I've always wanted to become a filmmaker and now that I'm about to get into college, I can feel me getting ever so closer to fulfilling my dream. Over the years I have written stories and came up with some great, original ideas.
Now that I'm starting to meet fellow filmmakers and hopefully begin working with them, I have an interesting question. I'm hoping older, more experienced filmmakers/screenwriters can help me with it.
Have you ever thought someone might take your idea and sell it for themself? Maybe make a movie before you do or make a better version and make money off of your idea that you have worked so hard at? I'm afraid that even though my ideas are not the greatest, they're all I got to help me get in the game. Has that ever happened to you or have you ever even thought about it? Thanks.

write log lines and then copyright them or just dont talk about your ideas with others. if you are a good writer most people will not be able to write your idea because it will have your own style.

No one is going to ever understand your adsact vision unless u are working with them and they are there to learn it. In the meantime before you're shooting, have diferent versions of the script. Maybe just show outlines to people (who might be interested in acting/producing in it) Dont let anyone see your gold until you know theyre on yourside. Dont get into the business either, people who write scripts for money are usually writing out of their ass and to an audience that lives in their ass. If anyone steals your idea itll be such a joke on the big screen you'll cry while yellin, "NOT EVEN CLOSE" PLus any idea they steal is prob a mistake on your part cause THEY only like ****ty ideas.

Most your good ideas are going to unfold WHILE you're working/filming. thats when new directions are discovered.

this doesnt have much to do with people stealing ideas, but i think it does have much to do with it. :confused

from somewhere;

Some people think they'd better wait until they've "perfected" themselves before they offer their own teaching and gifts to the world. But often the best teaching is showing the world your own 'problems', and how you're transforming them in each moment. This is being a living teacher, instead of a signpost.

quote:

Originally posted by Kyle Johnson:
Dont get into the business either, people who write scripts for money are usually writing out of their ass and to an audience that lives in their ass.

Best part of that entire post.

i <3 kyle

Whenever I think I've got a colossally good (uh) idea, I either never share the secret or tell it to people I know i can trust, but even that's not foolproof.

Best Way: write it down on a slip of paper and keep it in your wallet until you can make it happen.

Seriously though, in the big scheme of things everything you make as a student is likely going to be crap anyway, so I wouldn't be so fussed about protecting intellectual property. If you have something you think might be REALLY special, save it for when you can pull it off competently; though chances are by then you'd have realized it wasn't such a hot idea either. So this may be a little pessimistic, but it's true 99% of the time.

The idea is simply not enough. If all you've managed to create is a logline then you deserve to get ripped off, of course the thief then deserves a beating, but rememeber sloth is a deadly sin.

And you can't copyright a logline, that's absurd. The writers guild has a great program for registering scripts so once you've got an idea and then HAVE ACTUALLY WRITTEN A SCRIPT then go register it at wga.org. If you then see years later your "hitman with a Heart of Gold" superscript directed by Brian Depalma you can file a complaint and the guild actually compares the scripts and rules if you've been ripped off. But there has to be fundemental charateristics that are copied not just the general story idea. Prestige and The illusionist are a good example of this differance.

You can't be afraid to share your ideas as film is such a collaborative medium. Just register the script.

But how much of this is paranoia, has anyone here ever been ripped off?

in 8th grade i discussed the idea of scooby doo being a live action picture. The movie came out about a year later.

And recently I saw a short two line conversation in a film between two girls in a bar, talking about what a penis looks like. said it looked like a worm (or something much similiar to the last scene in Filling Bolster)
THEY ARE LISTENING!

Its only the presentation of an idea that can be copyrighted. Even the most detailed plot outline can not be copyrighted because there are 1000 different ways to present the same material. So for cases of copyright infringement, a panel looks at how similar the presentation of allegedly stolen material is to the original. (not the plot itself)

quote:

Originally posted by Kyle Johnson:
in 8th grade i discussed the idea of scooby doo being a live action picture. The movie came out about a year later.

Heh, similarly, when I was a freshman in high school I wrote a feature length sequel to FF7. I used to blatantly lie to people and say that I had sold it and that it was coming out in 5 years. Well, 5 years later Square announced Advent Children. Creepy. Similar premise to my script as well, although with none of the terrible dialouge.

NO NEW IDEAS



JUST NEW WAYS OF EXPRESSING THEM