Dealmaking in the film & television industry : from negotiations to final contracts / Mark Litwak.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Dealmaking -- the popular, award-winning self-defence book for everyone working in the film and television industry -- is now expanded (with more than 120 additional pages) and updated to include the latest legal rulings and entertainment technology developments. Addressing a general, non-attorney readership, it is a fascinating, highly accessible guide to current entertainment laws peculiarities, creative practices, and practical applications. Armed with this book filmmakers can save themselves thousands of dollars in legal fees as they navigate the shark-infested waters of the entertainment business. Whether you are a producer, writer, director, or actor, Mark Litwak will help you make the most of your business dealings while steering you clear of the many contractual traps that may await you.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Disclaimer (p. vii)
• Acknowledgments (p. ix)
• List of Contracts Case Summaries
• Preface to the Fourth Edition (p. xvii)
• 1 Introduction (p. 1)
• The American Film Industry (p. 1)
• The Movie Industry Then and Now (p. 2)
• The End of the Studio System (p. 4)
• A Unique Product (p. 5)
• Coping With Risk (p. 7)
• Managing a Creative Enterprise (p. 8)
• 2 Dealmaking (p. 11)
• Disincentives to Good Filmmaking (p. 12)
• Types of Contracts (p. 16)
• Contract Law as a Remedy for Story Theft (p. 17)
• Types of Deals (p. 22)
• 3 Permission to Portray People and Places (p. 35)
• Depiction and Location Releases (p. 35)
• Location Release (p. 50)
• 4 Clearance of Rights (p. 57)
• Copyright Search (p. 57)
• Errors and Omissions Insurance (p. 59)
• Protection of Titles (p. 63)
• Identifiable Products, Locations, and Persons (p. 66)
• Film Clips (p. 66)
• 5 Literary Acquisition Agreements (p. 73)
• Shopping (p. 104)
• 6 Employment Contracts (p. 113)
• Loan-Out Companies (p. 113)
• Independent Contractors Versus Employees (p. 114)
• Writers (p. 115)
• WGA Credit Arbitration (p. 145)
• Directors (p. 146)
• Actors (p. 161)
• Producers (p. 178)
• Crew and Other Employment (p. 189)
• 7 Advice for Writers, Directors, and Actors (p. 199)
• Writers (p. 199)
• How Writers Are Exploited (p. 201)
• Rights of Writers Guild Members (p. 211)
• Summary of WGA Basic Agreement (p. 211)
• Features (p. 216)
• Television (p. 217)
• Collaborating with Others (p. 220)
• Directors (p. 224)
• Rights of Directors Guild Members (p. 225)
• Creative Decisions (p. 225)
• Disclosure (p. 226)
• Deal Memo (p. 226)
• Hiring Crew (p. 226)
• Casting Sessions (p. 226)
• Facilities (p. 227)
• Stunts (p. 227)
• Dailies (p. 227)
• Post-Production (p. 227)
• Director's Cut (p. 228)
• Protection Against False Story-Theft Claims (p. 228)
• Obscenity (p. 233)
• Actors (p. 234)
• Admission to SAG-AFTRA (p. 234)
• Guilds and Unions (p. 238)
• Notable SAG-AFTRA Rules (p. 239)
• Rights of SAG-AFTRA Members (p. 240)
• 8 MUSIC (p. 243)
• Soundtracks (p. 243)
• Nature of Music Rights Needed (p. 247)
• Distribution of the Soundtrack Album (p. 251)
• 9 Distribution (p. 265)
• The Difference Between Markets and Festivals (p. 267)
• International Distribution (p. 268)
• Borrowing Against Pro-Sales (p. 269)
• Domestic Distribution (p. 272)
• Service Deals (p. 276)
• Four Wall Releases (p. 277)
• New Media Distribution (p. 278)
• Orchestrating the Distribution Deal (p. 278)
• Self-Defense Tips for Filmmakers (p. 282)
• Chain of Title (p. 285)
• Home Video Distribution (p. 288)
• 10 Negotiating Tactics and Strategies (p. 343)
• Techniques to Induce a Studio to Make a Deal (p. 346)
• 11 Creative Accounting (p. 351)
• Art Buchwald v. Paramount (p. 351)
• Distributor Obligations (p. 356)
• Creative Accounting- Tricks of the Trade (p. 359)
• 12 Copyright (p. 367)
• Protecting Your Copyright and Title (p. 368)
