breakfast has turned into a virtual one on July 15. During the intervening months, attorneys have continued to make deals and advise clients on issues related to the pandemic and beyond.
For Jeff Cohen, co-founder and partner of L.A.-based entertainment law firm Cohen Gardner, working remotely has been “completely seamless.” “Certain productions are already commenced, other productions are kind of starting up and producers and studios are trying to figure out a mechanism to safely do all that. And, certainly, the demand for content is high, the deal volume is high for the development of new projects and animation is something that is certainly booming because you don’t need to be physically present in a room with people to do that.
Paul Bernstein, vice chair of Venable’s Entertainment and Media Group, likewise says, “everybody has had to take a hard look” at both their existing force majeure clauses and any agreement going forward. The key, she says, is keeping up with the clients and executing their vision, citing Swizz Beatz as an example.