Droit Moral
From ForcaWiki, the simple encyclopedia
| In one sentence | An author's or director's personal right to be credited for their work and to object to it being changed in ways they consider disrespectful, respected more in Europe than in the United States. |
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| Category | Film and Television |
| Related | Berne Convention, Talent |
Imagine painting a picture, selling it to someone, and still feeling like you deserve some say over whether they can paint a mustache on it later, even though it is technically theirs now. That kind of personal, ongoing connection to your own creative work is what droit moral is about.
Droit moral, French for "moral rights," refers to certain personal rights that authors and directors keep over their own work, even after selling it, like the right to be credited and the right to object to changes they find disrespectful. These rights are typically respected much more strongly in Europe than they are in the United States.
Fun facts
- Because droit moral is weaker in the United States, a director there generally has less legal power to stop a studio from editing their finished film than a director working under European law might have.
- Droit moral exists separately from who legally owns a movie's copyright, since it protects the personal connection between a creator and their work, not just ownership.
- Disputes over droit moral have famously come up when a director's film is edited or colorized without their approval after release.