WGA West Logo / Photo Credit: Variety - WGA West
REGISTERING YOUR SCRIPT WITH THE
WGA WEST – WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA WEST (In the Entertainment industry.)
Bruce Bisbey…please follow me at: https://dumbdogproductionsllc.blogspot.com
or https://www.facebook.com/DumbDogProductionsLLC/ thank you.
No matter where you are located on the globe be smart
and register your property before shopping or showing your idea (s) and any material.
Once registered, please have a NDA - NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT signed by anyone
you show or present your material too, period. They don’t sign, you don’t show.
Studios usually will not sign a NDA, for many legal and real reasons. So presenting
to them can be a gamble. Let’s face it all they need is an idea and they can
create from there and/or take a different direction or concept of an idea.
Always register your property with the WGAW Registry,
which accepts stage plays, novels, books, short stories, poems, commercials,
lyrics, drawings, music, working title, idea or concept and various media work
such as Web series, code, and other digital content. A WGA registration
documents the creation date.
The purpose of a WGA registration is to establish and
document the completion date of the literary property and protect the writer
from plagiarism or theft. With a constant flow of projects being pitched to
executives on a daily basis, it is not uncommon for some concepts to become
muddled over time until finally, their origins are completely lost. A writer
must protect himself or herself against this by establishing a date of creation
through the WGA registry.
Not only is WGA registration used as an evidentiary
tool, but in the event of litigation, the WGA will provide one of their
employees to appear and testify concerning the date of the registration.
Registration is a small step that you can take to protect yourself and the good
news is that the process is simple, quick and affordable. WGA registration is
available to anyone, anywhere, whether or not you are a member of the WGA.
As added protection register with the Library of
Congress, U.S. Copyright Office.
WGAW Registry
7000 West Third St.,
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(323) 782-4500
E-mail: WGAW
Registry
Registering Your Script with the WGA West
FOLLOWING TEXT IS STRAIGHT FROM THE AWESOME FOLKS AT THE WGA-WEST.
WHAT IS REGISTRATION?
Registering your work with the WGAW Registry documents the claim of
authorship of a written work and does NOT take the place of registering with
the Library of Congress, U.S. Copyright Office which primarily documents the
ownership or rights of written work. While both create legal evidence that can
be used in court, we recommend contacting the Library of Congress directly with
any questions regarding COPYRIGHT procedures or practices.
When you register your script prior to submitting it to contests,
agents, managers, or producers, you document your authorship on a given date
should there be unauthorized usage...
Registration provides a dated record of the writer's claim to
authorship of literary material. The WGAW Registry may produce the material as
evidence if legal action is initiated.
WHAT CAN BE REGISTERED?
Any file may be registered to assist you in documenting the creation of
your work. Some examples of registerable material include scripts, treatments,
synopses, and outlines...
The WGAW Registry also accepts stage plays, novels, books, short
stories, poems, commercials, lyrics, drawings, music and various media work
such as Web series, code, and other digital content.
WHY WGA WEST REGISTRY?
As the world leader in screenplay registration, the WGAW Registry has
been the industry standard in the creation of legal evidence for the protection
of writers’ work since 1927...
The WGA West is the home to nearly 12,000 of Hollywood's leading TV and
screenwriters, but you do not need to be a WGAW member to use this vital Guild
service.
REGISTRATION DETAILS
PURPOSE AND COVERAGE
The WGAW Registry assists writers and other creators in establishing
the completion dates of material written for the fields of radio, film,
television, video, and interactive media.
Registration provides a dated record of the writer's claim to
authorship of a particular literary material. If necessary a WGA employee may
produce the material as evidence if legal or official Guild action is
initiated.
The Registry does not make comparisons of registration deposits, bestow
any statutory protections, or give legal advice. Submitted material is not read
by the Registry or other WGAW staff.
REGISTERABLE MATERIAL
Any file may be registered to assist you in documenting the creation of
your work. Some examples of registerable material include scripts, treatments,
synopses, outlines, and written ideas specifically intended for radio,
television and film, video cassettes/discs, or interactive media. The WGAW
Registry also accepts stage plays, novels, books, short stories, poems,
commercials, lyrics, drawings, music and various media work such as Web series,
code, and other digital content.
