Kill fee

Brands cancel projects, and a kill fee is what stops the creator carrying the cost of it. It is written into the contract as a percentage of the total, stepped by stage: a smaller share if the brand pulls out before filming, a larger one once the video is shot, and often the full amount once it is delivered and only approval is outstanding. Without that clause a brand can walk away after you have blocked out a week, built a set and turned down other work, and owe nothing. Freelancers in every creative trade treat it as standard, and creators asking for one are asking for something ordinary.