Rate for Composing Original Music

[kclements]

Hi Everyone -

I may have just landed a really big contract to compose music for a video series and I would really like your thoughts on what rate to charge.

It looks like it may be 5-8 minutes of music per week over the next year or so. I am guessing I will spend 2-3 hours per minute of finished music. So do I quote a rate per minute of music? I guess I would think about what I am comfortable charging per hour and apply that to each minute of music, yes?

Does anyone have a clue what the average is (if there even is one) for corporate video production that will be sold? This will be a product that will sell nationwide, maybe even worldwide ( I will ask for specifics on the market for this product)

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
Thanks
kc

[Fullertime]

I would keep it simple and charge per
Song and then of course a licensing fee depending on the number of units sold.

[kclements]

Thanks Fullertime -

I didn't think of the licensing idea. I was originally thinking of a buyout kind of deal - where I keep the writers share.

Hmmmm, decisions, decisions. Thanks for your thoughts.

kc

[mojobone]

You might want to figure re-writes into your hourly rate. (unless you know the director/producer, and/or they're not terribly picky) There's no reason you couldn't charge a simple flat license fee for the whole shebang, since you're the de facto publisher, but they're probably used to paying per minute rates; I'd ask. If they're selling DVD copies, I doubt there's any way to enforce a mechanical royalty, so try to get your money upfront, is my take. I am not a lawyer.

[kclements]

After doing some research, it seems to me that video games are the most likely analogy. I am thinking of it as a work for hire situation, so no backend royalties. I have found some figures from 2006-07 composers rate survey that give an average of $18k for 30 minutes of music for a low budget game, assuming you are in NY or LA - I don't know how accurate these numbers are, but they are a start. So this is my thinking:

I figure out how many minuets of music they are looking for. I then take a percentage of the survey averages I have and multiply the two to come to a figure. That will be my starting point. There is also a provision in video games (according to this survey) about unit sales - so say, once they sell 500,000 units, I get a bonus. This at least gives me a starting point to negotiate.

I know the producer really well, so I think they will be easy on the re-writes, but I will take that into consideration when I give them a number. What do you think - does this all sound reasonable? The other aspect is this could be a great long term relationship with a company that does a great deal of work. So I want to get my foot in the door with them, but I also don't want to work for "free"

Thanks guys, I appreciate your feedback.

kc

[mazz]

Don't sell yourself short or too cheaply, because it lowers the bar for pay for all of us. You are worth a fair rate, after all, you have an expertise that they don't, that's why they're coming to you!

What does it say about musicians when people pay more for the flowers for a wedding than they do for the music? Don't be afraid to charge what you're worth. It's making a statement about the value of you as a composer and about the value of music in general. If music wasn't so powerful, it wouldn't be put behind pretty much everything.

I think you're headed in the right direction. You already have your foot in the door by having a relationship with the producer, and these folks are already used to paying for professional services. Buying and/or renting a nice pro camera isn't cheap, and they wouldn't think twice about doing that, so charge a pro rate for your services!!

Go get em!!

[kclements]

I agree 100% with you Mazz. Thanks.

kc

[kclements]

Another question just came up in my mind: If a deal is worked out, and it is a buyout/WFH type, the company owns the copyright, yes? So, if that is the case, can I put in a contract that they can't repurpose the music for the next video series? I don't think it will be an issue, because it will be written for picture and most likely won't work with other videos. But just asking.

So much to learn, on top of the music stuff. If this comes to fruition, I think a visit to my attorney is in order.

Thanks again for your thoughts.
kc

[mazz]

You can always stipulate in the contract that the music is to be used only for the project it's being composed for.

If they want to re-purpose it, you could negotiate that they have to re-license for the other video. But I'd be willing to bet that they would want no strings attached so they only have to pay once for the music. If you get enough money for it, does it really matter? That's for you and your attorney to decide. You can always put it in the contract and let the lawyers slug it out.

I guess if it's in-house corporate, they probably won't broadcast it, but if they do an infomercial on cable, etc., you need to make sure they file cue sheets with your PRO, because you won't be signing away your writer's share of the performance royalties (if any are due from broadcast performances). I wonder if an in-store video kiosk is considered a performance? That would be a question for your PRO. I'd check ahead of time so you can get the cue sheet language in the contract if it's not already in there.

Given the volume of work and potential income, I wouldn't hesitate to get an entertainment attorney on the job.

Very cool!

Mazz

[fret17]

I'm thinking it might be cool to get a salary that's agreeable and a writer's "lock in" for the next three years to exclusively write for them and get a percentage of the gross on each product produced with a bonus for every 100,000 units sold....don't know if that's how things work but it sure would be nice to quit my day job.