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From Panels to Pictures: How The Orangery and Other Studios Turn Graphic Novels Into Cross-Platform IP

UUnknown

2026-02-16

10 min read

How The Orangery turned graphic novels into film, TV and games — a creator’s rights, production, and marketing roadmap to build cross-platform IP.

Hook: Your Graphic Novel Is Valuable IP — But How Do You Turn It Into Film, TV, and Games?

Creators and indie publishers: you finished a graphic novel that readers love, but the route from pages to screen and playable worlds is unclear, full of opaque deals, and littered with false promises. This profile-driven guide shows the exact production, rights, and marketing steps a creator should follow to turn a graphic novel into cross-platform IP — using The Orangery (the European transmedia studio behind hits like Traveling to Mars and Sweet Paprika) as a real-world reference point.

Why The Orangery Matters in 2026

In January 2026 the transmedia studio The Orangery made headlines after signing with WME, highlighting two trends that matter to creators now: consolidation of talent representation around IP-rich studios, and growing appetite from agencies and streamers for graphic-novel source material with ready-made audiences.

In early 2026 The Orangery — a Europe-founded transmedia IP studio packaging graphic novels for screen and games — signed with a major agency, signaling how specialized studios are bridging creators to global buyers.

The lesson for creators is simple: you don’t have to sell raw pages to a single buyer. You can build, retain, and strategically license an IP package that travels across film, TV, and games, and studios like The Orangery are a map for how to do that.

Top-Level Roadmap: The 6 Pillars to Turn a Graphic Novel Into Cross-Platform IP

IP Foundation — secure and centralize rights, metadata, and a canonical bible for the world.
Proof & Packaging — create audience proof, visual assets, and a package that attaches talent and format-specific materials.
Strategic Rights Strategy — decide what you keep, what you license, and how to structure option vs assignment deals.
Development & Production — build adaptations: pilot script, sizzle, playable prototype for games, and production partners.
Marketing & Audience Growth — translate core readership into measurable audience signals that buyers value.
Monetization & Scaling — plan revenue streams across backend participation, licensing, merchandising, and games.

1. Build a Bulletproof IP Foundation

Before you pitch, organize your intellectual property. Studios and agencies partner with creators who present clean, transferable rights and documentation.

Register copyrights for the script, artwork, character designs, and series title in the key territories you expect to exploit (US, EU, UK, JP as applicable).
Create an IP bible — a single document that contains character dossiers, timeline, world rules, tone references, and visual style frames. This is your master reference for all adaptations. Consider hosting or publishing drafts on platforms optimized for public docs; this discussion on public documentation tools can help you choose where to keep a living bible.
Hold chain-of-title records — agreements with co-creators, collaborators, and any contributors documented and signed. Clear chain-of-title makes negotiation faster and more valuable.
Metadata & assets — supply high-resolution art, layered files, fonts used, and editable source files. Buyers want ready-to-use assets for pitch decks and proof-of-concept reels.

Why The Orangery’s Model Helps

The Orangery built or acquired rights to strong series and then centralized the IP — making it fast for WME and buyers to evaluate, package, and pitch. Creators can adopt the same discipline: an organized IP reduces friction and increases valuation.

2. Package with Proof: Audience, Talent, and Visuals

Packs sell. In 2026, buyers want evidence: audience metrics, attached talent, and a clear creative package that translates across media.

Audience metrics: monthly readers, social engagement, newsletter subscribers, crowdfunding success, and holdout sales. Present these with clean charts and one-sentence takeaways — creators often pair crowdfunding and audience work with a creator growth playbook like the one for launching a maker newsletter (maker newsletter workflow).
Talent attachments: attach a showrunner, screenwriter, or a director with credits (even if low-cost or emerging). For games, attach a studio or lead designer with a history of shipping similar mechanics.
Visual sizzle: a 90–180 second concept trailer or animated storyboard made with a small team or AI-assisted tools. In 2026, buyers expect visual proof that the world can be translated visually — many creators experiment with short vertical, AI-driven pieces similar to AI-generated vertical episodes to communicate tone quickly.
Platform-specific treatments: a TV series one-sheet, a film treatment, and a game design doc summary. Each should explain why the story works in that medium and how it expands the IP.

