How to copyright a script the smart way and avoid these 5 legal pitfalls.
This is a guest post by entertainment lawyer, Danny Jiminian, Esq. He lets us in on how to copyright a script and other insider legal knowledge no aspiring screenwriter should be without.
As if learning how to write a screenplay isn’t hard enough, you also have to make sure you know how to copyright a screenplay. And avoid certain other legal pitfalls.
It is very easy to overlook these risky liabilities because you’re so invested in getting your story and characters just right.
You probably don’t have a studio department that will clear your script for you before it’s too late. So we wanted to give you five tips that can help you avoid any liabilities that can come back to haunt you.
1. How to copyright a script: the first steps ALL writers should take.
Always register your script with the US Copyright Office. The Writers Guild of America (East/West) serves a primary purpose of providing writers with a “public claim of authorship.” However, the federal U.S. Copyright registration offers that and two additional benefits.
Benefits of using the US copyright office over the WGA.
1. Federal copyright registration lasts longer. WGA branches keep your material on file for either five or ten years only. Or longer if you pay for renewals. However, U.S. screenplay copyright registration lasts for the life of the author, plus seventy years.
2. You can file a stronger copyright infringement claim. If your copyright is registered before the infringement occurs, you can seek statutory damages and reimbursement of legal fees. That’s in addition to the basic “actual damages and infringer’s profits” when you sue.
This matters because it is difficult to determine the value of copyright and its infringement, so “actual damages and infringer’s profits” might not amount to much. In this situation, a victory in court without an award for statutory damages and legal fees would make you seriously reconsider the cost of suing. Even if you should in principle.
And if you haven’t heard it by now, don’t do the “poor man’s copyright”. This involves mailing your script to yourself and then storing it, unopened. It’s worthless and won’t hold up in court. Learn how to copyright a script by following the simple steps above and rest easy at night.
2. How to copyright a screenplay if you’re co-writing it.
If you’re co-writing a screenplay, write up a collaborator’s agreement with all the writers you’re working with.
Too many creatives—from producers to directors to writers—find out too late the importance of having things in writing. If you have a writing partner for your script, nothing will hurt it more than the lack of a collaborator’s agreement if the relationship goes south.
Oral contracts are enforceable but difficult to enforce. If you want to be a professional, treat every aspect of your working relationship with the seriousness it deserves.
Collaborator’s agreement questions.
What were the terms of contribution? Who owns what? How much will each party be paid and when? What happens if the script does not get sold or made?
These and more questions are the kinds of topics a good collaborator’s agreement will address.
We know some writers and creatives are averse to signing agreements because they don’t want to fracture the working relationship. But a working relationship that fractures during a meeting about a contract is probably too weak to begin with.
Have a lively discussion now and hash out the terms before writing the script. Leave it for later and disagreeing may be too late.
3. How to copyright a script adapted from another source.
Do NOT adapt from another copyrighted work without gaining permission. Ideas can come from anywhere at any time, but many of those ideas are composites of ideas and works that came before.
The world around us influences our ideas through all of the books, graphic novels, songs, movies, plays, cartoons, etc. that we consume.
Let’s say you see a stageplay and think it would make a great film. Then you set about writing a screenplay based on it. This is a big mistake if those works are under copyright protection. Remember, one of the protections copyright affords the owner is the right to prepare derivative works based on the original work.
You can’t use a song in a movie script without permission. You also can’t base a movie on a song without getting permission from the copyright owner.
If the work is in the public domain, then you don’t need permission. But always make sure it’s in the public domain first. Contact a lawyer who can confirm it first before you invest your time in writing the script.
4. How to copyright a script to avoid getting sued for music use.
Here’s a bit of advice for the first-time screenwriter: don’t add specific music cues and references in your script.
As much as you might want to add recorded music that evokes an era or a theme, such as Crosstown Traffic, you better not put it in unless you already have permission.
This means either having a sync license and a master use license. Or being certain that you (or the producers) can pay for its usage.
A way around these legal pitfalls is to simply write something in your script along the lines of:
Elizabeth saunters over to the jukebox and puts on a classic 60s rock song.
Here’s a great example of creating a mood rather than calling out a specific song from the Election screenplay:
Paul is in the driver’s seat of his hitching big-wheeled PICKUP TRUCK. His door is open, and his radio blasts a SONG carefully selected to boost soundtrack album sales.
5. How to copyright a script to avoid getting sued for libel.
Learning how to copyright a script also involves knowing how to write about real life people. Writers do not need the headache of a suit of libel or defamation or invasion of privacy/publicity which can result from writing a script about an actual person.
