IP, credits and non-solicit in freelance work: what to decide before the project starts

A studio finishes a film title sequence with the help of two freelance animators. Six months later the client's rival writes to one of them directly. The animator asks the studio whether she can show the work on her portfolio and whether she may accept the offer. Nobody wrote down an answer.

Questions about who owns the work, who gets named and who may approach whose clients are easy to settle before a project begins. They are painful to settle afterwards. This post lists what to decide and how to record it.

• Who owns the finished work, and who owns the working files, drafts and tools behind it?
• Who is named in credits, on the website and in award entries?
• Can either side approach the other's clients or staff, and for how long after the project?

Each question has more than one reasonable answer. The right one depends on your client contract, the type of work and how you want to treat people. Decide it deliberately, not by habit.

Start from your own client contract. If you promised the client full ownership, you need a matching arrangement with the freelancer, or you may hand over something you do not control. Check that the chain of ownership is unbroken from the person who made the work to the client who pays for it.

Then separate the pieces. The final deliverable, the source files, reusable assets such as templates and brushes, and the freelancer's own earlier tools can each be treated differently. Say which are transferred, which are licensed, and which stay with their maker.

Credits matter to creative people because they are how the next job arrives. A refusal to allow portfolio use without a reason causes resentment. A blanket permission can break a client's confidentiality.

1. 1

   Check what the client allows

   Read the client contract for confidentiality, launch dates and any limit on showing the work.

2. 2

   Decide the credit form

   Name on screen, on the project page, or in a credits list. Write the wording and where it appears.

3. 3

   Set portfolio timing

   State whether the freelancer may show the work after launch, after a set period, or only with approval for each piece.

4. 4

   Handle unreleased work

   Agree that drafts, test cuts and client names stay private until the client has made them public.

5. 5

   Write it into the engagement

   Put the decisions in the agreement or an attached note, signed by both sides before work starts.

A non-solicit clause tries to stop one side from approaching the other's clients or people. Whether a restriction is reasonable, and whether it can be enforced, depends on the facts and the wording. Do not copy a clause from the internet.

A related question is conflict of interest. Can the freelancer work for your client's competitor at the same time? Can your staff take side projects from your freelancers? Our conflict of interest policy guidance helps you set clear rules for your own team and make them consistent with what you ask of outsiders.

Client contract terms that affect the freelancer: confidentiality, ownership, credit limits.
Deliverables transferred to us: list the files and formats.
Reusable material the freelancer keeps: list tools, brushes, templates.
Credit wording and placement.
Portfolio use: when, which pieces, who approves.
Competing clients: allowed, allowed with notice, or not allowed.
Approaching each other's clients or people: what is agreed, and for how long.
Signed by both sides on this date.

Ownership of the final file is only half the story. Who keeps the layered project file, the raw footage, the rig or the font licences? If the freelancer leaves mid-project, you need enough to finish the job. Ask for working files at agreed checkpoints, not only at the end.

Also decide where files live. A shared drive that you control is safer than email attachments. When the project ends, agree who deletes what, and when the freelancer removes client material from personal devices.

Tools matter too. If the freelancer uses a plugin or licence you do not hold, your client may be shown something you cannot reproduce next year. Ask which paid tools the work depends on and who carries that cost.

A one-page note signed before the first call is better than a long contract nobody reads. For longer projects, use a full engagement agreement. Our post on what a freelancer engagement agreement should cover lists the clauses worth discussing.

• Sending files to a freelancer before anything is signed.
• Promising the client full ownership while the freelancer assumes they keep it.
• Leaving credit to the end, when everyone is tired and the launch has passed.
• Letting freelancers talk to the client directly without telling the client who they are.
• Forgetting that a freelancer who becomes an employee changes the terms. See the guide on moving a freelancer onto your payroll.

Studios in animation, photography and film juggle several clients, tight shoots and a changing crew. The creative production HR page shows how those patterns affect hiring, retention and written rules.

One more habit helps. Keep a short log of every freelancer who touched a project, with dates, what they delivered and what was agreed. When a client asks who made a shot or a layout two years later, you can answer in minutes. The log also shows you whom you rely on, which is useful when you plan hiring.

Review your decision sheet after each project. If a question came up that the sheet did not cover, add it. Over a year you will build a short document that suits your own work.