Sita is an animated film written, directed, produced and animated by Nina Paley. The film is an adaptation of Hindu epic, the Ramayana. What I found most interesting about the film wasn't the storyline or its controversial reception but the licensing arrangement behind it.
On her website Nina Paley writes:
Dear Audience,
I hereby give Sita Sings the Blues to you. Like all culture, it belongs to you already, but I am making it explicit with a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License. Please distribute, copy, share, archive, and show Sita Sings the Blues. From the shared culture it came, and back into the shared culture it goes.
This is a very unique approach. In terms of the copyright implications, the Creative Commons License does not mean that an artist is giving up their copyright (Creative Commons Australia, 2012). It simply means that their work can be used more liberally. Thus, it actually encourages user-generated content.
As discussed in a previous post the digital, globalised world has brought intellectual property to the forefront. In particular, we have seen that copyright restrictions can severely the rights of users to publish, share or remix the work of others.
In the case of Sita, the licensing arrangement encourages audience distribution. Thus, instead of telling people they can't share and punishing them if they do Sita encourages the audience to share (Question Copyright, 2009. This, in turn, benefits Nina Paley who has become a pioneer in the fight for the rights of global media users.
Reference List:
Question Copyright,2009, The Sita Sings the Blues Distribution Project <http://questioncopyright.org/comment/8503>
The Chicagoist, 2012, 'Sita Sings the Blues Sparks Controversy in Queens'<http://chicagoist.com/2011/07/21/sita_sings_the_blues_sparks_controv.php>.
Creative Commons Australia, 2012, 'About the Licenses' <http://creativecommons.org.au/learn-more/licences>
Sita Sings the Blues, 2008, <http://www.sitasingstheblues.com/watch.html>
How you noted the licensing arrangements set up for the film Sita Sings The Blues is of great importance, because it is a creative commons share license to share with friends and colleagues. However, their is encouragement those who view the film to make a kind and generous donation, although it is not compulsory. This enables the individual to give as little or as much as they want. You were able to draw on a previous post by discussing how copyright licenses in terms of intellectual property, can restrict how certain things can be viewed, shown and distributed. This can happen in a variety of ways set up through the type of licensing that is in place. For example certain songs in the film have certain restrictions in place, with how you choose listen to them,with the requirements of the respective copyright owners in place to acknowledge their work.
ReplyDeleteThis was a good post, and one of the few for the week that discussed this topic in relation to Sita Sings the Blues. It's well written and comes across as though you know your stuff. Including the quote at the beginning, helps the reader understand the point of your post and sets the tone of what you will be discussing. Your use of references and linking to discussion within previous posts also show a good understanding of the topic and these are incorporated well. Overall very well done!
ReplyDeleteA very well written blog that for me really embodies what globalisation is in reference to Sita sings the Blues. While so many are discouraged by copyright laws etc. in not to sharing information and material such as this, the way Nina Paley encourages us to share the video embodies media and information flows.
ReplyDeleteThe way you have entwined theory and examples is very commendable and results in a very informative and enjoyable read. Great work.