• Copyright Basics (p. 368)
• Criteria for Copyright Protection (p. 371)
• The Four Criteria (p. 373)
• Copyright Notice (p. 377)
• The Rights of the Copyright Holder (p. 378)
• Limits on Copyright (p. 379)
• Ownership of Copyright (p. 385)
• Duration of Copyright (p. 387)
• Difference Between 1909 and 1976 Copyright Acts (p. 388)
• Copyright Registration and Deposit (p. 388)
• Advantages of Registration (p. 389)
• Preregistration (p. 394)
• Registration After Berne (p. 394)
• Requirement of Registration upon Publication (p. 394)
• Transfers of Copyright Interests (p. 395)
• Artist's Moral Rights (p. 402)
• Writers Guild of America Registration (p. 404)
• 13 The First Amendment and the Right of Publicity (p. 407)
• 14 Defamation of Persons Depicted in Literary Works (p. 417)
• Constitutional Limitations (p. 417)
• Types of Defamation (p. 418)
• Publication (p. 419)
• Defenses and Privileges (p. 419)
• Public Figures and Public Officials (p. 421)
• 15 The Right of Privacy (p. 431)
• Intrusion into One's Private Affairs (p. 432)
• Public Disclosure of Embarrassing Private Facts (p. 432)
• Appropriation (p. 434)
• False Light (p. 434)
• 16 Trademarks and Unfair Competition (p. 441)
• Trademarks (p. 441)
• Creation of Trademark Rights (p. 443)
• The Federal Registration Process (p. 443)
• Benefits of Registration (p. 443)
• Grounds for Refusing Federal Registration (p. 444)
• Maintenance of the Mark (p. 444)
• Madrid Protocol (p. 445)
• Unfair Competition (p. 445)
• 17 Remedies (p. 457)
• Guild Remedies (p. 458)
• Arbitration (p. 459)
• Commencing AAA Arbitration (p. 464)
• Selecting an Arbitrator (p. 465)
• The Arbitration Hearing (p. 465)
• Alter the Award (p. 466)
• IFTA Arbitration (p. 466)
• Commencing IFTA Arbitration (p. 468)
• IFTA Pre-Arbitration Settlement Procedure (p. 468)
• Arbitrator Fees (p. 470)
• Litigation (p. 470)
• Jurisdiction (p. 471)
• 18 Retaining Attorneys, Agents, and Managers (p. 475)
• Attorneys (p. 475)
• Agents (p. 480)
• Personal Managers (p. 508)
• 19 Glossary of Terms (p. 517)
• 20 Appendix (p. 551)
• Rooks and Publications (p. 551)
• Bookstores (p. 556)
• Libraries (p. 557)
• Guilds, Associations, and Unions (p. 557)
• Protecting Titles (p. 558)
• Filmmaker Organizations (p. 558)
• Education (p. 559)
• 21 Index (p. 561)
• About the Author (p. 580)
• Contracts on Computer Disk (p. 582)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Mark Litwak is a veteran entertainment attorney and expert witness whose law practice includes work in the areas of copyright, trademark, contract, multimedia, intellectual property, and book publishing. He is also a producer's rep, assisting filmmakers in the financing, marketing, and distribution of their films.
An acknowledged authority on the entertainment industry, he has been interviewed on more than 100 television and radio shows, including The Larry King Show, National Public Radio's All Things Considered, and hews shows on the ABC and CNN networks. Feature articles have been written about him in California Law Business, Australian Lawyer, and LA Weekly.
Litwak is an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, where he teaches entertainment law. He has also taught at UCLA and Loyola Law School and has lectured for the American, California, and Texas bar associations. He has presented seminars across the United States and in England, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Canada.
In addition to Dealmaking (which, in an earlier edition, won a Kraszna-Krausz Foundation Moving Image Award for best book on the film business), he is the author of five books, including Risky Business: Financing Distributing Independent Films, Reel Power: The Struggle for Influence and Success in the New Hollywood, and Contracts for the Film Television Industry. Further information is available on Litwak's website: www.marklitwak.com.