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Famous Songs
- Thread starter MadMan
- Start date
They don't handle music in films anyway, they handle royalties for song plays. The reason you go them is to look up the publisher/owner of the song for contact info. If you even wanted to give them money they couldn't take it. http://www.ascap.com/filmtv/faq.html
You are right that you are wrong...
You are correct that anyone can record a song
and royalties need to be paid, But the copyright
holder still controls the right to copy (record) a
cover version of the song. And it still can be very
expensive. There are some publishers who won't
agree to a cover version for any price.
Really? I know so many musicians that record cover tunes and put them on their CDs. They inform the copyright holders after they do this, and none have ever had a problemI guess the copyright holder has to think if its profitable to go after the artist.
My mistake. I thought we were talking about recording
a cover to put in a movie, not on a CD. Seems you are right.
So, it's a completely different story if you want to use a cover in a movie? Damn laws are so confusing.
With Myspace and Facebook it's so easy to find music for movies nowadays. There's thousands of artists who would sell their souls to have their songs featured in a movie. It's a much easier way to get a sound track then deal with name brands when you have no money.
The copyright holder for the SONG is the Publisher. They control the rights and usage of that song - even if you are trying to release it as a cover on a CD. My guess is your friends have been lucky - esp if they have been making money from the CDs!
Any established publishing company will expect to be paid for the use of their songs - especially if they're used in a commercial context. That is there job - to exploit (not in a negative context) their catalogue of music. They license songs. Asking for permission after you've already used a song is 1 way to either be faced with a MASSIVE retrospective licensing fee, or be forced to withdraw your CD / film etc from market immediately and face a potentially painful lawsuit.
If bands / artists 'self-publish' and retain the rights to their songs, they can sometimes be more sympathetic - esp if it is a small scale production without any prospect for making much money.
If you tried to release a cover version of The Beatles 'Hard Day's Night' without permission on a CD you'd see what I mean - not recommended!
Sometimes the band members have all the power, it's all in their contract. If you are lucky enough to find good music that the band has full say, and they love your rough cut of the film, then you can make a very favorable deal. But most of the time, you will face rejection and you will have to have your composer write something of similar nature. This is probably the most frustrating and longest process in post. Especially when you fall in love with the music/scene!
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It seems like there's more than one way to do it-entertainment attorneys, relationship with the labels/bands, and just your contacts.
IE, someone like me(with NO contacts in the industry) going and asking for permission to use a Lady Gaga song in my short-yea, *IM* probably looking at attorney's and big money. Someone who has contacts in the industry and "knows people" may get a better deal.
I think the best way for anyone is to be upfront: Contact those responsible and say hey, I want to use your music in my film-who do I talk to? Sure they may quote you a staggering sum, or they may ask what you want to use it for, what type of exposure, ect. If I wanted Lady Gaga's people, I am thinking I would contact either her label, or her legal representative. I'll probably blanch, but only by getting that FIRST answer do I look in other directions.
I went on a bit of a rant, and edited-opened up another thread so as not to derail the discussion....
IE, someone like me(with NO contacts in the industry) going and asking for permission to use a Lady Gaga song in my short-yea, *IM* probably looking at attorney's and big money. Someone who has contacts in the industry and "knows people" may get a better deal.
I think the best way for anyone is to be upfront: Contact those responsible and say hey, I want to use your music in my film-who do I talk to? Sure they may quote you a staggering sum, or they may ask what you want to use it for, what type of exposure, ect. If I wanted Lady Gaga's people, I am thinking I would contact either her label, or her legal representative. I'll probably blanch, but only by getting that FIRST answer do I look in other directions.
I went on a bit of a rant, and edited-opened up another thread so as not to derail the discussion....
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The total cost of music for my sports doc "Primal Quest Badlands" was less than 40 bucks,the cost of DVDs for the artist and shipping. I asked one artist to use a song, he said yes and sent me links to many more of his. When I needed more he got me in touch with the president of the record label. Then he sent me a dozen songs to use. Turns out my film his all the top Native American musicians in the country on it. Moral of the story, ask nicely the right people.