Tuesday, May 18, 2004

FAQs AND NEW ARTICLES NOW AVAILABLE ON MARKLITWAK.COM

May 18, 2004
In this newsletter:

FAQs AND NEW ARTICLES NOW AVAILABLE ON MARKLITWAK.COM

Our website, marklitwak.com has been expanded with a large, new section devoted to frequently asked questions. You’ll find them by clicking on the FAQ link in the menu bar above. Three recent articles written by Mark have also been posted: "Soft Money in Hard Times" (published in Moviemaker), "Runaway Home" (published in Los Angeles Lawyer) and "Protecting Your Stories" (published in Focus In). You’ll find these PDF articles on Mark’s articles page (click on the Articles link in the menu bar).

MARK TO TEACH SELF-DEFENSE IN JUNE & NOVEMBER DALLAS

On June 4, Mark will be at the Southwest Film, Arts & Television Conference in Dallas to give a talk on intellectual rights and negotiating distribution deals. For more information go to www.swaftconvention.com/filmmakers.asp.

LOS ANGELES

On June 12-13, Mark will be at UCLA teaching "Self-Defense for Independent Filmmakers: Protecting Your Legal Rights" In this intensive weekend seminar, filmmakers learn how to anticipate problems before they arise in their negotiations with production and distribution companies and create incentives to encourage the companies to live up to their agreements, including performance incentives, default penalties, and arbitration clauses. In the event of an unresolvable dispute, participants learn what remedies are available to enforce their rights. To enroll in the course online, go to www.uclaextension.com and enter Course Reg # Q3515U.

NEW YORK CITY

On Nov. 6, Mark will conduct a "Self-defense for Writers and Directors" seminar for New York Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. He will explain how writers and directors can prevent problems from arising by properly securing underlying rights and by encouraging the other party to live up to agreements by adding performance milestones, default penalties and arbitration clauses. Participants will also learn what remedies are available to enforce their rights in the event of a dispute. For more information or to register, please call Alexei Auld at 212-319-ARTS (2787) ext. 12.