Next Gen Class 2004: The Hip Parade

One might say the burning intensity to be ahead ofthe trend curve isa uniquely Angeleno afflictioon. If one belongs to Hollywood's "Most likely to succeed" crowd, however, seeing and being seen at all the rights hot spots is practically an extension of one's day job.

Fearing the fast track to so-five- minutes-ago is enough to keep the town's most promising up-and-comers out almost every night — the Argyle on Mondays, Nacional on Tuesdays, Concorde on Wednesdays, Prey on Thursdays, Spider Club on Fridays and Shelter or XES on Saturdays. It's a lot to manage, which is why we've surveyed dozens of the town's hippest denizens to suss out the secrets to living like a bona fide Hollywood Reporter Next Gen'er.

So, how important is it to be out at night, after work, on the scene? "Incredibly important," ICM motion picture agent Matt Eskander says. "It's vital for a young agent to be out and in the mix, just to get your face out there."

Entertainment is as entertainment does. In the business of amusement, blurring the lines between work and afterwork should be as seamless and smooth as a well-cut montage. There's no better way to forge those bonds than over a cocktail (Four Seasons), a sushi dinner (Koi) or a film-festival jaunt (Sundance, Toronto, Festival de Cannes — you pick).

"I think the best part of seeing people after work is that their guards are down, and you get their true opinion on things. It's a big plus," says Chris Huvane, GQ associate West Coast editor, DJ at the Dime (a chill Wednesday night alternative to Concorde) and younger brother to CAA's Kevin and PMK/HBH's Stephen. "You're ahead of the curve if you're out at night, and you see an agent or producer and find out about a film they're working on that may be an industry secret. That's valuable. I don't necessarily think it's a must, but it gives you a leg up not only on your competition but on the Hollywood curve."

Seeing as though the Hollywood curve is a bodacious little number, it's a slippery slope between doing the scene and being a total scenester. In fact, once up-and-comers have established their status, some opt for throwing dinner parties to socialize within the cozy confines of their homes. Others engage in nonindustry-related activities with their friends from the biz. Often, the most productive way of expanding one's power base is to build relationships over a leisurely dinner with fellow industryites at foodie favorites such as AOC, Nobu Malibu or Giorgio Baldi, where cuisine, rather than work, is the main topic on the table.

"People like hanging out with their agents and managers, but at the end of the day, they want those agents and managers in the office, early in the morning, working on their business," says Fingerprint Communications co-founder Jessica Meisels, who with her partner, Greg Link, is one of a handful of must-know mover-shaker-tastemakers in town.

"You don't want to be that guy who is just everywhere," ICM motion picture agent Guido Giordano says. "It's important to strike that balance and be at the right parties and the right clubs. Just don't be out every single night."

How many nights are acceptable? "It varies from week to week," Giordano says. "One week, it could be two. The next could be five. It averages around two or three. Or maybe four."

Confusing, yes, but these are the covert policies the in-crowd inherently understands. Like the football hero and his perfect spiral, the cheerleader and her immeasurable alacrity, young Hollywood's approach to etiquette would make Emily Post proud.

Some cardinal rules: "Don't be ridiculously drunk when talking to celebrities," Eskander says. "Being inebriated in front of clients and potential clients is just stupid."

"Never lose your cool," Giordano adds. "I've seen a few agents not get into places and lose their shit. That's really embarrassing for them and guarantees that they'll never be allowed into anything again. If your name is not on the list, be nice and present a business card. Chances are good they'll let you in," he advises.

When it comes to making the list and leaving the line behind, the best person to befriend is Jenifer Rosero, longtime partner of celebrity-club deity Brent Bolthouse. Together, they practically own L.A. nightlife —currently promoting nights at Avalon, El Centro, Concorde and XES — and have for the past 16 years. Rosero works the door, where she can spot A-listers all the way from the valet, which is why Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake and Lindsay Lohan and Wilmer Valderrama and insert-any-other-hipster's-name-here all let loose at Bolthouse productions.

"You know the in-crowd because they were either raised here, or they have entered the nightclub with people who are known," Rosero says. "If you really have it, you don't have to try too hard. Others are constantly dropping names. There's a sense of, I hate to say, 'desperation' because it makes it all-too important, but it tends to be a bit like high school. There are these groups that you're either part of, or you're not. Sometimes, it's just — I hate to say this, too — (having) the right last name."

