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For its February meeting, Surrey Border Film & Video Makers invited speakers from a company which specialises in music specially written for filmmaking. Members were enlightened on background issues concerning the use of music and its copyright and then entertained to a delightful evening of films enhanced by a good use of music. The dramatic use of music was ably demonstrated at the outset. A short clip of an eclipse was first shown silently and then repeated in conjunction with various pieces of music. The different moods engendered were immediately obvious to everyone. Members were next shown some opening sequences of films, and were quickly impressed by the professional impact that a little of the right music can make. The talk moved on to films written for large companies using huge budgets, and here members were impressed with the strong musical beat that many used and the dramatic effect of cutting from one shot to another in time with the beat. Of particular significance was the use of still pictures with a slight pan or other movement, accentuated and brought to life with the music. Until it was pointed out, most members had not even spotted that many of the clips had been stills. Members were warned that the inclusion of even the shortest piece of published music in a film could cause copyright problems. So, unless film makers have paid to use a piece of music, they must not use it, even if it has been captured by accident. Purposeful use in a film without the appropriate permission is a serious breach of copyright law. Fortunately permission is readily available to club members without too much difficulty, and is normally free, provided they go through the correct channels. Equally fortunately, music also exists which is designated as royalty free. Members heard that holiday programmes on broadcast television frequently used royalty free music supplied from the company which the speakers represented. There was a great deal of interest in this, as every year, a significant number of our membership capture their holidays on video and would like to produce professional results – perhaps even of competition standard. There were further fascinating demonstrations of the different moods of music available from the company and their suitability for drama, humour, travelogues and documentaries. In the interval when members usually move towards the refreshments, a large throng eagerly moved in the opposite direction to take advantage of the special discount prices for the royalty free CDs that the speakers had brought along. The interest was so great that the popular lines quickly sold out, but the speakers were pleased to take orders at the same discount prices. |