This is a true story of a studio attempting to do wrong to an artist, and how that artist protected himself from it. The facts are all true, only the names have been changed or left out. I have written this so that others can learn from my experience and legal events that I had to go through to make things right.

Today, after a brief exchange of emails, the head of production from a studio, Epilogue, calls me to discuss details on the feature they are working on. We talk and negotiate over the phone and make an agreement verbally. I then say that I am going to send over a booking agreement with the details in writing and ask if they can confirm it for me.

The idea of sending a deal memo was given to me by a very experienced freelance producer that I have worked with at several studios. Their advice has always been useful to me over the years, and this time it was no exception. The purpose of the deal memo is to just make sure that both parties understand the agreement fully before going into a booking. In some cases, it can be used to protect yourself legally, which is why you need to choose your words properly.

Read the complete story here