From Graphic Novel to Streaming: A Playbook for Pitching Your IP to Agencies Like WME

Stop hoping an agent finds you—package your IP so they can’t ignore it

Creators and indie publishers: you finished a graphic novel or built a small comics universe. Now what? The hard truth in 2026 is that agencies and streamers are hungry for scalable, transmedia-ready IP—but they won’t chase messy rights or vague ideas. The Orangery’s recent signing with WME shows a clear path: package your world like a studio-friendly product and you move from hopeful inboxing to serious conversations.

Why this matters now (2026 context)

Two late-2025 and early-2026 trends make this playbook timely:

• Consolidation and IP hunger: Streamers and networks, still rebuilding slates after the 2023–24 shakeups, are focused on existing IP that translates across formats.
• Agencies want turnkey transmedia packages: Agencies like WME increasingly sign transmedia studios and IP holders who come with a clear rights map, adaptation-ready bibles, and audience proof. Variety reported the Orangery–WME deal on Jan 16, 2026, as a signal of this new preference.
• Faster dev cycles powered by AI: AI-assisted script generation and visual concepting make prototypes and sizzle reels cheaper—if you know what to feed the tools.

Variety: Transmedia IP Studio the Orangery, behind hit graphic novels, signs with WME (Jan 16, 2026).

Quick playbook—what to deliver to attract agencies like WME

Deliverables that get attention (in order of importance):

1. Rights roadmap & chain of title (clean, clear, and summarized)
2. Show/series bible demonstrating adaptation potential
3. Pitch deck crafted for executives and development teams
4. Proof of audience (sales numbers, readership metrics, engagement)
5. Creative package (sample scripts, visual animatic, sizzle reel)

Case study: What The Orangery did right (and how to copy it)

The Orangery consolidated multiple strong IPs—'Traveling to Mars' and 'Sweet Paprika'—into a coherent transmedia studio and then signed with WME. What stands out from the public reporting:

• They presented multiple properties under one roof, increasing the agency's upsell potential.
• They had a clear rights posture, making downstream licensing and adaptation simpler.
• They framed IP as format-flexible: comics, animated series, and adult-targeted serialized drama.

Takeaway: agencies sign entities that reduce friction. Your job is to remove friction.

Step 1 — Nail your rights: the Rights Roadmap

An agency’s first question is legal: do you own the rights you’re pitching? Fix this before outreach.

Deliverables

• Chain of Title summary (1 page): who created what, when, and by what agreement.
• Rights Inventory (2 pages): list media (print, digital, audio, TV, film, games, merch, theme park, audio drama), current license status, and any encumbrances.
• Author & contributor agreements: scanned copies or redacted summaries.
• Reversion and subsidiary rights policy: how and when rights revert to you.

Checklist: common red flags

• Unclear contributor splits (artist vs writer vs colorist)
• Work-for-hire ambiguity
• Third-party samples or trademarked references in art
• Existing option agreements that block development

Actionable: hire an entertainment attorney for a single-day rights audit. Cost is often underwritten by phase-one option advances once an agent sees you’re clean.

Step 2 — Build a show bible that sells the series before the script

Think of the show bible as a product spec for TV/streaming buyers, not an academic essay. It should be accessible, visual, and easy to scan.

Must-have sections

• Elevator logline (1 sentence) — crisp, high-concept.
• One-paragraph hook — tonal summary plus comparables (e.g., 'like X meets Y').
• Genre, format & episode length — be precise (e.g., 8 x 45', prestige sci-fi drama).
• Season arc roadmap — season 1 beats, season 2+ seeds, 3-season plan.
• Main character packets — stakes, internal/external arcs, casting notes.
• Pilot outline — condensed scene-by-scene act structure.
• Visual references — moodboards, color palettes, art direction samples.
• Why this adapts well — explain comic-to-screen strengths: visual set pieces, serialized cliffhangers, canonical world rules.

Actionable: create the bible in a single PDF under 12 pages. Executive attention is scarce—be concise. Use tools like Compose.page or other visual editors to produce a clean, exportable PDF.

Step 3 — Design a pitch deck for buyers and agents

Your pitch deck is a sales asset for development execs and an agent’s first shareable. Think slide-driven storytelling: lead with promise, end with an ask.

