behind the scenes

Fair Use in Fiction Film

Tom Quinn — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:46:56 +0000

Quick note: none of the following is legal counsel, but rather an attempt to get my head around and share new information. Always consult a lawyer when dealing with these situations….

Over the past few weeks, producer Steve Beal and I have been getting a crash course in copyright law. Like many truly independent films, The New Year Parade had very little money to work with. When I first approached producers with the script, I was told it could not be shot without a much larger pot of cash.

Instead, we looked at at other independent production models, particularly taking what I learned on Eugene Martin’s The Other America and fusing it with Jim McKay’s approach on Our Song. Both were weaving actors into real life situations, enriching their stories with documentary realism: Eugene placed actor Tobias Segal in a real housing shelter, while Jim McKay inserted his young cast into the Jackie Robinson Steppers Marching Band.

We approached the South Philadelphia String Band with hopes that we could work with them for two weeks. Instead, they welcomed us in, beginning a two-and-a-half year collaboration. They allowed our actors in on rehearsals and drills, had them build props, and got us press passes to shoot the 2005 parade with 5 cameras.

The doc/fiction hybrid model is as old as narrative film. Edwin Porter mixed actual footage of real firefighters with staged recreations in Edison’s A Day in the Life of an American Firefighter in 1903. I’d suspect his reasons were similar - to build a strong sense of realism while saving money. You can find more on the film here.

Of course, shooting under documentary conditions means the filmmaker has less control over thedetails of their film. This can get tricky when it comes to copyrights, particularly music rights. In The New Year Parade, the South Philadelphia String Band plays a few snippets of music that we had no control over, but which are essential to the story. Generally, filmmakers need to license all work included in their films before securing Errors and Omissions insurance and distribution. This can become prohibitive, especially for low budget projects. For instance, a recent Mummer documentary reportedly paid 150 thousand dollars to clear their music rights.

Fortunately, copyright law recognizes that our culture builds upon the past to make new work. At the same time, it is important that copyright owners be able to monetize their work and have some say in its general usage. To rectify these two factors we turn to Fair Use. Fair Use essentially states that under certain conditions, a copyrighted work may be cited without license. Because I’m still getting a handle on this myself, I’ll direct you to a great post over at SelfReliantFilm.com, which lists several resources on copyright law. I’d especially recommend the Best Practices Handbook and Fair Use in Motion Pictures documents over at the Center for Social Media.

Historically, Fair Use has mostly been applied to documentary film, although I’ve been told Once used Fair Use to secure their E&O because it was shot under documentary conditions. For me, it’s inconceivable that we would replace the documentary audio with studio tracks. We are hoping to keep the original for several reasons:

1. Cultural Significance: One of the favorite pastimes of mummers, especially around New Year’s, is to play video and audio recordings of previous years. They talk about what worked and didn’t and, more importantly, their memories of the event. I’ve seen guys post trivia clips online asking, “What band and year” and then argue the answer for days. In the film, Charlie tells Jack about a real photo he has of his dad from the 1954 parade. One of the first things he notes is the theme: The Bells of St. Mary.

Right now, the film works as a cultural document. When watching the Edwin Porter film, we can see what real firefighters on horse drawn carriages looked like in action at the turn of the century. Forty years from now, a new generation of mummers can watch this movie their dads were in and see a real “behind the scenes” as SPSB prepares for the 2005 parade. If we replace the music that gets lost.

2. Educational Value: Obviously, the film is fiction and the mummers’ story acts as a backdrop to Jack and Kat’s parents’ divorce. Yet one of the incredible things about playing the film around the country has been introducing a 200 year old Philly folk tradition to new audiences. Half of each Q and A has been filled with excited questions about Mummery and the history involved. As we plan for distribution, we find ourselves with a huge opportunity to bring Mummery to a wide audience. Of course, music is an essential part of this - the authentic string band sound that lives in South Philadelphia.

3. Commentary and Counter-Argument: While the Mummers are well known in Philadelphia, there are many misconceptions in place. When I explain the film to folks from Philly, I’m often surprised by people’s view of Mummery - often thinking of them as guys who get drunk and stumble up the street. It’s a shame, and has overshadowed the value of the tradition. I find myself countering that the string bands work 364 days and spend up to $100,000 to put on a show for the city, and take that very seriously. If any string band member showed up hammered they would be sitting that year out - there are heavy props and sets involved, and they rehearse their drills for months. I’m hoping that the film can bring a new appreciation to what these men and women do in their home town.

