Turning Graphic Novels into Web Funnels: Lessons From The Orangery’s WME Deal

UUnknown

2026-02-12

10 min read

Learn how creators can turn graphic novels into agency-ready IP with transmedia landing funnels, pitch decks, and measurable rights packets.

Hook: Your graphic novel is great — so why aren’t agencies calling?

Creators tell me the same two frustrations: they have magnetic worldbuilding and dedicated readers, but they can’t convert that IP into meetings with agencies or licensing partners — and their creator website isn’t doing the pitching for them. In 2026, agencies like WME are signing transmedia studios that package comics as ready-to-deploy IP. The Orangery’s recent deal with WME is proof: agencies now want more than a manuscript — they want a packaged, measurable, transmedia-ready proposition.

“The William Morris Endeavor Agency has signed recently formed European transmedia outfit The Orangery, which holds the rights to strong IP in the graphic novel and comic book sphere.” — Variety (Jan 16, 2026)

If you create graphic novels or original comics and your goal is to attract agencies, licensors, or production partners, this guide gives a practical playbook: how to build a landing funnel, a pitch deck, and a transmedia landing page that do the outreach for you.

The new rules in 2026: why transmedia packaging matters

Late 2025 and early 2026 consolidated a clear trend — agencies and studios prefer IP that’s already productized for multiple platforms. Streamers and brands are shopping for concepts that include audience data, adaptable story beats, character bibles, and cross-platform content plans. AI-assisted creative tooling accelerates asset production, but the decisive factor is the packaging: an agency can’t sell or license what they can’t easily explain to buyers.

That’s where a creator website and landing funnel win. A properly built funnel does three things:

Communicates the world: one-page narrative that shows scope and adaptability.
Proves traction: clear metrics, audience signals, and monetization lines.
Converts attention into meetings: calls-to-action that push agency contacts into briefings.

How The Orangery example reframes opportunity for creators

The Orangery — a European transmedia studio founded by Davide G.G. Caci — signed with WME in January 2026. Why this matters to individual creators: it proves agencies will represent IP studios that present comics as transmedia-ready properties. You don’t need to be a studio to package your IP this way; you need the same deliverables: character bibles, adaptation roadmaps, demo content, and measurable audience proof.

Quick takeaway

Agencies increasingly sign IP that can be deployed across film, TV, games and branded partnerships.
Packaging and measurable audience data are worth as much as critical acclaim in 2026.

Step-by-step: Build a transmedia landing funnel that attracts agencies

Below is a pragmatic funnel you can build on your creator website in days, not months. Each step maps to the stages an agency or licensing partner uses to evaluate IP.

1. Landing page: the one-page pitch

Your landing page is the distilled pitch — like a film one-sheet for your comic universe. Structure it for fast scanning and authority.

Hero: Single-sentence world logline + one high-impact image (cover art or key art). Add a clear CTA: “Request Rights Packet”.
Quick comps: 2–3 comparables (e.g., “If you like X, think Y”) and why the IP scales (themes, tone, hooks).
Audience proof: topline metrics — readers, newsletter subscribers, engagement rates, Patreon or shop revenue.
Transmedia hooks: bullet list of 3–5 adaptation ideas (series, animation, game mechanic, brand tie-ins).
Rights overview: a simple table showing available rights (e.g., TV, film, merch, games) and current holders.
Close: CTA to download a detailed rights packet or request a 15-minute briefing.

Use microcopy focused on business outcomes: “Ready for TV? Get the rights packet.” Agencies want to know how easy lift is.

