Published Articles

June 16th, 2005

Signing With A Production Company?

In addition to seeing some terrific work, the audience at SHOOT’s New Directors Showcase, held a few weeks ago at the DGA Theater in New York City, heard directors, production company heads, and others talk about the many challenges of building a new director’s career. Without a doubt, if you’re a director, building a reel, finding a production company, and getting good work isn’t going to be easy.

One of the early challenges that you are going to have to face, when joining a production company, is what to do about the production company’s director contract. Should you just sign what the production company gives you? Should you negotiate? Don’t those contracts all really say the same thing? These are important questions. Here are some common mistakes that directors make.

It’s The Relationship

When choosing a production company, don’t just shop for the best financial deal. Instead, find the right production company. You need to find people you trust, who understand you and your work, and who are truly committed to investing in you and helping you build your career. Find out how other directors have done there. Talk to the sales reps. It might be nice to get a signing bonus, a guarantee, or a large share of the profits. But those kinds of things won’t matter in the long run if you aren’t getting the work that you want.

Terms Do Matter

Don’t sign whatever is put in front of you. Some people assume that all contracts are basically the same and that, so long as they have agreed upon a day rate and a share of the profits, they don’t really need to worry about the specific contract terms. It’s just not true. The terms of director contracts – for example, how profit participations are calculated -- vary widely. Signing with a production company is a big decision. You should consider the terms of the contract carefully. You may be bound to the contract for several years, so you had better make sure that you are comfortable with what it says.

What’s Important?

Think about what is important to you. For example, how long of a commitment are you willing to make? Are you willing to be exclusive to the company? Are you expecting to do music video and long form work as well? What are your expectations about a day rate and a share of the profits? What do you hope to earn? The terms of director contracts are generally negotiated, and you should make sure that the deal meets your needs.

Unrealistic Expectations

Don’t have unrealistic expectations, though. Educate yourself about what is fair. If you’re just starting out, you’re not going to get the same deal as a director who’s doing ten million dollars of billings a year. On the other hand, there’s nothing wrong with asking to be treated fairly and to be properly compensated for the work that you’re doing. Just remember that production companies have some things that are very important to them too. And don’t expect them to treat you dramatically differently than the rest of the company’s directors (unless they should).

Win-Win

Finally, don’t forget that for a relationship to be successful, a contract has to be win-win. That means coming up with reasonable financial terms, where everyone feels that they will profit. It also doesn’t hurt to get the deal done in a respectful manner, so that there aren’t any hard feelings. That’s the worst way to start off a new relationship. So, negotiate, but be reasonable. If the director and the production company each respect what the other is bringing to the relationship, you’ll come up with the right contract.

It’s not just the directors, of course, who make mistakes when negotiating contracts. There are common traps that production companies fall into as well. But more on that in a future column.

 - Jeffrey A. Greenbaum

This article first appeared in the June 2005 issue of SHOOT magazine. It presents a general discussion of legal issues, but is not legal advice, and may not be applicable in all situations. Consult your attorney for legal advice.