The following is an excerpt from Practice Perspectives: Vault's Guide to Legal Practice Areas.
Segun Aluko is a senior associate in the Entertainment, Technology, and Advertising Group in Sheppard Mullin’s Century City office. Segun’s practice focuses on transactional entertainment matters. He advises studios, production companies, independent producers, and digital content creators in all aspects of the creation and exploitation of motion pictures, documentaries, television series, and animated projects. He also counsels the firm’s entertainment and technology clients on corporate and commercial matters related to mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, venture capital, private equity, and corporate finance, and celebrity clients on endorsements for equity and venture deals.
Alexis Robinson is the practice group leader of the firm’s Entertainment, Technology, and Advertising practice—the first woman to lead the practice since its inception. Alexis is also the co-leader of the firm’s Music practice. Prior to joining the firm, Alexis served as in-house counsel at one of the largest privately held corporations in the U.S., where she oversaw the company’s global intellectual property portfolio, as well as at a Fortune 500 cosmetic and beauty company. Clients turn to Alexis for her expertise in handling complex commercial transactions involving the convergence of media and technology.
Describe your practice area and what it entails.
Segun: My core entertainment law practice focuses on the entire value chain of film and television, covering development, production, distribution, and exploitation of film and television productions. I advise major, mini-major, and independent motion picture studios on underlying rights option and acquisition; writer, director, producer, and actor agreements; production company services agreements; other below-the-line production legal advice; and acquisition, licensing, and distribution agreements for finished films. I also advise our media and entertainment clients on entertainment ancillary matters like film financing; live events; endorsements and sponsorships; and technology, corporate, commercial, and venture matters.
Alexis: I have extensive experience negotiating agreements and licensing arrangements involving disruptive technology, as well as assisting my clients in developing strategies to mitigate legal risk while harnessing the benefits of transformative technology. I have advised my clients on leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to transform their businesses, including navigating novel legal issues related to intellectual property ownership, monetization, and data privacy.
I also have experience negotiating deals involving digital content and music licensing, advising clients on music rights and use strategy, distribution and rights acquisition, app development and distribution, software-as-a-service (SaaS) arrangements, IoT technology, esports licensing, endorsements and sponsorships, online gaming development, and brand licensing and apparel distribution.
What types of clients do you represent?
Segun: For film and television matters, I represent clients like Amazon MGM Studios, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures Corporation, and Disney Television Animation. On technology matters, I represent Toyota Motor Sales on its telematics platforms and related services and Salesforce on its live events business. I’ve also represented movie stars and celebrities like Jared Leto, Troy Aikman, and Erin Andrews on endorsements for equity and venture deals.
Alexis: My clients include digital service platforms and providers; connected fitness platforms; performance rights organizations; broadcast and cable television networks; motion picture studios; social media platforms; buyers and sellers of intellectual property rights; live event platforms; advertisers, advertising networks and advertising agencies; recording artists, composers, and producers; record labels; and publishers. Some of my A-list clientele are Peloton, Sony Pictures Entertainment, ASCAP, Spotify, Domain Capital Group, QVC, 101 Studios, Vevo, News Corporation, Steinway Musical Instruments, Etsy, Bandsintown, and Songwriters Hall of Fame.
What types of cases/deals do you work on?
Segun: I work on various film and television development, production, distribution, and licensing transactions as well as strategic matters including first look and overall deals for high-level writer/executive producers for our studio clients, including Amazon Studio’s and Prime Video’s content strategy in Africa. I was a co-lead associate in providing entertainment-related counsel to Amazon Studios on its acquisition of MGM. I also advised Nickelodeon on various development agreements for its newly released “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” movie.
Alexis: I negotiate deals involving the license and acquisition of musical works with major and independent music labels and publishers. I also represent investment firms in the acquisition of music catalogs, including Domain Capital in its acquisition of music catalogs of the world’s most prolific artists, including Iggy Azalea and the career-spanning catalog of Ashley Gorley, one of the most successful country music and pop songwriters in the past 20 years. I led the music and data privacy team for Sony in connection with its acquisition of Industrial Media (portfolio includes American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance, among others) based on a purchase price that valued the company at $350 million. I represented Peloton in connection with its strategic global partnership with Lululemon. I also represent ASCAP (the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers), the largest performing rights organization in the U.S., in negotiating licenses with major global TV networks, terrestrial and digital platforms, digital service providers, and other music users to publicly perform its repertory of music.
