i'm shooting a film in about ten weeks and was wondering if anyone knew who to contact about using Pulp / Jarvis excerpts in the film. does Pulp hold their own rights, or does Island? i know that velvet / fire retain everything pre-Gift, but what about the rest? i can't recall hearing any of their material in any films with the exeption of the material that they donated directly and exclusively for soundtrack inclusion (ie. 'mile end', 'we are the boys', 'born to cry'.)
i think i heard 'cunts' was used in something recently...
it's a bit of a film noir about an ex-professor that is obsessed with the My Lai Massacre and sort of sets out to punish some of the military personnel involved 40 years later. we're shooting in toronto and LA in the next 90 days or so. gary busey is in it. i'm currently trying to clear as much of the music as i can before we go to camera, so i'm looking at getting some Gainsbourg, France Gall, Scott Walker, Gene Pitney, 13th Floor Elevators, Jarvis, etc. like a very 1960 / 70s, dark, AM radio, torch-burner vibe. much like a lot of The Trip ended up representing. we want Deep Fried for the trailor.
if anyone has any soundtrack suggestions, don't be shy, now's the time...
it probably wont be too hard getting the rights anyway, record companies would do anything to cash on their catalogue. but then it depends on how much money you can spend on it
I have a little experience with music licensing. When you are dealing with artists as successful as the ones you are looking for, you'll need legal representation from a Music License Clearing Organization. For films you can expect to pay between $10,000 and $25,000 for the rights to each song. Remember, you are buying the rights to use the song in perpetuity. Bands are very protective of their intellectual property. When you sign an artist to your soundtrack, you are therefore marketing to that artist's fanbase.
Independent (unrepresented) bands are willing to sell their rights for much less, and there are now people who specialize in finding independent bands to match the sound you are looking for. Typically you can expect to pay between $250 to $1000 for those artists.
Most independent filmmakers don't bother securing rights to their music until the movie has a distribution deal. Then they let their distributor handle the legalities of the soundtrack. Sure, you can get yourself into legal trouble, but if nobody sees the film, who's to know the music was stolen. The RIAA has more important issues to deal with right now than to chance after unemployed filmmakers.
Licencing tracks can be very expensive so why don't you have a look around the websites that showcase unsigned artists? You might be compromising but you might find something suitable. Most unsigned bands are you pleased to get a bit of publicity so most would let you use their stuff for free.
