Fictionalizing True Stories.

I would ask in the non-fiction department. You might get clearer answers as this is their cup of tea.

Tough call.

Newspaper articles and the people within can fall under public image and you can write the story especially if there is more than one source, but you could get sued by the persons involved, estate, etc... especially if puts anyone in a bad light. The best bet is to contact the people involved and get permission. Tell them what you want to do and reassure them that it can be good for them. No money up front, but a percentage of the sale (no more than $25 would be my guideline on that)

If you want to truly fictionalize it, changing the names, places may not be enough. You may need to change a bank heist to some other type of crime, a murder to an abduction, etc...

In other words you use the true story just as a backbone and build the fiction on top of it.

Or write the story and then get permission to shop it. Sometimes that can backfire if they do not like the story, but sometimes they are shown that you are serious and are willing to talk.

Or write it and sell it and let the producers worry about it, just as long as you put based on true events on the cover and query letter. This can backfire because they may not want to go through the trouble of getting clearances, especially if they are not fully in love with the script.

In any case, always talk to an entertainment lawyer before committing to anything like this.

It depends on the situation

and several factors.

If it is a CHARACTER piece focusing on the human side, the PEOPLE of the event then it becomes more difficult to fictionalize and use.
Some one is bound to say "HEY, thats my story!" and want control or money. You have to be careful of slander.
And um, well just randomly using other people's experiences.

If it is the EVENT that is the focus it is much easier, depending on how big or well publized it was. As Joe said you can take the basic idea of the event and then build it which ever way you want to.

Proof of Life was based on a magazine article and various aspects of that were amped up or changed to make a filmable story.
EVERY film story has fictional parts.
Still, they had to get story rights from the zine author and permission from the man it actually happened to.

BUT if you just wanted to take and use that concept, a contractor say maybe in Iraq taken hostage and the people who rescue him/she/them, then you could do that.
You wouldn't say "Inspired by true events" or "Based on a real story" because you are just building off the IDEA.

IF you base it off real people and you use REAL names and you want it to be a .... re-enactment of the event, you gotta do the research and get permission.

you can take any real life event and put your own spin on it. but, make sure you really make it yours and not just copycatting. and forget that re-enactment crap. no one has a copyright on their life events so changing names, places, motivations, and final outcomes makes it your own.

btw - law and order is the king of fictionalizing real life events. they move so fast on a news story it's almost like the comedy writers on talk shows.

Changing names,

places, motivations, and most CERTAINTLY the outcome makes it an original story.

I would think that the whole purpose of chosing the REAL event in the first place is because of the inheirant drama of the motivation and outcome.
Changing names or places is one thing, the motivation and outcome
quite another!

The thing that really matters is just how dramatic and interesting the actual event is. Is it something that has a broad, mass appeal?
Is it something that goes beyond what a normal person would experience? Is it unusual, uncommon, unique?

That one day in the life of people who were on the Mississippi bridge two weeks ago is going to be far more interesting then say.... my really bad day at work yesterday.
Interesting enough for a movie of the day, or for a segment in a "Modern Disasters, a History Channel exclusive movie" but probably not even big enough for a feature film.

And a real life event that altered the course of MY life may not be inspirational at all to the rest of the world.
Not enough so to put serious money into filming it.

SO, the starting point, before even thinking about the legal aspects of it, is considering the actual marketablity of the event. Does it have enough punch?

And no, there is NO problem with taking a simple, normal life event and amping it up.
That is what movies are, life on steriods.

Hi, guys, allow me to resurrect and hijack this old thread.




I am right now talking to someone who had a real life adventure befall them and I will hopefuly turn their account into a screenplay. Without getting into details, this event caught gobal attention over 15 years ago, making front page headlines around the wolrd. ONE person in the news reports was evidently shown to be a complete idiot, acted in utter selfishness, risked the lives of hundreds of people out of sheer cowardice, and is obviously going to be the bad guy in this story.

Because of how huge this story was, is it fair game?


As a reference point.............

I recall about fifteen years ago, the Amy Fisher/Joey Buttafuoco story caught international headlines and within a few months of the attempted murder, no less than three made-for-TV-movies aired on the incident. Of those three movies, one was told from the husband's POV, another from the wife's POV, and the third from Amy's POV. Now I don't KNOW for certain about the legalities of it all, but I am told that because the Amy Fisher story was such a high-profile case, and because so much of the story came out of the police reports, police reports are considered "public record," and therefore it was all perfectly legal to make these films without anyone's permission. But I was only TOLD al this, and I don't know this stuff for certain.





Getting back to the story I will hopefully be writing about, a lot of this seems to be public record, including the potential antagonist. And there's no way to "disgusie" this story. It was a UNIQUE event and part of whjat makes it such an awesome target for a movie is how unbelievably irresponsible this antagonist was. One's sense of outrage cannnot help but be thrown into full throttle when one hears the details of what this man did. It's unique and one-of-a-kind and so it wold be an exercise in futility to change the names because there's no hinding the true face of this story behind changed names.



Anyone care to comment?

Thanks!


::ETA::

It's late at night and my typing sucks. Please forgive all those typos up above. I don't have the energy to fix them.

Actually this is one of the main questions i'l be discussing with a literary attorney in January. I'l be sure to get back to you after I talk to her....

Don Allen said:

Actually this is one of the main questions i'l be discussing with a literary attorney in January. I'l be sure to get back to you after I talk to her....

Click to expand...

Can I e-mail you with the details????

Plot Device said:

ONE person in the news reports was evidently shown to be a complete idiot, acted in utter selfishness, risked the lives of hundreds of people out of sheer cowardice, and is obviously going to be the bad guy in this story.

Click to expand...

Part of the challenge can be implying (or showing) motive.

eg: "He did this, which risked the lives of thousands" is true and can be proved.

"He did this, which risked the lives of thousands, because he was a coward" is opinion and can't be proved.

Sure, you may be right. It may be 'obvious'. But you could equally make a sympathetic film about a loving father and husband who is put in a situation beyond his training and panics - and then has to live with the consequence. (That may not be the case - clearly I don't know the story. It's just an example)

Clearly, that film may not be as good or as truthful. But you once you imply or show motivations for a character, it makes it incredibly difficult to rely on 'it is a known fact' as a defense.

Good luck,

Mac

Thanks, Mac. That makes a lot of sense.

And I just sent you a Rep Point with the details of the situation.