Optimal deck structure (10–14 slides)

1. Title & one-line hook
2. High-concept logline + tone (visual mood strip)
3. Market comparables & why this will sell
4. IP state: existing issues, sales, translations
5. Audience proof: readership, social, newsletter, sales
6. Season plan & key arcs
7. Main characters (1 slide each for 3–4 leads)
8. Creative team & attachment signals (writers, directors)
9. Visuals: sample pages, concept art, style frames
10. Business model: target budgets, formats, licensing pathways
11. Ask: what you want (representation, option, development deal)

Actionable: export as 16:9 PDF and provide a separate one-page one-pager for email. Label files with your IP name and version date (e.g., 'ORANGERY_MarsDeck_v1_2026-01-10.pdf').

Step 4 — Proof of audience and traction

Agencies love metrics. You don’t need Netflix numbers—consistency and engagement matter more.

Useful metrics

• Print/digital sales numbers (issue-by-issue)
• Newsletter open rates and subscriber growth
• Social engagement rates (not raw followers)
• Patreon/subscription revenue figures
• Licensing deals, foreign rights sales, or award notices

Actionable: prepare a 'traction' one-pager with top three KPIs and a 12-month growth chart. Make it visual.

Step 5 — Produce a minimal sizzle reel or animatic

In 2026, a short sizzle (60–90 seconds) accelerates interest. Use AI tools for storyboarding and low-cost animatics—but supervise creative choices carefully.

• Sizzle specs: 60–90s, 1080p MP4, show tone and a key scene.
• Include title card, logline, and text callouts pointing to IP strengths.
• Use licensed temp music and cleared images; don’t use unlicensed footage.

Actionable: outsource a 60s animatic to a freelance motion artist. Budget guideline: $700–$4,000 depending on quality. Supervise any AI-assisted storyboarding and pair it with human editorial direction; for localization and subtitle workflows consider community tools and platforms like Telegram localization workflows to scale subtitling cheaply.

Step 6 — Prepare scripts and sample scenes

Have a pilot script and a concise scene sample adapted from your graphic novel. Executive readers want to see how comics map to screenplay form.

• Pilot script: 45–65 pages depending on format.
• Sample scene: one visually strong scene (3–6 pages) showing beat-to-beat translation.

Actionable: format scripts in industry-standard software (Final Draft, WriterDuet, or Fountain exported to PDF).

Step 7 — Outreach strategy: who and how to pitch

Cold emailing a partner inbox rarely works. Use a layered outreach plan.

Where to target

• Talent agencies (WME, CAA, UTA) — aim for content teams and head of literary/TV.
• Production companies with comics histories (e.g., those that adapted graphic novels).
• Streaming development execs—use festival markets and rights fairs.

How to get the meeting

1. Warm introductions—leverage festival contacts, publisher relationships, or attorney referrals.
2. Festival & market strategy—present at Angoulême, Comic-Con, Berlinale/BIFAN, and rights markets.
3. Use gatekeepers—submit a concise one-pager and rights summary first; don’t send the full bible until asked.

Sample email subject lines (actionable):

• ‘One-pager: [IP NAME] — 8x45’ sci-fi drama / rights cleared’
• ‘For consideration: Adaptable graphic novel with 50k readers — [IP NAME]’

Actionable: always include a one-line hook, two-sentence reason you chose that recipient, and a clear next step (call or meeting).

Step 8 — Pricing & deal expectations

Understand common deal structures and what agencies expect to negotiate.

• Option agreement: short-term exclusive right to develop; typical option fees for indie IPs range widely—expect token to modest sums plus development obligations.
• Assignment/License: for immediate production, more money but longer negotiation.
• Revenue splits: negotiate backend participation, licensing carve-outs, and merchandising rights.

Actionable: insist on clear reversion clauses and limits on subsidiary rights you don’t want to lose (e.g., video game or stage unless you want to license them later).

Step 9 — Monetization pathways (beyond the adaptation check)

Adaptations produce revenue, but packaging transmedia opens diversified income streams.

