What do you call an honest lawyer? An oxymoron.
Why was the lawyer skimming the Bible right before he died?
He was looking for loopholes!
Karlas Video Productions law blog
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Your own Arguments and Opinions
I personally agree with the copyright law although it’s not
always beneficial and can sometimes become a hassle when you want to
incorporate some ones work on your own work to try to improve it. "A patent is
not available solely for an idea, but only for its tangible application. “ That’s always a
good thing to know.” A patent is a grant by the government permitting the
inventor exclusive use of an invention for 20 years from the date of filing.” That means no
one can use or sell this without and permission of the inventor. I definitely feel
that copyright law truly protects our work, no one likes to do work for
nothing!” Suppose you
buy a CD that, in the end, you do not like. Under the first sale doctrine, you
have the legal right to sell that CD. The first sale doctrine permits a person who
owns a lawfully made copy of a copyrighted work to sell or otherwise dispose of
that copy.” Although people have found ways to work around buying CDs, no one likes
having there had work stolen from them especially artists.” It is illegal to delete copyright
information, such as the name of the author or the title of the article. It is also
illegal to distribute false copyright information. Thus, anyone who emailed Tom
Tomorrow's cartoon without his name on it, or who claimed it was his own work,
would be violating the law.” This is one of the many laws I really
agree with it protects you work. Copyrights protection usually expires after 50
years, that’s quite a long time. “A trademark is
any combination of words and symbols that a business uses to identify its
products or services and distinguish them from others.” Trademarks are
really important to customers and businesses the help distinguish products by their
brands. High quality businesses are the ones that usually occupy trademarks to
help their customer distinguish there brand.” a trade secret is a formula, device, process, method, or
compilation of information that, when used in business, gives the owner an
advantage over competitors who do not know it.”
Rule of the Law
.” The holder of a copyright owns
the particular expression
of an idea, but not the underlying idea
or method of operation.”Copyrights and permits are both things I think are very important. No one like people taking credit for your own
work! “If Congress disagrees with a
judicial interpretation of a statute, the legislators may pass a new statute to
modify or “undo” the court decision. For example, if the Supreme Court
misinterprets a statute about musical copyrights, Congress may pass a new law
correcting the Court's error.”The author or the creator of
the work usually owns the copyright. However, if an employee created the work
as part of a job, the employer automatically holds the copyright. Minors can
copyright their works, but state laws often control how they can market them. Whenever
you’re naming your business it is always important you have a valid trademark
so that you can avoid any copyright infringements.” A
trademark is any combination of words and symbols that a business uses to
identify its products or services and distinguish them from others. Trademarks
are important to both consumers and businesses.” Under some
circumstances, trademark protection can extend beyond words, symbols, and
phrases to include other aspects of a product, such as its color or its
packaging. However, such features will not be protected if they confer any sort
of functional or competitive advantage.” The Trademark
Law Treaty simplifies and harmonizes the process of applying for trademarks
around the world. Now, a U.S. firm seeking international trademark protection
need file only one application, in English, with the PTO, which sends the
application to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), which
transmits it to each country in which the applicant would like trademark
protection.” Trademarks make it easier for consumers to quickly identify
the source of a given good. Instead of reading the fine print on a can of cola,
consumers can look for the Coca-Cola trademark. Instead of asking a store clerk
who made a certain athletic shoe, consumers can look for particular identifying
symbols, such as a swoosh or a unique pattern of stripes.” People who feel that Nike shoes fit their feet best can rely on the
Nike trademark to know they are buying the shoes they want. A business with a
high-quality product can use a trademark to develop a loyal base of customers
who are able to distinguish its product from another.” Trademarks always tend to catch people’s
eyes other than other unknown brands. It’s always good to have your work
protected especially when it comes to film since its cost so much to produce. “One of the major
challenges for legal institutions in regulating copyrights is simply that
modern intellectual property is so easy to copy. Many consumers are in the
habit of violating the law by downloading copyrighted material—music, movies
and books—for free. They seem to believe that if it is easy to steal something,
then the theft is somehow acceptable. In one survey of adolescents aged 12 to
17, 75 percent agreed with the statement, “file sharing is so easy to do, it's
unrealistic to expect people not to do it.”One must always be very careful with copy right make
sure that they are not taking other people things. It’s always important that
when filming you makes sure you don’t make any brand look bad by accident, or
on purpose that can be considered defamatory. “The
First Amendment guarantees the right to free speech, a vital freedom that
enables us to protect other rights. But that freedom is not absolute. The law
of defamation concerns false statements that harm someone's reputation.
Defamatory statements can be written or spoken. Written defamation is called
libel. Suppose a newspaper accuses a local retail store of programming its cash
registers to overcharge customers, when the store has never done so. That is
libel. Oral defamation is slander. If Professor Wilson, in class, refers to
Sally Student as a drug dealer when she has never sold drugs, he has slandered
her.”
Reasoning of the Law
I feel that all my questions were answered to a great extent. I think
he was very straight forward made easy for me to understand how everything
works. Now I know I can always come to him whenever I have any legal questions.” One of the major challenges for legal institutions in
regulating copyrights is simply that
modern intellectual property is so easy to copy. Many consumers are in the
habit of violating the law by downloading copyrighted material—music, movies
and books—for free.”
2. Can I use a song or other copyrighted work in my film?
If you are planning to use copyrighted material in your film, you will either need to get permission from the copyright holder, or substantially change it to the point where it is not recognizable from the original source (which kind of defeats the purpose of using it anyway).
