what brands are you allowed to show in a festival film?

linkdafourf

linkdafourf

Active member
Hi, I'm currently in preproduction for a movie that we want to get going on the festival circuit. I do have one question though, I'm not sure what I'm allowed to show or talk about. Are you allowed to make refferences to copyrighted materials, like talking about starburst candies without actually showing them. If the character has posters in his room are those okay? or are you basically not allowed to show anything at all. just wondering if there was any fair use rules or something of the like, thanks in advance.
-Ryan Beacher
 
We had a long thread about shooting in a bar... and there was debate about turning labels away from the camera... I couldn't help but notice in Black Swan that all the shampoo/conditioner/soap bottles in the bathtub were turned away from the cam. (that doesn't speak well of me that I was looking at that instead of the nude Natalie P.)

If it were me... I'd avoid commercial references unless you think it's absolutely necessary to your film... but then, if it is that means somebody else tied to the brand might actually care.
 
I don't think just mentioning the name of a brand is a legal problem, unless you say bad things about it. Posters on the wall are DEFINITELY not allowed, as they are copyrighted.

For definitive answers on legal issues, consult a qualified attorney.
 
I'm wearin' all my favorite brands brands brands brands... sorry.

If you are interested in the academic / legal discussion, Stanford lawyer Lawrence Lessig predicted in his book THE FUTURE OF IDEAS that we will only be able to shoot in completely white rooms with only things we made by hand. The book is under a creative commons license and you can download it free of charge.

http://www.lessig.org/blog/2008/01/the_future_of_ideas_is_now_fre_1.html
 
It would be wickedly ironic if that book was really popular and interesting... or named, "Tyler Perry's The Future of Ideas"
 
Show only brands that want to sponsor you.

Call them up, ask for a promotion deal. Say you will feature their product in your film, ask what you can get.

You're not going to get money, or at least, I've never seen that happen.
But you might get a truckload of free starburst for your entire team, enough to keep people going for the duration of the shoot.

It also saves you the trouble of trying to get a response from their legal advisors (which can take months) and it saves you the money of contacting an attourney about this (that's a lot of money. A lot.)
 
I was listening to the commentary on Superbad, and the guys were talking about how they had to create fake beer, whiskey, etc. brands and labels, because none of the major beer distributors would allow them to use their brands in such a dicey movie. It's a pretty fun commentary for anyone who cares to take a listen.

Regarding the topic, if you're shooting for YouTube, it really doesn't matter a whole lot what brands you show, unless your film mocks or degrades a specific brand. If you're shooting for anything above YouTube-grade distribution, you'll definitely want to have permission for any brands that are easily recognizable in your film.

Usually, though, you can get away with brands in the background. For instance, you'll probably want to have permission if your actor is opening a box of Cheerios, but you won't necessarily need it for the Dawn dish soap sitting on the counter behind your character.
 
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people often confuse trademark with copyright and therefore conversations like this occur and people become worried about showing labels. Trademarks have absolutely nothing to do with copyright. When a company uses a trademark, they are putting that symbol out to the world in the environment for their benefit (ie. to sell products). Because of that, they are afforded limited protection when they end up in a creative work. The diffficulty comes when the products are not used for their intended purposes

When you get farther fromm the intended purpose and also incorporate the product into the story you should be very careful. Lets take Michael Taverns superbad reference; underage drinking. Well in this case the alcohol would be used not for it's intended purposes, underage drinking and it is a major part of the story. It creates a negative connotation for the product and companies don't like that and are likely to sue. Issues arise when filmmakers apply a negative trait to a product. film where coke is poison or GE is using child labor when they aren't. This falls under trade libel. If you have doubt of course, companies have more money than most of us so turn it away, but don't stress if the head and shoulders bottle can be seen in the bathroom scene.

So why do shows blur the labels or turn away the products? First and foremost it is about product placement. Companies either have agreements with networks or pay a fee to have their product included in a film. SEE; Wall Street 2 and an over obvious Heineken placement. You devalue the worth of the placement or might be in breach of contract if you are a network, if you show a product that is not under contract.

There can be some nuance to all this so I recommend speaking to a professional attorney to clear your film rather than taking advice over the internet 100% of the time.
 
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bosindy said:
There can be some nuance to all this so I recommend speaking to a professional attorney to clear your film rather than taking advice over the internet 100% of the time.
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Well this goes for almost anything of course, but I still say you should get sponsors and then only show their products.
That way you'll save yourself a ton of money talking to an attorney because you know you'll be fine.
 
The potential problem is that we're not just talking about using the logo. The label as a whole may very well be considered an artwork, and as such would be protected by copyright laws.

This is why consulting a qualified attorney is the smartest move.
 
Jawa Ex Machina said:
Well this goes for almost anything of course, but I still say you should get sponsors and then only show their products.
That way you'll save yourself a ton of money talking to an attorney because you know you'll be fine.
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well actually you will need legal work for that too.
 
that thread is as confused as this one.

General Rule about Product Placements

Putting brand name products in your films and other creative products raises trademark questions. Several court rulings say the unauthorized appearance of a brand-name product in your production is okay as long as the appearance does not (i) tarnish the product’s reputation, (ii) draw on the goodwill associated with the product, or (iii) mislead people to believe that the product manufacturer has endorsed or sponsored the production.

there is room to run into problems so again check with an attorney to be safe.
 
Wow guys, thanks for all your help. I'm defiantly going for above youtube, were trying to get into sundance. My biggest concern is a scene in a comic shop. It almost seems unfair that an indy film wouldn't be allowed to be shot in a comic shop but their are literary hundreds of copyrighted materials in each shot. big marvel posters and what not. I can't ask the guy to take down his whole shop just so we can film in it. I just don't know what to do, the scenes in the comic shop are pretty important and can't be written out. I guess our best bet is to shoot shallow DOP and wide like the people who were talking about the bar, its the same thing.

But as far as my other questions go, I am allowed to talk about anything as long as its not libel? IE the characters are allowed to talk about comics and what not. Again thanks for all the help.
 
I'm going to start selling greenscreen stickers of various sizes. Folks can stick them on bottles, cans, boxes, etc., then change the labels in post as required.

:)
 
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