Movies

The independent film studios suing thousands of alleged file sharers for copyright violations may soon face their own version of Jammie Thomas-Rasset.

Attorneys representing some of the people accused of illegal file sharing told CNET yesterday that several have refused to settle with the indie studios--which is what Thomas-Rasset did when she was accused of illegal file sharing by the music industry. By taking this stance, the accused film pirates are challenging the filmmakers to take them to court.

So, that is what the studios will do, according to their attorney, Thomas Dunlap.

Dunlap is one of the founders of … Read more

OAKLAND, Calif.--"Computers don't create computer animation any more than a pencil creates pencil animation. What creates computer animation are artists."

Those words would ring true no matter who said them, but in this case, the source has just about the highest possible credibility on the issue at hand: John Lasseter, the chief creative officer for both Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios, and the director of four of Pixar's most loved films.

Lasseter's words hang high on a wall in the Oakland Museum of California here, where the exhibit "Pixar: 25 Years of Animation&… Read more

Suing file sharers for copyright violations is becoming popular.

Add X-rated film studios to the list of indie movie makers and large music labels that try litigation as an antipiracy measure. Kenneth Ford, a West Virginia attorney, and his company, Adult Copyright Co., have begun to file copyright complaints on behalf of X-rated film studios.

Ford has filed seven suits on behalf of four studios so far and named more than 5,000 defendants. He appears to be following the lead of Thomas Dunlap, co-founder of Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver, a law firm that has undertaken copyright litigation for about … Read more

The latest wave of copyright litigation against illegal file sharing was ignited by indie filmmakers, including the producers of "The Hurt Locker."

Getting into the action now are creators of such titles as "Tokyo Teens" and "Pornstar Superheroes." Three adult-film producers will soon begin sending subpoenas to Internet service providers, or ISPs, across the United States in an effort to learn the identities of people they claim shared their movies without permission over the Internet, Kenneth Ford, the attorney representing the filmmakers, said today.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of … Read more

"Star Wars" is entering the third dimension, LucasFilm announced today.

According to the studio, "Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Menace" will be released in 3D to theaters in 2012. As with the original releases, Twentieth Century Fox is backing the movies.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, which cited unnamed sources, LucasFilm will release one of the original six "Star Wars" films in 3D each subsequent year. The films will be released in chronological order by episode.

In the meantime, Star Wars fans will be able to get their hands on Blu-ray versions of … Read more

This man may soon know your name.

Thomas Dunlap is the attorney representing at least a dozen independent movie studios, including the makers of the Oscar-winning film, "The Hurt Locker." If you illegally shared any of his clients' films online then Dunlap, a founder of the law firm Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver may have collected your Internet Protocol address. He may, at this minute, be requesting a subpoena that compels your Internet service provider to turn over your identity.

Dunlap and his firm, which also operates as U.S. Copyright Group, will then likely file a copyright complaint … Read more

The Web probably looks a lot less anonymous and private to the thousands of people whose identities were posted to the Internet this weekend alongside the names of the pornographic films they are accused of downloading.

ACS: Law, a law firm based in Great Britain that tracks down alleged illegal file sharers for the porn industry, saw its database compromised over the weekend caused by members of the Internet forum 4chan. In addition to private e-mails and financial data belonging to the law firm, the names of people whom ACS: Law has accused of downloading unauthorized copies of porn movies … Read more

Why go admire the exoskeleton worn by Tony Stark--played by Robert Downey, Jr.--in the "Iron Man" movies when you could wear a real-life version reminiscent of the films' special suit yourself?

That's the proposition being put forward by defense contractor Raytheon Sarcos, which today unveiled imagery of its XOS 2 wearable exoskeleton, a suit it says could allow the wearer to lift 200 pounds hundreds of times without getting fatigued, or to maintain superhuman levels of strength, agility, and endurance.

The XOS 2 is made with a wide variety of controllers, sensors, and actuators.

The suit, … Read more

A federal magistrate judge in South Dakota has denied an attempt by the producers of the Oscar-winning film "The Hurt Locker" to obtain the identities of 143 accused illegal file sharers from their Internet service provider.

The judge's decision last week however likely means only a temporary delay for Voltage Pictures, the independent studio which made "The Hurt Locker."

Voltage is one of more than a dozen indie studios that have hired the Washington, D.C., law firm of Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver to file copyright complaints against as many as 50,000 individuals they … Read more