Lady Imbri sent me a link about a possible case of plagerism. The picture on the left is from Bleach...the one of the right...is not. Simmons was accused of plagerism back in February. You decide for yourself. Looks a little too alike, and I really doubt it's an hommage to Tito Kubo. But it raises an interesting question...will I get in trouble if I use, a song, story line, anime, basically someone else's work to create something fun and neat.
Well, according to the ninja-monkey-copyright-lawyers at MySpace and YouTube, the answer is an inconsistent yes. How many times have I thrown up an AMV and either the song, or some other aspect of the content comes under scrutiny and I had to remove it? One too many times. It is regrettable that one of my favorite bands, Weezer, is highly active is squashing creative content. But there is a point to this; it IS their work. This how they make their money and pay their bills. But I feel that at some point, they can ease up a bit...if I am not making any money out of this myself, why whould they care?
Just like when people make fan art or fan-fiction, sure we are basing our own creative liscence on something already created. It can be called an hommage...and most of the time, the original creators may be amused or honored by it. It's the same thing with AMV's; a person felt that a certain anime and a song really fit and create something visually stunning or amusing. While I do get annoyed at the ninja-monkey-copyright-lawyers. There is something else to be considered...intellectual and creative rights.
Artists put a lot of hardwork into their craft. It is theirs. Anyone who has taken time to create something original, and to have it put into the public eye...that's a lot of work! I remember a few years ago, one of the last writing assingments I did was to convince an opera audience why dressing up the cast in WWI uniforms and dress actually did relate to the opera, "Faust". It took me a lot time, effort and research...I remember the morning of the deadline...it was 4am and I didn't realize it. Point is, it was my work, my effort, and I, by being the creator, deserved the credit (and criticism). The same goes for the creators of manga and anime.
Most artists/creators are fine with hommages to their work. But not always. Otakon has a rule for its AMV contest: don't use English dubs, original Japanese actors voices can be used, however. The main reason for this is that Otakon may have a guest voice actor...and he or she would probably not be too happy if their voice was used on an AMV...largely because they aren't getting paid for it. It reminds me of when Patrick Stuart showed up at a premiere at the the theatre I worked at the time; ten feet before I could introduce myself, an intern got in his face and snapped a pic without his permission...his image is his bread and butter, he was mad and left before I could speak to him (btw, he was playing Othello in DC then, yes, I said Othello).
But for the most part, creators and artists enjoy hommages. So, the answer to the question is no...you won't really get into trouble unless you plagerize. Make sure you aren't trying to profit too handsomely off of someone else's work and above all...make sure that whatever you do, give credit where credit is due. Simply doing that can prevent an hyper-active manga artist from shoving is pens and pencils where the sun don't shine.
So...hommage away!!
SIDE NOTES:
AMV deadline for the Otakon AMV Contest is June 20th. Go here for rules and regs: http://www.otakon.com/
Give my vlog some love and stop by! http://www.youtube.com/user/TheUnagiObserver
TONIGHT'S PLAYLIST:
Click here and go to the music section for the music: http://bigstevegearhart.multiply.com/
"Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" - Afghan Wigs
"Stockholm Syndrome" & "Time Is Running Out" - Muse
"Kiss With a Fist" - Florence and the Machine
"I Want You To" - Weezer
"Super Bon-Bon" - Sould Coughing
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