Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

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  • Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

    I just took a break and decided to edit the title page before I forget.

    I am doing something with characters of an old public domain story. It's not a re-visioning, but a whole new twist that occurs 15-20 years later. 5-7 of the characters from the original are used in my script.

    Credits to the story author -- How are they done?

    Example

    Characters Credit : L. Frank Baum ?

    Characters by L. Frank Baum
    2011 Screenwriting Goal: 15 pages a day.

  • #2
    Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

    Originally posted by Lucha Scribre View Post
    I just took a break and decided to edit the title page before I forget.

    I am doing something with characters of an old public domain story. It's not a re-visioning, but a whole new twist that occurs 15-20 years later. 5-7 of the characters from the original are used in my script.

    Credits to the story author -- How are they done?

    Example

    Characters Credit : L. Frank Baum ?

    Characters by L. Frank Baum
    I'd just say "Based on characters first appearing in The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum"
    If you have someone on the set for the hair, why would you not have someone for the words?
    Louis Malle

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    • #3
      Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

      I wouldn't say anything. You don't have to and I think it kills some of the discovery of the script.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

        Originally posted by jcgary View Post
        I wouldn't say anything. You don't have to and I think it kills some of the discovery of the script.
        I'll go with this for a while. Thanks to you and thatwritergirl for your input. The discovery of this thing will be killed off by the title alone though.
        2011 Screenwriting Goal: 15 pages a day.

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        • #5
          Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

          Yeah, there is no obligation to credit anything in the public domain, but it certainly doesn't hurt to give the original creator some visual credit on the page. So I say it's your call.

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          • #6
            Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

            Probably a simple:
            "Based on characters created by ____"

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            • #7
              Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

              Originally posted by Lucha Scribre View Post
              I just took a break and decided to edit the title page before I forget.

              I am doing something with characters of an old public domain story. It's not a re-visioning, but a whole new twist that occurs 15-20 years later. 5-7 of the characters from the original are used in my script.

              Credits to the story author -- How are they done?

              Example

              Characters Credit : L. Frank Baum ?

              Characters by L. Frank Baum

              Personally, I would credit the original author, especially if it's a well-known work or author like L. Frank Baum. An original take on an established property that's free to exploit? That sounds a lot more appealing to studio thinking and priorities than a cold query on an unproven property.

              "Based on characters created by L. Frank Baum" should work. "Based on the iconic characters created by L. Frank Baum" if you're going for razzle-dazzle.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Crediting Public Domain Author on Title Page

                I've done several scripts based on public domain work, including one loosely based on a L. Frank Baum short story. I don't include anything in my script but do mention this on the query letter. I think people should know but not necessarily on the script itself.

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