You do not libel someone simply by showing that person in fictional circumstances. Libel requires a false and defamatory statement of fact “of and concerning” an identifiable living person (or business entity.)
If real people are depicted in your work only as engaging in acts they actually engage in, there is no “falsity.” The key thing is that the person is living.
The deceased, in other words, cannot be defamed. But if you write a script including a living person and there are no identifiable characteristics, then you run a low risk of being sued.
It’s best to not write about living people.
However, if there are identifiable characteristics then you may be accused of libel or defamation or invasion of privacy. There are defenses and privileges you can rely on if your script is based on someone living. Such as the facts being true, or your right to make fair comments and criticisms.
But if you are doing that you are already spending money in court that you would rather not. And it’s unlikely a studio, production company or distributor would even risk paying you for a script with that potential risk.
The easiest thing to do is to materially change all of the identifiable characteristics. Or get permission and secure the life story rights of all the living persons your script is based on.
You have plenty to worry about with your script. Can you finish it? Can you revise it and make it better? Can you get financing to get it made? But, unfortunately, the legal aspects of how to copyright a screenplay: the music rights, life rights, etc. are also something you need to be concerned with.
Luckily, these are tasks you can delegate to a lawyer or a knowledgeable producer but, at a minimum, you too should be aware of them.
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How do you copyright a script? Are you doing things the right way and protecting yourself from any legal problems down the line? Let us know in the comments below.
Danny Jiminian, Esq is an entertainment lawyer at www.djimlaw.com For help in how to copyright a screenplay: getting permission from musicians and other copyright owners, clearing the script, negotiating life story rights, researching public domain works, registering it with the US Copyright Office and drafting collaborator’s agreements, contact him at danny@djimlaw.com.
More posts on how to copyright a script and sell it…
How to Become a Screenwriter: A Pro’s Guide to Unlocking Your Career
How to Sell a Screenplay: 6 Most Popular Ways New Writers Make a Sale
How to Get a Screenwriting Agent and Manager in 10 Proven Steps
[© Photo credits: Pexels]
Hi Danny, thank you so much for valuable primer on copyright law as applied to scripts (free of charge too!). I’m writing a TV series that takes place starting in 1974, the story involves real police, church and government officials most of whom are likely deceased, some who are notable historic characters. Do you have any advice? Do I change the names of the parish and precinct characters in this story? Do I reveal the city and township where the story takes place? Thanks for your excellent guidance.
Hi Danny, thank you so much for valuable primer on copyright law as applied to scripts (free of charge too!). I’m writing a TV series that takes place starting in 1974, the story involves real police, church and government officials most of whom are likely deceased, some who are notable historic characters. Do you have any advice? Do I change the names of the parish and precinct characters in this story? Do I reveal the city and township where the story takes place? Thanks for your guidance.
Thank you, very useful information I was just looking for on how to copyright a script!
I’m an up and coming producer in the process of buying a SHORT film script. But the writer has not register short screenplay for copyright because she potentially may not make much money on them. Should I only purchase if she registers or register myself and pay for the script only after registration has been completed? Or is registration not necessary? Any advice on how I should proceed would be greatly appreciated.
Hi,
I originally wrote a screenplay. But then I hired another writer (whom I worked with and we came up with a slightly different version of the “original”. I paid her for her help and told her if it gets made into a movie – she would get some writing credits + some of the money (for being one of the writers of that script). So how would I copy right it?
Question: Would I list both me + her as the authors? Also whom would I list as the claimants? (my own llc – as it would be the sole owner)?
I just wanted to make sure of doing it correctly (and have full ownership + control) as I wouldn’t want it to affect the original story / script (already registered) .
Hi, sounds like something you’d need to work out with her and an entertainment lawyer. We’re not able to give legal advice unfortunately.
Is the following legal?:
Harold and Mike are watching the “Little Shop of Horrors”. They are laughing and giggling at the giant, man-eating plant, Audrey II.
STOCK FOOTAGE Scene from “Little Shop of Horrors” where the shop owner, Mushnik, gets eaten by monster plant Audrey II.
MIKE: That guy, Mushnik, never saw it coming.
HAROLD: You can say that again. Ha ha.
MIKE: I like the way Audrey II sings.
Yes, but probably best to remove the “stock footage” cue and just describe what’s happening on the TV or wherever they’re watching it.
Can I mention a movie title in my screenplay? And how about a reference like e.g. I named my daughter Scarlett because its my favorite movie (talking about Gone with the wind)?
Yes, mentioning other movie titles, songs, plays, etc. is totally fine. 🙂
When I copyright a second draft, should I do it as if I copyright a new script, but titled as “TITLE (2nd Draft)” ? Or is there a way to link the two versions?
