# SYNC AGENT PITCH MEMO
## 50 Ways to Leave Another — Title Track + EP
### Submitted on behalf of: Dominique Devereaux / Loptr Lab
### Prepared for: Music Supervisor, Netflix Original Series Development
### Date: September 2026
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**From:** [Sync Agent / sus3-style one-stop representation]
**Re:** Original EP + Series Bible — Co-production pitch, not a traditional sync submission
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## What This Is
This is not a catalog submission. This is a co-production opportunity structured around an original five-song EP whose production methodology — music written before the series shoots, plot-locked to every episode — requires the music supervisor to engage at the development stage, not post.
The model is *The Nines* (John August, 2007): the main theme was composed before a frame was shot because a character performs it on screen. That was true for one scene. In this series, it is true for all five.
The EP is **50 Ways to Leave Another** by Dominique Devereaux / Loptr Lab. The title track is the series' main theme. It appears in Episode 1 as a working draft, recurs across Episodes 2–4 in alternate forms, and resolves in Episode 5 as the final recorded version. The production cannot fake this. The music must exist first.
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## What the Music Supervisor Needs to Know Immediately
### Clearance status
This project is structured for one-stop clearance. Dominique Devereaux is the composition originator and the master owner (via Loptr Lab). There is no label. There is no publisher holding co-ownership. The rights architecture is documented publicly at:
**`github.com/ibloud/50-ways-to-leave-another`**
The repo contains: provenance records, rights-clearance framework, AI-use disclosure, contributor policy, split-sheet templates, and delivery checklists. Every rights question a music supervisor would ask in a clearance call is pre-answered in writing. This is what one-stop looks like before a deal is signed.
**Current clearance status per RIGHTS-AND-CLEARANCE.md:**
| Layer | Status |
|---|---|
| Composition copyright | Pre-registration; filing in progress |
| Master recording | Pre-production — commercial master not yet recorded |
| Lead artist agreement | In negotiation |
| Beat / instrumental | Requires upgrade to SVOD/worldwide/perpetuity scope before sync |
| AI disclosure | Documented — Suno demo is the concept draft only, not the commercial master |
| Split sheet | Pending lead artist agreement execution |
**Honest timeline to clearance-ready:** 8–10 weeks from agreement execution with a lead artist. This is a development-stage pitch, not a delivery-ready catalog submission.
### What exists right now that a supervisor can evaluate
- The series bible (5-episode arc, song-to-episode map, character breakdown)
- The production methodology document (John August / *The Nines* framework applied to this series)
- The Suno-generated concept demo of the title track (human-authored, AI-performed — disclosed; not the commercial master)
- The full rights and provenance documentation at the GitHub repo
- The creative brief for the EP
The supervisor is being asked to evaluate: *does this project warrant development-stage engagement?* Not: *is this track clear to use today?*
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## What Music Supervisors Need From This Project (CTRL Camp Framework)
Per CTRL Camp's published guidance on what music supervisors actually filter for — emotional tone, lyrical flexibility, edit points, and clearance readiness — here is how this project addresses each:
### Emotional tone
A supervisor needs a song that makes you feel something specific — and the production needs to hit an emotion clearly and quickly, ideally within the first 10 to 15 seconds.
The title track's emotional function: a decision announced before the protagonist is ready to live it. The tone is not a breakup song — it is the morning after the decision, when leaving is already done and the work of reclamation has not yet started. The emotional register is: resolved on the surface, unfinished underneath. That tension is what the series runs on for five episodes.
### Lyrical flexibility
Songs with ultra-specific narratives — names, dates, locations — are harder to place. Music supervisors gravitate toward lyrics that feel personal but could apply to a range of scenes.
The title track is written from the first person but names no one. It is about leaving without naming who was left, what they did, or where it happened. Every line is portable — it can score a scene of physical departure, emotional recurrence, or final resolution. The same lyric means something different in Episode 1 (where she has just left) and Episode 5 (where she records it finished). The music supervisor gets two distinct cue uses from one track, one song, one license.
### Edit points and arrangement
Can the song be cut at the chorus? Does the intro work on its own under dialogue? Is there a natural build that lines up with a scene transition?
The delivery spec for each track in this EP includes: stereo master, TV mix (dialogue-safe, ducked vocal), stems, instrumental, and a cappella. The arrangement brief given to the lead artist will explicitly require modular sections — intro that works under dialogue, chorus that stands alone, a build that lines up with scene transitions. This is a production requirement built into the artist brief, not an afterthought.
### Clearance readiness
Before a music supervisor even falls in love with your song, they need to know it can actually be used. That means clean splits, no unresolved publishing issues, and stems available if needed. No AI music. No YouTube or BeatStars beats. A great song with bad business will get passed over every time.