• Development options & sale (upfront fees, milestone payments, backend royalties)
• Licensing for foreign publishers, merch, tabletop games
• Direct-to-audience products — special editions, signed prints, paid serialized audio dramas
• Spin-off IP — short-form webseries, podcasts, character-focused novellas

Actionable: map storage and fulfillment needs (images, editions, and merch assets) early — see Storage for creator-led commerce to avoid bottlenecks when a deal scales demand.

Step 10 — Post-signing roadmap: what to do after an agency shows interest

1. Deliver an executive package within 48 hours (updated rights roadmap, link to sizzle, and one-pager).
2. Identify attachments—propose writers, directors, or showrunners already aligned with the material.
3. Set development milestones with measurable deliverables (pilot script, budget estimate, casting plan).
4. Keep a public-facing content plan—release special editions or serialized prequels to maintain audience heat.

Actionable: sign an NDA before sharing sensitive documents only when asked. Early confidentiality helps preserve negotiation leverage.

Practical templates and short checklist (copy-paste ready)

One-pager template (200–300 words)

[Title] — one-line: [Logline]. Format: [e.g., 8x45' sci-fi drama]. Hook: [Two-sentence tonal description]. Why it adapts: [Two sentences]. Current traction: [Top KPI]. Rights status: [Owner/clear]. Ask: [representation / option / development meeting].

Rights checklist

• Who owns copyright?
• Are there signed contributor agreements?
• Any prior options or loans against IP?
• Have you cleared third-party references/art?
• Do you have a reversion policy?

Pitch email template

Subject: One-pager: [IP NAME] — adaptable graphic novel with [metric]

Hi [Name],

I’m the creator/publisher of [IP NAME], a [genre] series with [metric, e.g., 40k readers and a 45% newsletter open rate]. It’s a [format] that adapts into [format idea]. I’m attaching a one-pager and rights summary. I’d love 15 minutes to show a short sizzle and discuss representation or development opportunities. Best, [Name] [contact]

Warnings & traps (what not to do)

• Don’t over-commit rights for speculative money—tiny upfront gains can choke long-term value.
• Avoid flashy blockchain/NFT promises without clear licensing and consumer demand—agencies see many failed experiments here.
• Don’t submit an 80-page bible as a first touch. Be concise; executive time is scarce.

Advanced strategies for 2026 and beyond

As AI and serialized streaming models evolve, creators who add machine-readable metadata, modular scenes, and franchise roadmaps will be preferred. Consider:

• Scene-level metadata: tag scenes by set, tone, cast size to speed producer budgeting and scene selection — see toolkits for microformats and CSV-ready exports like the listing templates & microformats toolkit.
• Modular IP elements: build character bibles and stand-alone episode concepts that can be repackaged into anthologies or limited series.
• Data-driven pitch annex: include a short annex that ties audience segments to platform fits (e.g., audience aged 18–34 with sci-fi affinity correlates to streamer X).

Actionable: export a CSV with issue-level KPI data and include it as an annex to your deck for analytics-minded execs.

Final checklist before outreach

1. One-page chain-of-title
2. Bible (12 pages max)
3. 10–14 slide pitch deck
4. Sizzle reel or animatic (60–90s)
5. Pilot script & sample scene
6. Traction one-pager with KPIs
7. Contact list with warm-intro targets

Actionable takeaways

• Clean your rights first—no agent will progress a project with messy legal exposure.
• Sell the world, not just the story—show how the IP scales across formats.
• Be concise—executives want a 1-page hook, a short deck, and a clear ask.
• Use sizzle and metrics—visuals and audience data speed decisions.

Closing: the Orangery lesson and your next steps

The Orangery’s WME deal is a blueprint: agencies will sign creators and studios that reduce development friction and present scalable IP ecosystems. You don’t need a seven-figure brand to get agency interest—just a clean rights package, a compelling bible, and clear signals of audience and format-friendliness.

If you finish one thing this week, make it the one-page rights summary and one-pager pitch. Those two pages will open doors.

Call to action

Ready to package your graphic novel into a transmedia pitch that agencies can act on? Download the free IP packaging checklist and one-pager templates (subscribe to our newsletter), or book a 30-minute audit with a publishing-to-screen strategist to get a prioritized action list. Turn your comic into a business—because in 2026, the right package finds the right home.

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