Feature Film Business & Legal Affairs Manager

Vancouver, BC
On-site
Posted Oct 10, 2026
1 position

$85,000–$95,000 / year

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Employment type: Full-time
Experience level: Senior · 5+ years
Minimum education: Master’s degree
Posting language: English
Working hours: 40 hours per week
Seniority: Associate
Application method: Direct apply is available

Job summary

Draft and negotiate talent, rights, guild compliance, distribution, licensing, and sales agreements, while overseeing clearances, credits, delivery requirements, and outside counsel. Support film financing and production documentation, build contract and rights-management processes, and advise studio leadership on legal and commercial risks.

Job details

About Us ZenaTech (Nasdaq: ZENA | FSE: 49Q) is a technology company specializing in AI drones, Drone-as-a-Service (DaaS), enterprise SaaS, and quantum computing solutions for mission-critical business applications. Since 2017, the company has leveraged its software development expertise and expanded its drone design and manufacturing capabilities through ZenaDrone to innovate and enhance customer inspection, monitoring, safety, security, compliance, and surveying processes. ZenaTech serves over 100 enterprise software customers in law enforcement, government, and industrial sectors, with drones used in agriculture, defense, and logistics industries. The company has offices in North America, Europe, and the UAE. Zena Studios is ZenaTech's creative division. We are building a feature film slate from the ground up, and the people we hire now will shape how we develop, finance, produce, and deliver our films. Role Summary The Feature Film Director of Business & Legal Affairs will draft and negotiate all talent agreements, option contracts, guild compliance terms, and distribution rights, and protects the studio's legal and commercial interests from development through delivery. Key Responsibilities Draft and negotiate talent agreements, including actors, directors, writers, and producers Draft and negotiate option and rights agreements, including underlying rights, literary acquisitions, and chain-of-title documentation Manage guild and union compliance terms and collective bargaining agreement requirements Draft and negotiate distribution, licensing, and sales agreements and manage delivery requirements Review and advise on clearances, credits, music licensing, and errors and omissions (E&O) requirements Work with external entertainment counsel on specialist matters and manage outside legal spend Partner with the Line Producer, Production Accountant, and Production Coordinator on contracts, insurance, and financing documentation Support financing structures, including co-productions, tax incentive requirements, and investor and completion guarantor documentation Build and maintain contract templates, approval workflows, and a rights and contracts database Advise studio leadership on legal and commercial risk and coordinate with ZenaTech's corporate legal team as needed Qualifications 5+ years of experience in business and legal affairs for feature film, ideally at a studio, production company, or entertainment law firm Law degree and active membership in good standing with a relevant bar or law society (or equivalent entertainment legal qualification) Demonstrated experience drafting and negotiating talent, option, rights, and distribution agreements Strong working knowledge of entertainment guild and union agreements and chain-of-title practices Excellent negotiation, drafting, and business judgment, with the ability to explain legal concepts clearly to non-lawyers Ability to work independently and build a function from the ground up Experience with cross-border (Canada/U.S.) productions and co-productions Artificial Intelligence We use artificial intelligence to review and screen applications and materials. However, every candidate we move forward with is reviewed and selected, and all final hiring decisions are made by a member of our hiring team. "We are an equal opportunity employer committed to employment equity utilizing hiring practices on merit and business needs. We encourage applications from women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, members of visible minorities and all others of legally protected status."

What you’ll do

Requirements

Requires at least five years of feature-film business and legal affairs experience and a law degree with active membership in good standing with a relevant bar or law society, or an equivalent entertainment legal qualification. Candidates should have experience negotiating talent, option, rights, and distribution agreements; knowledge of guild and union agreements and chain of title; strong drafting and negotiation judgment; and cross-border production experience.