News

Request for Proposals for The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund

August 2010

Many award-winning documentaries have emerged from the San Francisco Bay Area. In recognition of this fine documentary tradition, we invite accomplished film/video/digital media artists to apply to the third and final round of The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund for early production support.

Four or five awards ranging from $20,000 to $25,000 will be distributed annually to support documentary projects in early production phases by experienced filmmakers with an esteemed body of previously created work. Projects should address issues pertinent to the five Bay Area counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, or San Mateo. The San Francisco Foundation is interested in documentaries exploring issues that have been historically underexposed, misinterpreted, or ignored. 

Applications for The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund are now available on Grantee Center with a deadline of Thursday, September 2, 2010. For eligibility requirements and additional details, please visit our Grants and Awards page.

Studies Reveal Matching Commissions and Data-based Strategies Make the Difference: Bay Area Artists Raise $1.3 Million in Tough Economy

May 2010

Fund For Artist grantee The Sangati Ensemble at a house concert. Photograph: Harsal Jawale

Bay Area artists raised more than $1.3 million since 2004 through the Fund For Artists Matching Commissions program. The resources and incentivizing power of the Matching Commissions bolstered local artists’ fundraising success. In addition, the announcement of Matching Commissions results coincides with the release of a study on the arts community and arts donors and a survey of how Bay Area artists are faring in the economic downturn. The study chronicles how artists and small- to mid-size arts groups found creative ways to engage new donors in supporting new work, and uncovers donors’ motivations to give. 

It’s Not About You…It’s About Them, A Research Report: What Motivates Bay Area Donors to Give to the Arts and Artists and the accompanying Field Reports from the Fund For Artists Matching Commissions Program: Unlocking the Potential of Individual Donors, released May 25th by The San Francisco Foundation and East Bay Community Foundation, reveal that despite the challenging economic environment, individual donors and local foundations jointly funded 181 Bay Area artists to support the creation of 116 new works. The study tells the stories of six artists and small to mid-size arts groups who leveraged the matching funds to generate resources for their artistic projects. The Fund For Artists Matching Commissions is a collaborative project between East Bay Community Foundation and The San Francisco Foundation that supports the development of new works by Bay Area artists and helps small- to mid-sized arts groups strengthen funding by attracting individual donors through a matching challenge grant.

Visit our Fund For Artists page for more information including:

• practical tools and tips to individual artists and small arts groups for raising funds for new artistic work;
• connection points with prospective donors that can increase the likelihood of giving; and
• links to download the reports.

PHOTO: Fund For Artist Matching Commissions grantee the Sangati Ensemble at a house concert. Photograph: Harsal Jawale

Join Us Online for Musicplus, Sunday, May 16th

May 2010

Today's musicians and composers are faced with more demands on their time than ever. In addition to composing, recording, and performing, they are now busy fundraising, marketing, crunching data, manufacturing CDs, booking performances, shooting videos, and tweeting about all of these facets of their work to their fan base. Musicplus is a day-long seminar intended to expand the knowledge of Bay Area musicians and composers. While in-person attendance has already reached capacity, we are pleased to announce an opportunity to view a live webcast. Join us on Sunday, May 16th, from 12:15 p.m. to 6:10 p.m. PST, for a live webcast of Musicplus. For a detailed webcast schedule, click here. To view the webcast on the day of the event, click here.

New Interim Program Officer for Arts and Culture

May 2010

Interim Program Officer for Arts and Culture, May 2010

We are pleased to announce that Moy Eng is joining the Foundation as the interim program officer for Arts and Culture. Moy has a national and local reputation for her leadership in arts and culture. She served previously as director of the performing arts program at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, where she led various projects and advocacy movements on behalf of diversifying and supporting public and nonprofit art projects. Prior to Hewlett, she worked for two decades in the nonprofit sector, in arts and culture, immigrant rights, international human rights, lesbian and gay rights, and renewable energy fields. She has served on many national and regional committees, has received numerous awards, and has taught at New York University and the State University of New York.