2. Rights packet (deliverable)

The downloadable packet is the first deliverable an agency will open. Make it concise, visual, and legal-ready. Include:

Single-page synopsis
Character one-pagers with visual references (character bibles and casting notes)
3–5 episode / feature outlines
Market comps and audience data graphs
Rights table and current ownership/availability
One-page ask: what you want (representation, licensing, co-development)

3. Pitch deck: a 12–15 slide template

When an agency asks for a deck, give them both a creative and a business narrative. Here’s a slide structure tailored to WME-style representation teams:

Cover: Title + striking art + contact
Logline + one-line premise
Why now: trend hooks (streaming, genre popularity)
Audience & traction: readership, social growth, engagement, revenue streams
Story world & tone: visual samples + references
Characters: 3–5 key profiles
Adaptation potential: TV, film, games, merchandising
Production notes: format suggestions, EP/creator role
Business model: revenue lines + initial P&L assumptions
Distribution & partnerships: current relationships or target partners
Rights & availability: explicit ask and current rights status
Team & bios
Appendix: sample pages, metrics, legal notes

Include a slide with rights granularity: agencies appreciate clarity (e.g., “Film: available; TV: available; Merch: retained; Digital games: negotiable”).

4. CRM + automated outreach funnel

Convert interest into scheduled meetings by automating the flow. Minimal tech stack: website form → email provider (or CRM) → calendar booking tool.

Use UTM-tagged links in outreach so you can attribute lead sources.
Auto-send the rights packet via an email sequence and invite to book a 15-minute call via Calendly or a similar tool.
Track who opened the packet and which pages were clicked — that’s gold when negotiating (measurement and gating).

Landing funnel technical templates (copy + simple code)

Below is a compact HTML/JS snippet you can drop into most creator sites for a rights-request form. It includes UTM capture and a GA4 conversion event. This is a minimal implementation — replace endpoints with your own.

<!-- Rights request form -->
<form id="rightsForm" action="/api/sendRightsPacket" method="POST">
  <input name="email" type="email" placeholder="your@email.com" required />
  <input name="name" type="text" placeholder="Your name" />
  <input name="utm_source" id="utm_source" type="hidden" />
  <button type="submit">Get the Rights Packet</button>
</form>

<script>
  // Capture UTMs
  function getParam(name){ const url = new URL(location.href); return url.searchParams.get(name) || '' }
  document.getElementById('utm_source').value = getParam('utm_source') || getParam('utm');

  // GA4 conversion event on submit
  document.getElementById('rightsForm').addEventListener('submit', function(e){
    // e.preventDefault(); // remove only if testing
    if(window.gtag) gtag('event','request_rights_packet', {method:'web'});
  });
</script>

Note: modern CMSs (Webflow, WordPress) can host this and forward submissions to Zapier or direct APIs. The important part is UTM capture and conversion tracking.

What metrics does an agency want to see in 2026?

Agencies evaluate both creative potential and audience economics. Present these metrics clearly:

Active readers: monthly unique readers, average read time per issue/chapter
Owned audience: newsletter subscribers, email open rates, churn
Monetization: direct sales, subscriptions, merch revenue, licensing revenue
Engagement: social interaction rate, UGC frequency, community retention
Cross-platform reach: video views, podcast listens, game trial rates (if any)
Conversion funnels: landing page conversion %, rights packet downloads per 1,000 visitors

Pro-tip: show trend lines (last 6–12 months). Agencies want growth curves, not static numbers.

Transmedia strategy checklist — exactly what to include

Your transmedia landing page and pitch deck should include a one-line plan for each platform. Use this checklist to avoid vague promises:

TV/Streaming: format (episodic, limited), tone, 6-episode arc outline
Film: central conflict, film logline, theatrical vs streaming strategy
Animation: target demo, animation style references
Games: core mechanic, platform (mobile/console/PC), IP-to-game design brief
Merch: product categories, estimated margins, licensee prospects — consider fractional ownership or new merch models in the collectibles market
Interactive/AR: if applicable, a one-paragraph use-case and minimal prototype idea

Pitching agencies: timing and communication tips

Agencies like WME get hundreds of submissions. Stand out without being flashy:

Keep initial outreach under 150 words. Attach the rights packet link; don’t attach heavy PDFs in the first email.
Follow-up sequence: 1) initial email, 2) rights packet after an auto-download action, 3) engagement report (if someone opens packet twice), 4) request for a 15-minute briefing.
Always provide clear next steps and a single CTA: “Book 15-min creative briefing.”