Hey Ozgur – there’s no need to put “2nd Draft” or try to link the drafts. As long as the draft you’re sending out is copyrighted that’s all that’s needed.
Should you copwrite your script before entering competitions? Thanks
For peace of mind, yes – it’s always best to copyright before sending your work out anywhere.
Hello,
I’m in Africa (Uganda), can I register my script in the US?
I am a poetess and I have written several poems without copyright .I have no clues on how to do it .
Hi, everybody! I’ve got a kind of abnormal situation. I am an amateur animator/writer. A while back, I started working on what I intend to turn into a cartoon series. Here’s the part that’s unusual. I’ve already made the first episode. As in, it actually exists in a finished, animated, cartoon form. It took me two and a half years, but having moved into this from a background of writing/copyrighting music, I just took it for granted this whole time that I would be able to submit the cartoon for copyright in finished form and get the most bang for my buck, like I used to back when I registered copyrights for the music I’d recorded. In those days, I just paid a fee, filled out a form, and sent a disc of my recordings to the Library of Congress. Always seemed to me that copyrighting the actual recording was better than copyrighting a written description of what the recording should sound like, but for some reason, when I ask people how to copyright my cartoon episode, they present it like this is simply not done. They talk about copyrighting drawings of character designs and names, etc. I didn’t really start out with anything like that when I began animating this project. I just hit the ground running. I think I might have made one drawing of the main character, which is now long gone, but with the characters of lesser importance, i just kind of winged it. In other words, it seems like a lot of needless steps backward to deconstruct something that already exists in a finished form, only to protect a version of it that is far less specific and concrete than my finished product is. Is there not any way I can just submit a digital file (and if necessary a script) of my finished cartoon episode and register a copyright that would protect everything within, character names and appearances included? If this is acceptable with homemade musical recordings, I don’t see why it wouldn’t be acceptable with homemade cartoons or short films. Thanks for the help!
What if I copyrighted, through US Copyright and also WGA, an early version of my script but there have been revisions including additional scenes?
Additionally, how does US Copyright handle title changes?
You only need to re-register if major changes have been made to the script. So if you’ve only added, say, three scenes, then you wouldn’t need to re-copyright.
So this was my question, after the 4th draft, it is the same story and characters, but the sequencing and timing have all changed. First, I registered the treatment, then the logline and summery, then the script 1st draft. Now the book. I was told if I covered each step, I would have the best chance to protect the rights. Before sending it out to scriptwriting contests, a producer pitch, or book publishing. Was this necessary? And yes, it sounds like I am paranoid. But if you read the pitfalls of being a new writer today is scares the hell out of you. Just as if the doctor says you have some problem and he wants you to go on some meds. Then you go online to see the side-effects scares you even more. This site is beneficial. Thank You for being here!
You only really need to register the treatment if you’re sending it out and script and only if major changes are made each time. Hope this helps!
Thanks, Danny and SRP,
My question is.. Can you mention a song title to another character?
Me: Have you heard The Gambler by Kenny Rogers?
You: No, I live under a rock.
Is this okay?
Thanks so much.
Yes, that’s totally fine. 🙂
You guys have been AMAZING and SO HELPFUL with my script through your script coverage services. This answer puts FADE OUT on my script!
THANK YOU SO MUCH!
I HIGHLY recommend for anyone needing help. 🙂
Thanks for the shoutout, Toni Lynn! We really appreciate it 🙂
Thanks so much for another opening eyes post.
The other benefit of using the US Copyright Office over the WGA: their services are really available worldwide.
Though the WGA declare the same, when I tried to contact their Registry, they denied the access because of the security rules. And I am living in a (wrong) East European region.
Is it legal if my character is singing a part of a song in my script?
It’s generally not advisable not to include songs that you don’t have the rights to.
Appreciation to SRP for this. It has helped me a lot.
Thanks, Chandra!
Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as though you people are worrying about things that may or may not happen down teh line.
It’s always best to copyright your script once it’s written, but yes writers could always do more writing 🙂
Do you know if I need to copyright my script in my country or in America?
It doesn’t matter where you live – we recommend having your script copyrighted at the WGA or US Copyright Office.
Knowing how to copyright a script is hard but you have done a excellent job in this subject!
Thanks, Shira!
WHere do I go to copywrite my script?
You can try either the US Copyright Office or WGA. Or both.
This has helped thank u x
Thanks, Estelle, good luck with the script!
I love this site!! thank you to my brother for showing it to me I think its gonna help my screenwriting 100x
Welcome aboard, Dwayne!
I have been reading a lot of professaional screenplays and they include music in them, like actual songs on the radio. But you said we shouldn’t??
