1st Edition

Music Rights Unveiled A Filmmaker's Guide to Music Rights and Licensing

By Brooke Wentz, Maryam Battaglia Copyright 2018
    172 Pages
    by Routledge

    172 Pages
    by Routledge

    Music Rights Unveiled provides an inside look at the complex world of music rights for film and video and includes step-by-step guidance to navigate these tricky waters. Authors Brooke Wentz and Maryam Battaglia share their decades of expertise in this user-friendly guide, designed specifically with filmmakers and producers in mind. The book provides a brief history of the pricing of music in film, television and digital media markets, and explains the process by which music is licensed or acquired for films, highlighting pitfalls to avoid and strategies for success.

    Further features include:

    • A discussion of new media platforms and the intricacies of the rights needed to use music on those platforms;
    • Tips for working with key music staff on a production – the Composer, the Music Supervisor and the Music Editor;
    • An in-depth explanation of building a budget for the music component of your media project.

    Forward

    1. Introduction - The wild west, we meet again.
    2. The Law - For those respecting the law, we salute you. For the rebels, there is no such thing as free music.
    3. Background & History - The emergence of synchs after soundtracks.
    4. Music Supervisors - Every project can use a little supervision. 
    5. Finding Music - A community of composers, libraries and representatives.
    6. The Process of Securing Rights - A step-by-step guide to avoiding mistakes, because what you don't know can cost you.
    7. Brands - People rank music as more difficult to live without than sports, movies, and newspapers.
    8. Digital Media & Digital Platforms - Welcome to the digital era in all its forms.
    9. For the Artist - There is a musician in all of us.
    10. Conclusion - Parting words of encouragement.

    Glossary

    Index

    Biography

    Brooke Wentz is an IP rights executive who founded The Rights Workshop, a company that specializes in securing music rights and licensing for emerging media. She is CEO of a new international music discovery site, Seven Seas Music. As the former MD for ESPN, rights consultant to TechTV, and A&R Administrator for Arista Records, Brooke authored Hey, That’s My Music!: Music Supervision, Licensing and Content Acquisition. She is also a former radio host who won a Billboard Award for one of the bestselling world music recordings, and brings over 25 years of music industry experience to the Bay Area. She is a graduate of Barnard College and Columbia Business School, and currently teaches at the University of the Pacific in California.

    Maryam Battaglia began her career in the music industry over a decade ago working at entertainment law firms and specializing in publishing administration, licensing and copyright law. She went on to work at leading entertainment company Live Nation as administrator of intellectual property. In 2008 she joined Brooke at The Rights Workshop to oversee its business affairs, and over the years has amassed several music supervision credits in film & television. In 2015 she and Brooke co-launched Seven Seas Music, which offers media producers a rich catalogue of international music for placement. In addition to music supervision, Maryam serves as music publishing administrator for catalogues including Bread & Roses, Seven Seas Music, Gold Toes Entertainment, among others. Her work combines her passion for music and media, business and legal affairs, and deal-making. She is a graduate of UCLA and California Western School of Law.

    "Music Rights Unveiled is essential reading for anyone looking to educate themselves on the use of music—both original and licensed—in contemporary film, television and media. The book's plainspoken, practical advice on everything from hiring a composer to navigating the thicket of music licensing, is both relentlessly up-to-date as well as grounded in fascinating historical context."

    —Scott Macaulay, Editor-in-Chief, Filmmaker Magazine

    "This book is the go-to guide for learning how to license music for your film – highly-recommended for those filmmakers trying to figure out the complexities of music licensing and content use. Brooke knows more about licensing music than anyone I know in the business. I would never make a film without her help, and now you can learn all her licensing secrets yourself in her new guidebook."

    —Jennifer Fox, Sundance Grand Prize Winner and Emmy-nominated Director/Producer: The Tale (2018), My Reincarnation (2011), Flying: Confessions of a Free Woman (2006), An American Love Story (1999), Beirut: The Last Home Movie (1987)

    "Music Rights Unveiled is an invaluable, must-read book for all film and media producers. Brooke and Maryam write from the richness of their experience. By removing the veil on the changing landscape of rights clearances, they have provided a direct pipeline to the practical knowledge and best resources that your project needs."

    —Lisa Cortés, Award-winning producer, Founder & CEO of Cortés Films