Solutions from Ukraine: new "Uzhoda" initiative to safeguard property rights of Ukrainian designers and illustrators

Anna Sarvira's illustration to the poetry of Danylo Harms. Photo: Ukrainian Book Institute

Alvina Kaminska

The "Uzgoda" project has been launched in Ukraine to provide assistance to the creative community with regard to intellectual property rights and contractual matters.

The Chytomo publication reported that.

What is the problem?

As noted by the project initiators, throughout Ukraine's years of independence, there have been no efforts made to examine the methods used by designers and illustrators in developing their work, let alone the negotiation and contract drafting processes.

Designers often lack a clear system for safeguarding their work and negotiating terms, resulting in confusion and financial setbacks.

"Our vision is a strong and consolidated creative community. These are designers and illustrators who provide quality service, which includes not only cool design and illustration, but also clear documentation: the business side of work is no less important than the creative side.

We want to see designers and illustrators confident in their processes and arguments, and we hope that the common sample contracts and explanations provided in the guide will help them (and their customers too!) create powerful projects for mutual benefit," the project coordinator Olha Protasova says.

What is the solution?

The Design for Ukraine Association and the Ukrainian National Office of Intellectual Property and Innovation (IP Office), with support from the British Council as part of the "Supporting the Creative Economy" program, have launched the "Uzhoda" project.

Protasova noted that the initiative is aimed at strengthening the Ukrainian creative community by implementing uniform standards of contractual relations and ensuring intellectual property rights.

How does it work?

The standard contract samples were created by experts from the IP Office, including Dmytro Doroshenko, Sofiia Mokhovikova, Maksym Melnykov, as well as Alla Smorodyna. Smorodyna is an intellectual property law specialist, lawyer, and has a PhD in law, and is also the author of the monograph "License Agreement in the Civil Law of Ukraine."

^{Photo: nikoss}

Thanks to "Uzhoda", Ukrainian artists will be able to use sample contracts that cover such key aspects as:

• fixing the number of rounds of edits,
• payment procedure,
• scope of intellectual property rights,
• permission to use works,
• other important provisions.

^{Illustration by Vladyslav Yerko to the tragedy "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, A-BA-BA-GA-LA-MA-GA publishing house. Photo: Ukrainian Book Institute}

Lucy Zori, the head of the British Council's art program in Ukraine, stated that the "Uzhoda" project aligns with the British Council's main goal. She highlighted that implementing standardized contracts and guidelines will assist designers in effectively negotiating and establishing trustworthy partnerships.

^{Illustration by Oleh Petrenko-Zanevskyi. Photo: Ukrainian Book Institute}

"Standardized contracts and recommendations for their use will help creatives to negotiate more confidently and build fair partnerships. In this way, we not only support individual artists, but also contribute to strengthening the creative industries of Ukraine in general, which is an important step towards its integration into the global creative economy," Lucy Zori, head of the art program of the British Council in Ukraine, commented.

Sample contracts can be downloaded from the link.

For reference:

The British Council is an international organization of the United Kingdom that seeks to deepen cultural ties and expand educational opportunities.

The Ukrainian National Office of Intellectual Property and Innovation (IP Office) is a state organization whose purpose is to provide comprehensive support to participants of creative industries in matters related to intellectual property rights.