Sep. 22, 2016
Nina L. Shaw
See more on Nina L. ShawDel Shaw Moonves Tanaka Finkelstein & Lezcano ALC
A Golden Globe Award-winning director, a principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre and an Academy-Award winning actress are just a few of the clients who call on Shaw for legal advice.
Many of her clients have made history, including Ava DuVernay, a screenwriter and producer known for directing "Selma," an Academy Award-nominated film about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., President Lyndon B. Johnson and the 1965 March from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.
Shaw advised DuVernay in a deal to direct, "A Wrinkle in Time" in a Disney adaptation of Madeleine L'Engle's classic children's book. DuVernay will become the first woman of color to direct a film with a $100 million budget.
"The fact that Ava is doing this is a bigger thing than the budget because women and people of color are often slotted into projects that are about women and people of color," Shaw said. "This is a science fiction property that has stood the test of time and is beloved in the popular culture.
"In the past, it might have been something that only men or particularly white men would have been considered for," she added. Shaw also advised DuVernay in a deal with Oprah Winfrey to executive produce "Queen Sugar," a television show airing on Winfrey's OWN Network.
Misty Copeland, the first African-American female principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre, is also one of Shaw's clients. Shaw has advised her in many deals in the last year, including a partnership with Mattel Inc. to create a Misty Copeland Barbie doll and The Dannon Co. Inc., which hired Copeland as a spokesperson for its Oikos Greek yogurt brand.
She isn't afraid of tough negotiations and does not allow the fact that her clients might be charting new territory affect the deals, Shaw said.
"Whenever I'm negotiating on behalf of a client, I'm also negotiating without regard of race or gender," Shaw said. "It's always a bit of a challenge when you're not willing to accept limitations that other people are accepting.
"Part of it is being extremely knowledgeable about how people are being paid and how compensation is being structured, having confidence and having clients who deliver the goods."
Shaw also advised Misha Green, a co-creator of "Underground" a television drama series about the Underground Railroad in antebellum Georgia. The show, which debuted earlier this year on WGN America, has already been renewed for a second season.
Shaw also advised Lupita Nyong'o, an actress and filmmaker who won her first Academy Award for her performance in "12 Years a Slave," in many deals. Shaw negotiated Nyong'o's deal for one of the lead roles in "Black Panther," a Marvel Comics film set to be released next year.
"I see these incredibly groundbreaking things happening in the entertainment industry," Shaw said. "It's a wonderful return on investment from when I started my practice years ago."
— Melanie Brisbon
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