Copyrightability is governed by federal statute 17 U.S.C. §102, which states that “copyright protection exists in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed” (Bouchoux, 2012, p. 193). This means that a work of authorship must be original in nature, but does not have to be novel, so long as the similarities are incidental and not planned. Fixed in any tangible medium of expression simply means that a work of authorship must be expressed in a way that one may observe, replicate, or convey it on a permanent basis. This means that live presentations of a work does not meet the elements to be fixed (Bouchoux, 2012). Lastly, works of authorship fall into eight categories: “literary works; musical works (including accompanying words; dramatic works (including accompanying music); pantomimes and choreographic works; pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works; motion pictures and other audiovisual works; sound recordings; …show more content…
Martine witnessed the act and subsequently performed it at an off-Broadway theater which was filmed. Given the scenario between Claudette and Martine, can a pantomime be copyrighted? If so, who has a copyright for the pantomime act? Yes, a pantomime act may be copyrighted per Section 102 as noted above. Claudette’s pantomime act is an original work of authorship, however it is not fixed to any tangible medium of expression. Because her act was only performed live, she cannot bring suit against Martine for infringement. Martine performed Claudette’s act as a piece in her act at an off-Broadway theater, which was filmed. The central issue is if Martine copied Claudette. The answer would be no, because originality of authorship does not mean that the act must be new, only “independently created.” Martine meets all of the elements of