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Question: I have enrolled in a number of online screenwriting courses, is
there anyway to protect an unfinished screenplay that I might need to use
in an online classroom setting? Any help would be greatly appreciated! —Connie
H.
 ANSWER: Under copyright law, you can only protect materials put in a fixed
tangible medium of expression. So to the extent that parts of your script
are ideas in your head and not expressed in a tangible form such as ink on
paper, or saved to a computer disk, they can't be protected. You can protect
ideas by contract, and you could require all those who participate in your
online classroom to sign an agreement obliging them not to disclose your
ideas and suggestions to others, and not to exploit such material without
your prior consent.
I would register or copyright the script or a treatment using copyright
form PA, even if the work is not finished, so at least you are protected
to the extent of what has been rendered into tangible form.
[Mark Litwak is a veteran entertainment attorney and Producer ís
Rep based in Beverly Hills, California. He is the author of six
books including: Reel Power, the Struggle for Influence and Success in the
New Hollywood, Dealmaking in the Film and Tele-vision Industry, Contracts
for the Film and Television Industry, and the recently published Risky Business,
Financing and Distributing Independent Film. He’s the author of the
CD-Rom program Movie Magic Con-tracts, and the creator of the Entertainment
Law Resources website where he can be
reached: www.marklitwak.com ]
Mark Litwak is a veteran entertainment attorney and Producer’s Rep
based in Beverly Hills, California. He is the author of six books including:
Reel Power: The Struggle for Influence and Success in the New Hollywood,
Dealmaking in the Film and Television Industry, Contracts for the Film and
Television Industry, and the recently published Risky Business: Financing
and Distributing Independent Film. He is the author of the CD-ROM program
Movie Magic Contracts, and the creator of the Entertainment Law Resources
website at www.marklitwak.com. He can be reached at law@marklitwak.com.
Disclaimer-Any
material sent to or provided by Mark Litwak is for illustrative and educational
purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal advice, or be considered
confidential or the basis of an attorney client relationship. This
material may not be suitable for your particular situation and different
legal advice may be appropriate depending on your jurisdiction or circumstances.
Therefore, you should not rely on this material, or any part of it, without
the advice of competent legal counsel.
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