Question regarding copyrights and getting work looked at.

[DeVon72176]

I have done a bit of research and believe I have a grasp on the role of the WGA/WGAe vs the Copyright office. I have come across a number of different opinions regarding how to label my work when submitting to have it looked at.

I have read that once you register with the WGA/WGAe and/or the copyright office, you have to display the corresponding information on the submission. At the same time, I have read that displaying this information is the fastest way to get your work thrown away/rejected.

I'm not afraid of my work being plagiarized (in terms of extreme paranoia), but I still want to register it.

I guess I'm just looking for the proper method to go about protecting my work while being able to submit it.

Thank you for any insight into this subject.

[kullervo]

Register with the Guild to feel better. Do not make note of it on the script. It won't hurt you, but there's no big deal about it.

[gotchan]

Your work is copyright as soon as you write it. Registering your copyright entitles you to seek additional damages if you ever take someone to court for violating your copyright. In some jurisdictions you need to have registered your copyright in order to get into the courthouse because no possibility of additional damages means a copyright case involves such piddly sums lawyers and courts aren't interested in it.

The WGA operates a depository service. This is not connected to the courts in any way and does not have legal standing. But the WGA is a respected body, and if they make an official statement that you filed Document X with them on Date D and it has not been accessed since, that carries weight.

There is no legal requirement to display on any submission whether or not you have registered your copyright or used a depository service. Failing to display a copyright notice does not weaken your protection.

Some people consider displaying such information the mark of an amateur. Some of those will be prejudiced against such submitters as probably being difficult to work with.

Registering your copyright in no way interferes with your ability to submit your work.

Using a respected depository service in no way interferes with your ability to submit your work.

Failing to note on your submission whether or not you have taken either of the above actions in no way interferes with your ability to submit your work.

(Also note that neither registering your copyright nor using a depository service is necessary to submit your work. They offer additional layers of protection in case of dispute. But your work is copyright as soon as you write it. As the writer, you will have much better evidence you wrote it (in the form of notes, earlier drafts, etc) than anyone who tries to misappropriate it.)

If you are concerned about protecting your work, in addition to registering your copyright and/or using the WGA depository you should research anyone you are submitting to. The WGA, WGC, and most other guilds maintain blacklists of agents and producers who do not abide by industry codes of conduct. If you submit directly to producers/studios, you should submit only to producers/studios who have signed onto the appropriate guild's model or standard contract. This is not to say all producers who do not sign the model contract are shady, but most legitimate producers who do not sign do not sign because they do no business with anyone outside their business group. There wouldn't be any point submitting to them anyway.

Remember: Ideas cannot be copyrighted, only execution. I believe the WGA does not accept anything less than a treatment for deposit.

[aikigypsy]

My impression is that it's considered tacky and amateurish to display copyright information for a novel or short story, but that registering a script with the WGA before submitting it is standard practice.

People do "steal" script ideas, and while the raw 1-sentence idea is not quite enough to hang a case on, the plot and characters can be copied, too. I know of one dispute where the initial author's WGA registration was important in getting compensation after the idea was stolen and made into a successful film. I think that WGA registration is seen as normal and appropriate in the film/TV industry.

[GradyHendrix]

No need to display copyright information on a script. Consider this post thirding (fourthing?) the previous posts.

[aibrean]

You can pre-register it with the Copyright office. It's pricey ($100) but you can protect the whole idea. They require you to write out the concept as much as possible.

[dpaterso]

Originally Posted by aibrean

You can pre-register it with the Copyright office. It's pricey ($100) but you can protect the whole idea. They require you to write out the concept as much as possible.

I don't think that's right, copyrighting an idea isn't feasible. Spending that kind of money on something that gives you no protection is inadvisable.

-Derek

[absitinvidia]

Originally Posted by dpaterso

I don't think that's right, copyrighting an idea isn't feasible. Spending that kind of money on something that gives you no protection is inadvisable.

-Derek

Per the copyright office, preregistering a copyright has a very limited purpose:

Preregistration is not a substitute for registration. Its purpose is to allow an infringement action to be brought before the authorized commercial distribution of a work and full registration thereof, and to make it possible, upon full registration, for the copyright owner to receive statutory damages and attorneys' fees in an infringement action.

I suspect this intended not so much for aspiring writers, but more for claiming damages against people who leak manuscripts, movies, music, etc. during the production process. Just a guess, though.

[Richard Alan Phipps]

Don't worry about the copyright office. Register it and try to move it, if that's your desire.

[John61480]

You know, I saw a short film today that was posted on a video hosting website and the comments shocked me when they said that it was exactly the same as a previous short film that was posted. The plot was the same, the characters were the same etc. Anyway, the things that were said reminds me of a lot of what the writers talk about on Absolute Write, about original ideas not being so original because of being done many times in the past and about coincidences and other stuff.

So all that got me thinking about how to easily secure proof of when I come up with my short film ideas for the short films I want to make. Well, after tinkering with my plot outline, I thought of sharing the screenplay on Absolute Write critique Share Your Work forum for screenplays. This would give me a date and time stamped onto it when I have the screenplay to share. The other good part about this would be that I could maybe get critiques on it and work out the problems on the story before I work on it as a "short video animation" (This is what I call my short film projects because of the special fx techniques I use for the short films.)

Of course, I'd imagine the idea of posting on the Share Your Work forum might not be a good thing if you plan on submitting to studios or companies, but for short film projects I think it is a cheap way to have evidence as well as educational to learn from writers about what works and what doesn't with the short film screenplays.