[Frank Otto]

Rick:

Rights clearances is a bitch. Most “reality” and doc producers have staffed up recently just to address the issue. Market and type of production have little to do with the laws of copyright.

Any product you have created for resale will need to secure rights for ambient music. This could be as easy as contacting the legal/rights clearances department of the label to a direct permission from the artist, or as difficult as having to deal with artists agents and fee structures based on your sales projections.

About the only time you can use the “fair use” arguement is if you were shooting in a public place, i.e. a street, and the music was incidental to the action, such as a car going by or a radio/p.a. speaker projecting sound into the public area. Note that auditoriums, arenas and areas where people assemble are not “public” areas, but are classified as “semi-public”, meaning that someone – a government or leaseholder controls public access.

The music used by the choreographer, if in the ASCAP-BMI licensing realm (commercial published and recorded music for distrubution and sale) would probably mean that you’ll have to get clearances. Whether you’ll have to pay or not dependes on the largess of the rightsholders. You may even be told that you can’t use it…many bands do not allow their work to be used in any other commercial form.

As I said…Rights clearances is a bitch.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

[tony salgado] “Give up all saturated fats, soda’s, pizza’s, hamburgers along with daily visits to all fast food restaurants. “

Of course, this doesn’t apply to news photographers…since the only staples are that of: Vendoland at City Hall, Vendoland at the station and the mixed assortment of Hardee’s, McD’s, BK, Wendy’s, Col. Chicken’s, Taco Hell and 7-11, AM-PM and Stop-n-Go’s since, your schedule rarely lets you do more than experience the culinary styling of the “Dashboard Dinette.”

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

No arguement…use of copyrighted material for that purpose does not fall under fair use.

Unknown is if the corporation cited (I did not read the article) secured rights.

For most corporate entities, especially multi-nationals, it’s not a bank breaker to secure limited rights. Most studios, especially if they have any prior marketing or merchandising or product placement deals generally find a way to incorporate scenes from a major production into their meetings.

But trust me on this…getting away with copyright infringment doesn’t mean it’s right. It’s not hard to litigate and the studio almost always wins. Just because you or I don’t see the harm in it, doesn’t mean that legally the issues of dillution, loss of revenues and unwanted affilliation are not there.

And someday, when you have your work used in a manner that you don’t like, i.e. on someone’s site or demo reel, or as a sequence in a released product, then think about how fair it is that the person using it didn’t pay you or even credit you. Harmless is always a matter of scale, until it happens to you.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

As one of the founding members of the Order of Unsung CameraOps in Hospital (OUCH) I can tell ya, the most important exercises are lower back workouts along with abs. When I was day-to-day handheld, I’d work out with a Nautilus machine, designed for just those two areas.

The really most important thing, however, is limiting your time holding the camera. If you’re a production shooter, don’t let the director make you a “dolly” camera. If you do industrial/IMAG don’t let the director shop for shots on your camera. If you’re a news shooter, have a plan, put the camera on sticks and rest…and make the “reporter” carry the other gear.

In 30+ years of ENG and EFP I’ve crushed two vertebra, flattened my right shoulder (the “TK” bone…so named by shooters who for years used the TK-76)and a majority of the muscles and ligiments in my abs are torn, along with knee and hip injuries…and those don’t even take into consideration being run over, stabbed, hit with lumber and bottles and being shot while gathering news.

Even though current hand-held gear is smaller and lighter (my first hh cam was a fully loaded Norelco PCP70 – including backpack – weighed out at 102 lbs) you still have the issue of your body wasn’t designed as a tripod. To operate and get the kind of shots hh cams get still requires you to work on lower back, upper body and abs…plus some work with weights for arm strength-especially if you use the ol’ overhead shot, or the hi-to-lo arm move.

Just don’t bulk up…it’ll seriously restrict your movements and your flexibility.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

[Frank Laughlin] “I’m unaware of any production company getting terms on paying any crew. Very unusual.”

Not really. Depends on who you work for. ESPN and it’s regionals pay on 30 days for the most part unless you’ve got a contract or rider with them that states otherwise. A majority of remote video providers/crewing companies pay in 14 days…if you get the “Paperwork” in on the day on the shoot and don’t mail or fax it later.

