bring its groundbreaking movies and television programs to audiences around the world. He offers the following career insight to those looking to succeed in his line of work: "Never make a negotiation personal or become about the person with whom you are negotiating, do your job to the best of your ability, and OWN IT. If you accomplish something great, do not relish in your achievement and allow complacency to set in; try and find ways to do it even better the next day, and again the day after that."
It is his wisdom and learned recognition that there is always a way to do better that makes Andrew Kramer a thriving success. For, as with any blueprint for success, the results are dictated by the process.