John Killacky leaves the Foundation for his new post as chief executive officer of the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, a multidisciplinary arts organization in Burlington, Vermont. John has left an indelible print that intensifies our understanding of arts and culture as an essential element for the greater good. We thank him for his tenure at The San Francisco Foundation, during which he launched initiatives that championed individual artists, commissioned courageous and innovative new works, and forged meaningful partnerships with donors, national foundations, and the public and private sectors. Click here to read the recent San Francisco Chronicle article about John.

Request for Proposals for the 2010 Fund For Artists Matching Commissions

April 2010

The San Francisco Foundation is pleased to announce the 2010 Fund For Artists Matching Commissions. Now in its fourth and final year, this program is designed to extend an opportunity to small- to mid-sized arts organizations to commission new works from artists and build the organization’s individual donor bases. Through the Fund For Artists, we will award funds that must be matched on a one-to-one basis by individual donor contributions within three months of grant notification.

HOW TO APPLY: Visit our Fund For Artists page for more information and to download the PDF of the Requests for Proposals. Online applications must be submitted in Grantee Center no later than 11:59 p.m. on Friday, June 18, 2010 (please note that telephone assistance will be available until 5:00 p.m. that day) and mailed Artist Work Samples must arrive no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, June 18, 2010.

Proposals will only be accepted through Grantee Center. Approved grants begin October 11, 2010.

Arts and Culture Program Officer John Killacky in the Media

March 2010

Program Office John Killacky joined bloggers Janet Brown, Colin Tweedy, Larry Thompson, Mark Brewer, Mary Trudel, and many others in discussing issues related to private sector giving and the arts on ARTSblog at Americans for the Arts. Click here to visit the Private Sector page, or follow the links below to visit John's entries directly:

• Click here to read about John's recent trip to Austria.
  
• Click here to read about the Dynamic Adaptability Conference.
  
• Click here to read about what role arts play during a time of recession.

Program Officer John R. Killacky Interviews Dance Great and Celebrated Visual Artist Trisha Brown

January 2010

Photo of Trish Brown and John Killacky, courtesy of Dartmouth College

Arts and Culture Program Officer John Killacky will host a conversation with Trisha Brown at her alma mater, Mills College later this month. Trisha Brown is best known for her world class postmodern choreography but will be traveling to the Bay Area to present So That The Audience Does Not Know Whether I Have Stopped Dancing, her most recent works of visual art.

Join Trisha Brown in conversation with John Killacky at 5:30 p.m. on January 27, 2010, at Danforth Lecture Hall in the Mills Art Building in Oakland. For more information on the public program, visit the Mills College Art Museum events page.

So That The Audience Does Not Know Whether I Have Stopped Dancing will be on exhibition at Mills College Art Museum January 20 - March 14, 2010.

Request for Proposals for The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund

October 2009

Many award-winning documentaries have emerged from the San Francisco Bay Area. In recognition of this fine documentary tradition, we invite accomplished film/video/digital media artists to apply to the second round of The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund for early production support.

Awards ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 will be distributed annually to support documentary projects in early production phases by experienced filmmakers with an esteemed body of previously created work. Projects should address issues pertinent to the five Bay Area counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, or San Mateo. The San Francisco Foundation is interested in documentaries exploring issues that have been historically underexposed, misinterpreted, or ignored. 

Applications for the 2009 San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund are now available on Grantee Center with a deadline of Wednesday, November 11, 2009. Please note that this application includes an online portion in addition to mailing physical film samples to The San Francisco Foundation offices. For eligibility requirements and additional details, please visit our Grants and Awards page.

Arts and Culture Program Officer John Killacky in the Media

October 2009

Arts and Culture Program Officer John  Killacky recently wrote an article for Dancers Group's InDance magazine about the reoccurring amnesia in postmodern dance and the influence of Bay Area dance legend Anna Halprin. Click here to read Anna’s Postmodern Children.

Additionally, John was invited by Barry C. Hessenius, former director of the California Arts Council, to participate on Barry's Blog: News, Advice, and Opinion for the Arts Administrator. In a blogging experience about the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), John and other arts philanthropists discuss the impact of the current funding environment in the arts sector. Click here to read NEA Forum - Panel 3 - The Funding Community.

Mayors Assert that the Arts are Good for Business

October 2009

The Mayors of Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland, and Richmond convened a news conference and series of public events October 2, 2009, to announce the launch of a nationally unprecedented public/private/community partnership that shines a spotlight on arts and culture as proven catalysts for urban development, economic vitality, quality of life, and community sustainability.

