Annual Legal Update for Indie Film and TV

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      "company": "Donaldson Callif Perez LLP",
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      "name": "Chris Perez",
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      "details": "Chris specializes in all aspects of the firm’s practice, including representing independent producers and production companies through development, financing, production, rights clearance and distribution. He has helped hundreds of productions secure the E&O insurance necessary to distribute their films and has established himself as an advocate for artists’ rights.  In addition to representing filmmakers, Chris serves as counsel to writers, podcast producers, radio personalities, museums and foundations.\rChris regularly lectures on production, distribution, financing, and clearance issues at various law schools and producing programs around the world and regularly contributes op-ed pieces for publications including the Daily Journal, LA Lawyer and Realscreen.  Chris is also co-author of the 5th Edition of Clearance & Copyright, the industry’s leading book on rights clearances in film and television.  He is often asked to provide expert authority on to entertainment law, copyright, artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge legal issues by various podcasts and publications, including The Hollywood Reporter, Variety and Forbes.\rChris has also been a leader on several of the firm’s advocacy projects since 2008, including the landmark Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) exemptions secured for filmmakers, for which he was recognized as one of California Lawyer’s “Attorneys of the Year.”  He has been recognized for several other prestigious awards by Variety, California Lawyer and U.S. News.\rChris graduated from the University of Michigan, where he produced, directed, and wrote several student films. He earned his JD at the USC Gould School of Law, where he remains actively engaged with the Latino Law Students Association. \rPrior to working with Donaldson Callif Perez, Chris worked for California Lawyers for the Arts, Technicolor, and the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School.\r",
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      "name": "Dale Nelson",
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      "details": "Dale Nelson is a partner in the Beverly Hills boutique Donaldson Callif Perez. Prior to joining the firm, Dale served as Vice President and Senior Intellectual Property counsel at Warner Bros. for over 25 years. Dale specializes in issues related to copyrights, trademarks, personal rights and clearance, championing the free speech rights of clients in the filmmaking and creative industries. Dale is also a frequent speaker on IP topics and is currently Immediate Past Chair of AIPPI-US, the US chapter of AIPPI, an international IP organization with over 80 countries represented.  Dale is also on the Endowment Board of the Western Center on Law and Poverty, and on the Board of the Independent Shakespeare Company, a non-profit entity hosting free Shakespeare productions in Los Angeles' Griffith Park. Dale was recently recognized in Variety’s 2024 Legal Impact Report for her work with independent filmmakers.",
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      "name": "Michael Donaldson",
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      "speaker_type": "Speaker",
      "details": "Michael is an entertainment attorney who has been fighting for independent filmmakers for over 40 years. In addition to working on films by such industry icons as Oliver Stone, Davis Guggenheim and Lawrence Bender, Michael serves as General Counsel to Film Independent (home of the Independent Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival) and the Writers Guild Foundation.\r\rHe is the industry’s go-to attorney for fair use (a doctrine in United States copyright law permitting limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the rights holders) and other clearance- and rights-related issues.\r\rMichael graduated from UC Berkeley School of Law, Boalt Hall in 1967. His book Clearance and Copyright, now in its fifth edition and has his law partners as co-authors. It is used in over 50 film schools and has become the standard industry reference book. Michael also wrote Negotiating for Dummies (now in its second edition and translated into eleven languages), Fearless Negotiating (published in hardback in 2007 by McGraw Hill) and The E-Z Legal Guide to Trademarks & Copyrights.\r\rMichael has worked on such projects as “This Film is Not Yet Rated” (where all 134 clips were utilized under fair use), “Wanderlust” (saving its filmmaker over $400,000) and “Expelled” (which featured the song “Imagine,” prompting an unsuccessful lawsuit by Yoko Ono). \r",
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  "description": "Chris Perez and his partners Michael Donaldson and Dale Nelson will be back for another lively\n(and surprisingly entertaining) update on the many legal developments affecting the indie film\ncommunity.\n\nThe distribution landscape has once again changed since last we were together at SXSW.  While the number of buyers for independent films seems to have contracted, numbers show that the theatrical business is alive and well, and films are still getting financed and produced. The Trump administration has cut funding for public television, affecting the documentary film market. New distribution models have sprung up, and self-distribution is once again a popular route.\n\nSince last year, several legal issues have come to the fore. The topic that continues to take\nshape from a legal standpoint is AI. What do you need to be concerned about as a user of\nGenAI content? As a creator, should you be concerned about use of your works to train LLMs?\nWe will explore the ever-evolving legal landscape when it comes to AI.\n\nFair use continues to be a useful tool for both documentary and scripted filmmakers, so we’ll\ncover the latest fair use cases affecting filmmakers.\n\nFilms based on or inspired by a true story continue to not only be popular among viewers but\nhave also led to a number of important lawsuits.\n\nBring all your burning questions, because these three leaders in the indie industry tend to stay\non to help you learn more about anything you need to know.",
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  "long_description": "Chris Perez and his partners Michael Donaldson and Dale Nelson will be back for another lively\n(and surprisingly entertaining) update on the many legal developments affecting the indie film\ncommunity.\n\nThe distribution landscape has once again changed since last we were together at SXSW.  While the number of buyers for independent films seems to have contracted, numbers show that the theatrical business is alive and well, and films are still getting financed and produced. The Trump administration has cut funding for public television, affecting the documentary film market. New distribution models have sprung up, and self-distribution is once again a popular route.\n\nSince last year, several legal issues have come to the fore. The topic that continues to take\nshape from a legal standpoint is AI. What do you need to be concerned about as a user of\nGenAI content? As a creator, should you be concerned about use of your works to train LLMs?\nWe will explore the ever-evolving legal landscape when it comes to AI.\n\nFair use continues to be a useful tool for both documentary and scripted filmmakers, so we’ll\ncover the latest fair use cases affecting filmmakers.\n\nFilms based on or inspired by a true story continue to not only be popular among viewers but\nhave also led to a number of important lawsuits.\n\nBring all your burning questions, because these three leaders in the indie industry tend to stay\non to help you learn more about anything you need to know.",
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