Register a Copyright I formally register a copyright for the picture via the Registrar of Copyrights once the picture is completed. Please refer to the article on copyrights for more information on this process. Trademark The United Stated Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) will grant you exclusive ownership and use over any mark for which…
Music is one of the most important elements of any picture. The right music can be transcendent—the wrong one downright distracting. The difference between the two is very often money. Independent producers tend to under budget music costs, then “borrow” from the music budget whenever they have shortfalls in other areas. I strongly recommend that…
You will need up to five different types of insurance for your production. Production insurance/general liability, equipment insurance, Workers Compensation Insurance, and completion bond insurance are purchased during pre-production. E&O insurance is purchased prior to the picture’s distribution. You must purchase insurance because your production company is contractually committed to do so by the companies…
You may develop a screenplay based on a public domain work, such as a play by Shakespeare. A public domain work may be used by anyone in any way without the need for permission or payment to the author or the author’s estate. A work is in the public domain when the work lacks copyright…
You are free to independently create works that may be similar to others, as long as you can prove that they were, indeed, completely original to you. The U.S. Copyright Act grants the author of literary property such as a book, video game, screenplay, motion picture, play, etc., the exclusive right to use his creation….