Can a specific shooting style be patented?
I was watching one of my childhood cartoons and realized one of the scenes was directly uplifted from Matrix.
What I wonder about is. Can movies get sued because they copy the camera angles and stuff like this? Can Warner Bros sue TRT in this example? Sorry I am not specific it's just I don't know how to explain it.
Altough the camera system used in the Matrix wasn't borrowed. The angles are borrowed in this one.
Best Answer
@Paulie_D has it right; patents are for inventions. Section 101 of the patent code defines the patentable subject matter, and camera angles are not in there, nor shooting styles, editing styles, or any other styles.
I can imagine patenting software that does editing; e.g. if your software found the right place to edit footage from two camera angles during an action so that it looks smooth, then anyone who used that technique in other editing software might be infringing. However, it wouldn't be the movies themselves infringing, it would be the software companies who sold the editing software.
Copyright law could conceivably apply, but again, no: that covers the expression of an idea, not the method of expressing it. If they used the actual shots from another movie, that could be a copyright infringement.
As Fred Allen said, "Imitation is the sincerest form of television."
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What types of ideas Cannot be patented?
What can't be patented?- literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works.
- a way of doing business, playing a game or thinking.
- a method of medical treatment or diagnosis.
- a discovery, scientific theory or mathematical method.
- the way information is presented.
- some computer programs or mobile apps.
Can ideas be patented?
Ideas cannot be patented. So, you do not have an idea, you have an invention, or you will have an invention if you continue on your journey and don't give up. You just need to get from the idea that inevitably begins the process to an invention, which is the culmination of the innovation part of the journey.What is and what is not patentable subject matter?
In order to be found patentable, the actual invention must have physical existence or manifest a discernible physical effect or change. As none of the elements in the actual invention provide this physicality, the subject-matter of the claim is not patentable subject-matter.Can abstract idea be patented?
\u201dAn abstract idea cannot be patented\u201d According to the United States Patents Act, abstract ideas cannot be patented. In practice, they cannot be patented in Europe either, because an invention must produce a technical effect. However, patentability is assessed in different ways in the United States and Europe.Earl Green: Why Gangsta' Style Shooting Doesn't Work
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