Mayors Tom Bates of Berkeley, Richard Kassis of Emeryville, Ron Dellums of Oakland, and Gayle McLaughlin of Richmond, together “flipped the switch” to launch the new portal website, www.510Arts.com, the first pilot activity of the newly formed East Bay Cultural Corridor (EBCC). The day culminated with public arts activities in the four partner cities to celebrate this forward-thinking arts and business alliance, designed to broaden awareness of the East Bay as one of the country’s most culturally rich and diverse arts regions.

The EBCC is intended to foster relationships between the diverse arts communities of each city; leverage new audiences and resources for the arts; increase the visibility, accessibility, and sustainability of arts communities; leverage new resources for each partner city; and benefit local businesses through partnerships with the arts.

Click here to visit our Press section for more details and a listing of EBCC events.

Michael Kaiser's Maintaining a Healthy Arts Organization: The Art of the Turnaround Audio Podcast Now Available

August 2009

On May 11, 2009, The San Francisco Foundation, along with the Center for Cultural Innovation and the San Francisco Arts Commission, partnered with The Commonwealth Club of California to present a conversation with Michael Kaiser, president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and author of the new book "Art of the Turnaround: Creating and Maintaining Healthy Arts Organizations." With mounting concern around the economic downturn, the time was ripe to discuss how arts organizations could best fare in the current economic climate. Kaiser presented his ten basic rules for saving troubled arts organizations. 

Click here to listen to the audio podcast of Maintaining a Healthy Arts Organization: The Art of the Turnaround. (Please note that this link will prompt your computer to open iTunes and then direct you to the Comonwealth Club of California's audio podcast).

Creative Capacity Fund Now Accepting Applications

July 2009

In partnership with the San Francisco Arts Commission, Grants for the Arts/San Francisco Hotel Tax Fund, and San Jose Office of Cultural Affairs, The San Francisco Foundation is pleased to announce the Creative Capacity Fund (CCF). CCF is a field-building initiative designed to support a broad range of training and peer learning opportunities for arts professionals.

Administered by the Center for Cultural Innovation (CCI), individual artists and arts organizations who have received grants from the participating funders are eligible to apply for funds to support self-directed professional development activities. For more information, please visit our Grants & Awards page.

California Cultural Data Project Report Now Available for Arts and Culture Applicants

June 2009

california cultural data project logo

Beginning this year, The San Francisco Foundation is joining other philanthropic partners in the California Cultural Data Project (California CDP). The California CDP is a state-wide, collaborative effort of public and private funders throughout California and consists of an online system for collecting and standardizing historical financial and organizational data. The San Francisco Foundation, along with other funders in California, now encourages applicants to complete a Data Profile annually through the California CDP website. Applicants will use the information entered into the Data Profile in their application to The San Francisco Foundation, as well as other participating funders throughout the state.

The California CDP will provide the cultural community with consistent, reliable, and comprehensive data on arts and culture in California, and enable organizations to view trends in their data, benchmark themselves against peer organizations, and enhance their financial management capacity.

For more information about the California Cultural Data Project, please visit its website at www.caculturaldata.org.

Arts and Culture Grantees using the California Cultural Data Project in your current grant application to The San Francisco Foundation, please reference our Application Guidelines.

Request for Proposals Announced for the 2009 Fund For Artists Matching Commissions

May 2009

The San Francisco Foundation is pleased to announce the 2009 Fund For Artists (FFA) Matching Commissions. This program is designed to extend an opportunity to small- to mid-sized arts organizations to commission new works from artists and build the organization’s individual donor bases. Through the FFA, we will award funds that must be matched on a one-to-one basis by individual donor contributions within three months of grant notification.

HOW TO APPLY: Please complete the online application in Grantee Center. Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on Friday, June 19, 2009. Please note that telephone assistance will be available until 5:00 p.m. that day, and mailed Artist Work Samples must arrive no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, June 19, 2009.

Proposals will only be accepted through Grantee Center. The grant period begins as early as October 15, 2009. 

