Check out this video from iwouldntsteal.net. It's a response to the "piracy is a crime" video that has aired on television.
They express that making a copy and sharing does not equal stealing. They also believe sharing expands culture and supports the artist.
Uilleam said:
Reading a magazine at the store, and not buying it, is stealing content. Downloading content without approval from the content creator and not paying for it, and then sharing it with even one other person, who hasn't paid for it, is stealing and does not support the artist. Do not confuse support, with admiration. Sharing may promote recognition, admiration, and maybe even adoration for the artist, but it does not support the artists. Artists need to be funded to continue to create the art/content they produce. Filmmakers need to be funded to continue to produce. The system isn't perfect, and the middle man/film studios reap most of the compensation, but until a better system is introduced (i.e. internet distribution) I will continue to pay for my content, legally, to support not just the artists, but the crew who contribute to it's production.
mike said:
@Uilleam: Hmm... I trying to think how to reply to your comment... I don't exactly share your pov that money = support, and sharing and spreading-the-word = stealing.
I've spent the last 4 of my boring little life working on a doc' that, when it's finished, very few people will care to sit through, I've poured more money into it then I've probably spent on all other things combined... and I can only hope that people "steal" my film, share with it friends, burn it to DVDs, post pieces of it on youtube, upload it to a torrent sharing sites...
Sharing = Getting our work out there. Getting our work out there = People who dig what we're doing. People who dig what we're doing = support. And support = a reason to keep making things.
I don't care if that support comes in the form of "hey, good job", money, connections, etc. The bottom line is money = least important reason for me to make films. The "business" model you swear by is a dead-horse :)
Do us filmmakers a favor, "steal" the work of people you admire, share it with a friend who wouldn't normally see it.
Uilleam said:
@MIke:
If it's your content, and you don't have a problem letting it loose, I support you. That's your right. I'm just concerned for the content providers/artists who haven't granted that right, and want/need compensation/recognition.
Ultimately, an artist should have the final say on how their content is released to the masses. If an artist hasn't consented to letting it loose, then, I have to say, it's stealing.
Having had my own content 'stolen' and used without my permission, I have a bias. Had they asked, I probably would've let them use the content, but they didn't. I felt violated.
