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convert mp4 to aiff?
am i out of luck if trying to convert to aiff a (purchased) mp4 song downloaded into itunes for use in FCP 5?
thanks for helping out a bonehead,
jtn
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13 Replies
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Yes, you are outta luck. Those are copywritten songs that are not usable in FCP projects…
There are ways, but we can’t go into them here. Legal reasons.
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Burn a cd then reimport into iTunes (select AIFF encoder in Preferences). Then import the file into FCP.
Boyd
“Go slow to go fast” -
Just because you bought the song from iTunes doesn’t mean you can use it legally in any production, you still need to pay royalties, you’ve only paid for the privilege to listen to it.
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There are many legitimate reasons someone may want/need to bring in a piece of music from iTunes. That is something the person making the video/film needs to decide for themselves, not the person(s) who choose to provide technical information relating to FCP.
An example: I recently saw a documentary (Time in the Barrel: Death and Life in Vietnam by Don Downey) that used several Vietnam era songs, famous songs from The Animals, etc. The filmmaker did not get the rights for any of these songs, but PBS already had broadcast rights to the songs and picked up the documentary. Now, the filmmaker cannot distribute the documentary himself, nor can he make a compilation CD of the soundtrack, it can only be shown on PBS. It can also be shown at film festivals. Of course, he also backed himself into a legal corner that he may not have gotten out of without PBS, and learned a valuable lesson about getting releases. But clearly he had legitimate reasons for using the music, even though he did not have “permission” at the time he was editing.
Boyd
“Go slow to go fast” -
[boydmcc] “But clearly he had legitimate reasons for using the music, even though he did not have “permission” at the time he was editing.”
There is nothing “clear” about this.
There is no legitimate NEED to feature any song in a documentary that rates
ignoring the law. (The only freedom being trampled-on is the owner’s of the copyright.)There is no freedom to use and play copyrighted material in a production shown at a “film festival” without permission.
There are several different forms of copyright permissions, not the least of which applies to films and video… the “Synchronization rights” which involve editing a song into a new program presentation.It is also illegal to discuss methods of circumventing legal copy-guards.
Whether or not you personally believe these laws exist
or simply wish to invent your own set of rules,
it does not change the fact that you endanger other editors by giving out misinformation… and can even risk damage to the operators of these kind of forums when you discuss how to break the rules.It IS up to the posters here to provide legitimate information and stay within the law.
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[Thax] “It IS up to the posters here to provide legitimate information and stay within the law.”
The law is there to protect copyright owners.
If copyright owners refused anyone permission anytime anywhere to synchronize their property to moving images, there would be no synchronization. No music in movies, TV shows, ads, nothing.
In practice copyright owners can and do implicitly allow synchronization prior to rights purchase.
For example – the producer of a “piece of visual entertainment” may want to use a track that the publisher and recording company may or may not allow until they have seen an offline – in other words the usage. If you send them the offline with the intewnt to enter negotiation for usgae of that track, they will generally speaking not prosecute – it is in their interest to allow people to trial music in order to then purchase it.
Caveat: *it could depend on who you are*! Jerry Bruckheimer? or known offender who persists on posting videos on the net that clearly do not use cleared music?
Discussion of this topic on this forum, I believe, should proceed in the light of the above.
So if anyone thinks I have misinformed or endangered fellow grazers with this post, please please feel free to comment!!
Tom Ackroyd
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As legal and as reasonable as this sounds….by the books it is STILL totally illegal. People will do what people do, but 9/10 times it is likely totally illegal.
Kevin Monahan
Take My FCP Master’s Seminar!
fcpworld.com -
[Kevin Monahan] “As legal and as reasonable as this sounds….by the books it is STILL totally illegal. People will do what people do, but 9/10 times it is likely totally illegal.”
so is it TOTALLY illegal or 9/10 times LIKELY illegal? Therein lies the whole point and pointlessness of this thread. It’s not 100%, it’s not black & white. People here offer advice on FCP because that’s what this forum is about. For NON Lawyers to offer legal advice or make absolute legal statements without having a law degree, without specializing in copyright law, AND without knowing the specifics of a case is misleading (it reminds me of Sen Bill Frist, an M.D., diagnosing – incorrectly – Terry Schiavo from a 30 second edited videotape). Copyright is one of the most complex areas of the law and cannot be distilled down to absolute statements. And saying you can’t tell someone how to do something for “legal reasons” is rather pretentious. Makes you wonder if you were contacted by law enforcement or have a court order preventing you from discussing certain things.
Copyright is a serious issue and isn’t something that should be taken lightly. I appreciate that the participants of this thread believe in copyright and are trying to convey the seriousness of copyright issues to others. I don’t advocate violating the copyrights of any artist, profiting off of someone else’s work, or preventing others from profiting off of their own work (by diluting the value of their work through copyright violations). If for no other reasons, in addition to being wrong, it’s poor filmmaking and poor business practice. But, I also don’t advocate assuming someone is breaking the law or having some sort of “legal litmus test” before providing technical information that can be used legally.
The bottom line is that folks should be aware of copyright and consult with a qualified attorney for their particular situation.
And let’s not even get into the potential issues around how iMovie encourages and facilitates using iTunes content (purchased or otherwise).
Boyd
“Go slow to go fast” -
[boydmcc] “And let’s not even get into the potential issues around how iMovie encourages and facilitates using iTunes content (purchased or otherwise).”
The “iTunes-made-me-do-it” Defense.
Yeah, that’s the ticket!
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[boydmcc] “And saying you can’t tell someone how to do something for “legal reasons” is rather pretentious.”
Your ignorance of the law is staggering.
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