Chapter 6 The Man behind the Curtain

Developing Film’s Double Exposure of Intellectual Property

In: Intellectual Property and the Law of Nations, 1860-1920
Author:
Johanna Gibson
Search for other papers by Johanna Gibson in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close

Purchase instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):

$40.00

Abstract

The intellectual property protection of film and its apparatus provides an instructive perspective on the relationship between law and creativity more widely. From the early popularisation in the late nineteenth century, to the introduction of film to copyright in the early twentieth century, the industry’s relationships to copyright and to patents chart a history from film’s early reputation as a mere technology of reproduction to the recognition of that reproduction as creative in and of itself. Curiously, in its first instance, the industry emphasised patent protection and even the earliest copyright recognition (and protection) was motivated by an anxiety concerning copying, rather than an objective to protect a perceived value in film as an art form. This chapter examines the early history of the invention of film, developments in protection and particular historical tensions in the interaction with arts campaigners and the use of other “high art” (such as literature, opera, and theatre) to validate the emerging film form, as well as the use of film in the establishment of early twentieth-century consumer culture, all forecasting the later significance of film studies as a catalyst for legal reform, and intellectual property as a site for understanding social reform in the industry today. Ultimately, it is suggested that this early history of film is instructive in finding the man behind the curtain of intellectual property.

  • Collapse
  • Expand