It’s a jungle out there! But if you’re shopping a TV/film project you already know that. Consider the following as a first step toward learning how to navigate your way into a deal. (And be prepared for the second step – hiring an entertainment lawyer to help you through the rest.)
By the Law Offices of R. Sebastian Gibson
In any film or television production, there will be a great many production agreements which must be drafted by an experienced entertainment lawyer.
Among the “Above the Line” agreements are agreements between the production company, and any co-producers as to their responsibilities and profit sharing. There may be executive producers, a line producer, a supervising producer, co-producers, a production coordinator, assistant producers, segment producers and location producers.
Other above the line agreements include those with the director, the cinematographer, and the primary cast. Additional agreements will be needed with anyone else involved in the creative aspects of the film or television project will also require complex agreements.
Any profit participation contracts with A-list talent or key above-the-line talent must be drafted extremely carefully so as not to give away all the cookies in the cookie store to a few key personnel in the project leaving too few crumbs for the investors, the producer and everyone else who demands a morsel or two from the profits.
Film and Television Development Agreements
Among the types of agreements which need to be drafted and signed during the development stage of a film or television series production include agreements for the purchase of rights to another’s work, e.g a book option or screenplay option, a life story agreement, an agreement to hire a writer to write, rewrite or polish a script, work-for-hire agreements, collaboration agreements, and co-production agreements….