Copyright questions?

POSTED BY: JuTin77
UPDATED: Friday, September 10, 2004 15:57
VIEWED: 7986
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JUTIN77

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 7:52 PM

In a discussion that I had on a different topic, I had this conversation "Lalli you wrote "Remember to ask permission for your project from FOX, AND YOU MUST HAVE THE WRITTEN VERSION OF IT. You have no idea how deep into lawshit you can sink if you don't do it by the book, believe me."

I'm working on a film called "Spaced Out" a comedy cartoon and at one point the character is singing "Ballad of Serenity".

I always thought that I didn't need permission if I didn't profit from the copyright infringement.

Please help, that scene is in the begining of the film and we're way past that.

JASONZZZ

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 7:58 PM

You should look under fair use and other usage "rights"... IANAL, but I believe you can take examples from mix artists who "sample" from different works to make a composite work. I believe you can also use less than 4 bars and still considered ok.

Quote:
Originally posted by JuTin77:
In a discussion that I had on a different topic, I had this conversation "Lalli you wrote "Remember to ask permission for your project from FOX, AND YOU MUST HAVE THE WRITTEN VERSION OF IT. You have no idea how deep into lawshit you can sink if you don't do it by the book, believe me."

I'm working on a film called "Spaced Out" a comedy cartoon and at one point the character is singing "Ballad of Serenity".

I always thought that I didn't need permission if I didn't profit from the copyright infringement.

Please help, that scene is in the begining of the film and we're way past that.

JUTIN77

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 8:00 PM

any idea on how to post the scene in question so you guys can view it. It's basically the whole song sung by a character (with music) until he gets cut off by another character.

LASHER99

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 8:54 PM

IANAL either, but I think you would need to get permission from the copyright holder even if you are not profiting from the film. Journalists enjoy certain privliges for review purposes but this is not what you are doing here. You're creating a derivative work for that song which may constitute a copyright violation. It may depend how much of the song you are using but you'd have to dig further into your copyright laws. Remember songs such as "Happy Birthday" were (or maybe still are) subject to a royalty/copyright fee if performed in public. My advice, contact 20th Century Fox in writing, let them know of your intent, provide them the scene from your script and wait for a reply. No response from them does not mean they waive their copyright. Only if you get it in writing will you be in the clear if there is a copyright issue.

ANNIK

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 9:04 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by lasher99:
IANAL either, but I think you would need to get permission from the copyright holder even if you are not profiting from the film. Journalists enjoy certain privliges for review purposes but this is not what you are doing here. You're creating a derivative work for that song which may constitute a copyright violation. It may depend how much of the song you are using but you'd have to dig further into your copyright laws. Remember songs such as "Happy Birthday" were (or maybe still are) subject to a royalty/copyright fee if performed in public. My advice, contact 20th Century Fox in writing, let them know of your intent, provide them the scene from your script and wait for a reply. No response from them does not mean they waive their copyright. Only if you get it in writing will you be in the clear if there is a copyright issue.

IANAL, but have had to deal with this stuff from time to time. Happy Birthday is still subject to royalty issues last I heard.

However, this scriptwriter might be absolutely fine -- the scene as described sounds satirical, which has its own protections.

Still, its best to check with both Fox and your own legal counsel. What nation are you in? Intellectual property laws are not always consistent in all places, so you may have more leeway in your country than a US resident would have. (Although 'copyright' has fairly wide support in similar ways accordin to the Berne Convention, I believe.)

You most definitely *should* research the matter further.

Cheers,
Annik

DELIA

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 9:16 PM

As a library science student with a lawyer mother, I can tell you definitely want to look into this. There are a lot a nuances, but fair use will only get you so far, and profit doesn't have to enter into it. Get advice from a lawyer if you can, contact FOX and/or Mutant Enemy, whoever has the copyright, and be prepared to reshoot the scene if you have to.

ASTRIANA

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 9:23 PM

Chances are that Joss, having written both music and lyrics, holds the copyright to the song. (But make sure you DOUBLE CHECK!) If that's the case, you should be able to contact him through ME to get written permission.

~A~

...I'm still free,
You can't take the sky from me.

SIGMANUNKI

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 10:23 PM

Most of the time when you sign a contract there is a clause in there that specifically states that anything you create belongs to that company, unless special permission is granted for specific things, so, I'd say that is is probably f*x's property.

----
"Canada being mad at you is like Mr. Rogers throwing a brick through your window." -Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

JUTIN77

Friday, May 7, 2004 8:29 PM

What do you mean contact you to get in contact with Joss?

MAUGWAI

Friday, May 7, 2004 8:43 PM

The rule for magazines is, you can print up to a certain amount of the song (four lines, I think?) without fear of copyright issues. After that, you must get permission. I'm not sure if that applies to film, but it would make sense.

"Dear diary, today I was pompous and my sister was crazy."

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