We’re currently working with lawyers to determine whether these documentary sequences can be covered under Fair Use. Because of the above, I feel very strongly that they will. Once we have definitive answers, I’ll follow up. In the meanwhile, be sure to consult a lawyer with issues of your own.

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Work In Progress Screening, THE MOUNTAIN THIEF, July 17 at 7PM@ G. Village (2008 Narrative Labs)

MountainThief — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 07:08:58 +0000

Hi to all, My name is Gerry Balasta, the Writer/Director/Producer for the narrative film THE MOUNTAIN THIEF. The 2008 IFP Narrative Labs had encouraged and nurtured my film and myself in ways that I could not even express. I was literally just a few days away from shelving the project, after working on it for about 5 years—from the script level, acting workshops for the cast, putting it in the can and months of editing— fatigue started to sink in and basically, I just did not know which direction to go. My inexperience as a first time feature filmmaker also played a huge factor. When the film was selected to the LABS, I knew CHANGE WAS COMING. The week of the labs helped me find once again— my voice, vision as a Director and most importantly, myself as someone who just wants to tell a story. With all the feedbacks from the LABS and after years of trying, we got to this point our FIRST WORK IN PROGRESS SCREENING— this Thursday, July 17, 7 PM @ NYU. INFORMATION BELOW, and you can send me an e- mail if you want to attend, looking forward to sharing and inviting you to join our EFFORTS and ADVENTURES for THE MOUNTAIN THIEF .

WORK IN PROGRESS SCREENING: THE MOUNTAIN THIEF-Non industry and regular viewers only
WHEN: Thusday, July 17, 2008 at 7 PM
WHERE: Greenwich Village, RSVP to inspirechanges@yahoo.com
Please RSVP to inspirechanges@yahoo.com
THE MOUNTAIN THIEF-SYNOPSIS: In a world where people live by scavenging in monstrous mountains of trash, a father and son fight for survival as they seek refuge from war and hunger. A story of triumph over unusual circumstances, “The Mountain Thief” reveals the unimaginable realities of people living in extreme poverty, and what happens when their tenuous hold on hope and survival is threatened.
http://www.myspace.com/mountaincalledhope
http://www.mounthopefilms.com/
http://www.facebook.com: type Gerry Balasta

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highly useful article - “The Nines” Post Mortem, by John August

greenfusefilms — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:26:33 +0000

Hello all . . . . perhaps some of you have seen this article already, but for those who haven’t it’s well worth a look. Apologies for the tangential post - more on what’s happening with our film soon . . . .

http://johnaugust.com/archives/2008/nines-post-mortem

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Notes from Okinawa and our preview screening at Ryukyu University

