Traditional Publishing or Self-Publishing

              After an artist finishes their book, album, play or movie script, it is time for them to consider publishing options.  Traditionally, talented writers solicit their work to knowledgeable agents in their industry.  This agent represents the artist and shops his/her work to publishers.  If a publisher is interested in the work, they offer a contract to the artist.  The agent receives a negotiated percentage of sales from this deal.  This process could take up to a year or more before the cycle is complete.  The traditional form of publishing was developed in the late 1700’s.  However, recently artists have taken the route of self-publishing.

An artist that has chosen self-publishing skips the agent and publishing houses and does the publishing themselves.  The artist is responsible for funding marketing and advertising, distribution, bookings, etc.  This is a costly and tedious venture but not an impossible one.  As far as distribution goes, there are tools available for self-publishers such as Print on Demand, the Internet, and online book and music sellers.  Self-publishing gives artists a way to work independently, with full control of their work. KeithMartinSmith.com

Pros of Self-Publishing: Self-publishing initially seems like an artist's dream.  Anyone can self-publish, no matter what the content is.  There is no middleman.  The artists have the freedom to market and distribute their work in the way that they desire. 

Cons of Self-Publishing: There is a lot of financial risk that comes with self-publishing.  Because you are fronting the money for all aspects of the publishing and distribution process, you are also taking 100% of the financial risk.  Also, without a known publisher associated with the work, it may be difficult for artists to get their book or composition in stores. 

Pros of Traditional Publishing: With traditional publishing, artist’s work is associated with credible publishing houses.  There is little to no financial risk involved, because publishers come with financial assistance. 

Cons of Traditional Publishing: This is very slow process.  It could take a year or more for an artist to find a publisher for their work.  Also, profit made off of the published work will be subject to publishing and agent commission cuts.  
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Industry Podcast Review

            Entertainment Law Update is a free podcast, host by Gordon P. Firemark.  The podcast discusses current legal issues going on in the entertainment industry.  The discussions are very informative and genuinely fun to listen to.  Entertainment Law Update has about 41 episodes that can be reviewed.  Each episode is about an hour long. Many of the episodes discussed infringement.  Copyright infringement is a major issue that my company will need to protect itself against. 

            The first podcast I reviewed was episode 41, “Aero, ReDigi, Veihoh & IMDB”.  This episode discussed the Viacom v. YouTube case.  Viacom sued YouTube for copyright infringement in 2007.  This has been an ongoing suit that has yet to reach a final settlement. Infringement such as this could affect my business if precautions are not made.  Throughout the year, my company will present multiple musicals and plays.  Although we will have purchased the rights to the show we are presenting, it is illegal to record or post any of these performance.  If an audience member records our productions and posts them to a website such as YouTube, this content will be considered unauthorized and illegal. 

            I also reviewed episode 38, “When a Foot is only 11 Inches, and a Batmobile is a character”.  One of the topics reviewed in this episode was the Spiderman musical Lawsuit.  Julie Taymor, one of the original writers of the musical, sued the producers of the show after she had been fired, claiming her authorship. Julie claims that her work has been infringed upon.  A case like this is also associated with my business.  Original musicals will be written and produced within our school.  Any musicals or plays produced will be property of the company and cannot be used for outside reasons. 

The last podcast I reviewed was Episode 39, “Holmes, Zorro and the Tin Man”.  This episode also discussed copyright infringement associated with theater.  The archival owners of the Ed Sullivan show sued the hit musical “Jersey Boys” for using a 7-second clip from the show.  The court ruled that the 7-second clip was considered “fair use”.  It was discussed that this clip was used as a biographical and historical reference to the Four Season’s story.  Because the clip was portraying factual information, this clip was not considered infringement.  The clip also had no quantitative significance.  I am actually shocked at the court’s decision.  When I originally heard about this case, I assumed that this would be considered to be infringement.  This case shows that if executed properly, you can legally use highly effective clips or work for your original piece. 

            Entertainment Law Update provides listeners with relevant issues within the entertainment industry, especially infringement.  I like that there are multiple examples and levels of infringement cases discussed.  I enjoyed reviewing the podcast episodes, and went on to subscribe to them as well. 

Broadway's Legal Controversies

There are tons of legal controversies taking place in the musical theater industry.  Here are a few recent disputes;

Amy, Amy, Amy:

canyouhearthis.co.uk

   In January of this year, there were plans to debut a musical based on the life of Amy Winehouse.  The musical,  “Amy”, featured songs from the R&B/Soul songstress’ repertoire, while also incorporating her personal life, letters, speeches, interviews, performances, and other documents. The musical, written by a consortium of Danish playwrights, was set to premiere at Royal Danish Theatre. Unfortunately, the singer’s family was not consulted about the musical based around Amy’s life and deemed the production to be “exploitative.”  Once Amy’s father, Mitch, caught wind of the musical he immediately sought legal aid to seize the production.  It turns out, the production company had not received the proper permission they needed to use the singer’s material.  The production was denounced just a couple of months before its premier. 

            The Winehouse family has dealt with a lot when it came to Amy and her battle with abuse.  With the type of publicity that has been circulating around her death, it is understandable that her family would have considered this musical exploitative. I believe that a musical based around Amy’s life is a great idea and would make for a phenomenal show.  However, the producers should have to get the proper permission to use her music.  Producers should also be required to consult the family with their plans as well. 

Taymor vs. Spider-Man:

www.nydailynews.com

After two years of ongoing dispute, the producers of the new musical “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark”, has finally come to an agreement.  Julie Taymor, a Broadway writer and director, has been in court with the lead producers of the musical for unlawful use of her copyrighted written works.  Taymor claims that the producers of the show have not been paying her the contractually guaranteed authorship royalties.  Jeremiah Harris and Michael Cohl, the producers of the musical, countersued claiming that after before being fired from the musical, Taymor refused “to fulfill her contractual obligations.”  After two years of litigation, the two parties finally settled on an agreement.  Details of the lawsuit were not open to the pubic, but it is said to be “by mutual agreement of all parties.” 

After Julie Taymor was replaced, the script was rewritten and reproduced.  Many of Taymor’s contributions had been replaced in the newer version.  Because of this, I believe that Harris and Cohl are valid in their position to not pay all the royalty fees that were due to Julie in their contract.  

Three's Company, 3C's a Crowd

www.ibtimes.com

David Adjmi was creating a huge buzz around his music “3C”, a comedic parody of the classic sitcom “Three’s Company.”  On opening night, Adjmi received a cease-and-desist letter from the copyright owner of the sitcom.  The owner claimed that “3C” was infringing by using so many elements from the television series.  David Adjmi feared that he would be hit with a large legal suit and agreed to stop the production.  The musical was given a five-week run and was then put to rest.  Fellow playwrights have urged him to fight and have offered their support through letters and petitions.  

After reviewing some of the aspects of the musical, I agree that Adjmi used too many elements from the sitcom.  He should have gotten the proper permission to produce “3C.”   Also, the “Three’s Company” producers are talking about producing a theatrical version of the hit sitcom.  If they do, David Adjmi’s “3C” could end up being a conflict of interest.