Handshake deal
- What it costs
- Nothing today.
- What you get
- Speed, and goodwill on set.
- Where it breaks
- Your first film got made on handshake deals. Your later films will get killed on ’em. Nothing in writing means nothing in the chain of title.
A free template from the internet
- What it costs
- Nothing.
- What you get
- A starting form.
- Where it breaks
- You don’t know who wrote it, whether it was built for film, or what it leaves out. There’s no walkthrough, and no one updates it.
Hiring an entertainment lawyer
- What it costs
- Often $800 an hour.
- What you get
- Advice on your actual deal, from someone who represents you. Nothing replaces that when the deal is big.
- Where it breaks
- Most first films can’t pay for it from day one, so the paperwork gets skipped instead.
The Vault
- What it costs
- Pay what you can, once: $50, $99, $250 or $450. Lifetime access.
- What you get
- Every chain-of-title document by phase (30 of 118 live now), a walkthrough for each, and every future document free.
- Where it breaks
- It isn’t legal advice, and it won’t negotiate your deal. When the money gets serious, take it to your own lawyer.
The Vault isn’t a lawyer. It’s real paperwork to start with, and it helps you walk into a lawyer’s office knowing what to ask.
The NonDē Filmmaking Legal Lab is an educational resource and does not constitute legal advice. Accessing it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Read the full disclaimer.