Hear Program Officer John R. Killacky on KQED's Forum

March 2009

Request for Proposals for National Arts Marketing Project’s 2009 Bay Area Advanced Marketing Boot Camp

March 2009 

The San Francisco Foundation, Grants for the Arts/San Francisco Hotel Tax Fund, and The Wallace Foundation, through the Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts, are sponsoring a unique, two-part program designed to help arts organizations capture the minds, hearts, and wallets of today’s arts consumer through marketing and earned income strategies.

Created for arts organizations at critical junctures in their growth, this advanced training program provides organizations the potential opportunity to receive seed money for new projects. Up to 25 mid-sized nonprofits will be selected to participate in the boot camp. Attendees may then qualify for implementation funding; as many as ten boot camp participants will be granted up to $50,000 over a two year period.

For eligibility requirements and application guidlines, please visit the Grants & Awards page.  For general information about the Wallace Initiative, please visit the Wallace Commissions and Resources page. 

Presentations from Cultural Connections' Serving New Audiences: Wallace Grantees Tell Their Stories Now Available Online

March 2009

On February 12, 2009, arts organizations listened to Wallace Excellence Awardees Center for Asian American Media, the Contemporary Jewish Museum, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, San Francisco Girls Chorus, and San Francisco Museum of Modern Art talk about the lessons and themes they learned while implementing efforts to reach new audience members through participation. PDFs of many of these awardees' presentations are available for download on the Wallace Commissions and Resources page.

Presentation from Continue the Conversation Now Available Online

February 2009

On December 2, 2008, arts organizations and individual artists in the Bay Area met to discuss the economy, the community, and cultural participation at Continue the Conversation. This convening was produced by The San Francisco Foundation and Grants for the Arts/San Francisco Hotel Tax Fund through the support of The Wallace Foundation in collaboration with City of Oakland Cultural Arts and Marketing Division, Demeter Matrix Alliance, East Bay Community Foundation, Helicon Collaborative, San Jose Office of Cultural Affairs, and Theatre Bay Area.

One highlight was CHANGE: The Economy, The Community & Participation, a presentation by Helicon Collaborative's Holly Sidford. Click here to download a PDF of this presentation.

Arts and Culture Program Officer John R. Killacky in the Media

February 2009

Arts and Culture Program Officer John R. Killacky was recently interviewed by Scott Shafer on The California Report, a daily news report that broadcasts throughout California and locally on KQED. In the interview, John gives insight to the current economic hardship and how it will effect arts organizations in the Bay Area and beyond. For Scott Shafer's full piece, originally airing on Friday, January 2, 2009, click here to listen to the audio broadcast.

Additionally, John talks about his experience of raising funds for his own film, Janis Ian: Live From Grand Center, and its impact on the creation of The San Francisco Foundation's Bay Area Documentary Fund in a recent article on SF360.org. Click here to visit the article on SF360.org.

Request for Proposals for The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund

August 2008

Many award-winning documentaries have emerged from the San Francisco Bay Area. In recognition of this fine documentary tradition, we invite accomplished film/video/digital media artists to apply to The San Francisco Foundation Bay Area Documentary Fund for early production support.

Four or five awards ranging from $20,000 to $25,000 will be distributed annually to support documentary projects in early production phases by experienced filmmakers with an esteemed body of previously created work. Projects should address issues pertinent to the five Bay Area counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, or San Mateo. The San Francisco Foundation is interested in documentaries exploring issues that have been historically underexposed, misinterpreted, or ignored. 

HOW TO APPLY: Please complete the online application in Grantee Center. Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm on Wednesday, October 1, 2008. (Assistance will be available until 5:00 p.m.)

Individual filmmakers must be fiscally sponsored by a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in the the five county Bay Area. Proposals will be accepted only through Grantee Center and application work samples must be postmarked no later than October 15, 2008. Winners will be notified December 1, 2008.

At your first visit, select the Create a New Account link to be prompted to provide the necessary information to complete the set up process. Please note, if you are fiscally sponsored your organization should be your project name NOT YOUR FISCAL SPONSOR.  You will have the opportunity to add your fiscal sponsor during the process.  Once you have logged in, you will be able to complete and review online applications, review your grants, submit reports, and manage your account information.

For eligibility requirements and additional details, please click here to download a PDF of the Request for Proposals (RFP).

