NFT Scoop with MK Manoylov: UTA's head of web3 explains Hollywood's push to represent NFT brands

Episode 80 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's MK Manoylov and Lesley Silverman, Head of Web3 at United Talent Agency.

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While NFT projects grew in popularity, so too did brand recognition — and the interest of talent representatives to sign them on.

United Talent Agency (UTA) was among the first in August of 2021, when it signed CryptoPunks and Meebits creators Larva Labs, followed by Deadfellaz in April of this year. Other talent representatives got into web3 as well, such as Creative Artists Agency (CAA) signing on the NFT collector 0xb1 in October 2021 and even hiring a Chief Metaverse Officer in August of this year. 

But why did talent representatives like UTA sign on these NFT brands at all? Why do NFT brands need talent representation? 

To get to the heart of these questions, MK sat down with UTA's head of web3, Lesley Silverman. Silverman has been at UTA for the past seven years, educating artists on the utility of web3 and helping interested artists launch their web3 brand. Before joining UTA, Silverman worked as a fine arts lawyer, and she says this experience shaped how she lead UTA through the NFT space. 

In this episode of NFT Scoop, Manoylov and Silverman discuss: 

• The role talent representatives like UTA play in representing web3 brands — and why they're necessary. 
• The internal push in UTA to sign on NFT brands. 
• Differences in representing web2 and web3 brands. 
• Legal considerations when representing NFT projects.

This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Chainalysis & IWC Schaffhausen
About Tron
On August 1st, 2022, Poloniex launched a faster and more stable trading system along with a brand new user interface. Poloniex was founded in January 2014 as a global cryptocurrency trading platform. With its world-class service and security, it received funding in 2019 from renowned investors, including H.E. Justin Sun, Founder of TRON. Poloniex supports spot and margin trading as well as leveraged tokens. Its services are available to users in nearly 100 countries and regions with various languages available. For more information visit Poloniex.com

About Chainalysis
Chainalysis is the leading blockchain data platform. We provide data, software, services, and research to government agencies, exchanges, financial institutions, and insurance and cybersecurity companies in over 60 countries. Backed by Accel, Addition, Benchmark, Coatue, Paradigm, Ribbit, and other leading firms in venture capital, Chainalysis builds trust in blockchains to promote more financial freedom with less risk. For more information, visit www.chainalysis.com.

About IWC Schaffhausen
IWC Schaffhausen is a Swiss luxury watch manufacturer based in Schaffhausen, Switzerland. Known for its unique engineering approach to watchmaking, IWC combines the best of human craftsmanship and creativity with cutting-edge technology and processes. With collections like the Portugieser and the Pilot’s Watches, the brand covers the whole spectrum from elegant timepieces to sports watches. For more information, visit IWC.com