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Options

By DonnaFrench

Hello
Just a couple of issues I have had of late re options for pilots. I think we really need to take a stand on these as the upfront financial gain is so negligible that it’s not something we should be entering into.
The first was for the pilot for an independent production company for the BBC. I was offered a f/n fee of £2,000 for the pilot and then asked to commit to two options for May/June/July 2013 and the same the following year and a financial offer was also offered. As the fee they offered was very good I said that I would not commit to options but had no objection with the financial offer. It was ok. They accepted.
Today I have been offered a tiny fee for a pilot for Sky and asked to do the same thing. This time they only want us to commit to a financial deal but do not have anything to put forward. I have said that I will not enter into a full blown negotiation and to potentially waste my time for such a pathetic upfront fee and for something that may not happen.
It seems that they are confusing what the American s achieve with pilot deals. They achieve this as the pilot is definitely happening and they pay is a lot higher.
Please let’s not let this happen.
Thanks