Request for Proposals Announced for the 2008 Fund For Artists Matching Commissions

August 2008

The San Francisco Foundation is pleased to announce the 2008 Fund For Artists (FFA) Matching Commissions.  This program is designed to extend an opportunity to small- to mid-sized arts organizations to commission new works from artists and build the organization’s individual donor bases.  Through the FFA, TSFF will award funds that must be matched on a one-to-one basis by individual donor contributions within three months of grant notification.

For additional information regarding the Fund For Artists Matching Commission please attend an informational session on Wednesday, August 27, 2008 from 2:00 – 3:00 pm at The San Francisco Foundation office (225 Bush Street, Ste 500, San Francisco, CA 94114).

HOW TO APPLY: Please complete the online application in Grantee Center.  Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm on Wednesday, September 17, 2008. (Assistance will be available until 5:00 p.m.)

Proposals will only be accepted through Grantee Center.  The grant period begins as early as November 1, 2008. 

For additional details, please click here to download a PDF of the Request for Proposals (RFP).

2008 Shenson Performing Arts Fellowship Announced 

May 2008

A pre-selected group of arts organizations that provide excellent professional-track performing arts training and performance opportunities are invited to nominate an exemplary pre-professional performing artist (above 18 years of age) for a $5,000 award to assist with their professional advancement. Fellowships are based on the nominee’s artistic merit and their potential for future excellence and impact in his or her performing arts discipline.

Funds will be granted to organizations, but must be given to nominated artists. Multiple Shenson Performing Arts Fellowships will be awarded this year. The fellowship period is one year, funding activities that take place between July 1, 2008, and June 30, 2009.

The Drs. Ben and A. Jess Shenson Foundation at The San Francisco Foundation was established in 1995 by brothers Ben and A. Jess Shenson who were passionate about encouraging pre-professional students in the performing arts. These fellowships will be awarded in their memory. For more information on the Shenson Fellowship visit our Grants & Awards section.

The 2007 Art Awards Celebration

October 2007

Each year, The San Francisco Foundation is proud to sponsor the Art Awards Program, fostering individual growth and excellence in the Bay Area by granting over $255,000 to 54 artists in different stages of their careers and development from students to mid-career artists to veteran artists. In the spirit of honoring this year's arts awardees, partners, and jurors who reflect the strength and diversity of our arts community, we hosted a festive celebration for the 2007 Art Awards winners on October 16, 2007. Our guests of honor included artist award winners and honorees – poets, writers, sculptors, painters, filmmakers, media artists, photographers, printmakers, and performing artists.  

New Partnership with The Wallace Foundation

Last year The Wallace Foundation chose Chicago and Boston to work in-depth with a cohort of arts organizations to help grantees in these cities reach more people, capture knowledge about effective practices toward this goal, and make that knowledge known to a broad constituency of arts professionals. In each of these cities, Wallace partnered with the local community foundation and public art agency.

For a second round of the Wallace Excellence Awards program, San Francisco and Philadelphia have been chosen as the new focus cities with The San Francisco Foundation as the community foundation partner, and Grants for the Arts as the public agency partner for San Francisco.

The deadline for proposals has now passed. Please check back for announced grants.

Arts & Culture Staff Updates

The Arts and Culture team hosted regional meetings for the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, Dance USA, and California Arts Advocates. Nicole DuPont curated an exhibition of watercolors by rock singer Marilyn Manson at the Space 39 Gallery in Fort Myers, Florida, and appeared on the television show View from the Bay with Suze Orman along with other women from The San Francisco Foundation. John R. Killacky curated a touring visual arts exhibition for the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons, attended the Leveraging Investments in Creativity conference in Philadelphia in April, and gave the keynote address at the annual VSA Arts conference in Washington D.C. Jaime Cortez served as an arts juror at the East Bay Community Foundation, gave a reading of fiction at the San Francisco Main Library, and has been invited to exhibit drawings in his first international exhibition in the Philippines.

