One of the most crucial parts of
filmmaking is understanding the legalities involved in the process.
Intellectual Property and Copyright laws are two main areas of Entertainment
Law related to the business of filmmaking.
A wonderful resource for hearing
the most current cases regarding Entertainment Law are the podcasts put out by
Gordon P. Firemark, Esq. and Tamara Bennett on Entertainment Law Update on the
site of www.entertainmentlawupdate.com.
Also, Suffolk University in the
Boston area showcases law podcasts through Itunes, which are very helpful in
understanding IP and Copyright law. They are called the “Intellectual Property
Law Podcast Series” by Suffolk University.
I found these podcasts to be very
interesting and helpful in understanding some of the issues facing the media
production companies and filmmakers today.
First, I listened to Professor
Andrew Beckerman-Rodau, a former Patent attorney and now professor at Suffolk
University. He lectured on the “IP Law Concentration”, which covers what IP Law
is and how it has evolved over the years.
This podcast was helpful in
understanding how the areas of IP law have progressed due to the expansion of
intellectual property, due to the increase in technology. He states that most
companies now have more intellectual assets rather than physical assets,
whereas it used to be the opposite. This observation is astute and poignant
when considering the impact of the IP laws on the creation of anything in the
media, whether film, photo or music. Knowing how to protect the creation of art
is fundamental to being able to produce films and media in this day and age.
Secondly, the podcasts produced by
Gordon Firemark, Esq. are very interesting. He goes over the recent cases on
Entertainment Law and if there has been an opinion granted from the courts. The
podcasts listened to were:
Episode 43 had a relevant topic in
regards to film on the case of Faulkner Literary vs. Sony Pictures Classic. The
Faulkner estate was suing Sony for using a phrase out of Faulkner’s work, which
was quoted in a Woody Allen picture, “Midnight in Paris”. They were being sued
over a line, which incorporated a total of 9 words. The judge ruled that it
wasn’t copyright infringement.
This case is one that is addressed
quite often, it seems. Using other peoples’ works in a film can cause a case of
being sued for copyright infringement. Knowing how to obtain rights and
permissions would be the first way to alleviate this occurrence from happening.
Having an Entertainment Attorney involved in the process would be the second
best way to avoid lawsuits over copyright infringement. It can be a tricky area
and having a solid foundation when creating the media is key to success.
Episode 28 had one relevant topic
that stood out to me. They had as a guest, a Canadian Entertainment Lawyer
present for the podcast to discuss the differences between American IP Law and
Canadian IP Law. This was fascinating, as there seems to be more and more films
being created between the U.S. and Canada. It is helpful to understand what
their laws are like compared to ours in this area.
Bob Taratino, the Canadian
Entertainment Lawyer discussed how the IP laws are different than ours in the
area of moral rights. The artist has more say over how their work is used in
Canada because of the moral rights aspect. They can tell someone, “No, you may
not use my work,” and that is the end of it. Although, Gordon Firemark brought
up a good point on how Canadian Law does not have reach in America. If it is
law in Canada, it does not supersede the laws here.
For example, Mitt Romney asked the
Canadian artist, Kid Rock, if he could use one of Kid Rock’s songs in his
campaign. Kid Rock said no. Mitt Romney acknowledged this and didn’t use the
song. In the U.S., Mitt Romney could have pursued a license for public
performance; therefore he did not have to ask the artist for permission to use
the song.
I found
these podcasts to be most informative. I recommend these podcasts to anyone in
the Entertainment field, as they are very helpful and informative. It is a
convenient and easy way to keep up to date with what is happening in the courts
in regards to Intellectual Property laws.
