Freaks (1932)

Thanks to Darren for reminding me this was on Google Video

Brandon Lee Portrait for Sale!

I'm selling my original Brandon Lee portrait on ebay! It's 16x20, acrylic and it could be yours!

On Moral Rights

I was recently discussing the issues of Moral Rights with a friend and it seems to be a subject a lot of people are in the dark about, so I will elaborate for any who may be curious about this issue.

I first came to my understanding of moral rights while investigating the market in which I work, comic books. Sometimes a company, such as a major comic book publisher or a certain internet apparel company, will hide a statement within a sea of legal jargon declaring that the artist will surrender their "moral" rights to their artwork. Being as so many people are in the dark about it, they agree without any forethought. This is the stupidest thing anybody can do.

What are moral rights? I will provide you with an excerpt from the Graphic Artists Guild Handbook: Pricing and Ethical Guidelines which may have a long ass title but carries a very concise explanation of what moral rights are:

"Moral Rights are derived from the French doctrine droit moral, which recognizes certain inherent personal rights of creators in their works, even after the works have been sold or the copyright transferred. These rights stand above and distinct from copyright.

The doctrine traditionally grants to artists and writers four specific rights:

• The right to protect the integrity of their work to prevent any modification, distortion, or mutilation that would be prejudicial to their honor or reputation.
• The right of attribution (or paternity) to insist that their authorship be acknowledged properly and to prevent use of their names on works they did not create.
• The right of disclosure to decide if, when, and how a work is presented to the public.

• The right of recall to withdraw, destroy, or disavow a work if it is changed or no longer represents their views."

So basically, you have the right to make sure that both the content and context of your work remains the way you intended it and that you get credit for your work. In the case of surrendering your moral rights, say in a comic or other written work, the vendor could take your work, make a porno film out of it, put YOUR name on it, and there would be absolutely nothing you could do about it because you gave up your moral rights to your work. Congratulations, your name and reputation have been dragged through the mud for a lousy paycheck, was it worth it?

Certainly, some companies may be asking you to do this so they can make appropriate alterations to your product before marketing it, but you really have to analyze the context of the situation and decide if the money you're receiving is really worth the risk.

As a general rule, don't give up your moral rights, it's just stupid.

~D

I'm back!

Action Adventure Comics :D

Score my t-shirt design!

Everyone needs to score this shirt! It's pending approval, but once it's in the running, score it!

Shit for Sale

I'm parting with a few beloved items on ebay. Here are the links:

Xbox 360 Limited Edition RE5 Elite 120GB

McFarlane Toys Harvesters of Sorrow Box Set (Metallica)

I need money, so buy them. There are some extra goodies included with the Elite and the Metallica set is still in the box. Full descriptions are available at the linked auctions.