ENTERTAINMENT/MEDIA

Rufus-Isaacs, Acland & Grantham offers transactional legal services to both entertainment companies and talent in the film, television and digital media industries. This extends to structuring motion picture and television finance, production and distribution agreements, representing production companies, studios and others in their agreements with directors, producers, writers and actors, and advising digital media companies and content creators on agreements relating to the development, acquisition and distribution of digital content over web and mobile platforms.

Film
Rufus-Isaacs, Acland & Grantham represents clients in all aspects of motion picture development, financing, production and exploitation, including acquisition and clearance of underlying literary material, copyright advice, drafting and advising on private placement memoranda and business plans supporting a capital raise, structuring financing via debt, mezzanine and equity financing, drafting security agreements and dealing with security filings, drafting loan agreements, inter-party and creditor agreements, collection account management agreements, sales agency agreements, notices of assignment, completion bonds, lab pledge-holder agreements, product placement deals, structuring financing to fit within co-production treaty requirements, advising on various form of “soft” money such as tax rebates or credits, negotiating actor, writer, director and producer agreements, and acting as production counsel generally, and providing counsel on all forms of distribution worldwide.

Television
Rufus-Isaacs, Acland & Grantham has expertise in all areas of the television business, from development through production and distribution. This includes the negotiation and documentation of the acquisition of underlying rights and the hiring of all necessary personnel, whether guild/union or non-union (writer, producer, director, actors and below-the-line personnel), rights clearances, protection of copyright and intellectual property, obtaining production finance by means of coproductions, presales, advantageous tax structures and the like, obtaining E&O and other necessary insurance, license deals with US broadcast and cable networks, domestic syndication, sales to overseas broadcasters, and the domestic and international exploitation of all categories of rights in programs, such as licensing, merchandising, home video, publishing, mobile phones, internet use and distribution via new technology.

News Media
Rufus-Isaacs, Acland & Grantham advises clients on all aspects of First Amendment and related issues, including defamation, rights of publicity and news gathering issues.