The Artful Jurist

I've said it before, and I guess I'll just keep right on saying it: Most people have absolutely no idea how copyright works. Here's an example of what I mean...

I read an online article in the Guardian (a U.K. publication) about how Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker has accused pop artist Beyoncé Knowles of "stealing" some of the choreographer's dance moves for a music video. I've no comment on that controversy. But what I found particularly entertaining — in a groaning kind of fashion — were some of the readers' comments to the article that appeared on the Guardian's Theatre Blog page.

More than one reader suggested that a dance move can't be copyrighted. Wrong. Dance moves can be copyrighted. American law specifically references choreography as among the arts that can acheive copyright protection. (If I understand correctly from some of the posts, British law allows that protection under the statutory term "dramatic work.")

Someone else raised a point, saying that the real issue wasn't whether dance could be copyrighted but, rather, whether the choreographer had indeed copyrighted the work in order to gain that protection. Wrong. Copyright subsists immediately upon creation of the work. One doesn't need to make a formal registration in order to gain copyright protection. Registration simply provides a formal record and allows for certain advantages should one get into a copyright dispute.

Someone else referred to the whole thing as merely "sampling." That's the term the music industry came up with to refer to the practice of incorporating portions of pre-recorded music into a new recording. That's still a pretty prickly issue with many, and it wouldn't excuse cases of true copyright infringement.

If dance "movements" can be copyrighted, someone quipped, can Tiger Woods copyright his swing? No. Copyright is reserved for creative works. Mr. Woods' swing, though a thing of beauty on the links, is not a creative work; it's an athletic movement necessary to the sport.

And then there were a number of comments that seemed to suggest that the only ingredient missing to keep a copied dance routine from being a case of copyright infringement is a proper "shout out" to the originator of the source material. In other words, if it's an homage, then just tip your cap to the source's creator. Well, it's always nice to be recognized by a fellow artist, but, no, that doesn't cure copyright infringement. If you're appropriating someone else's protected work, and there isn't a fair use exception applicable, there's just no substitute for securing permission of the copyright holder.