by AMY ANDERSON
Today I’m going to address a touchy subject. I’m going to talk about money, working child actors and their parents—what we earn, how we earn it, what is true and not true.
What people really want to know about child actors and their financial account is, where does this leave mom and/or dad? I certainly don’t represent all parents in this industry, but I have worked in Hollywood long enough to have seen and heard a lot.
The truth is, Aubrey earns quite a bit more money than I do. I am her official manager, but I am still a working actor and comedian. Basically, I am a working mom with a working child.
The assumption I commonly face is that I’ve shucked my 18-year career to live off my kid’s dime. This is not the case. I am still working on my career while simultaneously working as Aubrey’s manager.
I still perform, go on the road when I can (on weekends and during Modern Family hiatus), engage in some freelance writing and speaking jobs, and audition for new work. Mine is the same career I had before I was a mom, just with less travel to accommodate Aubrey’s work in town. I just taped an episode of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen, booked a show at The College of Wooster in April and will be showcasing for “Last Comic Standing” this month.
These things don’t just happen. Being a working artist involves steady and consistent practice and promotion. Managing my own career is my first job and part of how I earn my living.
My other job is managing Aubrey. Yes, I get paid. This is where people have opinions—big, fat opinions that widely vary. I’d like to explain how this works because I think many of the opinions people have are based on incorrect assumptions.
Now, before the Internet trolls start salivating, I’m not going to disclose how much Aubrey or myself earns. But I will tell you this: it’s not nearly as much as most people seem to think it is. When people say we are millionaires, I laugh and laugh and laugh. And then I laugh some more. I can’t afford to buy a house, I drive a compact Toyota. I still have debt. We certainly aren’t poor, but we’re a long way from rich.
Here’s how we work it out: Aubrey has an S-corp, a corporation created through an IRS tax election that is exempt from double taxation. Her S-corp pays me as an employee. The standard rate for a talent manager in the entertainment industry is 15 percent. As Aubrey’s mother, I still pay all of my daughter’s non-professional expenses out of my own pocket just like any regular parent would. I pay the rent and health insurance. I pay for school-related supplies, clothes, groceries and vacation trips. I have life covered.
The commission I earn as Aubrey’s manager is not making me rich. It also doesn’t take into account the actual work I do as her career manager, business manager, personal assistant, stylist, publicist, chauffeur and home school teacher. Those are things I do solely for my daughter’s career.
If a child’s payroll and funds are handled professionally and fairly by a parent, I believe it is a part of the process that can be business as usual. It is illegal to spend your child’s money, but the misconception still exists that many stage parents do.
Since Aubrey is still very young, she has no idea how much money she earns, and even if she did, she doesn’t have the full understanding of the value of a dollar. The bottom line is that parents have to make financial decisions for young minors, so thinking responsibly about how your child will feel about those decisions in the future is paramount.
I like to think of it as, Aubrey and I run a business together. I am using my skills and knowledge of the industry to help her build a future doing something she loves. Since I’m her mother, I’m looking out for her best interests as a child first, and as an actor second.
When it comes to show business, a few bad eggs have unfairly spoiled the reputation for the rest of the stage parents who are doing their best to help their children thrive beyond the shallow trappings of fame.
If Aubrey continues to act when she’s older, I hope I will have provided her a solid business foundation of how to earn, save and spend, and how to choose projects and business allies wisely. My goal is to create an independent adult. If I end up in a nice old folks home with hot male nurses 45 years from now, I’ll know I did it right.
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Amy Anderson is a Korean American adoptee, comedian and actress. She created and hosted the first Asian American standup showcase “ChopSchtick Comedy” at the Hollywood Improv. She has appeared on Comedy Central, VH1, AZN, and the Game Show Network. Her daughter Aubrey Anderson-Emmons plays the role of Lily on the Emmy-winning show Modern Family.
The Hollywood Mamalogues will be published online biweekly. Read the previous Mamalogue here.
Photo courtesy of Joanna Degeneres.