How did you choose this practice area?
Segun: I chose entertainment law because of the correlation between entertainment and human and economic development. I am a firm believer that people become what they see, and film and television content continue to play a big role in inspiring, informing, and of course, entertaining. Many of the things we use in our daily lives today, including touchscreen devices, were once figments of imagination in sci-fi novels and movies a few decades ago.
Alexis: Music has always been a significant part of my life, as it is a universal language that resonates with emotions and experiences. While studying law, I developed an interest in the intricate ways in which legal principles intertwined with creative industries. This interest only grew as technology started reshaping the landscape of music and content production, distribution, and consumption. I saw an exciting opportunity at the intersection of law, music, and technology: this area of law is not just about legal principles—it's about being a part of a community that shapes culture and technology.
What is a typical day like and/or what are some common tasks you perform?
Segun: My typical day involves drafting short-form and long-form agreements, negotiating deal points, and attending meetings. We’re typically the extended arm of the legal affairs departments for the companies we represent. Our clients rely on our industry knowledge and business acumen so we can support them in a cost-effective and efficient manner.
Alexis: My day usually involves several calls with various clients throughout the day to discuss deal terms and strategy, as we act as an extension of in-house counsel. I may also have calls with opposing counsel in negotiating deals. I typically work on revising commercial agreements, including music license agreements, Software-as-a-Service agreements, and purchase agreements.
What training, classes, experience, or skills development would you recommend to someone who wishes to enter your practice area?
Segun: I encourage them to take entertainment-related classes in law school. Entertainment lawyers are typically generalists, so classes on intellectual property law, business organizations, copyright law, trademark law, entertainment law, and electives like television, film, and music law classes provide a very good foundation for a career in entertainment law. They should also read industry trades like The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, and Variety to keep abreast of goings-on in the industry.
Alexis: In addition to taking core intellectual property and entertainment lawyering classes, seek internships at record labels, tech companies, or other media companies to gain a better understanding of the business. The entertainment industry is heavily network-driven. Attend industry events, conferences, and workshops, such as Variety’s Entertainment and Technology Summit and USC Gould School of Law’s annual Institute on Entertainment Law and Business.
What do you like best about your practice area?
Segun: I really enjoy the diversity of my practice. I’m truly a generalist and being able to explore various aspects of law in counseling our clients, whether as a subject-matter expert or having to issue spot and consult other experts in other practice areas at the firm, gives me so much joy and fulfillment.
What is unique about your practice area at your firm?
Segun: What sets our entertainment law practice apart is that we have a deep understanding of the industry. Most entertainment lawyers practice in-house supporting the studios’ creative, production, business affairs (usually lawyers), finance, and other stakeholders; or in boutique talent law firms, represent talent like writers, producers, directors, actors, etc., either on the transactional or litigation front; while some big law firms do corporate law or entertainment-ancillary commercial matters for media and entertainment companies, e.g., M&A, sales/purchase deals, etc. We do all of the above.
Alexis: We truly have a full-service entertainment practice that caters to every need of our clients within the entertainment industry—from contract negotiations, intellectual property rights, and litigation, to employment issues and financing. Our clients value this one-stop-shop model as it streamlines their legal processes and provides a cohesive strategy across all their legal matters.
What are some typical tasks that a junior lawyer would perform in this practice area?
Segun: Junior lawyers come into our practice groups doing what every lawyer in the group does. They draft and negotiate agreements and conduct chain of title review and analysis for film/television rights acquisition deals (similar to corporate due diligence as they also do on M&A deals for our media/entertainment clients), among other tasks supervised by senior lawyers.
How do you see this practice area evolving in the future?
Segun: Most of our work involves ownership and exploitation of rights across various platforms. Like radio did to printing press and television to radio, artificial intelligence (although not a new phenomenon) will affect the film and television industry going forward, especially if you take into consideration the recent WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, and many copyright/AI cases currently being litigated in courts.