Our Practice

Television and Film

TELEVISION

Our attorneys offer comprehensive legal representation during all stages of the creative process for show runners, producers, writers, talent executives, performers, directors and celebrity personalities working in television including network, subscriber, basic cable, syndication, video-on-demand and pay-per-view cable. Our services include:

  • Providing general production counsel services during development and production, including co-production agreements;
  • Securing intellectual property rights and clearances and vetting reality show ideas and scripts to identify liability issues;
  • Negotiating contracts, licenses and releases for writers, directors and talent;
  • Providing counsel for one-off productions such as award ceremonies;
  • Resolving Guild disputes, including the WGA, SAG, and DGA;
  • Exploiting conventional and unconventional markets for additional revenue streams, including digital/new media, licensing, and merchandising.

FILM

Our attorneys advise clients during the full cycle of motion picture production for feature films, independent films, children’s films, and animated motion pictures, both domestically and internationally.  Our services include:

  • Securing intellectual property rights: books, life story, music, photographs, moving images, etc.;
  • Structuring acquisition agreements, domestic and international co-production agreements, distribution agreements and financing and debt instruments;
  • Structuring, negotiating and drafting financing agreements for private equity as well as new forms of financing such as crowd funding;
  • Drafting and negotiating contracts for writers, producers, directors, designers, cast and crew;
  • Reviewing screenplays and films for use of copyrighted and other material owned by third parties, and conducting legal clearance of all material to be included in the final product;
  • Development of business plans;
  • Resolving Guild disputes, including the WGA, SAG, and DGA;
  • Exploiting conventional and unconventional markets for maximum revenue streams, including domestic distribution, video-on-demand, international distribution, digital media, licensing, and merchandising.

DOCUMENTARIES & FAIR USE

Our attorneys counsel and advise documentary filmmakers in all aspects of their production including inception of the idea, development and fundraising, principal photography, post production and distribution. We have experience in all aspects of clearances, especially fair use (i.e., the unlicensed and, therefore, unpaid inclusion in the documentary of a portion of someone else’s copyrighted work). Our services include:

  • Providing production counsel services, including structuring, negotiating and drafting agreements for life story and other rights that are the subject matter of the documentary;
  • Drafting collaboration and other agreements among filmmakers and writers, directors, narrators and other members of the cast and crew;
  • Structuring, negotiating and drafting financing agreements, including advising on grant applications, and preparing private equity paperwork, international co-production agreements and new forms of financing such as crowd funding;
  • Advising on fair use, privacy and other clearance issues, including the preparation of fair use legal opinions in connection with obtaining Errors & Omissions insurance;
  • Structuring, negotiating and drafting domestic and international distribution and pre-sale agreements relating to traditional and developing forms of distribution such as video-on-demand, internet streaming and mobile.