Filmmaking Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Filmmaking raises a number of legal and ethical concerns. Certain worries will arise during the course of a film production, whether one is a filmmaker, a producer, or owns a production business. But, before delving into the challenges, a film producer should keep in mind that the first task of film production is to create a commercial organization for the picture. The aim of forming a corporate corporation is to avoid three crucial areas: accountability, taxation, funding, and control. Furthermore, a film producer must be conscious that making a picture is a collaborative effort, and the colleagues will tend to collaborate on risky things such as screenwriting, attainment of intellectual property as well as holding of the crew and the actors. The objective of this paper is to assess ethical and legal issues such as broadcasting, copyrighted materials, and achievement of elements like screenplays that will arise when forming the film production business and how the problems will be resolved.
Legal Issues in Film Production
Most filmmakers and producers do not always do business independently and tend to form production firms that they do business under (Albarran, 2016). One of the legal encounters that come a lot in filmmaking industry is whether it is logic to establish a discrete production venture entity for that specific product that will bear the accountability for different commitments that will be conducted as part of the film project. The first step in right features of filmmaking includes the formation of a production company so that the company itself is regulated suitably (Albarran, 2016).
Due to the reason that filmmakers and producers are frequently involved in countless projects at a single time, and tasks vary widely in viability and realization, production corporations are set up to keep legal responsibility and requirements that are limited to a precise project that is being established. One should imagine a situation that would arise if there were disagreement about a particular film, its production, and assets (Albarran, 2016). The distressed party should not find themselves going through the individual production business bank accounts to figure out where the money has been disbursed. Some producers and production companies liquefy and create business entities every few years to shun from cross-contamination or income streams linking their personal developments and the projects that they have received film investments. It also matters when it comes to looking for tax credits (Albarran, 2016).
The acquirement of these rights is documented in an acquisition agreement that is discussed with the owner of the underlying intellectual property which is typically the owner of the screenplay or the subject of the film in the filmmaking ((Torremans, 2016)). It will give the production company the right to obtain the intellectual property during one or more acquisition agreement periods. When discussing these issues, the parties must also address concerns such as the aggregate of acquisition agreement payment, the span of the option periods and the purchase price in case the option is implemented. In addition to the deliberations of the intellectual property contemplations, scripts also tend to present potential defamation and invasion of privacy distresses mainly if the text comprises characters that are based on real persons (Torremans, 2016).
The production company is also mandated to assemble the team on and off employees whose services will be mandatory during the production and that comprise the associates of the crew, director, and producers (Brereton, 2015). Each of these individuals should be involved under a written contract that will discourse reasonably common issues such as reimbursement, length of occupation and working hours. Other matters that might be addressed include profit contribution rights, on-screen credits as well traveling and accommodation necessities. In case the production corporation is working with guild affiliates such as DGA, SAG, IATSE, and WGA, then legal counsel of the production firm should evaluate the relevant collective bargaining contracts to ensure that the engagement contracts conform to the specifications of the union (Brereton, 2015). Moreover, if any of the critical players are juveniles, then the company should obtain releases from the parents of the minor or legal guardian or otherwise conform with the guidelines that relate to the hire of the minors. When the film is in a precise location, the production company is obligated to have location releases from the possessors of the assets and licenses from government consultants if they are shooting in government property (Brereton, 2015).
During post-production, the production company is obligated to involve additional workers to edit and score the pictures and obtain extra intellectual property privileges from the music that would be presented on the soundtrack (Torremans, 2016). With the workers engaged in the principal photography, the legal counsel of the production company must be careful because the agreements with post-production workers conform to any necessities of relevant unions or performers rights societies. The legal counsel must also deal with more routine concerns of reward, performance, and on-screen credits. The same way, the production company must conduct due diligence to regulate that it owns original licenses or any musical arrangements to be comprised of the soundtrack (Torremans, 2016).
