In a message dated 4/13/04 2:28:27 PM, GVENTURA@highline.edu writes:
>=20
> A conscientious student group on campus (not all groups on campus have bee=
n=20
> so proactive in the past) actually asked if they needed public performance=
=20
> rights for a certain title (Inside Mecca) and I did my best to hunt down t=
he=20
> information. (The answer was "no, not available for that title.")
> Once I relayed that info back to the group they stared at me blankly like,=
=20
> "Ok, well, now what?"
> Does anyone have any ideas on what=A0to say in that situation? "You're on=20=
your=20
> own?" "Good luck, don't tell me if you break the law."
> I'd appreciate some better ideas than=A0just staring blankly back at the=20
> library patron.
>=20
Well! Certainly, "don't tell me if you break the law" is not the best=20
answer!!!
"I'm sorry, but it happens" is a very good response (see below for even=20
better). I don't know if it's the by-product of an affluent society or the=20
proliferation of the internet culture, but the concept that EVERYTHING shoul=
d be=20
available under all circumstances is a lovely utopian concept. That's okay a=
nd it's=20
something to strive for. As a closet socialist, I'm willing to have the=20
Government support me so I can supply every one of our films for free. :-)=20
But the concept that if something is not available today, then it's okay to=20
break the law, is a dangerous one.
Two reasons not to play it without PPR.=20
1) It's unethical (it's also illegal, but I like to think morality come=
s=20
up for consideration first and foremost)
2) Who says the company didn't have its reasons? If a distributor who=20
does not own the PPR sells a videotape to a college and it's used improperly=
, it=20
can cause them problems with the producer. Trust me.
BETTER YET, you can give the name and phone number of the distributor to the=
=20
student and let them talk to the person there. It might lead to a better=20
understanding of the situation and perhaps a solution to the problem.
BEST YET, help the student find another film or video that can serve the=20
student's needs instead of the film they can't have. It's the wonderful serv=
ice=20
that librarians do every day of the year. When a filmmaker calls me and says=
he=20
can't get a film clip or piece of music he desperately wants and what should=
=20
he do, I suggest he gets rid of his or her preconceived notion and think=20
imaginatively. It almost ALWAYS works out better than the original plans.
Secondly,=20
Dennis Doros
Milestone Film & Video
PO Box 128
Harrington Park, NJ 07640
Phone: (800) 603-1104 or (201) 767-3117
Fax: (201) 767-3035
Email: milefilms@aol.com
Website: http://www.milestonefilms.com
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In a message dated 4/13/04 2:28:27 PM, GVENTURA@highline.edu writes:
A conscientious student group on campus (not all groups on campus have been=20=
so proactive in the past) actually asked if they needed public performance r=
ights for a certain title (Inside Mecca) and I did my best to hunt down the=20=
information. (The answer was "no, not available for that title.")
Once I relayed that info back to the group they stared at me blankly like, "=
Ok, well, now what?"
Does anyone have any ideas on what=A0to say in that situation? "You're on yo=
ur own?" "Good luck, don't tell me if you break the law."
I'd appreciate some better ideas than=A0just staring blankly back at the li=
brary patron.
Well! Certainly, "don't tell me if you break the law" is not the best answer=
!!!
"I'm sorry, but it happens" is a very good response (see below for even bett=
er). I don't know if it's the by-product of an affluent society or the proli=
feration of the internet culture, but the concept that EVERYTHING should be=20=
available under all circumstances is a lovely utopian concept. That's okay a=
nd it's something to strive for. As a closet socialist, I'm willing to have=20=
the Government support me so I can supply every one of our films for free. :=
-)
But the concept that if something is not available today, then it's okay to=20=
break the law, is a dangerous one.
Two reasons not to play it without PPR.
1) It's unethical (it's also illegal, but I like to=
think morality comes up for consideration first and foremost)
2) Who says the company didn't have its reasons? If=
a distributor who does not own the PPR sells a videotape to a college and i=
t's used improperly, it can cause them problems with the producer. Trust me.=
BETTER YET, you can give the name and phone number of the distributor to the=
student and let them talk to the person there. It might lead to a better un=
derstanding of the situation and perhaps a solution to the problem.
BEST YET, help the student find another film or video that can serve the stu=
dent's needs instead of the film they can't have. It's the wonderful service=
that librarians do every day of the year. When a filmmaker calls me and say=
s he can't get a film clip or piece of music he desperately wants and what s=
hould he do, I suggest he gets rid of his or her preconceived notion and thi=
nk imaginatively. It almost ALWAYS works out better than the original plans.=
Secondly,
Dennis Doros
Milestone Film & Video
PO Box 128
Harrington Park, NJ 07640
Phone: (800) 603-1104 or (201) 767-3117
Fax: (201) 767-3035
Email: milefilms@aol.com
Website: http://www.milestonefilms.com
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