'Film' is used here as it is defined in the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 (the Act), and so includes television programmes and all other recordings from which a moving image may be produced.
In general terms, EC legislation is moving UK copyright law towards according more recognition and power to the originators (such as directors) of copyright works. The introduction of moral rights in the Act can be seen as the first such measure; and these rights, particularly the right to object to derogatory treatment (s80), are important for directors. The general rule is that moral rights arise only for authors of copyright works. The exception is that directors of films, who may not make copyright contributions to a film, nevertheless have moral rights in the film. In each case, moral rights can be contractually waived, which is why these provisions have not had a great impact.
The Regulations represent a more significant change in directors' rights. The key change is that the principal director of a film becomes the joint author of it with the producer and, therefore, becomes the first owner of the copyright in the film. From the perspective of the producer, the agreement for the director should not only include an assignment of copyright in the director's contributions to the film but also an assignment of the director's copyright in the film. This should extend to all versions of the film and all film material, even if left on the cutting floor, to ensure that the director's rights in all possible versions of the film are transferred. The Regulations do not affect agreements made before 19 November 1992 nor films made before 1 July 1994.
The other change of importance to directors, contained in the Regulations, is the introduction of rental and lending rights. These are new prohibited acts for the purposes of determining infringement of copyright. It is important that director agreements must also provide for the assignment of these rights to enable the full exploitation of the film.
The Regulations are helpful for film producers in that there is a presumption of transfer of these rights by an author to a producer where 'author' refers to an author of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work. This presumption does not apply to authors contributing to a film screenplay dialogue or music specifically written for the film. Given the nature of a director's contributions, it is unlikely that the presumption will apply to all the director's contributions; so again, the precise wording of any agreement must be reviewed to ensure, from the producer's perspective, that all rights are assigned.
Assuming that the rental rights are assigned, there remains an unwaivable right to equitable remuneration for the exploitation of the rental rights in the director's contributions to the film. The difficulty here is that it is unclear how equitable remuneration is to be calculated. A one-off fee as part of the directing fee and paid out of the film's budget will be preferred by producers, but can take only limited account of the potential video rental (and other rental) revenue. Only a royalty payment dependent on revenue will satisfy the EC concept of equitable remuneration and definitions of this will be decided by the courts.
The right to equitable remuneration will not arise in respect of rentals before 1 April 1997 or rentals after then in respect of films where the director's agreement is made before 1 July 1994 unless notification of the claim took place before 1 January 1997. This is important as claims would potentially leave film producers making payments to directors out of their own pockets unless distribution agreements are correctly worded.

Who owns copyright?

The Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 1996 now provides that the owner of copyright in a film is 'the producer and the principal director. A film shall be treated as a work of joint authorship unless the producer and the director are the same person'. A film is defined as 'a recording on any medium from which a moving image may be by any means reproduced'. Therefore, the law covers films and other media by which moving pictures may be produced, eg. videotape and DVD's.

Copyright expires at the end of the period of 70 years from the end of the year in which the death occurs of the last of the following to die:

The principal director;
The author of the screenplay;
The author of the dialogue; and
The composer of music specially created for the film.

Divisible Copyright

Under English law, copyright is divisible so that different aspects of copyright protection may be owned by different parties in different media.

For example:

The script was written by you then your company will be the first owner of the copyright in it. You the commission a film company. However, the first owners of copyright in the film itself, as distinct from its subject matter, are the producer and the principal director of the film as such.
The mere fact that you may have commissioned and paid the film company to make the film, whether for a television documentary or anything else, does not in itself mean that you own the copyright in the film. Unless, of course, it was otherwise agreed in your contract with the film company in which you gave it permission to make the film.
It could not have made it without your co-operation and consent, and there will almost certainly have been a written contract between you and it relating to the making of the film. The contract addresses the question of ownership of copyright in the film. After all, you should bear in mind that, even if the film were of your own, live, stage performance, there is considerable skill involved in the making of the film itself in terms of camera angles, close-ups, zoom-ins and so forth. The soundtrack of the film, incidentally, is treated as part of the film itself but you should be aware that copyright does not subsist in a sound recording or film to the extent that it is a copy taken from a previous sound recording or film.

Everything depends on the terms of your contract with the film company, so far as the nature and extent of copyright interests is concerned. Usually such contracts are lengthy and complex. If you are in any doubt about the matter you should seek legal advice to ensure that you interpret the contractual terms correctly, both as to their nature and their effect. Not only is copyright divisible but it can be assigned and licensed, subject to conditions. Any licence may be exclusive or non-exclusive, conditional in any or all media.

Infringement of Copyright

The owner of copyright is the only person entitled to exploit the work in the following ways:

Copying the work;
Issuing copies to the public;
Renting or lending works to the public;
Performing the work in public;
Broadcasting or sending a cable transmission; and
Adapting the work.

Even dealing with an infringing copy of a work can lead to liability if the party dealing with the copy has knowledge or reasonable belief that the copy infringes copyright.
Breach of copyright may result in an award of damages, an injunction, delivery up of the infringing copy and/or a share of profits. There are also various criminal sanctions available. Most producers usually take out errors and omissions insurance ("E & O" Insurance) to protect against any infringement of copyright.

Television Buyouts

All British television directors other than company employees, whether they make dramatised or documentary programmes, have a copyright in their work. However, very few UK directors' contracts acknowledge the value of these rights, and directors are usually required to assign all their rights to the production company or broadcaster - in effect to give them away for nothing. This is built into their contracts - the only recourse directors have is to refuse to sign but this often means no work. A new system was established in 2001 to recognise directors' rights in the programmes on which they work. This takes the form of an annual Collective Payment by broadcasters to the DPRS, which will be responsible for the distribution of payments to individual directors. The directors' organisations and broadcasters all believe the agreement marks the beginning of a new relationship between directors and those who employ them. This relationship will be based on mutual respect, fair remuneration and ongoing dialogue.
British writers and composers on the other hand (also authors of their work) have agreements that ensure they are paid whenever their work is exploited, as do actors and musicians. Directors are being forced to accept 'buyouts'. In the meantime, the means by which this work is used and reused are proliferating - whether on dedicated new cable channels or through the Internet.

How to exploit copyright works

To avoid infringing copyright and exploit rights as widely as possible, producers are advised wherever possible to take an outright assignment of copyright from all rights holders with an interest in the production. This must be in writing and signed by the person granting the assignment to the producer. If this is not possible, an exclusive licence should be obtained, although the person granting the licence may terminate this. Licences can be obtained to cover the exclusive rights of the copyright owner as set out previously.

Permission may not be required from a copyright owner if fair dealing exceptions apply. These allow the use of works (or extracts) for criticism, review, or reporting on current events; however, an acknowledgement must be given to both the author and the copyright work. Incidental use of copyright works is also acceptable without the permission of the copyright owner although what is incidental is a matter of fact and degree.