edmkoz — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:16:29 +0000

Our first night in Okinawa, our producer Koide picks us up with his schoolmate Higa. Higa’s ancestors were pirates who fled the mainland centuries ago and settled in Okinawa.Koide takes us to the Sakurazaka theatre, a new three-screen art house in downtown Naha that Koide thinks would be a good premiere venue for the film. Koide’s plan is to build buzz and political support with preview screenings in Okinawa, open theatrically here, and use the ensuing publicity to set ourselves up for a distribution deal or theatrical self-release on mainland Japan.Koide is opening an animation studio in Fukuoka in southern Japan, and he plans to start a branch in Okinawa, so he’ll be back regularly to oversee grassroots marketing for the the film.At Sakurazuka we met several young Okinawan entrepreneurs, and a student from Ryukyu University, where we’ll hold a preview screening Saturday. A U.S. helicopter crashed there a few years ago.Among the entrepreneurs is Ishihara, who owns an interpreting and consulting company. Ishihara set up the preview screening, and she’s been one of our biggest supporters here. She’s also fully bilingual, which is a big help for me.Some of the other entrepreneurs are concerned about how Okinawan audiences would react to the political content of The First Breath of Tengan Rei. But after we show them the new cut, they’re convinced, though they still feel it would be controversial. Our little private audience responds very emotionally, particularly the student. They will marshal their considerable resources to help promote the film.The Marines cancel the meeting that I had set with Col. Powell, the media officer for Okinawa. Col. Powell is hosting a high-ranking military official from D.C., and is booked all week. The Marines are implementing a training program to try to prevent future rapes, and we’re hoping we might be able to participate in the program, screen on base, or at least get the Marines to send a representative to one of our screenings. They agree to meet with Ishihara on our behalf after we’ve left town.Tom Kruetzer, the Public Affairs Officer for the U.S. Consulate, is expecting my call. He heard about us from the Marines. We check our cell phones and cameras at the consulate gate. A new, truck-bomb proof gate is under construction. In his office, Kreutzer is friendly. He says our conversation sets his mind at ease about anxieties passed along from the Marines. Kreutzer wishes us luck but declines to participate in the screening. He says he prefers to keep the dialogue government to government. He thinks the U.S. did a better job with the rape case earlier this year by condemning the attack promptly. He wants Okinawans to realize that Americans don’t tolerate rape – where he comes from, they would get their guns and hunt down the rapist personally. This is what he says.We meet with the head of the TV station Q.A.B. He’s personally supportive of the project but is cautious not to draw attention to the 1995 rape of a 12-year-old Okinawan girl by two Marines and a sailor. When his station drew parallels between a recent, similar case and the 1995 incident, he was blasted for insensitivity.The stations head’s uncle was one of 10,000 Okinawans killed in World War II at Sugar Loaf Hill, not too far from where we’re meeting. Okinawa just commemorated the 63rd anniversary of the end of hostilities. We see anti-military demonstrators outside the prefectural office, where they protest regularly. We use audio from one of these demonstrations in the film.Our investor Sakaguchi takes us to meet with the recently elected Gov. Nakaima at the prefectural office. He’s an official in the Okinawa Department of Labor. Sakaguchi provided our introduction to many of our key supporters on the island.In the prefectural office, a woman serves us tea in a room with embroidered walls and ceiling-high calligraphy scrolls. Four secretaries in traditional Okinawan kariyushi shirts stand in the doorway, attentive. Nakaima likes Chicago. He remembers tall buildings and good steak and that you could still smoke in blues clubs (not anymore).After the meeting we debrief in a café on the top floor of the office, looking out on the Naha skyline as A Fifth of Beethoven and a Muzak version of We Are The World are piped into the room. When we leave the prefectural office, a moth lands on the student’s neck. I hope it’s not poisonous.We do interviews with the top two Okinawan newspapers, the Okinawa Times and the Ryukyu Shinpo. The reporters ask us about our intentions, why we chose Okinawa, what we want to say to the Okinawan people. The Ryukyu Times reporter has also been to Chicago. He spent $600 20 years ago for a suite at the Intercontinental with a Jacuzzi in the middle of the bedroom. He asks me how I think Obama would change U.S. foreign policy if elected. I tell him I’m hopeful that Obama would improve international relations by holding real dialogue. He really wants to know what Obama would do about the bases in Okinawa. I have no idea.The Okinawa Times article comes out the morning of our screening at Ryukyu University. It’s accurate and supportive. An Okinawan residents’ group has just been granted a cash settlement from the Japanese government in a lawsuit to stop the U.S. from holding deafening helicopter exercises above their homes at night. The exercises will continue. This is the day’s top story, but we are prominently featured as well.The Ryukyu Times reporter comes to the screening and will report on it for Monday’s paper. We set up chairs in the aisles to accommodate the overflow audience, which sits rapt through the screening. There are a couple of Marines in the audience.My interpreter was the interpreter for the defendants in the 95 case. She says she has spoken with soldiers who are like Nelson in the film, who feel that after finding religion in prison God has forgiven them and they are absolved. She says that an earlier version she saw of the film was too painful for her, but she likes this version better.The post-screening discussion is deep and heated, with questions about our responsibility to the real victims, the Christian imagery in the film, the meaning of forgiveness, the portrayal of Okinawa’s natural beauty vs. its ugly realities. On the audience response forms, particularly the younger audiences are excited about the film and say they will recommend it to their friends.After the screening, I ask Ishihara why she has worked so hard to set up this event and support our film. She says it’s because she has a seven-year-old daughter who is very curious and who will no doubt explore many social circles. Ishihara wants to help make Okinawa a better place for her daughter to grow up.I’ll post links to the Ryukyu Shinpo and Okinawa Times articles, with translated versions, and video of the post-screening discussion. Meanwhile, there’s a gallery of photos from Okinawa on our Facebook page.While you’re there, please sign up to become a “fan” of The First Breath of Tengan Rei!

