Six Flag Great Adventure Concerts and Events

I have been working at Six Flags Great Adventure for the past 5 seasons in their entertainment department as a show technician. This year in addition to that I will also be working their concerts and special events. I am excited for this new endeavor especially because I plan to start my own concert venue one day, and this will be an excellent learning experience for me.

            So far this season there has been one special event. It was the New York Boys Choir who performed for over three thousand people. For this event Great Adventure used an outside audio company to supple the equipment because the venue had no audio equipment in place. It was just an empty theater that has not been used for years.

I learned a lot from this event. For example, I learned how to take an empty space. and create an audio setup around it. I learned the methods of unloading and reloading the equipment trunk. Of laying cable efficiently, and hidden from audience view. Of setting up and positioning speakers for maximum audio quality. At the end of the event I learned how to properly pack up the equipment. That includes the proper way to roll up and tie a cable.

I am glad that I had this small event as my first event. In a way it was a practice for the future. The next event is a concert on April 29^th in the Northern Star Arena, which can hold ten thousand people. Gym Class Heros will be performing. I am looking forward to working on a larger project like this. I love knowing that what I do behind the scenes makes it easier for the artist to perform and entertain the audience. That is the whole reason I do what I do, to make sure that people have a good time at the concerts I help setup.

This summer should be filled with a lot of learning and fun. It is something I am looking forward to.

Cirque du Soleil

On April 11. 2012, I went to see my first Cirque du Soleil show. It was the Michael Jackson The Immortal Tour, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA. They did not disappoint. The show was amazing. Cirque du Soleil did a great job blending together Michael Jackson songs with audio clips from his interviews. It had many styles of entertainment including: a mime, dancers, acrobatics, and gymnastics. It also had great visuals as well such as, videos, props, and costumes.

Cirque du Soleil is known for its’ over the top productions. They are the masters of transporting the audience into the world that they have created. Cirque prides itself on the eight key characteristics that define who they are. These eight characteristics are: acrobatics, acting, art forms from around the world, imaginary worlds, dance, daring, dexterity, and grace.

For the Immortal World Tour they defiantly showcased these talents. For example, there was a performer who portrayed a monkey so well that in the beginning of the show I thought he really was a monkey. The way he moved, and swung his arms was just like a monkey. There was also a performer with one leg. That was not a disadvantage for this performer. He was amazing. The way that he can breakdance, and use his crutches like hand stilts made him by far my favorite performer.

Cirque du Soleil first formed in the early 1980’s in Quebec, Canada. “In 1984, during Quebec’s 450th anniversary celebrations of Jacques Cartier’s discover of Canada, the province sought an event which would bring the festivities to all Quebecers.” That invent was the first Cirque du Soleil tour. Today Quebec is still the headquarters where performers go to rehearse for months to prepare for a show.

Cirque du Soleil has many shows to choose from. The Michael Jackson Immortal World Tour will be touring the US until August and then going over seas. I highly recommend everyone to go and see this great show.

Industry Experts

     I recently watched some podcasts with entertainment lawyers discussing a variety of topics. These entertainment lawyers are Mark Litwak, Greg Eveline, and Stanton “Larry” Stein. They discuss distribution, copyright, and media consolidation respectively. The following is a summary of what they discussed in the podcasts.

     Mark Litwak mainly talks about contracts for film distribution. The filmmaker has to know if the distribution company distributes to theaters, home video, or television. That information is crucial to the filmmakers marketing plan. In negotiating a distribution deal filmmakers should include certain clauses in the contract. A performance clause is a must. This clause allows the filmmaker to get out of the contract if the distribution company does not hold up their end of the deal. Distribution companies ideally want long-term deals. If the filmmaker agrees to this, after the first few years, distribution companies don’t try very hard to distribute the movie. That is why short-term deals are better and they can always get extended. (Litwak, 2011)

Another important clause is the audit clause. This grants the filmmaker the right to check the books of the distribution company. This is an important clause to make sure that the distribution company is spending the allotted budget on the filmmaker’s movie, and not another movie. (Litwak, 2011)