For those not born into Hollywood royalty, there's still hope, although lying and saying you're "somebody" is a big faux pas. "Misrepresenting yourself is social suicide," Huvane confirms.

Codes include basic manners such as taking care of those who take care of you and Bolthouse's personal mantra: respecting people's boundaries.

Lions Gate Films vp national publicity Melissa Holloway also cites gossip as a fatal flaw. "Even though there are so many people in this industry, at the end of the day, it's really small," she says. "It's very easy for gossip to come full circle."

Following these rules might get one into the most exclusive events —Vanity Fair's Oscar party; CAA's post-Golden Globe soiree; Michael De Luca, Patrick Whitesell and Rick Yorn's late-night Oscar party; Ed Limato's pre-Oscar fete; or the Motorola Christmas romp. But one's chances of swilling champagne at said celebrations will increase if one knows the party people behind the scenes — Bolthouse and Rosero, Meisels and Link, Jose Martinez of Harrison & Shriftman and the single-monikered Hartwell of the Alliance.

Because Los Angeles is all about access, if one is in with trendsetters, chances are one will be two Gucci stilettos up on another hipper-than-thou axiom: Thou must stay ahead of the curve. Knowing what's coming down the line is a first-class ticket to being in the right place at the right time with the right crowd.

This fall alone, two new restaurants kick up the cool quotient. Those lean, mean restaurant machines behind Dolce — Mike Malin, Lonnie Moore and Adolfo Suaya — along with promoter Michael Sutton, designer du jour Dodd Mitchell and "That '70s Show" talents Valderrama, Danny Masterson, Laura Prepon and Masterson's brother, Chris of "Malcolm in the Middle," are all investing in the Lodge. It's a steakhouse for the younger set, decked out like a ski lodge and poised to start a meat-eating revolution.

Also guaranteed to rev up a reservation frenzy is this month's opening of Geisha House, a futuristic Japanese restaurant and event space bankrolled by the same Dolce Group, Ashton Kutcher and the rest of the "'70s" gang, as well as Tori Spelling and Tara Reid.

Restaurants plus actors equal a fine romance indeed. And key to a successful enterprise in a city brimming with spoiled socialites is relationships.

"The most important thing for me is getting involved in a venture with people that I love and trust," says manager Steven Fenton of Fenton/Kritzer Entertainment, who, along with Sutton, is another investor in the Lodge. "It's all about relationships. When a bunch of people band together, you're going to be unstoppable."

But no matter how many irresistible hot spots pepper the scene, those with a voracious appetite for the new and the now don't just stick to Los Angeles' urban sprawl. When Hard Rock Hotel & Casino owner Peter Morton partnered with Bolthouse to open Body English in Las Vegas in June — and kicked off the launch with the Maxim Hot 100 party and a performance by Snoop Dogg — the crème de la crème of the club scene jetted in.

The exclusive club, conceived by designer Kelly Wearstler to look like an English rock star's pad, even goes the extra mile for its VIPs, offering $25,000 memberships that include reserved booths, bottle service and other alluring amenities.

"I want to create Vegas as the new Hamptons," Bolthouse says. Considering that a new incarnation of Ivan Kane's ever-popular back-alley burlesque lounge Forty Deuce is opening in the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino this month, pilgrimages to Vegas shouldn't be a tough sell.

When getting away from it all requires more than just a Luis Vuitton weekender, pretty young things like Ashley Olsen head to Las Ventanas al Paraiso resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; the Four Seasons in Wailea, Maui; or the Kaupulehu-Kona Four Seasons on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Believe it or not, separating oneself from the Hollywood spin is actually good for one's career.

"You have to keep yourself sane and not become zoned in on the town and entertainment, in general. Otherwise, I'm a firm believer that you'll suffer," Michael De Luca Prods.' Zach Schiff-Abrams says. "You begin to lose touch with the outside world."

Fun and frolic aside, absence does make Hollywood's heart grow fonder. "The true in-crowd are people who will disappear for months at a time because they are actually working," Meisels says. "The ones that are the hangers-on will always be there, out every night at the 'hip, hottest places,' but you never actually see them doing anything."