Famous Copyright Cases From The Music Industry

Sky News has usefully compiled a brief summary of some of the most famous musical copyright cases.  Check it out here

How Much Do Artists Make From Spotify?

Time Magazine has created an interesting Spotify earnings calculator where you can see how much major artists earn through being streamed on Spotify.  It's well worth looking at as evidence for the debate over whether streaming is really the future of music distribution. As we know Taylor Swift removed her music from Spotify, claiming that the amount paid doesn't place enough value on her music.  In the past the musician Billy Bragg has claimed that the problem isn't with how much Spotify pays per stream ($0.06 - $0.84 according to Time) but the percentage that the record company takes before the artist gets paid.

Pun Alert: The Blurred Lines Between Inspiration and Copyright Infringement

A court in America made a massive decision in relation to copyright infringement last night.  It ruled that the Robin Thicke and Pharell Williams track 'Blurred Lines' (a Universal release) infringed the copyright of soul legend Marvin Gaye's 'Got To Give It Up'.  Listening to the two tracks, there is a definite similarity in the bass line.  See what you think by listening to the two tracks (below).   This interview has a quite a good explanation of how the ruling raises questions about what counts as inspiration and what counts as infringement.  It also sets out some of the potential problems for musicians as a result of the ruling, including how open they might be about their musical inspirations.
You can read more about the case in this BBC New article.

Of course, the controversy around the message of Blurred Lines is an entirely different matter that deserves a debate of its own.

Behold the great Saul Bass

Look before you make. In particular, look closely at the wonderful title sequences of the great Saul Bass. Look here

The Ten Commandments of Typography

Take heed and do not sin!

Trailer Help

There's no doubt that making a trailer is a hard thing to do, especially when you don't have an actual film to work from.  So the best thing you can do is keep looking at real trailers to inspire you and help you structure the thing.  Just had a look at this trailer for a new British drama and think it contains lots of useful reminders of what you should be trying to achieve.  Pay close attention to the structural devices - the dialogue as voiceover, the slates etc.  Most importantly look at how few sequences there are and how, where present, they're no more than three or four shots.  The script really does the job.  Dialogue is minimal, one line here and there that sums up the narrative thrust, e.g "we're not kids any more" telling the audience about genre and narrative. 
What this tells us is that you need to aim to 'strike and run' with your shots.  They should grab the audience and then you move on to the next one that grabs them and so on.

Creativity