The next podcast is from Greg Eveline on copyright law. Eveline stresses that artist should write their own songs because money is found in the publishing. The melody and lyrics of a song can be copyrighted. If the artist only performs the song they do not hold the copyright. In most cases the record label would hold the copyright. This is called a work for hire or assignment. The record company employees the artist, for a salary, and then has the right to own the copyright. For many artist, they well get a change to recover their work because of a right of reversion. The right of reversion states that after 35 years the artist can get the sold copyright back. (Eveline, 2011)

The last podcast is from Media Concentration in the Entertainment Industry with Stanton “Larry” Stein. Stein talks about the 6 conglomerates that control what we watch, listen to, and read. Some examples are Disney and Time Warner. These 6 conglomerates control 6 thousand TV stations, 15 thousand radio stations, and 80% of the newspapers. (Stein, 2008) This is an issue because it causes a lack of creative and informative content for the general public to consume. Because these companies are so large the artist, or profit participant, sometimes has to sue the company. They have to do this because the company does some creative financing to hold on to the money, and not give the artist their fair share. That is what Stein does; he represents the artist in these cases.

These experts have helped me in thinking about my business plan. I will be distributing my videos to the home theater market. It is good to know that there are different distributors, and knowing which one I need to do business with. Copyright is something I will have to deal with all the time. Being a company I will have to have work for hire contracts if I want the copyrights to a product. I don’t see how the last podcast relates to my business plan, but it is just good general knowledge. Try to have your own thoughts, and not to freely except everything the media gives you. They only portray one side of the story.

For more information on these topics please see the following videos.

References

‪Entertainment Attorney Mark Litwak Gives Us A New Look Into Hollywood - Filmnut

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NryrU1uwqPI

‪A Seminar in Copyright Law with Entertainment Lawyer Greg Eveline

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei50ZKq0Y_k

‪Media Concentration in the Entertainment Industry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuVAGMr-ytw

Intellectual Property

            Intellectual property and how to protect that property is a concern in the entertainment business. The following are three examples from the Hollywood Reporter of current lawsuits that have been filed, and my opinion as to what the outcome might be.

Justin Bieber has been sued by RC3, a company that created the Joustin’ Beaver mobile app game. RC3 claims that the use of the name Joustin’ Beaver is in their First Amendment rights. (Gardner, 2012) In addition to using the name Joustin’ Beaver is also a parody of Justin Bieber. The game uses characteristics associated with Justin Bieber such as: his hairstyle, purple sweater, and attention from photographers and fans. (Gardner, 2012)

To me this is a tough case. I want to agree with Justin Bieber and his representatives because Joustin’ Beaver was created to make money off of Justin Bieber’s fan base. This game is diluting Bieber’s trademark by allowing others to associate Bieber with the Joustin’ Beaver game. However, I believe that Joustin’ Beaver is a parody because it is commenting on how crazy Bieber’s life is. The question is which criteria in most important in determining if this is trademark infringement. I believe Justin Bieber will win this case because the dilution of his trademark affects his livelihood.

The next article is about an artist, Maya Hayuk, who is suing RCA Records and Sony Music over her work being shown in Elle Varner’s music video “I Only Wanna Give It To You.” (Gardner, 2012) Hayuk created the piece of art for Rye Rye and M.I.A. for their music video “Sunshine.” (Gardner, 2012)

I believe that Hayuk does have a case here for copyright infringement, and she should win. She did not give permission to RCA and Sony to use her art in the music video. RCA and Sony are in fact using her work commercially by making money off of the video stream revenue. Hayuk deserves credit and compensation for her contribution to the music video.

This last article is about a lawsuit between The Velvet Underground and the Andy Warhol Foundation. The issue is whether or not the banana album case was in the public domain and if Andy Warhol had the right to license it. (Gardner, 2012)

This is an interesting case because the album was released in 1967 before the copyright law was amended in 1978. (Gardner, 2012) If the album cover was in the public domain why would Andy Warhol have to have a license for the copyright? Both The Velvet Underground and the Andy Warhol Foundation claim that the copyright has acquired a secondary meaning associated with each party. Furthermore, Gardner (2012) says:

According to the facts in record, MGM Records paid both the band and Warhol $3,000 to furnish the image for use on the 1967 album cover. If the record label paid the money as a work-for-hire agreement, the true "author" of the image, under the law, would be the record label.

If that is the case then nether The Velvet Underground or the Andy Warhol Foundation have any claim to the use of the album cover. I feel that this case will be dismissed as being in the public domain because it is following the rules set by the laws of 1967.

