Posted on February 18, 2012 in Legal & Copyright | 1 Comment
Our system of law doesn’t acknowledge the derivative nature of creativity. Instead, ideas are regarded as property, as unique and original lots with distinct boundaries. But ideas aren’t so tidy. They’re layered, they’re interwoven, they’re tangled. And when the system conflicts with the reality… the system starts to fail.
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Posted on January 18, 2012 in Featured, Internet, Legal & Copyright | 6 Comments
Now that Occupy Wall Street is dead the interwebs are abuzz with a new protest meme denouncing SOPA. This should not be confused with their decades long protest against soap.
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Posted on October 21, 2011 in Contracts and Law, Legal & Copyright | 1 Comment
James Erwin is a fledgling author who posted a series of short stories in Reddit’s forums about what would happen if U.S. Marines traveled back in time to fight the Roman Empire. Warner Bros. took notice and moved to buy the movie rights. But Reddit’s user agreement may turn his dream into a intellectual property nightmare.
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Posted on August 25, 2011 in Contracts and Law, Legal & Copyright | 2 Comments
CGP Grey takes a look at the history of copyright law in his new video “Copyright: Forever Less One Day”.
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Posted on May 5, 2011 in Internet, Legal & Copyright | No Comments
Youtube invited Anthony Falzone, Executive Director of the Fair Use Project, and Julie Ahrens, Associate Director of the Fair Use Project, answer a selection of questions about Fair Use and YouTube.
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Posted on May 5, 2011 in Contracts and Law, Featured, Legal & Copyright | No Comments
What’s difference between an idea an the expression of an idea? What’s the difference between borrowing and stealing? What’s covered under Copyright and what’s not? If you want clear answers to those questions, hire a layer! If you want a basic understanding, keep reading.
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Posted on April 22, 2011 in Filmmaking 360, Legal & Copyright | No Comments
Felix Salmon gives us his take on the future of Intellectual Property rights and how it plays in the developing world.
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Posted on August 3, 2010 in Contracts and Law, Internet, Legal & Copyright | 1 Comment
Margaret Gould Stewart, YouTube’s head of user experience, talks about how the ubiquitous video site works with copyright holders and creators to foster (at the best of times) a creative ecosystem where everybody wins.
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Posted on April 14, 2010 in Contracts and Law, Legal & Copyright, Marketing | 1 Comment
Although film is an expressive art form, it is also an increasingly international and highly commercial business. As a result, filmmakers should be very selective regarding choices to use a third party’s property—copyrighted works, trademarks, readily identified individual names or corporate names—without express permission. Permission is not always difficult to come by. Without the express permission, the errors and omissions insurance may be drafted to exclude any liability for the use of such content, and the lack of coverage may discourage distributors or exhibitors from buying or showing the work.
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Posted on January 17, 2010 in Legal & Copyright | 2 Comments
Mark Galsor and Jesse Saivar tackle the question of what’s legal when dealing with fictional characters from other movies.
…Q: My company is producing a film which has a character that is taken from another very well known film. This new story has absolutely nothing to do with the previously established film, is not [...]
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Posted on November 29, 2009 in Contracts and Law, Legal & Copyright | No Comments
By Jon M. Garon
Gallagher, Callahan & Gartrell, PC
Despite the short-term glut in the market, documentaries have become an increasingly important part of the film industry as well as tools of public discourse. Since documentaries only rarely receive national theatrical distribution, audiences do not treat nontheatrical distribution as an aesthetic judgment against the film. They expect [...]
Posted on July 22, 2008 in Legal & Copyright | No Comments
by Dina Appleton & Daniel Yankelevits
Q: I am interested in writing a sequel to someone else’s movie. I was wondering, do I need permission from the original filmmakers, or can I just write the screenplay and market it as one of my own spec scripts?
Margaret C., Far Hills, NJ
A: Dina Appleton & Daniel Yankelevits respond: [...]
Posted on July 15, 2008 in Legal & Copyright | No Comments
Entertainment Attorney Mark Litwak helps writers navigate the tricky legal issues involved when portraying real life stories with this educational FAQ.
…Question: What are the legal issues pertaining to writing a screenplay based on someone’s life story? What rights need to be secured, etc.? Is it advisable to engage an attorney prior to any discussion [...]
Posted on July 13, 2008 in Legal & Copyright | 3 Comments
by Evan Smith
To steal someone’s car, money, parking space – that’s low. But to steal someone’s story? A little made-up tale? A hundred pages of FADE IN here and CUT TO there? Is that even stealing?
Um, how can we put this – YES, DAMMIT! It is! Stealing of the worst kind! Because many hours have [...]
