DIRECTOR CUM WRITER AGREEMENT

THIS AGREEMENT is made and entered into at Ernakulam on _____ day of _______ 2021

BETWEEN

______________ (hereinafter referred as “Production House”), with its registered office at

_________________________. The term Production House includes the licensees, assignees,
future owners, or other acquirers or successors-in interest of the Production House.

AND

_______________ (hereinafter referred as “Director cum Writer'') R/o

_____________________. In the event of the Director cum Writer’s death or total incapacity,
“Director cum Writer'' means the Director cum Writer’s heirs, devisees, beneficiaries, trusts,
assignees or other successors-in-interest.

Production House and Director cum Writer shall hereinafter jointly be referred to as the "Parties"
and severally as the "Party"

WHEREAS the Production House is in the business of entertainment and production of feature
films for worldwide exploitation in all formats and the Director cum Writer is engaged in the
business of writing scripts, screenplays and stories as well as directing feature films. The
Director cum Writer is the author of the Screenplay tentatively titled ______________-
(hereinafter referred as “screenplay”)

AND WHEREAS the Production House intends to produce a theatrical motion picture
(hereinafter referred as “Picture”) based upon the screenplay and the same is intended for initial
theatrical exhibition. The term “Picture” as herein used, shall include, but shall not be limited to,
a motion picture produced, recorded, exhibited or transmitted by any means now or hereafter
known.

AND WHEREAS the Production House wishes to utilize the services of Director cum Writer in
connection with the Picture upon the terms and conditions herein contained.

ACCORDINGLY, IT IS AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

1. Consideration:

The Production House hereby engages Director cum Writer for providing screenplay of
Picture as well as for rendering his services in directing Picture. As full compensation for
the services of Director cum Writer to be rendered pursuant hereto, and for Director cum
Writer’s undertakings herein specified, the Production House shall pay a sum of
______________________ for his services in the Picture, provided Director cum Writer
 faithfully performs his duties and obligations hereunder. This shall be inclusive of the
price for the screenplay, directing the picture and engaging the services of Associate/
Assistant Director that the Director cum Writer engages with him for the making of
Picture. Director cum Writer accepts such engagement upon the terms herein specified
and undertakes to perform all the duties and obligations assumed and entered into by
him hereunder.

This sum shall be payable in the following manner and upon occurrence of the following
events:
(a). 20% (initial advance) - Signing this Agreement
(b) 50% - Completion of the shoot
(c) 30% - Completion of the post production.

2. Services:

The Production House shall cause the Director cum Writer to render all services
customarily rendered by the Director cum Writer in feature-length motion pictures at
such times and places as designated by the Production House. Without limiting the
foregoing, Director cum Writer’s services shall be in accordance with the following:

(a) Principal Photography of the Picture shall commence on or about

________________ 2021. The Start Date shall be automatically extended without notice
for a period equal to the duration of any default, disability and/or force majeure, or due to
any location requirements, and/or cast unavailability, weather conditions, and/or other
similar contingencies. The term of engagement of Director cum Writer’s services
hereunder shall begin on or about the Start Date and continue until ______________
2021, or until the completion of the post production or the promotion of the picture as per
the requirement of the Production House.

(b) Monitoring and approval of the film version of the manuscript;

(c) Approving the production plan, production schedule, budget and marketing plan
together with the Production House;

(d) Preparing and directing of the filming;

(e) monitoring of the post-production works: image and sound editing, music selection,
mixing, color specification, monitoring of the image post-processing and approval of the
final form;

(f) During and after the Term, Director cum Writer shall render such services as
Production House may desire in producing retakes, added scenes, transparencies,
close-ups, sound track (including dubbing and looping), process shots, trick shots and
trailers for changes in and foreign versions of the Picture.
 Compensation set out in paragraph 1 above includes consideration for such services.

3. Performance Standards:

Director cum Writer shall render services in conscientious, artistic, punctual and efficient
manner in the best of Director cum Writer’s ability and in full regard to the budget and
schedule set by the Production House. It is understood that the Production House shall
have the final say in the budget and the schedule of the movie.

4. Grant of Rights:

The Director cum Writer cum Writer assigns to the Production House all rights including
all intellectual property rights in the Screenplay for the purposes of making a
cinematograph film therefrom, for which the Director cum Writer acknowledges that the
Consideration payable under this Agreement shall be good and valid.

The Director cum Writer also confirms that he is assigning all the other rights in the work
vested in him under the Copyright Act, 1957 (“the Act”) to the Production House for it to
exploit for monetary gains on platforms, media, formats and avenues outside of a
cinema hall.

Director cum Writer, hereby, further acknowledges and agrees that all contributions of
every kind made in connection with the picture including and not limited to, all material
created and/or furnished by Director cum Writer, and all of the results and proceeds of
every kind of the services rendered by Director cum Writer in connection with the picture
shall be deemed to be “works made for hire” specially ordered or commissioned by the
Production House for use as a part of motion picture or other audio-visual work or as
contribution to a collective work. Production House shall own all results and proceeds of
Director cum Writer’s services, including the copyrights thereof.