Rights of the Film and Video Makers
Copyrights
Whether one is creating a low budget film, a Hollywood bestseller or a documentary one needs to be acquainted with some legal issues that can affect the producers ((Kamina, 2016)). Copyright for a movie distresses the important rights that only the producers have in their in works. Copyright in the film gives the producer the exclusive rights to create the copy of it, cause the movie to be seen and heard in public as well as communication of the film to the public through the internet and the television. Through the copyright of the film, other people will need the consent of the producer to relish some of the pointed out packages. Copyright is very vital because it guards the work of the film creators against the use by others without authorization and allows them to get money for what they have worked for genuinely (Kamina, 2016).
Copyright Clearance
At some stages, one may want to use copyright supplies possessed by others in a film or a video of their own (Kamina, 2016). Before using the work of other people, the filmmaker must acquire consent from the owners. When one seeks approval from the copyright owner, it is called copyright clearance. The clearances are needed for screenplays, music soundtracks, footage from another film or video or artistic works that are viewed in a film. Approval is significant because they guarantee that the producer does not trespass the rights of others. Besides, many funding organizations and cinema distributors will need to see the clearances before they decide to work with the film producer (Kamina, 2016).
Moral Rights for Film Producers
Moral rights are individual rights that bond creators of work to that specific task. A filmmaker has the right to be accredited in that one must have his or her name approved in the credits (Rea, P., & Irving, 2015). Anyone else cannot be named as the producer, screenwriter or director of the film. A producer has the aptitude to protect themselves by taking legal action if the film that they have produced is treated in a way that hurts their status. Additionally, a film creator is required to respect the moral rights of other people if by any case they have encompassed their work by listing them in the acknowledgments (Rea, P., & Irving, 2015). Before filming, producers are obligated to have authorization from the actors who appear in their production. Having an accord form in place is the best way to do this as the form clarifies the persistence of the venture, what is being filmed, what the producer supposes of the performers as well as how they will be seen or heard in the concluded edit. The producer must also get agreement from the private property to avoid legal struggles with the owners (Rea, P., & Irving, 2015).
Women are signified in the sense that they take the role of the helper or object to the critical character which most of the time is male (Rea, P., & Irving, 2015). Male, on the other hand, are signified as isolated characters and are most likely the heroes because they have the power and the capacity to be autonomous. Away from representations in the films, the film might comprise aggressive material in that the displayed content might harm or offend someone either bodily or psychologically (Rea, P., & Irving, 2015). Such substances are essential to have the 18 age certificate because they may contain blood and violence. The film businesses use these documents to differentiate what is appropriate for young children and adults. There is also the concern of the libel law that takes effect when one damages one's status in a permanent form through written or broadcast. It is typically done to a massive audience with things such as social media and television to transmit something that damages the reputation of the person in question (Brereton, 2015).
Conclusion
It is clear that film production industry is one of the involved sectors with numerous policies. The producer must strictly adhere to the rules and regulations from establishing the business entity to the post-production stage (Sutter, 2014). The film production industry is also complicated in the sense that the producer must be involved in multiple projects and these calls for counsel that is well conversant with the legal aspects of film production. Due to the reason that the film is intended for the society, the moral perspective of the content must be put into consideration to avoid offending young viewers (Sutter, 2014). Respecting the moral rights of other people in the production process must also be the top priority because film production requires cooperation from numerous people and these people must be acknowledged in the credits. Therefore, the success of any film or a film production company depends on how legal and ethical obligations have been put into consideration both at the time of producing the film and after the production is completed.
References
Albarran, A. B. (2016). Management of electronic and digital media. Nelson Education.
Brereton, P. (2015). Environmental ethics and film. Routledge.
Kamina, P. (2016). Film copyright in the European Union (Vol. 33). Cambridge University Press.
Rea, P., & Irving, D. K. (2015). Producing and directing the short film and video. CRC Press.
Sutter, K. (2014). Distribution revolution: Conversations about the digital future of film and television. Univ of California Press.
Torremans, P. (2016). Holyoak and Torremans intellectual property law. Oxford University Press.
