Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines, IPOPHL level up partnership

Education,information drive among screenwriters pushed

The Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines and the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) are levelling up their partnership in a bid to educate screenwriters on the finer points of the use of their copyrighted material in contracts. 

IPOPHL held the first Basic Copyright Seminar for Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines on Monday, the first step in what will be a series of workshops that will gradually focus on specialised topics on copyright issues among screenwriters.

“That output, your script, that is your bread and butter. Since that is your bread and butter, you want to protect what you’ve laboured on,” said IPOPHL Director General Josephine R. Santiago in her opening remarks at the seminar.

Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines board member Raymond Diamzon expressed high hopes on the ongoing collaboration with IPOPHL in teaching screenwriters how to protect their copyright. 

“The screenwriting industry is in dire need of information regarding their rights because most, if not all writers in our country, do not know their rights for example, when they sign contracts or engage with producers,” affirmed Mr. Diamzon.

According to Diamzon, as part of the Screenwriters Guild of the Philippines' mandate to protect its members, they are taking charge to consult with intellectual property experts on how to understand and negotiate contracts with producers in the use of their copyrighted screenplay. 

“Our part in SGP is to synthesize knowledge, recommendations for the writers and copyright is an important part of the many ways writers’ interest can be protected in the industry,” Mr. Diamzon ended.

The basic copyright workshop on Monday is just the prelude to the more specialised workshops being planned by IPOPHL for current year. 

The program covered first the broad spectrum of intellectual property in the Philippines, then focused on the relevant intellectual property right - copyright - for the screenwriters.

According to a study commissioned by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and conducted Philippine intellectual property experts in 2014, in 2010, copyright-based industries’ economic contribution amounted to 7.34 per cent of GDP, and has a significant potential for employment generation at 14.14 per cent of total employment.