As an IC you are in fact, an entity and not labor so larger companies and corporations aren’t subject to many of the federal and state labor regs for timely pay. MAny corporations are on a 30-45-90 day cycle, some hold all submissions until the next cycle.

For nearly 25 years I’ve had a contract and memorandum of engagement that spells out precicely when I get paid. That is agreed on and signed copies are given to each client before accepting any work. The gist is 14 days from end of production to recieve a 15% discount from the “high rate” (the agreed on rate which is always 15% higher than my “fixed” rate.) If it goes 30 days, the high rate is payed on…if it goes 30 days plus 7, then I add 18% service charge for each seven day period the monies aren’t recieved.

Yes, it’s legal. As a “business” I can set my own rates for service and penalties, up to 182% per 24 hour period by my states regulations, others may vary.

But remember, to have any real clout you have to have A) a service they want bad enough to pay your terms and B) a bonafide entity that covers you as a business, paying yourself from those proceeds. Yes, you can just be Joe Operator and put in an invoice, but without terms and contracts and a federal tax I.D., companies that use your services will put paying you into their general billing cycle.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

I’m going to assume you’re just the creative on this and the station reps themselves and does the buys.

Most audio tracks for “clip and montage” commercials use four bars of track…ad nauseum in many cases – take the last four bars of the Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” – used by many AOR stations as the sting in their spots…all four bars of it. By doing that, you get around much of the legal issues of copyright. It’s what the rap and hip-hop world live on, that four bar use.

By the way…don’t use any “Ol’ Blue Eyes'” tracks…the limited talent Sinatra family has a severe licencing deal set up and makes beaucoup dinero on it – claims the sound is sooooo distinctive that even four bars is an infringment.It’s not U.S. Copyright law, it’s California’s.

As for images…that’s another issue. In some cases “Fair Use” can be applied, but that’s rare. In the case of album covers you have two issues…the rightsholder, (i.e.) the label, and if there is an image of the artist, the artist. California law (and most of them are CA residents or have a business address there) holds that the celebrity has sole ownership of their likeness.

Generally, as Mark said it’s better to use a controllable human presence in the spot, vs. clips and covers. If you have to go with art, find historical images of the artists and secure the rights (try the official fan sites on the Net as a first contact). Visually, I’d go with large motion graphics over historical images…add an image of audience reax from an old crooner’s concert to break it up and take the viewer back down memory lane. It’s all about “remember when” for the AM’ers – think about finding a 50’s car or two and some car owners who like to play dress up. The hazy shot of couples in ballroom or hop attire entering a show is a time eater that’ll get you through half the spot. Y’know…the anti-Mtv style…slow and defining, rather than bombardment of images.

It’s :30…that’s really only tracking four or five artists for two three bars each and a vo tag.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

If you bought the stock exclusively for the client, then bill the whole cost, plus a surcharge of hours to find and aquire the footage…that also means the client now owns the footage and the usage rights are transfered as well.

If this is part of a library that you purchased and have control over, then a charge of 1/2 the day rate to have actually shot the footage (excluding travel) would be a reasonable fee, and a notice that the client’s right to use the footage is limited to the application..if you give away unlimited use you would then pass on the fee for the purchase plus the surcharge for hours of finding and aquiring.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

It’s a tough nut to crack. In many markets, the cable franchise uses local production sales as a revenue generator. Also, many markets have a company or two that buy all the availible time at each local station and cable franchise (at a deep discount block price) and then re-sell the air with production in the price – and they’re working on such huge volume that it cuts out most of the local producers.

The only real way to make money in most markets is to have a handfull of clients who pay you to produce the type of spot the agencies’ creatives have come up with – but that takes a soild track record, demo reels and sales material just to get an in with the agency. In otherwords, it’s still a matter of spending money to make money. Remember too, that chains, dealerships, fast food and the like have national and regional spots produced and provided to them, cutting out most local producers.

As far as VO work…a majority of VO talent comes from somewhat naive local radio jocks. Most get a rate between 100.00 and 500.00 per spot, usually unlimited play. Occasionally you’ll come across a local theater group that has a few “voice actors” – they rate at about the same, but may ask for per-play deals or limited runs for the fee.

Cheers,

Frank Otto

[Frank Otto]

See the thread on using clips for a business meeting opener in the Business and Marketing forum.

Spend your money wisely by not using the clips.