5. Do I need permission to use my actor’s image in my own films? What if they’re underage?
6. Do I need any permission if a famous quote or phrase is said in my film?
7. Do I need permission to film in public places? Would that cause problems with people that don’t want to be filmed?
1. Are there any legal problems with using a specific product in my film?
If you use a product
positively in a film for the purpose it was intended for there should be no problems you don't have to use generic labeled products. Although problems can arise if you show a product
in a bad light the company that produces it may not be too happy with you. This
may constitute what is called “defamation “of a product.
2. Can I use a song or other copyrighted work in my film?
If you are planning to use copyrighted material in your film, you will either need to get permission from the copyright holder, or substantially change it to the point where it is not recognizable from the original source (which kind of defeats the purpose of using it anyway).
3. Do I need to get the rights to music used in my film if I’m not
charging people to view it?
In short the answer
is yes, Copyright law prevents distribution and public performance of protected
works, regardless of whether money changes hands or
not. It's the public performance aspect, not the money which causes problems
with copyright. If you do not hold the necessary rights for music used in your
film, then you cannot show it to anyone in a public environment.
4. How do I “copyright” my
company's name?
It’s possible to register your business with a state or national government authority. Business names can only be registered if they are significantly different from any other name that exists in the authority's database. Registering your business offers some form of name protection. You should however, be aware that this protection only exists for the authority you register your business with. It does not protect your name from being registered with a different authority. If you want that level of protection, you need to register your business with the relevant authority in each territory you would like protection for.
It’s possible to register your business with a state or national government authority. Business names can only be registered if they are significantly different from any other name that exists in the authority's database. Registering your business offers some form of name protection. You should however, be aware that this protection only exists for the authority you register your business with. It does not protect your name from being registered with a different authority. If you want that level of protection, you need to register your business with the relevant authority in each territory you would like protection for.
5. Do I need permission to use my actor’s image in my own films? What if they’re underage?
Yes, you must get each person
who is identifiable in your film to sign a release allowing you to use their
image in the film. You will need a personal release from the children’s
parents or legal guardian; the personal release should provide you all the
rights to the film. You will also need to ensure that the child has obtained an
entertainment work permit through the state department, and meets all the
educational requirements of the state during the film.
6. Do I need any permission if a famous quote or phrase is said in my film?
Anything that’s in your film and is not created by you or your public
domain will have to be cleared before your film can be distributed or sold
7. Do I need permission to film in public places? Would that cause problems with people that don’t want to be filmed?
If you are shooting on location, always carry some blank releases with you. It's
best to try and avoid getting members of the public in your shots, but if it's
unavoidable, it's worth trying to get them to sign a release. Generally, as
long as the images of people aren’t offensive, defamatory or unreasonably
invade their privacy; you don’t have to get every person in the crowd to sign a
release. Some public places may require permission.
8. Do I need to inform the
authorities if I happen to use weapons ( for example guns ) in my film?
In most places you are
unlikely to find a law which requires filmmakers to notify the local police if
they are shooting scenes in public which involve fake guns it is usually a good
idea to get them involved.
9. What can I do if my company’s
name is used by and established company?
This would be considered a
trademark infringement. There are several types of issues that may occur the
best thing you could do is to change your company name and make sure it’s
available for your company.
10. How do I get the rights to
adapt a book into a screenplay?
You would need to find out whether the motion picture and associated rights are available for the work you want to adapt you would then need to get a hold of the publisher Basically, with an option you can get your script written, and look for production finance, or try and sell it, without having to worry about someone else taking it.
You would need to find out whether the motion picture and associated rights are available for the work you want to adapt you would then need to get a hold of the publisher Basically, with an option you can get your script written, and look for production finance, or try and sell it, without having to worry about someone else taking it.
The Questions
When I was choosing my
questions I tried to find questions that would be short but very useful to me.
I really wanted to get a good understanding in issues that I might have to
confront when filming or before filming. I tried thinking of typical question a
filmmaker might ask one’s self when attempting to produce a film or even start
a company. I leaned more towards asking questions that would involve anything
that had to do with copyrights and permits, just because I feel that that is
what most filmmakers might struggle with at some point. I tried thinking of
situations that might occur when creating a film and or video. It’s always very
important to be aware of all the legal issues that that the film industry acquires.
I also tried asking questions that would help me protect my work and company
from any type of incidents. I especially think these questions are core
questions when you are in this kind of industry. I think these questions will definitely
be helpful and will help me be successful throughout my career.
1. Are there any legal problems with using a specific product in my film?
8.Do I need to inform the authorities if I happen to use weapons (for example guns) in a film?
Legal Authority
In
my search for a lawyer I first I wasn’t quite sure who I could contact, I
wanted someone who would take the time to listen and explain all my question so
that I could understand the process. After finding out my cousin was a Lawyer I
automatically got in contact with my cousin Armando Marino. I was actually
shocked to find out my cousin was a lawyer I had no clue. I didn’t hesitate one
bit to ask him if he could help me with my school project. I believe it’s
sometimes better to have your family help you out in these types of legal
issues especially because you know they’re not going to lie to you. One of the
big reasons why I chose him beside the fact that he’s my cousin is that I felt
he was going to answer my entire questions to the best of his ability. I also
think he’s very honest and straight forward. I’m really grateful he took the
time to explain everything. I’ve known my cousin for a long time now and he is definitely
the person I would come to if I ever had any of these kinds of legal issues
happening. He’s really intelligent he’s always up for a challenge I know he
answer my question. I think my cousin was a really great choice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)