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home stretch i n g o u t slow motion

Jeff Orgill — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 06:30:00 +0000

I’m going on no sleep again. Seems like this comes up every so often where I’m pulling overnighters to try and complete some aspect of the movie before I have to go to work the next day. When you’ve got the opportunity you have to jump on it before it goes away. And it’s a nice feeling to know that you’ve pushed through on your dream in spite of all the mundane demands of life.

So this last week we’ve been onlining the film to HiDef. Most of the online was completed, but the last 20 or so missing shots, effects shots, titles, etc. ended up being really time consuming. Each shot having it’s own special problems. For instance I was struggling with a motion tracking effect where I wanted to replace a street sign with wording that was more relevant to the story and also dislocated the film from a specific place. I must have done this effect shot 10 times trying different fixes, but the sign just would not stick to the old sign. I was getting desperate and on no sleep. I asked other people good at After Effects, I called a friend in San Francisco for help, even offered to pay him a bit (he was booked though), but it turned out to be a really simple solution that I had intuited all along, but just been too tired and desperate to finish that I kept thinking it was too easy of a solution. Turns out I was trying to track a squeezed shot with a not squeezed overlay and the overlay was moving faster than the shot below it because it was actually made of different sized pixels. This only became appraent though when the two were brought together into a new composition. If I rendered it out first to marry them in the squeezed shot and then stretched the shot out proper in a second step the whole issue was solved. This is probably dull stuff, but I figure it’s a blog about the filmmaking process so this would be a place to tell these war stories.

SO lack of sleep and filmmaking don’t mix too well.. and above is one of the many ways working on no sleep can cost you! But I’m sure I’ll find myself there again. I do like how quiet it is that late. A nice kind of loneliness. Interesting thing too is my movie is about a guy working the night shift. Hmmmm….

I thought these final shots would take a day or two and it turned out to be 4 gruelling graveyard shifts. And there are still loose ends with the effects. And then color correction. But I’m very happy with the results and it’s coming together really well. Nice to see it full resolution at last. Very pretty. Thanks team Boppin’

I just saw Tom Quinn’s (THE NEW YEAR’S PARADE) section in Moviemaker today while ditching work to hang out at the book store! Go Tom!!!!

Exciting

I’m rambling cuz I’m still tired bye

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Bringing it Home

Tom Quinn — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 05:27:09 +0000

Last week, THE NEW YEAR PARADE finally screened in Philadelphia. In the weeks before the festival, we had decided to not tell anyone. In fact, when family and friends called, we told them not to go. It sounds ridiculous, but there are 1500 Mummers in Philadelphia, many more fan, and a good deal of family, and they would all be coming to the Saturday show. We were afraid that if we advertised, most people would not get in and go home frustrated.

Still, we had an incredible sold out show on Saturday! The theater was kind enough to add 75 more folding chairs to accomadate as many as possible. It was a mix of family and friends, Mummer’s, and strangers. Afterward, we had a great Q&A with a good deal of cast and crew, including some of the South Philadelphia String Band. After months of answering audience questions about the band and their tradition, it was cool to have “Hollywood” Nick, Carl, Wardy, and Jay at the mic with us. After the Q&A, I was approached by a family counselor who told me we “hit the mark.”

On Monday, Marc, Beth, Jenny, and I went to the Prince for the follow up showing. Earlier that day, the Philadelphia Inquirer ran a great review and while introducing the film on stage it was announced we’d won BEST INDIE FEATURE in the festival! We are very excited and feel fortunate to have played 4 fests and won 3 awards!

Last night, producer Steve Beal and I had a long conversation weighing our distribution options. We’re very excited about the prospect of self-releasing in Philadelphia and using that regional support to launch a national tour of the film. We’ve been playing the film for a wide variety of audiences over the past few months - senior citizens, indie rockers, folks from the UK, LA, NY, Philly, parents who’ve divorced, children of divorce, and some who never experienced divorce first hand. Across the board audiences respond to the characters, their struggle to be a family, and the unique sense of tradition that Mummery brings. We’re now looking for the best way to channel this excitement and momentum. Stay tuned….

