Will the nation's highest court use the car that Batman drives as a vehicle to explore the scope of copyright?
Mark Towle, the Temecula, California mechanic who made Batmobiles until being enjoined, has petitioned the Supreme Court to review his dispute with Warner Bros.-owned DC Comics. He argues that the Batmobile doesn't deserve copyright protection, but last September, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals held otherwise.
3 comments:
this article is one of the less attractive aspects of the entertainment industry in a nutshell. Talented technicians and craftspeople labor to produce work up to their own standards, also fulfilling criteria set by shadowy executives in boardrooms far away. It is easy for one to overestimate the amount of independence one has, especially in commercial theater or film, even in cases of more independent film companies. All it takes for such a kerfuffle as the one detailed in this article to arise is a questionable design decision, or even indication that the product or service in question does not belong soley to the shady production conglomerate that called its existence into necessity. Once that action has been committed, one can expect legal of every stripe, from tax litigators to intellectual property attorneys, to come crawling out of the woodwork, brandishing paperwork, overworked paralegals in their wakes. If this article says anything about the state of film and commercial theater in these times, it is a rather depressing statement encompassing the overwhelming amount of bureaucracy currently involved in the great creative enterprise of modern mass entertainment.
I remember writing a comment back in September, about the same court case. It seem like this case has gotten even more coverage since the last time I followed it. This is one of the reasons why I don’t ever want to deal with the law, each side has a very compelling argument. I can’t say I agree with Towles claims but he raises some interesting points to think about. Things get really fishy when it comes to copywriter laws and although one might think Time Warner is entitled to their flagship car, it can sometimes be hard to get a patent on a prop like that. I can see why Time Warner is going through with the suit but I don’t think this guy it selling these cars like hot cakes and one might say that it is good for promotion to have Batmoblie around California. No one is going to mistake this man for being the design this car, ever person that has seen the movie knows whose car it really is. Towle is just a huge fan of the movie and want to bring his talent with mechanics and his love for the car to make a living.
Why is this even an article? I'm not trying to say that the issue of the batman mobile is not important, or that it is an issue that impacts our lives as artists. This is important. I'm just confused as to why this article was written at this time. Nothing of significance has happened. Some lawyers filed a writ of certiorari for a review. This is not a reason to write an article. Nothing is going to come of this. A better move would be to write an article about how the artists and company have been affected by the already decided outcome of this case.
Lets just go over how astoundingly improbable it is that the court will reverse their decision. Over 7000 writs of certiorari are submitted every year. The court will accept approximately 100 of these. This particular case is trying to be accepted again. You'd have a better chance of changing the decision by waiting for a similar case then writing an amicus brief. Accept what is, for the mean time, law, and move on.
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