3. Rights Strategy — What to Keep, What to License

Most creators lose value by signing broad, non-reverting assignments early. Instead, adopt a staged licensing approach.

Key deal terms to control

Option vs Assignment: Favor a time-limited option (18–36 months) with a negotiated purchase price, or a staged re-option if development extends. Avoid blanket assignments unless the price is transformative.
Formats & Territories: Be explicit — license film, TV, interactive, and merchandising rights separately, and limit territories if smaller distributors are involved.
Reversion Triggers: Include reversion clauses if production stalls (e.g., no greenlight in 3–5 years) or if distribution metrics are not met.
Sequel & Derivative Rights: Negotiate royalties or approvals on sequels, spin-offs, and character licensing; retain the right to develop certain derivative works yourself or with third parties.
Approval Rights: Maintain approval over character design, core story changes, and principal casting, especially early in the relationship. You can relax approvals later as the partnership matures.

In practice, top transmedia studios structure deals so the creator retains core ownership while the studio manages adaptations across media under long-term licenses — exactly the approach The Orangery uses when repackaging work for agencies and buyers.

4. Development & Production: From Script to Playable Demo

Development differs by medium, but the underlying goal is the same: show how the graphic novel's story becomes a compelling, commercially viable product.

Film & TV

Write a strong adaptation treatment and a pilot script (for TV) or a film script.
Produce a short proof-of-concept (2–4 minutes) or an animated excerpt to communicate tone and look.
Attach an experienced showrunner or indie director to increase buyer confidence; agencies like WME help attach talent at scale.
Budget realistically — buyers will ask for line items and estimated VFX, locations, and post-production costs.

Games

Build a one-page Game Design Document (GDD) that outlines core mechanics, player loop, progression system, and monetization model (premium, free-to-play, live service).
Create a playable vertical slice (prototype) — even if rudimentary — to demonstrate fun and feasibility. Publishers often expect a clear path to a vertical slice; see dev communication best practices in the game dev space (dev comms checklist).
Decide whether to license mechanics and world, or co-develop with a studio that handles design and publishing; terms differ substantially.

5. Marketing & Audience: Translate Readers Into Buyer Signals

In 2026, greenlights are data-driven. Streamers and publishers prefer IP with quantifiable demand. Your task: translate fandom into proof.

First-party metrics: newsletter opens, mailing list growth, Patreon/subscriber numbers, and pre-order sales trump vanity metrics.
Retention metrics: series completion rates and repeat purchases show narrative stickiness — package these in one-slide metrics for buyers.
Event performance: convention panels, press coverage, and Kickstarter/sales success provide social proof of market interest. For short-term events and pop-ups, see practical playbooks for turning micro-events into measurable wins (micro-events playbook).
Global demand: localization interest, foreign pre-sales, or translation inquiries indicate international potential — valuable for streamers and agencies.
Cross-platform test campaigns: short-form video on TikTok/YouTube Shorts and targeted social ads to measure ad-based interest for adaptations; creators report higher signal quality when pairing campaigns with fan-engagement tactics (short-form video tactics).

6. Monetization & Scaling: Multiple Revenue Streams

Plan monetization across synchronous revenue streams. Do not expect a single large sale to solve lifetime monetization.

Upfront licensing fees and option payments.
Backend participation: profit share, net receipts, or gross participation negotiated per medium.
Merchandising & licensing: toys, apparel, and collectible editions can become steady revenue if you preserve merchandising rights — consider payment and pop-up toolkits for selling directly (portable billing toolkit).
Gaming deals: either co-development with revenue share or flat-fee IP licenses. Negotiate minimum guarantees for work-intensive game builds.
Subscription & serial content: serialized comics or spin-off novellas for platforms like Substack or Webtoon can continue audience engagement and revenue.

