I was contacted by a producer. They want to use my song in their film and they want it for free

[whyterabbyt]

Basically, there aren't any copyright laws in China. The fact that they've asked is probably just a courtesy. If they want to use it, they'll use it.

Just the place someone would want exposure then.

[zerocrossing]

Just let them use some crappy AI track. People who claim they don’t have money to pay you for something that they will then go sell are known in my neck of the woods as criminals.

[greententacle]

do nothing without getting paid. not even answering email.
there is not such a thing like a free lunch.

[revvy]

I had a week of free McDonalds when I was at college and they were giving out vouchers in my town.

Whole week of free lunches

[vurt]

I had a week of free McDonalds when I was at college and they were giving out vouchers in my town.

worse than crack dealers they are
least there, only the first one is free.

[revvy]

I had a week of free McDonalds when I was at college and they were giving out vouchers in my town.

worse than crack dealers they are
least there, only the first one is free.

Actuality I got the last laugh, turned vegetarian shortly afterwards

[vurt]

[vurt]

i suppose it depends if a film credit is worth it to you?
do you know their other films? did they do ok? will the imdb credit be looked at by anyone?

money is nice, but sometimes, not the best part of a deal. only you can decide whether this is that for you?
will working free today, open doors sooner than not doing it?

[greententacle]

I had a week of free McDonalds when I was at college and they were giving out vouchers in my town.

Whole week of free lunches

thats not even food.
you had one week of free garbage.
and thats what you get for free.

[jancivil]

not gwyne waste words: no way in hell

[Daniele Nasuti]

They produced only 3 or 4 other films and on IMDB it's written the budget of 100.000 for one of them and 10,000,000 for another. But don't know if those numbers are reliable.

It's a chinese film in english language and the producer is a chinese living in USA I think.

@Uncle E what you mean with "

You haven't told us what you'll make on the back-end

" ?? What should I make in backend?

Don't know about the distribution and if it's a major company... they said the film will go in a competition and they use my music for festival exposure...

will the imdb credit be looked at by anyone?

how can I know that?

MORE QUESTIONS:
1- how much money a lawyer takes for helping me with the contract?
Where I can look for a music lawyer?

2- Once we signed a contract and they paid the first half of the money(suddenly after the contract sign), could they ask the money back if they don’t like the music and want to hire another composer?
Is there something I have to write in the contract to avoid them asking the money back?

3- How to keep record of all interactions I have with producers and directors? (Should I suddenly move the conversation to email if they contact me on socials like facebook, reddit, linkedin?). With some of them I talk about those things only on socials by message…

4- How I make sure I can then use some scenes of the film for my demo reel? I should write in the contract the specific scene I want or I let them choose and write in the contract?
Or they will tell me what scene I can use only after the contract?

[vurt]

will the imdb credit be looked at by anyone?

how can I know that?

if their previous films were successful you can make a guess that it would be likely to see traffic.

[PatchAdamz]

I have had deals with contracts and deals without, where the parties using my services didn't hold up their end.

The difference was, the parties with the signed contract had to deal with some actual legal proof with their signature on it. Every time, the outcome weighted in my favor and the "client" kept to the agreed on deal.

This gives you some legal power, perhaps just conceptually, but helps tip the scale for you, even simply argumentatively which is often all you really need.

I didn't have to pay for any lawyers in those cases, but make sure your contact is iron clad, when it comes to digital media internationally.

More info here:
https://www.dmca.com/

In a nutshell:

"The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) of 1998 is a federal law that is designed to protect copyright holders from online theft—that is, from the unlawful reproduction or distribution of their works. The DMCA covers music, movies, text and anything that is copyrighted."

Also, YOU draw up the contract, not them, and have it notarized.
Retain all rights to THAT version of the song and ALL OTHER versions of the song including all rights and royalty's
If they insist on using only their contract, tell em to take a hike, its not worth it.
Any company with good intentions will allow for an artist contract.

Another thought (opinion):

Ask for $750+, not less, its really not worth it otherwise, and if they make films worth their "celluloid", that is a more respectable LOW OFFER then ZERO.
Zero is a slap in the creative face.
Your music is worth more.
What if the film really sucks and your name is attached to it.
Get some cash......

They will actually respect you more for taking these steps and being a Pro.

*I am not a lawyer, and don't even play one on TV

Finally, if these guys have made "hit" films that are unquestionably successful (easily provable beyond "they said so") then maybe its worth talking about, otherwise move on to the next situation, don't waste your time.

Best of luck!

[revvy]

I had a week of free McDonalds when I was at college and they were giving out vouchers in my town.

Whole week of free lunches

thats not even food.
you had one week of free garbage.
and thats what you get for free.

Oh gosh yes, you’re right.

Thank you for explaining that.

[Daniele Nasuti]

so here the answer of the chinese producer when I said they have to pay for my music:
"thank you for your offer, good luck"

Thanks everyone for help me understand the value of my music!!