References

Gardner, E. (2012, February 27). Justin Bieber sued by creator of 'Joustin' Beaver' game (exclusive docs). In Hollywood, Esq.. Retrieved March 1, 2012, from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/justin-bieber-sued-joustin-beaver-video-game-295548

Gardner, E. (2012, February 27). Artist sues Sony over background used in music video (exclusive). In Hollywood, Esq.. Retrieved March 1, 2012, from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/Maya-hayuk-lawsuit-sony-295409

Gardner, E. (2012, February 27). Velvet Underground files new complaint in odd banana album cover case. In Hollywood, Esq.. Retrieved March 1, 2012, from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/velvet-underground-lawsuit-banana-album-warhol-foundation-294801

Wizarding World of Harry Potter

     Last week I went on vacation and visited the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (WWHP) at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure. It’s funny how you don’t think about things until it is brought to your attention. That happened to me while I was at WWHP. I went there to relax and have fun. While I did do that, I also found myself noticing all the ways Universal Studios uses product management in the everyday running of WWHP.

     Universal Studios new that WWHP would drive business results. They had a product Islands of Adventure, and WWHP was the perfect addition. They jumped at the chance to have something that Disney World did not. They also realized what a huge following Harry Potter had from both the books and the movies, and wanted to give an experience to these fans that nobody has ever done.

     WWHP delivers results through people with their employees. These employees are not only dressed like wizards, they speak to the guest like wizards. It is a really strange experience to be called a muggle, especially if you have never read the books or seen the movies.

     WWHP ensures market-driven direction through everything they offer from rides to merchandise. Islands of Adventure is first and foremost a theme park. Theme parks are known for rides. WWHP is known for “The Forbidden Journey” ride through Hogwarts. They knew that the public wanted a way to visit Hogwarts in real life, and they provided the first and currently only way to do that. The same can be said for everything else in HHWP. It is the only place that you can walk the grounds of Hogsmeade, eat at the Three Broomsticks, drink butterbeer, and have Moaning Myrtle talk to you in the bathroom.

     HHWP is the perfect Fit and Function for Islands of Adventure. It is a great addition to sections of the part that it already has such as: Dr. Seuss, Jurassic Park, and Marvel Super Heroes. Universal Studios knows what WWHP as a product has to do. It has to entertain, and transport guest into the world of Harry Potter. It has to be authentic and provide physical objects to purchase. Such as wands and chocolate frogs. WWHP does all of that and more.

     If you have never been there I highly recommend it, especially if you are a Harry Potter fan. This small part of Islands of Adventure far outshines the rest of it. I have one piece of advice the frozen butterbeer is better then the regular kind, and a must have when visiting The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Island of Adventure.

Reference

Product Manager's Field Guide (pp. 3-15). (2011). N.p.: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

I recently saw the Broadway play “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”, staring Darren Criss. Criss is known for playing Blaine Anderson on the hit TV show Glee. Before Glee, Criss founded StarKid Productions with his fellow classmates and friends at the University of Michigan. He stared in their productions of “A Very Potter Musical”, and “A Very Potter Sequel” playing the role of Harry Potter. Millions have viewed these plays on YouTube.

     As it happens, Criss replaced Daniel Radcliff, who played Harry Potter in all eight movies, in the role of J. Pierrepont Finch in How to Succeed. That was a really smart promotional move on Ricky Rollins part. Rollins manages Criss. The hype that surrounded Criss for his three-week run on Broadway brought in major box office dollars to the tune of over four million.

     Criss made his Broadway debut in How to Succeed. This three-week run proved that Criss is leading man material. He can hold his own with the best in Broadway. Criss has an endearing quality that makes the character of Finch likeable, instead of being portrayed as a shark. He also has the spirit and energy needed to pull off such a demanding role, and make it look easy. Criss is also very humble and appreciative of his success.

     How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying is a great show. This is the third production of this show on Broadway. The set is more elaborate then every before with it’s six sided windows to the World Wide Wicket building. The choreography and music is high energy and catchy. The core cast is outstanding, and that is why the show continues to be a success even with the rotating leading men. Next up to fill the role of J. Pierrepont Finch is Nick Jonas. Jonas will fill the role until the middle of July. This is a show worth seeing. For tickets visit their website.