Advanced Strategies & 2026 Trends You Should Use

Industry shifts in late 2025 and early 2026 give creators leverage if they position well.

Data-driven greenlighting: Streamers increasingly request first-party audience signals; invest in analytics and a clean data deck.
Transmedia boutiques: Studios like The Orangery act as consolidators and packagers that make IP deal-ready. Partnering with them can shortcut access to major agencies and buyers.
AI-assisted previsualization: Use generative tools for concept art and animatics, but maintain original authorial control and document training datasets if necessary. Creators should be mindful of the public debate around AI tools and creator rights (AI and creator risk).
Playable proof-of-concept: Publishers now expect a vertical slice or a clear path to one, especially for live-service or narrative-driven games.
Hybrid releases: Platforms and distributors increasingly accept staggered, cross-format launches (comic → limited series → mobile spin-off) to prolong revenue windows — and some creators are experimenting with hybrid NFT and merchandise drops alongside launches (hybrid NFT pop-up playbook).

Practical Creator Checklist: 12 Steps to Take This Quarter

Register copyrights in primary territories and centralize chain-of-title documents.
Create an IP bible with character sheets and series timeline.
Compile a metrics deck: sales, subscribers, engagement, and event stats.
Produce a 90–180 second sizzle or animated excerpt.
Draft one-page treatments for film, TV, and game formats.
Attach or approach at least one showrunner/director and one game lead for early interest.
Decide on an initial rights strategy: option-only vs assignment for each format.
Build a short-term audience growth plan (3 channels max) and run A/B ad tests to measure response.
Prepare a licensing wishlist (merch, audio, games) and a revenue-split framework you’ll accept.
Identify 2–3 transmedia studios or agents (like The Orangery/WME model) to approach with your package.
Negotiate reversion clauses and creative approvals as non-negotiables in early talks.
Set milestones for re-option triggers and greenlight benchmarks in any deal.

Red Flags in Deals — What To Watch For

Broad, perpetual assignments with no reversion language.
Undefined “derivative works” language that could strip merchandising value.
Low upfront with unclear or unlikely backend participation.
Vague approval rights where the creator has no say on casting, tone, or story arcs.
Requests to transfer chain-of-title or IP to a shell entity without clear economic or tax rationale.

Case Takeaways: What Creators Should Learn from The Orangery

The Orangery’s recent move to sign with a major agency shows a repeatable path: build or assemble strong IP, centralize rights, create a buyer-ready package, then partner with agents/studios to scale. For creators, that means you can — and should — think beyond a single-format sale.

Don't rush assignments: Use options and staged licenses to keep upside.
Package first, then sell: Visual sizzles and talent attachments raise valuations significantly.
Leverage boutique transmedia partners: They accelerate access to talent and distribution while preserving creator value.

Final Practical Advice — Negotiation Nuggets

When you get in the room, lead with numbers and milestones, not emotion. Use these negotiation anchors:

Ask for a defined option period with staged re-options and a clear purchase timeline.
Request a minimum guarantee for game development deals or merchandising advances.
Include an audited accounting clause for backend receipts and a right to an annual report.
Negotiate credit language and “based on” phrasing that protects authorial recognition across media.

Where to Get Help

Assemble a small advisory team: an entertainment lawyer, an experienced literary/TV agent (or transmedia rep), and a producer or game lead who understands costs and timelines. In 2026, partnering with a transmedia studio or agency that has established relationships with streamers and publishers is often the fastest route to market.

Call to Action

You’ve got the pages — now treat them like IP. Download our free 12-step creator checklist and an editable IP bible template to start packaging your graphic novel for film, TV and games. If you want help turning your package into buyer-ready assets, reach out to our vetted transmedia advisors who work with creators to build deals modeled on The Orangery’s approach.

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Senior editor and content strategist. Writing about technology, design, and the future of digital media. Follow along for deep dives into the industry's moving parts.