Platinum Studios comics contest
Please note that the Creative Materials Agreements require that you transfer all rights in the Creative Materials to Sponsor. However, the Creative Materials Agreements will only be legally binding if you are selected as the Grand Prize Winner. If you are not selected as the Grand Prize Winner, then the Creative Materials Agreements will be void and will be destroyed, and you will retain all rights that you may have to the Creative Materials.
I remember well the bitter battles that Bill Watterson fought to retain licensing rights for Calvin & Hobbes. He was in court with the syndicate for almost five years before he finally won. He had to hold the strip hostage to do it, too. He got away with this because the strip was extremely popular... and only he could write and draw it.
So how did C&H get to be so popular? He worked his butt off. He was a student of comic strips, read extensively, worked tirelessly to improve and ruthlessly edited himself. Did C & H start off as his best work? Was it his baby? Nope... the characters started off as sidekicks (the original strip, his baby, was about a spaceman with a German accent... Spaceman Spiff was a later incarnation of this). The editors helped him develop and prune his idea until it was good enough to sell. Watterson submitted consistently for almost five years before this happened (and then was advised to not quit his day job). The standard agreement with the big syndicates was (and largely is) that the syndicate retains the ownership of the strip and all its characters and the artist receives compensation to the tune of 50% of profits. Watterson was dead set against toys, stickers, shirts and anything else that took the strip out of context. He fought bitterly to keep it from happening and it so sucked the joy out of his work that he quit, taking with him (what I think was) the best comic strip in the past fifty years.
Comics publishers are always looking for the next Love & Rockets or Dan Clowes or Chris Ware. This idea that you send them something that you only sort of like and give them creative control because they are doing you the favor of giving you exposure seems to me to be naive. You must be working at a professional level if you expect to get paid, period. Your best work needs to be even better. Look at the past winners if you doubt this.
Print comics (like newspapers, CD stores and animation festivals) are getting hit hard by the web. Strips like Achewood and Penny Arcade are rewriting how comics are perceived and what they can accomplish (much as Crumb, Shelton, Spain and those folks did in the 60's). Sure, most web comics suck. The artists aren't pros. Many can't write coherent narrative, can't draw, aren't funny and don't have any stories to tell. Those folks won't be professionals and don't expect to be. Drawing comics is fun, and we regularly visit our favorites and rate them 5 because we like 'em (even if some folks think they suck).
But what of new pros like DJ who can write, draw, do dialog, spin plots and keep cranking out quality day in and day out? What if Hero By Night gets made into an action film starring Jake Gyllenhaal? What if professional screenwriters are brought in, change everything and the movie is a huge hit? Or worse, what if it totally sucks (like Catwoman)? Where is DJ then? You see where I'm going with this.
This may seem cynical, but I think that comics publishers (and animation producers) take advantage of the young creatives' inexperience. No other medium asks that you turn over complete rights and control in exchange for distribution. It's usually a compromise, but in the end the artist can walk if they don't like the terms. With this deal, if you walk you leave your rights (and your strip) with the publisher. How's that?
Neil Simon (to his chagrin) sold the TV rights to The Odd Couple. Even though it was called "Neil Simon's Odd Couple" and he got a creative credit, he didn't receive a dime for the series. He's not getting a dime for the DVD release. We're talking millions of dollars going to somebody else for characters he created. His characters! Did he write more? Sure. Did he do well? Yes he did. That's not the point. He turned over the rights and creative control and lost out big time.
Don't be thinking that just because you created something you'll somehow be taken care of. This contract allows Platinum to take your creation, have somebody else write and draw it ...and give you specific compensation regardless of what happens to it.
I'm sorry, but that is a crappy deal. It doesn't cost them anything to leave you the rights. If you're good, you're good. If it sells, it sells. Retaining rights keeps the marketing people out of decisions about the strip. Retaining rights insures that you will be fairly compensated.
Who among us thinks we'll ever make money on this stuff anyway?
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