will refuse to register the claim, because the author is not a human being.
808.8 Derivative Motion Pictures
A motion picture is considered a derivative work if it recasts, transforms, or adapts one or more preexisting works. 17 U.S.C. § 101 (definition of "derivative work"]. For example, a derivative motion picture may be based on a novel, a play, a painting, or other works of authorship. A new version of a preexisting motion picture may also qualify as a derivative work, provided that the revisions, additions, deletions, or other modifications, taken as a whole, constitute a new work of authorship.
The author of a derivative motion picture must have permission to use the preexisting material if that material is protected by copyright, and the author must contribute a sufficient amount of new original authorship in order to register the new work as a derivative work. See Chapter 300, Sections 311.2 and 313.6(B).
When completing an application for a derivative motion picture, the applicant should identify and exclude the preexisting material from the claim and describe the new authorship that the author contributed to the preexisting work The applicant also should limit the claim if the derivative motion picture work contains material created by others that is not a part of the claim. For guidance on these procedures, see Chapter 600, Section 621.
Common types of derivative work authorship in motion pictures are described in Sections 808.8(A) through 808.8(E). For general information regarding derivative works, see Chapter 500, Section 507.
808.8(A) Editing
While every major motion picture includes editing as part of the authorship of the work as a whole, the term "editing" also may be used to describe the authorship involved in revising a preexisting motion picture, such as deleting scenes, reworking footage or the soundtrack, or adding new footage, artwork, sounds, or narration.
For example, reworking a preexisting film for rerelease by making various cuts, adding outtakes, and adding new soundtrack material is a derivative work of the original film. Likewise, adding archival footage and photographs to a preexisting documentary is a derivative work of the original film.
808.8(B) Dubbed Soundtracks and Subtitled Motion Pictures
When a work is first published abroad and later distributed in the United States, English subtitles are often added to the footage or the later version is dubbed into English. If the foreign version and the U.S. version are published on different dates, the subtitled or dubbed version is considered a derivative work that must be registered separately from the original film.
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