16 The `frustrated price` is a sum of money significantly higher than the minimum amount set out in the MBA that a company may pay at the time of the initial employment or purchase contract. This allows the company to negotiate directly with the author to acquire all or part of the reserved rights. The purchase price of the reserved rights is commissionable. The MBA is the collective agreement that covers most of the work of WGA authors. If you have any questions about the application or interpretation of the rules, contact the guild`s contract department or call (323) 782-4501. Find other freelance contracts and agreements, by . B the low-budget agreement, the new media cover letter and the cooperation agreements. If you would like to purchase a printed copy of the MBA or previous agreements or calendars, send an email to Operations. A team of authors,17 designated by a “&” is considered an individual author, and team members must decide how the rights are to be exploited and which of them, if any, are allowed to exploit the rights on behalf of the team. A written cooperation or partnership agreement is recommended to address these issues before problems arise. The Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA) was renegotiated in 2017.
This summary provides a simplified overview of the changes made to the new agreement. 5. ARE THERE SEPARATE RIGHTS IN A TRUE STORY? In some cases, the author may write a format or “Bible” for a television program.14 The rights in a non-produced format revert to the author within 18 months of delivery of the material, and the rights to an unproduced Bible revert to the author within 24 months, unless the Society has engaged another author, write a story and a game show based on the format or the Bible. Some funds must be repaid to the company when the format is sold and the series is produced. (Article 16.B 2(a)) The company must produce and distribute sequels within certain deadlines. Each additional continuation expands the company`s right to produce another MOW. If one of the special deadlines for consecutive MOW is not respected, the right to produce additional sequels rests exclusively with the author. (Section 16.B.2 .b.) An author may be entitled to separate rights to a true story based on what the company has attributed to the author. On the other hand, the company can give the author a topic (for example. B a real person) and biographical material, and the author must determine what story to tell, how to tell it, what tone and point of view to use, otherwise he will have a lot of discretion to create an “original” story. Separate rights, if any, would be included in the author`s material, including all new and different characters, characterizations, and events.
The writer, for example, would not obtain rights in an individual`s life; these should be purchased separately. (Article 16.B 3g)) 12 To calculate the correct period, use the date of the last letter from the original author. 13 These include individual programmes which are longer than the typical episode of the series and which are produced separately from the production of the rest of the series. (For example, a 2-hour DALLAS MOW.) 14 The MBA defines a format as follows: “In the case of a serial or episodic series, this format defines the framework in which the central characters operate and which image is to be repeated in each episode; the attitude, theme, premise or general plot of the proposed serial or episodic series; and central characters that are distinguishable and identifiable, including detailed characterizations and interaction of those characters. It can also contain one or more suggested stories for individual episodes. The format of a mini-series is called the “Bible.” (Section 1.C.19.) X15 These rights are obviously complex. An author who wishes to exploit any of these rights must first contact the WGA Contract Department at 323/782-4501. A copy of the writing contract is also required.
10 In this case, “Original Material” is material that is not based on previously published or exploited material or that is not based on material written outside the jurisdiction of the WGA. If the Society has given the author a particular underlying work on which a telegame is to be based, with instructions for following the structure and point of view of that underlying work, it is likely that the author has not created an original story and would not be eligible for separate rights. If the company does not produce a series within the above deadlines, the rights of continuation will go exclusively to the author. Therefore, after the deadlines, the author can sell the serial rights to another company without making a payment to the first company, even if the first company has produced a pilot. (3) Publication Rights: The right to publish a book based on the material or to publish the script. At the end of the Company`s exclusivity period, the Author and the Company share a non-exclusive right to produce the material. This means that the author and the company have the right to produce the property without further obligation to the other, although the company must always respect the contract of the author and the MBA. (Section 16.B.2.) It is recommended that the author inform the company of his intention to exploit the non-exclusive rights.
Please refer to the Memorandum of Understanding for the WGA 2020 Basic Theatre and Television Agreement, linked below, for the terms of the new MBA. . (8) All other rights: Other rights that are now known or will be known in the future.15 If you have any questions about the application of these minimum provisions or requirements or about categories of minimum amounts not included in this list, or if you are asking whether the basic agreement is worth interpreting, please contact the Contracts Department or call (323) 782-4501. If there are no separate rights in a series, the pilot`s author(s) will receive 75% of the follow-up payments otherwise due, but no residue. .