I read this....

B

Bsmith

Well-known member
I was looking through the Filmmakers magazine awhile ago at Barnes and Nobles...and I came across this article about some kid made a home movie using old footage and imovie....he basically created this movie about his past which uses old pictures and what not. Anyways this film ended up being showen at Sundance and it created a somewhat large buzz. The only problem was that it was on tape (not film) and he he still needed to get clearance for the music he used in order to sell it or something.

What the heck? This movie screened at SUNDANCE with the two following problems 1. it wasn't film format (and sundance is still largely film oriented.) 2. He used copyright music without permission ( I was taught that you need festival rights to get into even the smaller festival yet this is Sundance.)

Is this possible? Maybe one of you have seen this article or know more about it than me.
 
Re: I read this....

I remember reading about that too. It cost him like a little over 100 bucks to make the entire movie. I thought that you could screen a movie with music to a non-paying crowd and you would be fine. It's only when YOU make money off of it is when it gets complex...
 
Re: I read this....

I havent read that article, or heard that story, but:

Sundance does accept video entries, and;
it's my understanding that you're allowed to play the movie with copywritten music in it. The problem comes when you try to sell or make money off of it. So I'm not sure of the details (like I said I haven't heard the story before) but this might be the case.
 
Re: I read this....

I think you only pay for some of the bigger movies (with stars) but I could be wrong.
 
Re: I read this....

When played at Sundance, the movie had already won a movie award elsewhere. Since it was considered a personal, non-profit, expression peice, I believe he did not need syncho-rights, and I do not believe, as it was still in DV format, that it was officially shown at Sundance (although a simple bump up to HDCAM would have made that a possibility).
 
Re: I read this....

[quote author=Slapdragon link=board=Offtopic;num=1089576506;start=0#5 date=07/11/04 at 13:17:57]When played at Sundance, the movie had already won a movie award elsewhere.[/quote]

I thought Sundance had to be the first festival you're film was shown...

In order for it to be considered that is.
 
Re: I read this....

If it was shown, then its not in the competition, so it can be shown everywhere else.

There's two parts to Sundance. The comp. and the showcase.
 
Re: I read this....

After doing long amounts of research its all about talent. No matter what it's shot on. If you're an amazing writer, that's all that counts. If you're an amazing camera man, that's all that counts. If you're editing looks beyond amazing and blows everyone away...even though you're editing Hi8, that's all that counts.

I think they work on the concept of that. IMHandhopefulO.
 
Re: I read this....

Jonathan Caouette's brutal and spellbinding musical docudrama Tarnation defies categorization. Part documentary, part narrative fiction, part home movie, part acid trip, this completely original debut is breathtaking and establishes Caouette as a cinematic visionary to reckon with.

Caouette has been documenting his life since he was 11 years old. With Tarnation, he weaves a psychedelic whirlwind of snapshots, Super-8 home movies, old answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, snippets of '80s pop culture, and dramatic reenactments to create an epic portrait of an American family travesty. The story begins in 2003 when Jonathan learns that his schizophrenic mother, Renee, has overdosed on her lithium medication. He is catapulted back into his real and horrifying family legacy of rape, incest, abandonment, promiscuity, drug addiction, child abuse, and psychosis. As he grows up on camera, he finds the escapist balm of musical theater and B horror flicks and reconnects to life through a queer chosen family. Then the film hurdles forward through time into the future as Jonathan confronts the symbiotic and almost unbearable love he shares with his beautiful and tragically damaged mother.

A dazzling display of energy and visual splendor, Tarnation is a raw and sensual masterpiece of self-destruction and rebirth that announces the arrival of a new filmmaking talent. — Shari Frilot


** also noted that Gus Van Sant was the executive Producer
 
Re: I read this....

Yes, copyrighted material is copyrighted. There is such a thing as fair use. It lets me, AF Band guy, perform music (not video) without paying for it. There are similar rules for sync rights... but be VERY careful. And no, you don't have to have 'stars' in it to have to pay for it.

CaptM
 
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