Who owns the copyright?

Hello,

Who owns the copyright in the film if there are multiple investors and producers?

Also, if an investor financed 100% of the movie but had nothing to do with the actual production, would they be considered the copyright holder?

The standard seems to have shifted over the years so I'm confused where it stands now.

Any info is much appreciated.

Thank you
Mike
 
If everything was done properly the copyright of each aspect will
be in writing. Nothing has shifted over the years.

Investors rarely own the copyright to a film - but some do. The
producer of a non-studio film might own the copyright if that’s
what is agreed upon. If there are several producers the contract
should stipulate who owns the copyright. In most cases the
copyright will belong to the “production”.

The screenplay is a separate copyright - sometimes the producer
buys the copyright - sometimes they don’t. The music is a different
copyright than the movie - usually but not always the composer
retains the copyright.

No one automatically owns the copyright of the finished film. There
are multiple rights that need to be agreed upon in writing and the
actual copyright of the finished product needs to be registered so
there is no confusion.
 
I know very little about intellectual property (IP), but, using general principles, if a company produces, say, a film, it owns it. However, if a company has investors, those investors may have a claim on owning part of that copyright. In a similar vein, if an actor, for example, is not an investor, but he did work on the condition that he get a part of the profits, then he may have a claim on part of that copyright as well.

The safest solution is to speak to an IP lawyer, and pay him a consultation fee, so he would be motivated to give you quality advice.
 
Generally speaking, who ever ponied up the most dough "owns" (controls) the copyright. If he doesn't own it, he sure had a bad attorney.

That said, low budget filmmakers should fight tooth and nail to retain copyright of their film, While the chances of turning a profit are slim, at least you'll own your film.
 
I don’t think a sophisticated investor putting up the money will not leave something of the sorts out of the contract. As MileCreations said above: “It all comes down to what the release form they signed says.” Saying that not investors are sophisticated and most are not interested in the copyright just the return on the investment.
 
Hello,

Who owns the copyright in the film if there are multiple investors and producers?

Also, if an investor financed 100% of the movie but had nothing to do with the actual production, would they be considered the copyright holder?

The standard seems to have shifted over the years so I'm confused where it stands now.

Any info is much appreciated.

Thank you
Mike
In the end it may be like 6 or half a dozen. Whether the investor actually owns the copyrights or not I would think that he has every right to go ahead and sell the movie and make money. That was the original intent right? I give you money to make this movie, then sell it and try to recoup my investment. No copyright infringement in selling it.
 
There are a few ways that the ownership of a copyright can be determined, either it will be a work of "joint authorship" in the event there were no formal written agreements stating otherwise wherein the collaborators in a project will each have an equal stake in a production, OR THE MORE LIKELY SCENARIO, will provide that a legal entity such as a corporation, limited liability company, or limited partnership owns the copyright as each collaborator on the film will be hired via some kind of letter of engagement or contract that spells out the fact that their participation in the project is on a "Work for Hire" basis and the owner of the completed production will be the entity which hired them.

The interesting question is when a single author writes a screenplay and a derivative work, i.e. the film is made from that script with no formal written agreements, as the author of the screenplay technically owns an individual copyright in the script which predates the production, do they own the underlying film? Are they a joint author? Can their right to limit derivative works be used to enjoin the release of the film?

Those questions are primarily ACADEMIC, because RULE #1, contractualize everything is followed by most serious productions. Paperwork established title to the copyright in a film, and NEVER FORGET THAT!

Although I don't play an attorney on TV I am one in NY and while I am an attorney, this is not legal advice and should not be construed to create any attorney client relationship, but is provided here on this forum simply as food for thought, a little fun, and general educational purposes.
 
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