Apparently registering your script with the WGA doesn't protect you

A very good friend of mine claims to have had an actual experience virtually identical to this, except it was in Australia, and it was with a Kangaroo. I've never seen "Kangaroo Jack", but from what you say it sounds like it contains a scene nearly identical to my friend's story. He's a guy I see mainly in the summer (we race sailboats, and in fact he was with a bunch of racing sailors in Australia when the car/Kangaroo/jacket/keys thing happened), so I'll probably wait until next summer to ask him about it. If I remember correctly, it would have happened 15 to 20 years ago - possibly even longer. I just checked and found that that "KJ" was released iin 2003. I'm pretty sure that I heard this story from my friend at least a few years before that (I've known him since about 1996). It would seem quite possible to me that "KJ" stole, er "borrowed" the story from them, not you. As I was told it, my friend was actually there when this event took place, and he's not a guy known for making up tall tales.

It is interesting to note that you wrote a scene essentially just like this from your imagination. When did you write it? Makes me think of the "collective unconscious" as I think Karl Jung put it...

John_Hudson said:
I had written a script synopsis once and was dumb enough to put it online (Over at Rotten Tomatoes to be exact)

The script itself was not raped but the opening scene was erilly similiar. In my script, 3 guys hit a a deer at night and get out to investigate; the deer is dead ..

they decide to get some pictures of them and the deer; jacket on, shades on, baseball cap ...

The deer wakes up suddenly and bolts; key's in jacket pocket ... my script goes onto a Werewolf story but this same scene is in the film Kangaroo Jack (obviously some details have changed)

Maybe a coincidence; maybe not. But the first time I ever saw it; my jaw dropped.
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I think EJ is spot on.

If you are going to produce your own work, doesn't matter where you register it, if however you are going to SHOP this work around Hollywood, I would advise against copyright because you don't ever want to shop around "dated" material. If you copyright something in 1999 and try to shop that around in 2007, it's old, no one will want to take a look at it.

The writer's guild is common practice and if it's good enough for the pros, it's
good enough for me.
 
A WGA registration is also good enough for use in establishing the ownership of a screen play for the purposes of a production company and their dealings with other guilds (like SAG and AFTRA). The ownership and transfer of "the intellectual property" from the writer to the producer needs documentation to support the transaction and WGA registration is very typically part of the process. This is a protection that the producer wants and needs and can effect their ability to obtain E&O insurance on the final product.

Is either path truly protection? No, it isn't, but certainly a $20 investment can't be any barrier nor can it hurt the writer or their work in any way.
 
Blaine said:
The registration process places preventative measures against plagiarism or unauthorized use of an author's material. While someone else may have the same storyline or idea in his or her material, your evidence lies in your presentation of your work. Registering your work does not disallow others from having a similar storyline or theme. Rather, registering your work would potentially discourage others from using your work without your permission.

Though the Registry cannot prevent plagiarism, it can produce the registered material as well as confirm the date of registration. Registering your work creates legal evidence for the material that establishes a date for the material's existence. The WGAw Registry, as a neutral third party, can testify for that evidence.

Registering your work with the WGAw Registry does not take the place of registering with the Library of Congress, U.S. Copyright Office. However, both create valid legal evidence that can be used in court.

Even if you have copyright through the Library of Congress, registering with the WGAw Registry creates a separate legal record for your material. In addition, you may consider registering treatments or drafts of your work-in-progress with the Registry prior to registering your final draft with the Copyright Office.
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Lets get this straight. When you submit a script to the LOC IT IS REGISTERED THE DAY THEY RECEIVE it (excuse the caps). Though you receive your registration letter in a few months, this doesn't have anything to do with the ACTUAL registration date.

If you go to court, the judge will look NOT at WGA cosmetic registrations but LOC (date of registration). If you don't have it registered when the infringement occurred and you win the court case, you could ONLY get STATUTORY DAMAGES this means from 250bucks to .... doesn't even cover your lunch meeting with your litigator.

WGA is worth nothing in regards to winning damages in an infringement suit.

register it with LOC and your protected, when you do receive it, again, it will be stamped with the date they received your app.:)

KHMUSE,

DOn't know who's feeding you this MISinformation. THE LAW states that any intellectual property transfer such as a copyright of a script HAS to go through the LOC laws. NOT WGA rules. WGA sets absolutely no rules when it comes to copyright. like Barry stated above it is a profit outfit for them -- that's it.
 
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nycfilmmaker said:
Lets get this straight. When you submit a script to the LOC IT IS REGISTERED THE DAY THEY RECEIVE it (excuse the caps). Though you receive your registration letter in a few months, this doesn't have anything to do with the ACTUAL registration date.
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That is true. And just to show I know where the cap lock key is too, YOUR WORK IS COPYRIGHTED WHEN IT IS CREATED... :beer:
 
nycfilmmaker is correct, the work is copyrighted the moment it's created. Whether that's provable or not is the issue, and registering with the LOC or the WGA are both ways to establish proof of first authorship. They're not absolute proof, there are other ways, but those are commonly accepted ways.

