Yargh.
Do you download free music from P2P software? Have you ever taken someone else's work and called it your own? Do you wear an eyepatch and have a peg-leg while doing all of the above?
Congratulations, you are a pirate!
Do you write poetry and post online? Do you make movies and post them on YouTube? Do you put your music on MySpace?
Congratulations, you're vulnerable to having your material be stolen or reproduced by pirates!
Fear not; I am right there with you in that same boat. The thought of someone else using your work is gut-churning, though all sources say that the minute you originally create something - you own rights to it. Legal rights. *sigh* What a breath of fresh air.
As a writer and a filmmaker, it is comforting to know that the Law is on my side. Anything I create is mine; naturally, you'd think I was an idiot for stating the obvious - but there are some talentless, pirating, thieving gremlins out there who can't wait to get their paws on someone else's work. It may sound dramatic, but for all pracitcal purposes, it is so true. Don't deny it. Some copyright issues can be relatively benign and innocent, but let's be real. A law is a law is a law. You steal something that isn't yours, you get your face smacked by the mighty hand of the US Constitution.
I thought I had the general idea of how copyrights work: don't unjustly use or replicate works that aren't yours and all is well. After Jason Hardin came to class, I learned that there was a lot more to copyrights than one would have thought. Copyrights aren't just for famous authors or playwrites -- they are also applicable for college students and five year olds alike. And just because the author/creator is dead, it doesn't mean the copyright doesn't apply anymore; Law states that a copyright lasts 70 years after death, and may be extended if the rights are bequeathed to another party and registration can be renewed. Fascinating. What does this mean? There are virtually no loopholes. Pretty much anything that isn't yours... well.... it isn't yours.
I am no saint when it comes to the issue of copyrights. I know it's shocking... gasp all you want. In fact, I have recently accepted the fact that I have partaken in piracy for the benefit of my own works. I uploaded a film trailer I made a few months ago, with a cut music track by a band named "Paramore". The video got over 1,000 hits. Pretty cool. About 4 months later, I get an email from WMG, Paramore's record label, requesting a take-down of the trailer or else they would have YouTube officials mute the video. Well... at least they were kind enough to give me options. I didn't respond to said email out of pure embarrassment, and thus they muted my precious trailer. Now it looks like a silent film. *sigh* The end.
In my honest opinion, I believe that original works should be allowed to be used by the public UNDER THE STRICT REQUIREMENT that the source is properly credited. If anything, it is a means for exposure. If these rules are so strictly enforced, then how are we even allowed to informally quote people without the S.W.A.T. team showing up at our doorstep? It will probably never make sense to me. Despite my stubborn outlook, I can understand why these rules are enforced. I would personally be very irritated if someone snipped up one of my films and re-arranged it into some creepy and obsessive montage of one of my actors... without crediting me or asking permission. The Law is just so. I don't think it's supposed to make sense.
Yargh,
Kendra