Also, the Spring issue of MovieMaker Magazine hit bookstores this week. They were kind enough to include me on their “Ten Young Writer-Directors to Watch” list. I bought my folks five copies. : ) The list also includes the Duplass Brothers, Sarah Polley, and Craig Zobel so grab a copy for your folks as well!

I head to IFFBoston on Friday. Hope to see you there!

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Our cast rocks the socks off Ashland.

Tom Quinn — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 22:46:51 +0000

I’ve spent the last few days in Ashland Oregon and have been kicking myself that I have no photos!! I brought my camera, but never had time to go buy batteries. The mountain ranges are incredible - evergreens wrapping around one side, and grass rolling off on the other. THE NEW YEAR PARADE was awarded the BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE award last night! The awards ceremony was pretty incredible - all of the restaurants around town donated food and there was this insane buffet of caviar and sushi and ravioli’s and craziness. Of course I had just eaten a burger …. As the ceremony ended, our screening was coming to an end across the street so I ran over for the Q and A, able to show off our award in the process. The audience was incredible and we had a good 20 minute talk about the process of making the film. It’s crazy because distributors all say “we love your film, but it has no names” and then every audience we’ve screened for cannot stop talking about our cast after. So this award is vindication for them, that they do have names and that you’ll be hearing them often. The crowd in Ashland is mostly made up of locals, 50 and over, which is great!! So far we’ve mostly been playing for younger audiences and industry so it’s been cool to hear their reactions. So many came up to me and said they’d been deeply touched, or had tears in their eyes. One woman said that she nearly cried when the kids are deciding where to live because she remembers being asked to make that decision as a child, and stayed married for 47 years so that her kids would never have to feel that. Earlier in the day, I had done a panel with some really awesome filmmakers, including Tom from CHRONIC TOWN (Which I went to see, only to find it sold out), Monty from SKILLS LIKE THIS (which I’m psyched to see tonight), and Aaron from The Sensation of Site (which I’ve sadly missed, but we had a great talk about Bela Tarr). It was hosted by Amy Dotson and the topic was Why We Need Independent Film. It was great to hear the other filmmakers talk about their processes - we’re all in the same boat, just built them different ways. Finally, at the after party, I had a chance to sit with Albert Maysles, who I had been too nervous to talk to earlier. His handheld camerawork is some of the best I’ve ever seen - and more importantly what he captures and sees in people is just beautiful. It was cool to have a few moments to chat with him about shooting fiction for Goddard with doc methods. A very generous man who seemed happy to share. We call that a good day. Huge props to the folks of Ashland, and especially the staff of the Ashland Independent Film Festival - all of who were incredibly kind, selfless, patient, and fun!

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late shift

Jeff Orgill — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 05:09:40 +0000

I’m sitting here feeding tapes to the machine so I can get my timeline re-digitized at 23.976 fps. If you cut your film at 29.97, but shot in 24p or 23.976 people might tell you you are going to have to overcut your whole movie. But I found an editor on Craigslist who converted my 29.97 AVID project to 23.976. I will have to go through and check it, maybe slip, slide or trim some shots, but so far it seems to be working fine.

A pal at work sent me this article:
‘Evil’ nurse jailed for life for killing patients

Reminds me of a situation in BOPPIN’ AT THE GLUE FACTORY, but from an entirely different perspective.

Tharin Sanders wallpaper and other characters available at BOPPIN’ AT THE GLUE FACTORY website. Collect all seven!

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Tom and Jenny interviewed for Realtvfilms.com

Tom Quinn — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 03:26:13 +0000

Hey kids,

Jenny and I did an interview with Realtvfilms.com down at SXSW during the party thrown for us by IndieGoGo and IFP. My voice is all blown and sounds pretty crazy. Check it out & spread it around

Also, if you are in or around NYC head on over to the IFC Center Monday night to see THE NEW YEAR PARADE for yourself. It’s nearly sold out, so check the previous post regarding ticket sales. See you then!

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