hal sinden (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} asradel) wrote,@ 2007-11-05 17:07:00 |
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legal / artist issue
bit of an odd one that i want to collect some opinions on before i move on it…
was down in kent this weekend and this has surfaced:
the donald sinden collection
which, at first glance, is obviously something that quietly wells up the familial pride amongst other things.
then the man himself told me that he's receiving absolutely nothing from it. back in the days of studio contracts, and in his case having signed for x amount of productions to the rank organisation, the terms agreed made no provision for repeat or reproduction as the only format likely to feature what was made was on film, and film only. the concept of any of the features being seen anywhere other than a cinema was out of the question.
consequently, my grandfather has never received a penny for the films he made above and beyond their initial theatrical release. many of the titles he has appeared in have been a staple part of britain’s and other countries’ TV repeat schedules for decades. he of course made sure that subsequent TV & other related media were bound into continual rate systems, but it’s tricky to go back on what’s been signed - or is it?
this is where it gets interesting. allegedly the producers of the films and their companies continue to receive income from these productions, yet none of the actors do, nor do their estates in the cases of the films outliving them. also, at an average of £50 / £60 a pop at the RRP for this collection, it’s hard to believe that somebody isn’t receiving something from it. were it a collection of films that in some way also feature my grandfather as a supplemental factor, i’d understand and be less concerned, but this is an entire box set with related (and actually very well put together) artwork and promotional photographs of specifically him, to state the obvious - without him, it wouldn’t be in existence.
as a side point, perhaps one of the saddest things is he hadn’t even been sent a copy of it. it’s apparently been out for a few months and was literally stumbled over by a third party only recently. given his ongoing career, and the fact that in order to put this collection together there must’ve been some awareness of him raised by the researchers most likely employed to do so, one would be hard pushed to gloss over the fact that he’s very much still alive and kicking as a working actor (regular TV, radio & film appearances amongst other things); common courtesy would at least dictate that the subject of the box set might at least like to see the fruits of his considerable labour.
can anyone shed any light?
H
bit of an odd one that i want to collect some opinions on before i move on it…
was down in kent this weekend and this has surfaced:
the donald sinden collection
which, at first glance, is obviously something that quietly wells up the familial pride amongst other things.
then the man himself told me that he's receiving absolutely nothing from it. back in the days of studio contracts, and in his case having signed for x amount of productions to the rank organisation, the terms agreed made no provision for repeat or reproduction as the only format likely to feature what was made was on film, and film only. the concept of any of the features being seen anywhere other than a cinema was out of the question.
consequently, my grandfather has never received a penny for the films he made above and beyond their initial theatrical release. many of the titles he has appeared in have been a staple part of britain’s and other countries’ TV repeat schedules for decades. he of course made sure that subsequent TV & other related media were bound into continual rate systems, but it’s tricky to go back on what’s been signed - or is it?
this is where it gets interesting. allegedly the producers of the films and their companies continue to receive income from these productions, yet none of the actors do, nor do their estates in the cases of the films outliving them. also, at an average of £50 / £60 a pop at the RRP for this collection, it’s hard to believe that somebody isn’t receiving something from it. were it a collection of films that in some way also feature my grandfather as a supplemental factor, i’d understand and be less concerned, but this is an entire box set with related (and actually very well put together) artwork and promotional photographs of specifically him, to state the obvious - without him, it wouldn’t be in existence.
as a side point, perhaps one of the saddest things is he hadn’t even been sent a copy of it. it’s apparently been out for a few months and was literally stumbled over by a third party only recently. given his ongoing career, and the fact that in order to put this collection together there must’ve been some awareness of him raised by the researchers most likely employed to do so, one would be hard pushed to gloss over the fact that he’s very much still alive and kicking as a working actor (regular TV, radio & film appearances amongst other things); common courtesy would at least dictate that the subject of the box set might at least like to see the fruits of his considerable labour.
can anyone shed any light?
H