REGISTERABLE FILE FORMATS
Preferred file formats are ASCII, XML, PDF (Adobe Acrobat), Word, Final
Draft , and Movie Magic Screenwriter 2000; however, all file formats will be
accepted. You will be prompted to select the file on your hard drive that you
wish to register. Please note that only one file for each online registration
request will be accepted. Currently the file size limit is 10 MB. Zip files are
prohibited.
In addition, other screenplay software and standard computer file
formats are acceptable. For example, graphics files in .tiff, .jpg, or other
popular formats may be used to register work.
Make certain you are uploading the correct file and version of your
material. All registrations are final upon submission and cannot be changed,
substituted, or voided.
TITLES
Titles are not registered with the WGAW Registry, as they are not
protected by registration. The title or filename is mainly used to identify
material within specific registrant records. The Registry does not make comparisons
of titles or record title changes for registered material. Title changes do not
require re-registration of material.
When submitting material to agencies or companies, you may use any
title that you prefer.
CHANGES TO MATERIAL
You may change your work as much as you prefer; however, when the
storyline has been affected or changed extensively, it becomes new material and
should be registered or documented again in some manner.
It is solely at your discretion to submit multiple drafts or completed
drafts of the same work for registration. The Registry does not make
comparisons of drafts or material content.
All submissions, including subsequent drafts of existing registrations,
are considered completely separate registrations and should be submitted
accordingly with the required fees.
VIRUSES
The online registration system will not accept files containing
viruses. Registrants attempting to register online with a file containing a
virus will be notified to clean the file and try the online transaction again.
If the file cannot be cleaned, the Registry suggests registering by mail or in
person. Any credit card charges from virus-laden transactions are reversed
within three business days.
REGISTRATION FEES
Registration fees are $20 (U.S.) for the general public, $10 (U.S.) for
WGA members in good standing. The online system accepts only Visa/MasterCard as
a form of payment. You will be billed in your local currency if outside the
U.S.
Registration fees for hardcopy materials are payable in cash, check,
money order, or credit card (Visa/MasterCard). All fees paid either by check or
money order must be payable in U.S. dollars, as well as drawn from a U.S. bank
account. Checks and money orders may be payable to WGAW.
The Registry does not accept bank transfers of any kind, nor release
bank account information under any circumstance.
Material and payment may be sent by mail or hand-delivered to the WGAW
Registry, 7000 W. Third Street, Los Angeles, CA 90048. U.S.A.
DURATION AND EXPIRATION
Registration is valid for a term of five (5) years. Upon expiration,
registration may be renewed for an additional five-year period at the current
registration rate. Renewals will be accepted up to three (3) months prior to
the expiration of the original registration. A grace period is extended
allowing renewals as late as three (3) months following the expiration date.
At the time of registration, or renewal, you authorize the WGA to
destroy the material without further notice to you on the expiration of the
first term of registration or any renewal period.
IDENTIFYING REGISTERED WORK
Registrants may choose to identify registered material with the
following language: "WGAW Registered" or "WGAW #_____" How
and where you identify your material as being registered is completely at your
discretion. You do not need permission to show your work as being registered.
ACCESS TO REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Only the writers listed on the registration receipt may request
confirmation of registration, the registration number, date of deposit, or any
other information.
The Registry will honor such written requests from writers regarding
the registration of their own work(s) only if accompanied by photo
identification. All verification or confirmation requests from a writer should
contain as much specific information as possible, such as registration number,
title of material, effective date, and social security number of writer, and
may be submitted by facsimile, mail, or in person. The fax number for the
Registry is (323) 782-4803.
In the event an author is deceased, proof of death and consent of the
representative of the heirs and/or estate must be presented in order to obtain
specific information regarding the material. The representative must provide
court documents authenticating his or her claim as legal heir.
ACCESS TO COPIES OF DEPOSITED MATERIAL
Because the deposited material cannot be returned to the writer without
defeating the purpose of registration, registered material may not be
withdrawn. It is therefore important to always retain a separate copy of the
material being registered.
If a writer finds it necessary to obtain a copy of deposited material,
duplicates may be purchased for the price of registration upon written request
by one or more of the listed authors, identified by photo ID. In the event an
author is deceased, proof of death and consent of the representative of the
heirs and/or estate must be presented in order to obtain a copy of the
material.
