Steve Wargo
20
COW Coins
4
Premiere Pro Coins
Forum Replies Created
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Electric wine would be the beverage of memory. It as a crazy weekend and we had a group of over 1000 that hit the campground that evening. The sheriff and the mayor came to ask if we could spare the town from the usual rape and pillage that they had seen in movies like “The Wild One”. We had no intention of going into their little town. They were safe. At least from us.
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck -
Bruce
I saw that you are also an MCA-I member. Do you know Lou Hunt? She is from Madison and does a lot of our voice work.
I was in Milwaukee and Oshkosh last week shooting footage for an aviation TV show that we’re trying to get off the ground. (Pun pun pun!)
I was in Madison in ’73 or so for a big motorcycle race on the 4th of July or Labor Day. It’s all a bit foggy after all these years and all those party beverages.
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck -
I believe that you are 100% correct.
The question from earlier about who owns it when a team did it: The photographer. The word videographer does not exist at the federal level and usually not at the state level either. When we were filling out papers to become a resource for the state a few years back, the catagories were 16mm film and 35 mm film. “Video” did not even exist. We spent a year getting this changed. My tenecious wife had her claws in the state and wasn’t letting go.
As for another comment from earlier: Your copyright is worth almost nothing, once the client has PAID you. However, if someone else got possession of your tapes, you could stop them from using them. All you need to do is hire a lawyer and file a complaint. Got $10K laying around with no purpose?
Yes, if you’re interested in protecting your rights and whatever else, work up a contract right now.
And, because we all belong to this forum, why don’t we do exactly that? We could collectively come up with a contract that is good and fair for both sides. Does anyone have such a monster? All of ours have been one offs that were written for a particular client. We belong to MCA-I and I’ll bet that we’ve got something prewritten.
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck -
Well said Nigel. The RED will not be a freelancer’s camera. When it is released in 2009, there may be a stampede or maybe not. I know of several people who have asked for a refund on their deposits.
It might be like the iPhone. Some slept on the sidewalk for days waiting in line. People who waited till the next day were in and out of the AT&T store in about 15 minutes.
So what and who cares?
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck -
A client can copyright the finished work product. The finished product is different than the original footage. Example: All of the old TV shows that you see on Nickolodeon or the $3.99 rack at Walgreens are located in a vault at UCLA. They are all in the public domain. A distributor checks the masters out, like at a library, and preps them for distribution. They add a music or effects track and then copyright the NEW master tape and subsequent copies. Completely legal and they don’t pay a thing for the original recording except for admin costs.
What shooter would ever try to claim the copyright to shots he got for a reality program or a documentary shot for a production company?
When we shoot something, we always offer the client the original recordings. We also tell them that we have climate controlled, firewalled storage versus their file cabinet drawers. Transporting materials is dangerous. We have had clients insist on taking their stuff and some employee working for them loses it, steals it, leaves it in the heat or cold in their back seat, forgets it at Starbucks, someone simply throws it away because it obviously won’t play in their VHS player. They see the word Beta and toss it.
If the client insistes, have them sign for the materials and include a warning about what will happen to their tapes if they do.
One client went to Home Depot and bought a $379 gun safe so we could store their stuff here.
When they insist on taking it, they’re probably shopping you around anyway. Let them learn the hard way but make sure that you give them ALL of their original stuff or you’ll get blamed for anything that’s missing.
As stated by someone else earlier, refuse to give them the project files because of the reasons stated. It’s proprietary information and secrets. It would be best if you took the time to investigate this thoroughly and have a proper contract ready for them to sign on agreement to do the project. Make sure that it is slanted toward keeping their best interests in mind.
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck -
I was recently called as a witness in a lawsuit regarding copyright ans ownership of footage. The largest IP (Intellectual Property) law firm in the state of Arizona handled the case and here is what they said.
If you are a 1099 contractor, you own the copyright when you shoot it. It IS NOT transferrable.
If you are a W-2 employee, your employer owns the copyright.
Now, what does the client own? The client (the one who pays for the shoot) owns to right to possess and to use the footage as they see fit, forever, ONCE THEY PAY THE BILL. The use transfers when the bill is paid. Not before.
So, if someone hires you to shoot their commercial and they don’t pay you, you have the right to legally block the use of the footage.
Also, just because you own the copyright to the footage, does not mean that you have the right to use that footage for anything other than demonstration purposes.
One the footage is paid for, the useage rights belong to the payee and you MUST ask permission to use it for demonstartion purposes.
There’s more but I am going to stop right there.
This is merely a quote and does not constitute giving legal advice, only quoting a source of information according to US copyright laws. Your government may vary.
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck -
I was told by my interpreter to look here. I don’t see anything so I guess you have to dig around.
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If you guys would use the tapes with the memory, you would have all of that info on your tapes, ready for display. That’s the price you pay for buying the cheap stuff and not using tape decks.
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[Peter Corbett] “Looks like Sony might be following Panasonic’s path of not including VF’s with new cameras.”
I believe that several companies are going to offer packages that include a choice of options, like viewfinders, such as Sony has been doing for some time. Will that be a CRT, an LCD or an Accuscene?
[Peter Corbett] “The RED guys flew in”
Ah, the big RED Circus. I notice that the RED cheerleaders have disappeared. Meanwhile, the F-900 that a RED fan informed me was a relic and I should just “toss it”, is still making money, every week.
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I sent the info to your Blackberry. But, you already knew that, didn’t you?
Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It’s a dry heat!Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut Pro systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck