Be READY For Your Film/TV Placement Opportunity!


	TerriLynn Rosa

By TerriLynn Rosa

Okay, the fun part is over. You wrote the music, rehearsed, recorded, mixed and mastered. Now comes — at least for most artists — the hard part: taking care of business, the paperwork, the details. To help you in that task, film/TV placement maven TerriLynn Rosa, of Rescue Records / 5 Alarm Music, lays it all out for you.

Before you start circulating your music for consideration be sure to have both a writer and a publisher account in order and ready to go. The three main Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) in the USA are: ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. You should look in to each of them to determine which one works best for you. I believe you can register with any of them online pretty easily once you make your choice. Both the initial set-up fees and payout rates vary so you will want to be sure to do your homework.
Determine who will be receiving writer and/or publisher shares of the songs and the percentage for each person. This is one of the first things I will request from you in order to put the paperwork together correctly, so it's good if you have it all sorted out already. Also, understand that each credited writer/publisher will have to sign paperwork. Just saying you have permission will not work.
Remember that samples can be problematic. Be sure to remove any samples that you do not have cleared. If you have used random samples from another band this is somebody else's work and you cannot take credit for it. Leaving it in a song and not addressing it can cause major problems down the road.
If you're a band and there are multiple participants involved with the publishing you should decide if each person will have their own publishing entity or if there will be one for the band and you will split payments after the fact. Typically, it seems that most bands I work with seem to have one main account.
Once you have received confirmation from your chosen PRO that your names have been accepted, go ahead and register your songs. You will ensure that if there is a use they will be recognized and you will get paid. Also be sure to keep record of the CAE # that is assigned to you. That is your unique number and helps with registration. There may be more than one person registered with the same name as a writer and having this number will ensure your songs get registered to you. It's always helpful if you include your middle name when setting up your writer's account for this reason.
Publishing is a very important part of your work. You should learn and understand it as much as you can. There is no better way to look out for yourself than to understand the big picture.
Once you have decided what you are going to do with your songs and who you will be working with, be sure that you know what the splits are and how it works. It's not always fun, but read the paperwork before you sign. Be sure to address any questions or concerns BEFORE signing.
I cannot stress enough how important it is to understand why all of the above needs to happen. When a song belonging to you airs on broadcast or cable TV, you get paid. If you don't have everything in order and your PRO can't figure out who you are, then the money can't find it's way to you. Likewise, if you are going to sign an agreement, you want to be sure that you understand what you are agreeing to because it's not likely you will be able to change things once the contract is signed and in place. This is where understanding the business side of things will really pay off. As I mentioned, it's one of the best things you can do for yourself.

Originally published in Music Conection magazine. Music Connection is a National publication, found monthly in select major booksellers and all Guitar Centers in America. And check out their brand-new Digital Edition (including video and audio content) at www.musicconnection.com/digital.