FAITHS Arts and Culture Mini-grants

Faith-based organizations and congregations often serve as a community hub for immigrant, refugee, and grassroots communities, while acting as a focus for cultural and artistic activity. To enhance this exchange of art and ideas, the Foundation's FAITHS Initiative and Arts and Culture Program announce the FAITHS Arts and Culture Mini-grants. Faith-based organizations in the five Bay Area counties we serve (Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo Counties) will be eligible for mini-grants of up to $3,000. These grants support free, community-based artistic and cultural activities, with a priority focus on immigrant, refugee, and grassroots communities. Approximately $30,000 in funds will be granted. The deadline for 2006 grants has now passed.
The applications for the 2007 FAITHS Arts and Culture Mini-Grants will be available for downloading from our website in Mid-October, 2007.

Program Officer John Killacky Discusses the Local Arts Community in a San Francisco Chronicle Op-Ed Article

In a recent op-ed column in the San Francisco Chronicle, John Killacky, the Foundation’s program officer for arts and culture, describes recent successes of local artists and arts organizations, as well as their pressing needs. In particular, financial support is necessary to ensure that arts organizations have the resources they need and so that artists can afford to live, work, and create in our community. Early next year, the Arts Task Force is charged with the task of addressing some of these issues and John discusses the Task Force’s opportunities to integrate the arts community into community and workforce development programs. To read the column from the November 25th issue of the San Francisco Chronicle, please visit The San Francisco Foundation in the News page.

Program Officer John Killacky Delivered Keynote at Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Conference

John R. Killacky, program officer for Arts and Culture at The San Francisco Foundation, gave the keynote address at the Kennedy Center's Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Training and Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona, on October 1, 2005.

This annual gathering included accessibility professionals working in the country’s arts and cultural organizations and focused on current issues related to accessibility. To read the excerpted speech in PDF format, please click here.

Business Investing in Community Arts

The Rand Report ("Gifts of the Muse, Reframing the Debate About the Benefit of the Arts," commissioned by the Wallace Foundation) is impacting the national arts landscape as arts and cultural organizations confront the challenge of new ways to effectively engage the private sector to fund the arts. Our program officer for arts and culture, John Killacky, moderated a discussion of strategies to engage the private sector with the arts and cultural communities. Held at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. One model  highlighted for engaging the business community is the Fund for Artists. This collaborative effort of four Bay Area community foundations and three state and national foundations is a $1 million initiative to support the work of creative individuals in the Bay Area. The fund will support the endeavors of individual artists through commissions, artists' residencies, awards, advocacy, and promotional and networking support. Learn more about the Fund for Artists and our other impact funds here.

Past Legal Seminars for Artists and Arts Organizations

CONTRACTS AND NEGOTIATIONS BASICS
Thursday, March 30, 2006
9:00 am to 12:00 noon

Speakers:
Richard Lee, Law Offices of Richard Lee
Alma Robinson, California Lawyers for the Arts

Recognizing that every arts administrator may be faced with reviewing a wide range of contracts (employees, independent contractors, collaborators, etc.), this workshop will review basics of the agreement process and cover the alternatives to formal “contracts,” such as memoranda of understanding and letter agreements. The principle of "Get it in writing" will be emphasized, along with a primer on when to seek legal advice. A short segment on negotiating basics will involve an interactive role-play, followed by discussion.

Download information from this seminar:
Panelist Bios (PDF)
Negotiations Overview (PDF)
Contracts Basics (PDF)

COPYRIGHT BASICS FOR NONPROFIT ARTS ORGANIZATIONS
Speakers:
Simon J. Frankel, Howard, Rice, Nemerovski, Canady, Falk & Rabkin
Linda Joy Kattwinkel, Owen, Wickersham & Erickson
Marc Paisin, Law Offices of Mark Paisin
Jill Roisen, California Lawyers for the Arts

Download information from this seminar:
General Outline: Copyright Basics for Nonprofits (PDF)
Legalities: What is a Copyright? (PDF)
Basics of Resale Royalties, Moral Rights, and Trademark (PowerPoint)

A general overview of copyright law and registration procedures were followed by an interactive role-play involving a copyright dispute, drawn from actual cases handled through California Lawyers for the Arts’ mediation program. Further information about “the bundle of copyrights,” intellectual property in the digital age, moral rights and the exceptions to copyright protection, such as fair use and public domain, and the differences between copyright and trademark were explained, followed by a question and answer period.