The results and proceeds of Director cum Writer’s services for which valuable
consideration is paid in terms of paragraph 1 above, shall automatically become the
property of Production House, which shall be deemed to be the author thereof in terms
of the Act.

Director cum Writer hereby expressly waives and relinquishes any moral rights or “droit
morale,” or “author’s special rights” under section 57 of the Act, in and to any material
created by or contributed to Picture by Director cum Writer.

5. Publicity:
 Director cum Writer hereby grants Production House and its licensees and assigns the
non-exclusive right to film, photograph, record, reproduce and use Director cum Writer’s
name, biography and likeness for and in connection with advertising, exploiting,
merchandising and publicising the movie in all media forever.

6. Credits:

Subject to the release of the picture and provided that the Director cum Writer meets all
the material obligations shall accord credit as Director cum Writer as well as Writer. No
casual or inadvertent failure of the Production House to comply with the stipulation of
this clause shall be treated as breach of this agreement by the Production House. All
matters relating to Director cum Writer’s credit, such as size, style of type, placement,
colour, etc., shall be at Production House’s sole discretion.

7. Inclusive Payments:

All payments to Director cum Writer hereunder shall be deemed to be equitable and
inclusive remuneration for all services rendered by Director cum Writer in connection
with the Picture and to be paid by way of a complete buy-out of all rights granted to
Production House hereunder and no further sums shall be payable to Director cum
Writer by Production House by reason of the exploitation of the Picture and all results
and proceeds of Director cum Writer’s services hereunder, in any and all media
throughout the universe.

8. Representation and Warranty:

Director cum Writer hereby represents and warrant as hereunder

a) Director cum Writer has the sole, exclusive and unencumbered ownership of all
rights of every kind or character throughout the world in relation to the
screenplay;
b) Neither the screenplay nor any elements of it infringes the copyright of any other
literary work;
c) Director cum Writer further certifies that he/she has not entered into any other
such agreement with any other party that will infringe upon the rights herein
granted to the Production House by the terms of this agreement;
d) Director cum Writer also acknowledges as fact that, until setting his/her pen to
this agreement, that he/she controls the full rights to Screenplay and does not
share control with any other party. The screenplay is free and clear from any lien,
encumbrance, claim or litigation whether pending or threatened;
e) The Screenplay is not obscene, blasphemous or inaccurate and it does not
infringes the right to privacy or constitutes defamation of any person nor will the
production or exploitation of the motion picture or other production based on the
screenplay in any other way violate the right of any person;
 f) Director cum Writer has full power and the right to make and perform this
agreement.

9. Indemnity:

The Director cum Writer agrees to indemnify the Production House for any loss that may
be sustained by the Production House due to false representation made by the Writer in
terms of Para 8 of this Agreement.

10. Non-Disclosure:

The Director cum Writer shall not reveal or make public any information concerning or in
connection with the Script, Screenplay, Dialogue or any other literary or creative inputs
or the terms of this Agreement or the business of Production House nor shall the
Director cum Writer make any public statement or press statement in connection with
any of the foregoing without prior consent from the Production House.

11. Termination of Agreement

Should either Party materially breach its obligations under this Agreement (except due to
incapacity of parties or Force Majeure event), the other Party shall be entitled to
terminate this Agreement by giving 10 days notice in writing. The material breach on the
part of the Director cum Writer may consist inter alia of the following:

- a material negligence of the tasks or obligations without a justified reason;

- decisions, which substantially deviate from the approved manuscript or increase
the production costs, made without the Production Houseʼs consent;
- non-sharing of information with the Production House which significantly
increases the production costs of the Film;
- If the Director cum Writer does not make himself available when required to do
so by the Production House for the purpose of the picture;
- Non-adherence to the terms of the agreement.

The material breach on the part of the Production House may consist inter alia of the
following:

- failure to pay to the Director cum Writer any due compensation pursuant to this
Agreement, after the Production House has been notified in writing about this;
- significant changes in the production prerequisites of the Film;

12. Force Majeure:

 As used herein the term “force majeure” means epidemic, act of God, strike, lockout,
labour condition, unavailability of materials, transportation, power or other commodity,
delay of common carrier, civil disturbance, riot, war or armed conflict (whether or not
there has been an official declaration of war), the enactment of any law, the issuance of
any executive or judicial order or decree, breach of contract by, or disability of, the
Production House, other principal cast member, breach of contract by a financier or
completion guarantor, or other similar occurrence beyond the control of Production
House, which causes an interruption of or materially hampers or materially interferes
with the production of the Picture.

13. Arbitration:

Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this agreement or any breach
thereof shall be settled by arbitration in accordance with the Arbitration and Conciliation
Act, 1996.

14. Jurisdiction:

This agreement is accepted in Ernakulam, Kerala and it is agreed by the parties

concerned that all matters, claims, disputes, arising in respect of the terms and
conditions hereof shall be settled and paid by the parties in Ernakulam, Kerala.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this agreement on the day and year
first above written.

AGREED TO AND ACCEPTED:

(Director)

Mob:________________

AGREED TO AND ACCEPTED:

(For Production House)

 Mob:___________________
In the presence of

1.

2.