The commercial master will be recorded to clear all AI-origin elements from the Suno demo. The beat/instrumental license will be upgraded to SVOD/worldwide/perpetuity scope before any pitch conversation involving a specific track. The split sheet will be executed before delivery. The AI-use disclosure will accompany every deliverable.
The GitHub repo exists precisely because of this requirement: every business question a supervisor needs answered is documented before the music is finished. The repo is the clearance architecture, built in advance.
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## Methodology Reference: Why Music-First Is a Plot Requirement Here
The composer often comes on board a project while it's in post, but for *The Nines*, the main theme had to be written before shooting a frame — because during one scene, a character plays it on piano. It was a major plot point, and they couldn't fake it.
In *50 Ways to Leave Another*, this condition applies to every episode. Nova is recording the EP in real time within the story. The title track appears incomplete in Episode 1 — a working demo. It is heard in pieces across Episodes 2–4. It resolves as a finished recording in Episode 5. You cannot shoot any of these scenes without the music existing first. The music supervisor is not being brought in to score a finished picture. They are being invited into the development process because the music *is* the picture.
When working with specialists — a composer, a cinematographer, a choreographer — August found it best to describe feelings rather than functions. He used language like: "broken clockwork," "skimming across a summer lake, but there's something dark under water," "an unanswerable question," "something half-remembered."
The creative brief for this project uses the same approach. The track-by-track creative brief (in the appendix) describes each song by emotional texture and function within the scene, not by BPM or key or production style. The music supervisor and the lead artist work from the same brief.
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## Fee Structure Reference (Development Stage)
For context in development conversations — these are not final negotiated figures:
| Use type | Market range (2026) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Title theme, main-on-end credits, per episode | $15,000–$50,000 | Higher end for featured/narrative-integral use |
| In-scene performance, narrative-integral | Negotiated as co-production, not flat sync | Purple Rain / Julie and the Phantoms model |
| Co-production music deal (EP + series attachment) | $100K–$500K+ | EP rights + series sync in one agreement |
| Backend PRO royalties | 20–40% of total sync earnings over term | Preserved only if publishing rights retained in deal |
A streaming show placement pays $500–$5,000 per episode at the low end. A music co-production deal negotiated as EP attachment is a different structure entirely.
This project is being positioned for the co-production structure. The flat sync rate is the floor, not the target.
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## What Is Being Asked of the Music Supervisor
1. **Review the series bible** — evaluate whether the project warrants a development-stage conversation with Netflix's original series team.
2. **Evaluate the concept demo** — assess emotional tone and placement fit on the title track. (Demo link: private, provided on request. AI-origin disclosed; not the commercial master.)
3. **Identify the development path** — is this a co-production pitch to the Netflix Fund for Creative Equity, a traditional sync license post-production, or a hybrid?
4. **Confirm technical delivery requirements** — any Netflix-specific stem, metadata, or AI-disclosure requirements to build into the production spec now.
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## Appendix: Track-by-Track Creative Brief (Feelings-Not-Functions Format)
*Per John August's methodology: describing feelings rather than functions.*
| Track | Emotional texture | Scene function | Lyrical scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Title track — 50 Ways to Leave Another** | The morning after the decision. Calm on top, unfinished underneath. A resolution that hasn't been felt yet. | Opens Episode 1 as a draft; closes Episode 5 as a completion. The same words carry different weight each time. | First person, no names, no locations. Portable across departure, memory, and resolution. |
| **Track 2** | Taking inventory in an empty room. Grief that looks like organizing. | Nova sorts through what was hers before him. The song is about the gap between who she was and who she became. | Personal but not confessional. The listener brings their own inventory. |
| **Track 3** | The rupture that has no clean ending. An unresolved chord you sit with. | The episode where Nova falls apart. The song is recorded in pieces across three days. The edit is the performance. | Fractured syntax. Incomplete sentences. The arrangement mirrors the lyric. |
| **Track 4** | Being witnessed without being explained. The sound of someone else hearing you correctly. | Charlie performs this one. Nova watches through the glass. Mama D's voice is in the bridge. | Second person addressed to no one specific — could be a person, could be the protagonist talking to herself. |
| **Title track — reprise** | The same words, finally inhabited. Not healed — present. | Final episode, final scene, final credits. The boldest production version. | Same as Track 1. The production is the difference, not the lyric. |
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*Sources: John August, "Writing the music before shooting the film" (johnaugust.com, 2014); CTRL Camp, "What Music Supervisors Actually Listen For" (ctrlcamp.com, April 2026); Thoolie, "Music Clearance for Independent Filmmakers" (thoolie.com, August 2026). This is a pitch document, not a legal agreement. All figures are reference ranges only.*