It’s not advisable in a spec script, no. Remember, pro writers are not trying to sell a script for the first time.
I don’t even understand what your talking about. I thought I could mail my script to myself an not open it and that was enough?
That’s not recommended, get your script properly copyrighted!
Terrific!
Cheers, Stefan!
Thank you for sharing script reader, what a wonderful resource Ive stumbled upon.
Welcome aboard, Lucien!
I’m a director but I’ve just forwarded this onto a writer I know. She’ll love it.
Great, thanks, Shelly!
Great post I will contact your lawyer for help with my script. Thank u.
Really nice post. Helps me learn how to copyright a script for sure.
Glad it helped, Lorita.
I am scared of copyright infrigement. What do I do if someone steal my idea?
Thank you for this information Script Reader Pro!
Does your website have a phone number? I’m having a tough time locating it but, I’d like to call you about my script.
We don’t have a phone number but you can email us any time or book a Skype call.
What if my writing partner doesn’t want to admit I wrote more of the script than he did. We’re getting heat from industry and want to set things straight.
I always copyright my scripts with US Copyright office. Forget WGA.
Is it okay to watermark my screenplay?
It’s not recommended, Jose, as it comes off as a little paranoid.
Where can I get the script to BOYHOOD?
What if you saw a real-life owner of a restaurant in a reality TV show and want to write a fictionalized account of her life and goings on in the restaurant? Do you show that person somehow or just keep writing off of your imagination since that’s all you had to go on in the first place? Changing names, location, etc.
I liked your tip to look into getting permission from any persons that are involved in the project. That way no one can be negative about the involvement in the project. My cousin would like this advice since she has been looking into copyright help.
Can I mention a couple of Famous actresses last names along with actual facts in my script? i. e. “Davis, Crawford everyone knows they had abortions”
Yes, there’s no problem with that.
Danny, do you imagine me getting any replies on my Posts. It would be nice. Nice audience is here now!
Other legals or attorneys on this post can chime in, it would be appreciated.
I would think there would have to be some compensatory damages, being that a lot of shows and movies have made millions upon millions. What really amazes me… Is that it would have to be a juvenile act, because anyone in a higher echelon would know how ludicrous this is when they can easily offer a substantial amount for a script and would be able to cherry pick the whole script, without expensive risk of liability. However, I find it keeps happening with the same people, same shows, and some very, very prestigious people in this industry, that truly will surprise you.
Your thoughts and thoughts from others would be well appreciated.
This is good sense on 101 protection, however there is a large spectrum that no one actually addresses. It’s called borrowing and my understanding is that many writers study and borrow scene structure, ideas from dialogue composition which is allowed from movies or screenplays that are already produced. Old adage “nothing is really new just changed. There are a plethora of screenplays, handed around that are not made into movies, writers especially — TV, I’m not sure what process there is, but get fresh ideas from these screenplays. Is it fair or legal? Let’s say, I spend years on an idea of scene structure or dialogue and before I sell it as something fresh, it is seen on a TV SITCOM or movie, mine is no longer fresh. This is my biggest beef of handing my script to consultants or websites. You meet a producer who claims, it is not fresh. Where does it leave all of the rookie people who trust others? Remember I’m not talking the script! It may be one unique page only the writer would know. Now what? I never worry about the whole screenplay, being copied, the law protects it, once copyrighted. It’s those small portions that make my blood boil, when the arrogance of taking from others, is justified ok in Hollywood. What do you think?
Awesome advice, thanks so much Script Reader.
You’re welcome Justin.
Excellent advice. I will be submitting my script to you guys soon for coverage.
Thanks, Nat. We look forward to it.
I must copyright my script soon. Thank you for this valuable information.
You’re welcome, Sanjit!
Do I need to copyright my script with both WGA and US copyright office?
No need. Just one or the other will do.
Thanks for the great tips. I was just wondering about how to copyright my script properly!
Thanks, Amber! Best of luck with the script.
Very informative and helpful, I hope I never encounter any of these problems or issues— if I do, I know who to call.
Thanks, Aaren J. Stewart (aspiring screenwriter)
What about the mention of BRAND NAME such as FORD’S SHELBY COBRA MUSTANG, MITSUBISHI and PORSCHE? Even just for a screenplay contests?
It’s up to you. No one’s going to pass on your script over calling out car names, but on the other hand it’s best to do it if it highlights a character’s personality or serves as a plot device of some kind.
Can you write just the name of the artist like ” Rick is listening to a song by the BEE GEES as he drive.”?
You can do, but something like “Rick is listening to an upbeat disco song as he drives” or “Rick nods his head along to a Bee Gees style song as he drives” would be safer.