A Brief Introduction About the Artist Development Contract
When an artist signs a contract with the director and producer and the latter promises for the development of the Artist’s profile and skills in public, then it is known as the artist development contract. Mostly, these deals are helpful for the artists, but it is also possible that the production house can take control of the management of the Artist’s publishing rights.
Who Takes the Artist Development Contract?
The artist development contract is taken by the Artist and director or producer of the film project. Every Artist should sign this contract to know his/her rights in the entire film project. The Artist wants to get the guidance, counsel, and advice for the development as well as the advancement of the career of the Artist in different areas. The agreement is made with the mutual promises of both the manager and the Artist of the movie.
Purpose of Artist Development Contract
The purpose of the agreement of the Artist is to appoint the manager so that the latter can handle his duties as a manager with the career of Artist in a particular term. The term period needs to be mentioned in the artist development contract. The Artist would have to pay expenses of his as per written in the schedule. Both the Artist and manager have the right to make an audit of each other’s accounts, but it shouldn’t be done more than once a month.
Contents of the Artist Development Contract
In the agreement, there are several things that need to be included, and time is one of them.
- The term period is included in this contract, which signifies the period of this agreement. It can be some months or years as per the length of the project.
- The management services of the manager are also mentioned in this artist development contract.
- Proper terms and conditions should be there
- The performance dates, venue, and time decided by the company should be included.
- Other co-artists, props for performing, stage settings are included.
- All cost of performing is to be borne by the company
- Decision making clauses are also included in it.
- The manager can also sign on the Artist’s behalf if possible, but this should be written in the agreement.
- Expenses and cash flow are also two important things which are sure to be mentioned in this contract.
- The payment is made by the company, and the percentage of profit entitled to the Artist from the performance must be included.
How to Draft the Artist Development Contract?
Both artists and the producer have to agree on certain points which should be included in the agreement. It should include the rights of the artists, compensation, and scope of representation and terms of authority. There are several important clauses that should be included in this agreement. The services provided by the manager are mentioned in various points.
There is a separate section for the rights and authority of the film manager. You can take the help of the artist development contract template. Here are specific aspects which the manager has to agree in this contract:
- Render guidance, counsel, and advice to the Artist along with several services that would take his/her career further as an actor.
- To supervise the professional employment of the Artist and to be available for the Artist at reasonable times.
- To exploit the personality of the Artist in media and for the approval of trade and publicity.
- Fees will be based on the kind of songs and are only the production cost
- To present the Artist in all kinds of dealings with the union.
- Consider the commercial possibilities of your music.
- Explain how the Artist can cancel a recording date
- To prevent disputes from arising after recording, explain who will own the recorded tracks.
- Identify your distribution rights and royalty rates.
- Duration of the contract must be clear
- Cancellation policy that must be well informed to protect parties from unfair and last-minute cancellations.
- Define the scope of the Artist’s work
There isn’t a strict negotiation strategy for any of the parties as both can have their own issues. So, an artist can negotiate with the producer or director of the film regarding his rights. In case, there are some difficult issues to be resolved with, then an experienced attorney should be called.
Benefits and Drawbacks of the Artist Development Contract
It allows the Artist to rely on the manager of the film project for his publicity. The manager of the agreement has all the responsibility of taking care of the image of the Artist and promoting him in the best manner. This agreement should also be signed so that the artists can’t take extra benefits from the managers by trying to exploit them.
This mostly doesn’t happen, but the Artist should be known for his obligations, and so does the creator of the film project. The artist development deal helps both the Artist and manager to be part of the film project and to follow their rules and regulations. The drawbacks can be that both artists and managers can check each other’s audits from time to time, but it is more of a benefit for the Artist.
[ Also Read: Artist Management Contract ]
What Happens in Case of Violation?
In case of violation of any agreement(1), the violator has to pay for it in one or the other form. The legal action is taken against the violator of the agreement. Mostly, one has to pay for not following the obligations and clauses mentioned in the agreement. Sometimes, negotiation helps to get rid of any issues, but one also needs to call the lawyer sometimes.
Now that you have overall knowledge about the artist development deal, you can sign it without any problem with your manager. Every Artist should sign such an agreement with his/her manager due to which it becomes important for the Artist to focus on the obligations written in the contract. You can check out the templates for the producer artist development agreement to get a brief idea about the look of an agreement. It would also be helpful in creating an agreement with all the necessary clauses and obligations.