Federal Court Rules that 'Amazing Wizard of Paws' Producer Can Proceed With Claims Against Major Distributors Screen Media Ventures and Crackle for Ill-Gotten Profits and Copyright Infringement

LOS ANGELES, July 7, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Producer-director Bryan Michael Stoller's production company, First American Cinema, LLC, has defeated bids by major distributors Screen Media Ventures and Sony's Crackle to dismiss claims for ill-gotten profits and copyright infringement, amongst other allegations.

The July 2, 2020 ruling, issued by the Hon. Judge Philip Gutierrez of the United States District Court, permits First American Cinema to pursue its claims against Screen Media and Crackle for unlawfully exploiting, and failing to pay and report profits generated from the widespread distribution of, The Amazing Wizard of Paws, Stoller's 2014 fantasy/adventure film about a young boy who discovers that his emotional support dog has magical powers.

The lawsuit, filed on November 7, 2019, alleges that Screen Media breached its domestic and international distribution agreements with First American Cinema by packaging The Amazing Wizard of Paws for distribution with other films, and failing to report and pay profits generated from the millions of views the film commanded on various Video On-Demand (VOD) and Advertising Video On-Demand (AVOD) platforms.

The suit further alleges that Screen Media distributed The Amazing Wizard of Paws for free through its affiliated streaming channels, allowing it and its sub-distributors to collect ad revenue and hide profits while leaving the producer empty handed. On April 14, 2020, First American Cinema added popular streaming service Crackle to the lawsuit, alleging that Crackle's unauthorized, free distribution of Paws on its platform constitutes copyright infringement. First American's lawyers argued that the copyright claim against Crackle should be allowed to proceed, and the Court agreed. 

"The License agreement provides Plaintiff a 'percentage [of] royalties based on sales or license fees' from SMV's distribution of the Film, making Plaintiff a beneficial owner of the Film's distribution rights, and Plaintiff has standing to sue for unlawful distribution[.] Because Plaintiff maintains beneficial ownership in the rights to the Film, via the Gross Receipts Clause, it has standing here under 17 U.S.C. § 501(b)." (citations omitted)

Bryan Michael Stoller is a filmmaker and author of Filmmaking for Dummies and Harry Potter: Imagining Hogwarts: A Beginner's Guide to Moviemaking. Stoller and First American Cinema are represented by Maurice Pessah and Michael Morris-Nussbaum of Pessah Law Group, PC (PLG) in Los Angeles.

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SOURCE Pessah Law Group

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