SVP, Business & Legal Affairs

Core Responsibilities

• Negotiate and draft agreements for the development, finance, production, delivery, distribution, acquisition and licensing for the studio and Wonder’s streaming service, production agreements, talent deals, financing documents, and distribution arrangements.
• Structure and negotiate co-production agreements, pre-sales, gap financing, tax incentive transactions, and other financing mechanisms critical to film and television production and distribution.
• Negotiate and draft all aspects of entertainment agreements with talent agents, lawyers, and other parties (including profit participation, rights agreements, co-production, and overall/first look deals) in direct liaison with the relevant stakeholders within the studio.
• Interface with the following departments on a day-to-day basis: Creative, production, post-production and delivery, channel, product, marketing, finance, and contract administration.
• Review budgets and other financial data associated with the development and production of film and television programming.
• Work closely with internal business and creative executives to implement best practices, formulate new processes, maintain accurate project tracking, retain project documentation, and create and revise agreement templates.
• Oversee production legal and clearance issues during production and delivery.
• Review chain-of-title, underlying rights, and clearances.
• Work alongside and directly communicate with third party production companies.
• Manage relationships with sales agents, distributors, financiers, and production partners while advising on rights acquisitions, chain of title issues, and clearance matters.
• Provide strategic guidance on distribution strategy across theatrical, streaming, and ancillary markets, ensure compliance with guild agreements and industry standards, and supervise outside counsel when necessary.
• Partner with the EVP, Business & Legal Affairs and Corporate and outside counsel on complex legal matters arising from transactions.
• Collaborate with the Finance and Business Development teams on deal economics, participation structures, and profit definitions.
• Oversee contract administration processes and ensure compliance with contractual obligations across the content portfolio.
• Identify and mitigate business and legal risk across the studio's transactional activity.
• Support M&A, joint venture, and strategic partnership activity as needed.

Requirements

• 12+ years’ experience in the feature and television business affairs at a film and television production company or motion picture and television studio.
• Experience with international co-productions and financing structures, relationships with sales agents, distributors, and financiers, and familiarity with streaming distribution models and evolving digital platforms are all valued assets.
• Strong and effective negotiating skills, excellent drafting skills, and solid relationships within the talent community.
• Ability to handle all aspects of feature business and legal affairs with minimal supervision, including day-to-day production operations.
• Working knowledge of the SAG, WGA and DGA basic agreements and the AFTRA Code.
• Significant experience drafting and negotiating general business contracts.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• Strong analytical capabilities and judgment.
• Ability to work proactively, independently and reliably under tight timeframes in a fast-paced environment.
• Curiosity and willingness to tackle matters outside area of expertise.
• JD and bar admission in CA.