Legal Question in Entertainment Law in California

Obtaining Film Adaptation Rights
I am a screenwriter who also has an
independent production company. I
want to obtain the rights to a book
and adapt it for the screen. The
author is deceased and the book is no
longer in publication. The publishing
company who originally published the
book is no longer in existence, or
rather was sold to another company.
I have no idea where to begin at this
point and any assistance would be
greatly appreciated!

Asked on 10/22/08, 1:39 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Keith E. Cooper Keith E. Cooper, Esq.

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Re: Obtaining Film Adaptation Rights

It is likely that when the publishing company was sold, the company that bought it acquired the rights to its publication library, including the book you in which you are interested. Try calling the new publishing company and ask for the ancillary rights department. They should be able to tell you who controls the motion picture rights to the book and provide you with the contact information. (Often, book authors retain motion picture rights, so it is possible that the rights belong to his/her estate and you would be dealing with the executor of the estate.)

In the meantime, you might do a Copyright search at the Library of Congress website for the name of the book or the author's name. You will want to search for "recorded documents." If there has been a transfer of rights, it may (or may not) be recorded there. At least this would tell you if someone else already has or had a movie project in the works.

Answered on 10/22/08, 5:03 am

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