The Dollar Baby (or Dollar Deal) is an arrangement by which American author Stephen King grants permission to students and aspiring filmmakers or theatre producers to adapt one of his short stories for $1. (He retains rights to his work. As he began to have commercial success, he has used these deals to help the next generation.) The term may be used to refer both to the film or play itself and to the filmmaker (for example, "The Sun Dog" was made as a Dollar Baby, and its director Matt Flesher is a Dollar Baby).