Case study micro-example: How a creator converted a licensing meeting

One indie creator I worked with used this approach in late 2025:

Launched a single transmedia landing page with a rights-request CTA.
Added a compact rights packet and a 12-slide pitch deck hosted behind the download.
Ran a targeted outreach to 30 boutique agencies, each with a UTM-tagged link.
Tracked three agencies that downloaded the packet and opened it >2x; those three became priority follow-ups.
Two weeks later, one boutique agency set a meeting and the IP eventually entered negotiation for a podcast series.

Key lesson: measurement and gating (download → follow-up) created pipeline authenticity. Agencies knew the creator had a plan and an audience.

Advanced tactics (2026 trends to leverage)

Here are strategies that are winning deals in 2026:

Serialized short-form video proof: 60–90s adaptations of pivotal pages turned into vertical videos — great for demonstrating tone and social traction. Use a vertical video rubric for creative assessment.
AI-assisted proof-of-concept scripts: Short draft pilot scripts or show bibles produced with human editing — agencies appreciate a readable starter script.
Interactive prototypes: Simple WebGL or mobile demos that show how core mechanics translate to games or AR experiences — technical teams may adopt affordable edge bundles for prototypes.
Owned-community metrics: Discord/Telegram retention, event attendance numbers — these are now tracked as KPI signals by licensing teams. Watch platform shifts (e.g., Bluesky upticks) and community tools for signal collection.
Transparent rights ledger: a clear, downloadable rights table that reduces due-diligence friction — treat digital ownership like any other cross-border asset (digital-assets guidance).

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

Too much creative, too little business: If your deck is all art and no numbers, agencies will pass. Add traction and monetization slides.
Vague rights status: Be explicit about what you control. If co-owned, state it. Agencies won’t chase ambiguous ownership.
No follow-up measurement: If you can’t show who downloaded the packet and what they clicked, you lose negotiation leverage.

Checklist: What to launch in the first 14 days

One-page transmedia landing with CTA
Rights packet (PDF) + 12-slide pitch deck
UTM-tagged outreach links and simple CRM (even a spreadsheet)
Basic analytics (GA4) and conversion event tracking
Short vertical video proof or 1-page pilot outline

Measurement fundamentals — what to report to agency partners

When you get a meeting, bring a two-page one-pager that summarizes:

Key metrics in a single visual (readers, subs, revenue)
Top 3 audience demographics (age, geography, platforms)
Monetization roadmap (what licensing could unlock)
Clear rights ask

Final thoughts: Turn creative assets into business-ready packages

In 2026, signing with a top agency like WME is less about having the single-best comic and more about presenting IP as a multi-platform, measurable, and low-friction opportunity. The Orangery made headlines because they brought transmedia readiness to their pitch. You can do the same at creator scale by building a focused landing funnel, a crisp rights packet, and a pitch deck that tells both a creative and commercial story.

Action plan — 7 tasks to do this week

Draft a one-line logline and place it in the hero of your site.
Create a one-page rights packet PDF (use the checklist in this article).
Build a rights-request form with UTM capture and set a GA4 event.
Make a 12-slide pitch deck using the slide order above.
Produce one 60s vertical video adapting a pivotal page or beat.
Send UTM-tagged outreach to 20 agencies/contacts and track downloads.
Prepare a two-page metrics one-pager for meetings.

Call to action

If you’re ready to convert your graphic novel into agency-ready IP, start by publishing a transmedia landing page this week. Need a template or a quick deck review? Get in touch or download our creator pitch templates to accelerate the process — turn your world into a pipeline that agencies want to represent.

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Contributor

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.

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