News

Inclusive Fees

By Catherine Considine

Please note below from John Barclay, Equity:
Dear Agent colleagues,
I wanted to contact you all in relation to the above.
As I’m sure you know the practice of producers directly or via casting directors offering inclusive fees is widespread across TV. What I mean by inclusive is a fee which includes not just the negotiated fee but also those 2nd call services which would normally attract additional payments i.e. rehearsals, ADR, wardrobe calls, overtime etc. In addition the producer will often seek to include the pre-purchased rights with the effect that the inclusive fee is one that the agent and client/member will not be able to identify the true value of the initial fee(s). We know that agents will then have to reverse engineer the inclusive fee to determine the real level of engagement fee/ weekly fee/daily fee; unfortunately it quickly becomes apparent that the fee is either at the minimum, near the minimum of in some cases below the minimum.
We want to achieve a separation in the engagement fee/weekly fee/daily fee and all overages and second call payments.
We want transparency of negotiations so that our agent colleagues can negotiate a fee that reflects an artist’s status, role, length of engagement and the budget in a production. We want to stop them being intertwined.
We wish to see the engagement fee/weekly fee/daily fee expressed clearly and separated from the rights package [in any preliminary offer, Casting Advice Note, Deal Memo or Contract].
Equity and the PMA believe that the inclusive fee suppresses the ability of our agent colleagues to negotiate above the minimum which we believe is having a detrimental effect, on mid-range actors in particular.
I would urge our agent colleagues to question when offered an inclusive fee and if you need any assistance, in confidence, please email us the details of the offers being made to prodinfo@equity.org.uk
I will send this email to the casting directors’ trade bodies and directly to PACT and the broadcasters.
Warm regards and thanks to all our PMA colleagues
John Barclay
Head of Film, TV , Radio and New Media, Equity
Tel: 0044 (0)20 7670 0246
Mobile:0044 (0)7912341523