The question of “Can you copyright a dance?” has been an essential topic in recent news. Dance is a part of art that distinguishes itself by choreographic works. It is an emotion, a historical embodiment, or a collection of rhythms.
Claiming an authorship for dance is critical for creators and artists, given that it will provide legal protection for creative growth. Here we will delve into all about copyright in the creative industry.
What Makes a Dance Move Copyright-Worthy?
Can you copyright a dance? To be categorized as a creative work that can be registered for copyright, a dance needs to contain a coherent whole and not be in the form of individual movements. Let’s take a deeper look at it.
What Aspects of Dance Can Be Protected?
Choreography refers to the arrangement and composition of a related series of patterns and dance movements arranged into a coherent whole. Pantomimes refers to the art of presenting and imitating events or characters using body movements.
Can choreography be copyrighted? Choreographic and pantomimes are types of dance that can be included in the copyright. This is based on the categories that were made in 1978.
However, some kinds of dances are not eligible for copyright registration. Pantomimes and choreography consist of social dance, motor activities, and athletic or commonplace movements.
Choreography vs. Basic Movement—What’s the Difference?
Moving to the difference between choreography and basic movement. Basic movement sets the rhythm of the dance as the fundamental of the dance step. It expresses the character of a dance.
Examples include hinge, locomotion, rotate, pull, anti-rotate, and squat. Meanwhile, choreography consists of the creative process of arranging a series of movements.
It is used to express a theme, belief, or idea. It can be created for various performances, such as hip-hop, jazz, and ballet.
Real-Life Legal Battles in Dance
Dance can leave the audience in awe due to its artistic expression, rhythm, and emotions. However, can you copyright a dance? Some choreography copyright cases reveal the truth about being aware of the legal rights in the creative industry.
Notable Copyright Disputes Involving Dance
Choreography infringement cases are not common. The reason is because it is not easy to prove that this artistic work has been copied. However, there are some notable history in recent years.
In 2011, Anne Teresa, a Belgian Choreographer, accused Beyonce related to the dance infringement. She brought up two of her dances that were performed in the music video for “Countdown”.
Surprisingly, Beyonce admitted that she was impressed and inspired to implement the dances without asking for approval from the creator. Eventually, Anne did not continue to proceed with the lawsuit as she thought that it was not worth considering.
Another case was the Fortnite Emotes dance. Alfonso Ribero and some other performers submitted a lawsuit against the inventor of the video game Fortnite, Epic Games, due to using their dance copyright within the game as emotes.
How Courts Decide on Dance Rights Cases?
We will take a look into a copyright case to gain further understanding and illustration of how the court decides such cases. In 2002, Hanagami sued Epic Games and filed an underlying lawsuit.
The conflict highlighted was a remote sale within Fornite which is called “It’s complicated”. A player could purchase an emote and use it as a character for their game in the form of a dynamic pose or move.
Let’s say that a player buys the “It’s complicated” emote. Soon after that, his character could show a two-second dance. Hanagami stated a complaint that “It’s complicated” copied his published “How Long” choreographic work which was copyrighted.
Epic Game’s defense was by filing a motion, stating that the trailer of “How Long” in question couldn’t be protectable. Its motion was granted by the District Court, dismissing it on August 24, 2022.
The court ruled that the portion of “How Long’ in question was not eligible for copyright law. The decision is made after filtering out the element that is considered not eligible for protection using the intrinsic or extrinsic test.
The Boundaries of Dance Copyright
Can you copyright a dance? There must be some criteria for a dance to be eligible for copyright. It must be original, have an author, and present in a tangible form. It can be in the form of a recording of a performance, drawings, photographs, or even a textual description.
How Creativity and Originality Affect Legal Protection?
A dance must demonstrate originality (having uniqueness) and creativity (apart from functional or common movements) to be copyrightable with the best partner. These are the standards for legal protection.
The standard ensures that the works deserve to get legal protection to contribute in the creative art and give meaningful things. However, the traditional dance and basic movements are still accessible to the public.
Debunking Common Misunderstandings About Dance Rights
You may find some misunderstandings about copyright. This is essential as it can affect both copyright owners and the parties who infringe.
Can you copyright a dance? Yes, but there is no Copyright for an idea of dance. The idea is a thing that cannot be copyrighted. The only thing that is eligible is the attractive effect of the idea but not the idea itself.
The purpose of copyright is to safeguard original expression, as stated by a Copyright counsel in the US, Terrica Carrington. This is a different context from an underlying idea.
For instance, there is an idea about an actor who transforms into a powerful creature after undergoing radiation. This is called an idea.
If someone creates a movie using that idea, then he cannot prevent others from making a movie with this idea. He can only stop others from imitating any particular expression of the idea but he can’t never own the idea itself.
Registering a choreographic work to get a copyright is the best strategy to protect its legality. It allows the work to hold the protection for its integrity of creation and legitimacy.
Now, you have found the answer to whether can you copyright a dance. It is recommended to save your artistic work with the best service by registering it with a trusted partner like Am Badar & Am Badar’s Industrial Design Service. Visit our insight page or contact us for more details!
References
- https://copyrightalliance.org/faqs/what-type-of-dances-are-copyrightable/
- https://www.nixonpeabody.com/insights/alerts/2023/12/19/protect-your-dance-moves-the-ninth-circuit-approves?utm_source=chatgpt.com
- https://www.danceinforma.com/2021/05/04/what-you-need-to-know-about-copyright-for-choreography/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