Simply put, LOC gives you more protection. WGA is common. LOC means putting a copyright date on your material. WGA doesn't. WGA registration expires in five years, LOC doesn't. They're both dirt cheap, so do both. If your material isn't worth $20 to register, then why are you trying to shop it around?
 
Barry_Green said:
nycfilmmaker is correct, the work is copyrighted the moment it's created. Whether that's provable or not is the issue, and registering with the LOC or the WGA are both ways to establish proof of first authorship. They're not absolute proof, there are other ways, but those are commonly accepted ways.

Simply put, LOC gives you more protection. WGA is common. LOC means putting a copyright date on your material. WGA doesn't. WGA registration expires in five years, LOC doesn't. They're both dirt cheap, so do both. If your material isn't worth $20 to register, then why are you trying to shop it around?
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Pretty hard to disagree with that...:beer: :beer: :beer:
 
I have heard of just sealing your script in an envelope and going and getting it postmarked, and leaving it sealed. I guess that is a way to do it for .39 cents, though not guaranteed.

Jason
 
Ramjet1979 said:
I have heard of just sealing your script in an envelope and going and getting it postmarked, and leaving it sealed. I guess that is a way to do it for .39 cents, though not guaranteed.

Jason
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That is called a poor mans copyright and will NOT work at all. Someone else can send themselves a bunch of empty envelopes, see and like your script which they place in their envelope, and since their envelope is dated before yours they theoretically can beat you. If it's good enough to steal, spend the 65$ or so and get the WGA and the LOC. Or just spend lots of time in court trying to prove it's yours.
 
John_Hudson said:
I had written a script synopsis once and was dumb enough to put it online (Over at Rotten Tomatoes to be exact)

The script itself was not raped but the opening scene was erilly similiar. In my script, 3 guys hit a a deer at night and get out to investigate; the deer is dead ..

they decide to get some pictures of them and the deer; jacket on, shades on, baseball cap ...

The deer wakes up suddenly and bolts; key's in jacket pocket ... my script goes onto a Werewolf story but this same scene is in the film Kangaroo Jack (obviously some details have changed)

Maybe a coincidence; maybe not. But the first time I ever saw it; my jaw dropped.
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Although I'm sure that when viewing this scene it was a shock, but it's hardly an original set-up - although granted there are some costume items that match your own set-up - but I would expect hunters to wear jackets and baseball caps and possibly even shades.

I personally would be more worried about a 'premise/ concept' being taken than a scene lifted.

Those are the real gems in the darkness, and often the hardest to come by.

EJ
 
I came up with this stupid movie 4 years ago as a joke I used to tell friends that asked what my next movie was gonna be and I posted on the net about it as well.
When I saw a poster for it I couldn't understand what the world had come to. It is the worst idea for a movie ever, I made it as a joke and it became a real movie and no one was kicking up to me wtf.
They made it even worse, in my original idea the animals didn't talk, it was just a coming of age story about a girl who rides a zebra as a racehorse.

Next thing you know the movie in JDStan's sig will be directed by Michael Bay and win an Oscar.
 
EJ Pennypacker said:
Although I'm sure that when viewing this scene it was a shock, but it's hardly an original set-up - although granted there are some costume items that match your own set-up - but I would expect hunters to wear jackets and baseball caps and possibly even shades.

I personally would be more worried about a 'premise/ concept' being taken than a scene lifted.

Those are the real gems in the darkness, and often the hardest to come by.

EJ
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I was never too worried; altough laughed out loud when I saw it .

One can never be sure; but you're probably right

Hitting animals with a car, dressing them up and taking photos and them taking off with your booty is a tired tale.
 
Blaine said:
It doesn't have to be an either/or process. I've registered everything with the guild. It only takes a few minutes and you get immediate results. The price is $20 for non-guild members and $10 if you're a guild member. And you can do it on line. With the LOC copyright, the cost is $45 and takes about 4-6 months to receive your registration.

Keep in mind that your registration with the WGAw lasts 5 years then must be renewed.
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This is actually incorrect. Registering your script with the Copyright office costs $30 dollars, which is just ten dollars more than using the WGA. I'm finding it takes three months to receive your registration. I think it's well worth it, I don't bother with WGA anymore, I just go straight to copyright.
 
Isaac_Brody said:
This is actually incorrect. Registering your script with the Copyright office costs $30 dollars, which is just ten dollars more than using the WGA. I'm finding it takes three months to receive your registration. I think it's well worth it, I don't bother with WGA anymore, I just go straight to copyright.
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I really hate to correct you Isaac, but as of July 1, 2006 they did raise the fee to $45. Still all in all and for what it does, that is not really a lot for the protection.

Link
 
Oh bastards. I stand corrected. Still worth it though. Thanks for the correction. Time to update the FAQ...
 
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