Cinema is a young art form that began to appear at the end of the 19th century but has an extremely rapid development rate, meeting the artistic tastes of people. After more than a century of development, cinema brings cultural and artistic values to people and becomes a strong industry with high economic value. Each cinematic work reflects the creativity of the people who make it, expressed in elements such as the content of the script, the performance of the actors, the installation of the director, the music, the setting, and the effects, etc. Each cinematic work is the result of a period of labor and creativity of a collective. So, how is that creative achievement protected? Vietnamese copyright would like to clarify the above issue through the article Copyright for cinematographic works below.
1. Cinematographic works
Cinema, the seventh art, is an art form of synthetic, characterized by the combination of a literary script, the acting of actors, and the use of techniques for recording images, sound, light to create a works, called the art of cinematography and editing.
Referring to cinematic works, everyone is familiar with the name “film”. Regarding the definition of a film, according to the provisions of Article 3, Clause 2 of the Law on Cinematography of Vietnam:
” “Film” means a cinematographic work whose content is represented by consecutive animation or images created by technical or technological devices; with or without audio and other effects according to the principle of cinematic language; recorded on medium, digital or other technical media and disseminated to viewers, including feature films, documentaries, scientific films, animated films and films that combine various types.
Films do not include video recordings for disseminating news on radio, television, and the internet; art shows, video games; recording products that show the activities of one or more people and describing actual events, situations, or programs.”
In addition, Article 12, Clause 1 of Decree 22/2018/ND – CP stipulates: “Cinematographic works and works created by similar methods specified at Point e, Clause 1, Article 14 of the Law on Intellectual Property are works represented by animation combined or not combined with audio and other means according to the principle of cinematic language. Static images taken from a cinematographic work shall be regarded as part of that cinematographic work.”
2. Copyright protection for cinematographic works
According to Article 21, Clause 1 of the Law on Intellectual Property and Article 12 of Decree 22/2018/ND – CP:
- Screenwriters and directors are entitled to a number of moral rights, which are the right to name the work or allow the recipient of the property rights to name the work; the right to have your real name or pseudonym on the work; the right to be named a real name or pseudonym when the work is published or used; the right to protect the integrity of the work from misrepresentation by others; not allow others to modify or mutilate the work in any way that harms the honor and reputation of the author.
- Cinematographers, editors, music compositions, art design, sound design, lighting, visual effects, actors and other creative performers of cinematographic works are entitled to the right to have their real name or pseudonym on the work; to be declared a real name or pseudonym when the work is published or used.
- Organizations and individuals that make financial investments and material-technical facilities for the production of cinematographic works shall be the owners of the rights: the right to publish works or allow others to publish works, the right to make derivative works, perform works in public, copy works by any means or forms, distribute, import for public distribution of originals, copies of works in tangible form through sale or other forms of transfer of ownership, broadcasting, communicating to the public works by wireline, radio, electronic information networks or any other technical means unless otherwise agreed in writing.
- Organizations and individuals investing in finance and material and technical foundations for the production of cinematographic works may agree with screenwriters and directors on the naming and modification of works.
- In case a script or musical work in a cinematographic work is used independently, the author or owner of the copyright of the script or musical work shall be entitled to copyright independently of such script or musical work, unless otherwise agreed in writing.
Here is the article “Copyright for cinematographic works”. We hope this article was helpful to you.
