We haven’t seen this film so we cannot in all honesty vouch for it, but we thought our readers (and those in NYC next week) might be interested in this film. Playing next Tuesday, November 10th, at New York City’s IFC, is Copyright Criminals.

According to IFC’s website, the film,

examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law, and (of course) money. This documentary traces the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. For more than thirty years, innovative hip-hop performers and producers have been re-using portions of previously recorded music in new, otherwise original compositions. When lawyers and record companies got involved, what was once referred to as a “borrowed melody” became a “copyright infringement.”

Related posts:

1. Lessig: “our kids have been turned into criminals”
2. Why Is Copyright (Suddenly) a Hot Topic for Artists?
3. NYC: New Rules for Film Shoots
4. When is a Copy Plagiarism and Not Copyright Infringement? (Update)
5. National Portrait Gallery UK Threatens Wikimedia Foundation With Copyright Lawsuit (Updated)

Tags: Copyright, copyright criminals, film, ifc