Contracts, amends, and getting paid
The email chain is your contract. New direction costs money; your mistakes do not. And the golden rule.
12 minute read · one activity · lesson 21 of 21
The last lesson, and the one that decides whether the previous twenty were worth anything. You can draw beautifully, read a script like a director and reply to an enquiry in ninety seconds - and still not get paid.
The paperwork, briefly
- NDA - you will sign one before you see anything. Storyboarding sits at the earliest end of pre-production, so a lot of what you see is unannounced. As a general rule these pre-production contracts are easy to read and not to be feared.
- Freelancer agreement - protects both sides. It should fix the QUANTITY and QUALITY of output, the TIME, the PRICE, and the payment terms.
- The critical instruction: the agreement should reflect what you and the client agreed IN THE EMAIL CHAIN. Read it carefully. If it has drifted, politely ask the producer to amend it before you sign.
- They will also want your name, address, company details and bank details for payment.
Why the email chain matters more than anything else here
Everything in this course pointed here. You requested the brief in writing. You agreed the output and the price in writing. You logged every additional direction in writing.
So when the project drifts - and it will - you are not arguing from memory against a producer's memory. You have it in black and white. That is what turns a difficult conversation into an administrative one.
Amends: the one distinction that pays your rent
If YOU misdrew it or misread the director - you fix it, free. That is the job.
If THEY changed their mind - that is new direction, and new direction is new money. Add it to the total and tell them BEFORE you do the work, not after.
No update is too small. Keep a timesheet of the extras and log them in the email chain as you go. This keeps the producer honest AND - just as important - keeps them informed, so the invoice is never a surprise.
Demand amends in small batches, one day's output at a time. You should not be expected to absorb 50–100 frames of notes from one or two sessions of direction.
And be aware of the trap: a director may expect three rounds of amends while you have agreed one with the production company. Establish early who is directing amends and who is paying for them - otherwise you will do three rounds and bill for one.
When it goes sour
Sometimes it does. The producer is on your neck, the changes are relentless, and it feels like wading through treacle.
The instruction is unromantic and correct: remain calm, finish the job, and invoice what was agreed. More rounds of changes means more fees to be paid - and the fact that there have been many rounds does not mean you were wrong.
There should never be a reason to walk away mid-project, unless the client has exceeded their own capacity by neglecting yours. And if it does come to that, following the protocol above means you have everything in writing that you need to negotiate what you are owed.
Copyright - read this one twice
The book's position: unless you sign a waiver, you retain copyright, and any assignment usually appears in the copyright clause of the freelancer agreement or in a certificate of engagement.
Two honest corrections. First, he is referring to the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 - that is UK law, and defaults differ elsewhere (US 'work made for hire' rules in particular). Second, in commercial practice most storyboard contracts DO contain an assignment clause, so signing away copyright is the norm rather than the exception. Know what you are signing; do not assume the default protects you.
This is not legal advice, and neither is the book. As he says himself: always ask a lawyer if you have any worries about your contract.
“Remember the more rounds of changes the more fees to be paid. Just because you have many rounds of changes, does not mean you are wrong. Remain professional, complete the job and charge what is owed when you have finished.”
- Mitchell James Hughes, Storyboard Art
A note on this one
The copyright section of the book describes UK law (the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) and is not legal advice - in practice most commercial storyboard contracts contain an assignment clause, so do not assume you retain rights by default. Read what you sign; take advice if the sums are meaningful.
Your terms, on one page
Write the terms you will work under, before the day you need them. Nobody has ever written good terms during an argument.
- Write your amends policy in two sentences. One sentence covering your errors (free). One covering new direction (charged, agreed in writing before the work is done).
- Decide how many rounds of amends your day rate includes. Write the number down. Now write the sentence you will use to tell a client what round two costs.
- Write your batch rule: 'Amends notes to be provided and completed in batches of ___ frames / one day's output at a time.'
- Write your payment terms: invoice on delivery, payable within ___ days.
- Now stress-test it. A director asks for a third round; the production company only agreed to one. Write the exact email you would send. Send it to yourself and read it tomorrow with fresh eyes.
- Finally, re-read the whole 21 days and write ONE page: what you will do differently on your next job.
What you should have at the end
A one-page terms sheet, and the difficult email already written before you need it. That page is the difference between an artist who gets paid and an artist who is owed.
Day 21 in one line
The email chain is the contract. Your mistakes are free; their changes are not. Work in batches, log every extra, finish the job, and invoice what was agreed.
This course is free and stays free. If you want to board in the suite Mitchell James Hughes built for his own work - script, shot list, storyboard, animatic, AI artist - the free tier opens every app with no card.
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