Duplicates of online registrations will not be in paper form. Your
online registration will be returned to you in an electronic format (CD) and
sent via certified mail.
In no event, except under these provisions, shall any deposited
material, copies of deposited material, or information regarding deposited material
be provided unless an official guild action, court order, or other legal
process has been served.
PRIVACY
The WGAW Registry has thoroughly evaluated the needs and security
issues surrounding electronic submissions. The protection of your personal information
is of the highest priority to the WGAW Registry.
Your personal information is requested for specific purposes and will
be kept confidential. Unless you designate otherwise, it is only used in
connection to your transaction(s) with the Registry and for information about
the Registry, and it will not be disclosed to outside organizations for any
purpose.
Only the writers listed on the registration record may request
confirmation of registration, the registration number, date of deposit, or any
other information. If necessary, a Registry employee may produce registration
information or material in response to legal process or official Guild action.
The WGAW Registry will honor written requests from writers regarding
the registration of their own work(s) only if accompanied by photo
identification. All verification or confirmation requests from a writer should
contain as much specific information as possible, such as registration number,
title of material, effective date, and social security number of writer, and
may be submitted by facsimile, mail, or in person. The fax number for the WGAW
Registry is (323) 782-4803.
ADDING AUTHORS TO ONLINE SUBMISSIONS
If you add authors to your transaction, please do not type over the
"Registrant/Author" or "Author 1" information. Instead,
simply fill in the necessary information to the "Author 2" section.
It is important to include all authors' information as part of the
registration. Authors CANNOT be added to a registration record once it is completed.
SPECIAL CHARACTERS
Certain keyboard characters (such as colons, semicolons, hyphens,
slashes, periods, etc) that appear in the filename may impede your ability to
upload your file properly. Please be sure your filename has no special
characters before registering online.
Sources, References & Credits: Bruce Bisbey, Google, Wikipedia,
Wikihow, WikiBooks, Pinterest, IMDB, Linked In, Indie Wire, Film Making Stuff, Hiive,
Film Daily, New York Film Academy, The Balance, Careers Hub, The Numbers, Film
Maker, TV Guide Magazine, Blurb, Media Match, Future Learn, Quora, Creative
Skill Set, Chron, Investopedia, Variety, No Film School, How Stuff Works, WGA,
BBC, Daily Variety, The Film Agency, Best Sample Resume, How Stuff Works, Bright
Hub, Career Trend, Producer's Code of Credits, Truity, Production Hub, Producers
Guild of America, Film Connection, Variety, Wolf Crow, Get In Media, Production
Beast, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros, UCAS, Frankenbite, Realty 101, Liberty Me, Careers
Hub, Sokanu, Raindance, Film Connection, Cast & Crew, Entertainment
Partners, My Job Search, Prospects, David Mullich, Gear Shift, Video
University, Oxford Dictionaries’, Boredom Therapy, The Bold Italic, Meets the
Eye Studio, The Guardian, Elliot Grove, Jones on art, Creative Plant, Studio
Binder, Film Tool Kit, Still Motion, Film Under Ground, Steves Digicams, Improve
Photography, Guy Nockels, Namib Films, Film Support, Screen Craft, Movie
Outline, Stack Exchange, Ken Davenport – The Producers Perspective,
THIS ARTICLE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. THE INFORMATION IS
PROVIDED "AS IS" AND BRUCE BISBEY MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED
REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF PERFORMANCE,
MERCHANTABILITY, AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, REGARDING THIS
INFORMATION. BRUCE BISBEY DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE COMPLETENESS, ACCURACY OR
TIMELINESS OF THIS INFORMATION. YOUR USE OF THIS INFORMATION IS AT YOUR OWN
RISK. YOU ASSUME FULL RESPONSIBILITY AND RISK OF LOSS RESULTING FROM THE USE OF
THIS INFORMATION. BRUCE BISBEY WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, SPECIAL,
INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES
WHATSOEVER, WHETHER IN AN ACTION BASED UPON A STATUTE, CONTRACT, TORT
(INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, RELATING TO THE USE OF
THIS INFORMATION.
WGA West Logo / Photo Credit: Variety - WGA West
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