But I Paid $0.99 for it!

AFX Industrial (film scores)

 

Why you can't download music from iTunes and score your film with it.

 

OK I'm going to bust this myth once and for all.  So, you really want to get your film scored cheaply and you can possess every single piece of music you have ever loved on iTunes all for $0.99 a download.  Conveniently these downloads are 320 kbps Mp3s, which any savvy film maker knows can be easily dropped into the timeline of your movie, job done.

I mean its perfectly OK if you already paid for it, surely?  Well no.  Unless the intended audience for your film is you and you alone, then you are now breaking copyright law.  If the ultimate aim for your film is for it to be broadcast to an audience whether it is on TV or at a film festival then you will need a license to use this music.  In the eyes of the law ignorance is no excuse.

There are many horror stories out there.  One where the director had not budgeted for the music but had spent $9.99 on iTunes downloading famous rock tracks for his film.  Remember just because you have paid for it that does not mean you can use it in your film, not legally anyway.  So back to the director who scored their film with iTunes Mp3s ... The film was rejected for broadcast because they had no licenses for the pieces of music.  OK no problem they thought, we'll get in touch with the publishers and tell them we 'had no budget'. Well the publisher's agent finally gets back (after a month or so of course) with a quote.

'A basic understanding of licensing is essential if you want to get your film shown in public'. 

I'm not going to tell you how much the quote was for but I do know that the budget for the film was $150. However, the quote was so high that the five people involved in the film would have needed to sell all of their houses and cars and max out all of their credit cards to be able to pay for the music licenses.  And that still would not even have begun to cover the fee.  Of course that is an extreme example but it is best to seek permission before you fall into that trap.  You may also find the license is a lot cheaper if you cut out the middle men and deal directly with the artist you are interested in.

What is a license and what does it mean practically? 

A license is simply formal permission to use a piece of music in a certain way on your project.  It enables the copyright owner to track and verify correct usage.  There is usually a fee involved but the fee's size is dependent on who the copyright owner is (this may not be the artist!) and what the intended use is.  You might be surprised, but not all artists are happy for their music to be used in any situation. Some artists like to place restrictions on usage, so that is another reason why a license is important.  Using music illegally will annoy the copyright holder.  Using music illegally for a purpose the copyright holder isn't happy with will REALLY annoy them.

One way to make sure that you're licensing music correctly is to deal directly with the artists - but be wary of an artist who doesn't understand licensing.  A license is a formal legal agreement, and it can never be simply verbal permission, no matter who gives you that permission.  A basic understanding of licensing is essential if you want to get your film shown in public.

So if you want to license music, then that means that you have to speak to an artist's manager, right?  Well maybe twenty years ago you did, but not now.  Gone are the days of managers and agents for musicians, it is much more of a level playing field today.  Of course, I have publishers who 'look after' my music but I always prefer to deal with the film makers directly and I always offer a discount over the publishers' price.  Also, many managers know very little about the minutia of licensing itself so you often get a much better deal by going directly to the artist.

Artists do use publishers but in the end these publishers take 50/60% of your money that you paid to license the music.  Would you not prefer an artist to get 100% of the money you paid to use their music?  That is what happens when you license directly and it means that your favorite musicians can invest more and give you a better product because of it.

I know that this is 'boring paperwork' and this isn't what you got into film-making for, but spending five minutes dealing with licensing issues today will save you a lot of heartache and wasted time tomorrow.


- David.

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Since I posted this blog update I have had many questions about this subject.  Please either leave a comment with your question or take this anonymous survey on film scoring,  I appreciate your feedback.

For more info email me to license music from me visit my website.

For more information on licensing music go here: UK

For more information on licensing music go here: USA