How Long Does It Take To Register Screenplay Wga

When it comes to protecting your ideas, should you register your script with the WGA or copyright it?

So you take your all-time idea, you wrote an incredible screenplay, and at present y'all want to ship it out to contests and to search for agents and managers...BUT WAIT!

How do you know your thought is protected? How practise you ensure that your ideas remain your ideas?

The reply is simple: you lot can safeguard your idea via registering your screenplay with the WGA or copyrighting the script with the United States Government. But which is right for you and your screenplay?

Let'due south dive into WGA registration and copyrighting your screenplay to find out which is best.

What is WGA Registration?

WGA registration is a process where you tell the WGA the origin engagement of your idea, then y'all tin can go along track of information technology in case you lot submit it somewhere and after run across someone profiting with your same idea later. This is rare, only information technology has happened in the by. So, the WGA invented registration to help protect writers.

If you lot register your script with the WGA, your protections concluding five years.

The advantage of registration is that in the event of a lawsuit or a credit arbitration, the WGA will take an employee appear and testify apropos the appointment of the registration.

Some examples of registerable material include scripts, treatments, synopses, and outlines. As well, you can do all the registration alone. So that's super convenient.

Registration with the WGA is non a Copyright. Then why would you register your script with the WGA?

Here's what their site says:

"As the world leader in screenplay registration, the WGAW Registry has been the industry standard in the creation of legal evidence for the protection of writers' piece of work since 1927...The WGA W is the home to nearly 12,000 of Hollywood's leading Tv set and screenwriters, simply yous practise not need to be a WGAW member to use this vital Guild service."

Why would I copyright my screenplay?

Copyrighting your idea establishes buying of it. That doesn't mean yous own every space pirate idea, simply it does keep the specific details of your space pirate script your own. Copyright registration lasts for your entire life, plus seventy years, and so that's a trivial more than the five the WGA tin guarantee.

Copyright services also allow yous to bill your lawyers out to whoever stole your idea, so you won't lose coin defending you lot stuff in court.

The major downside is that it commonly takes 4-6 months to obtain a copyright, whereas WGA registration is instantaneous.

You tin can larn how to copyright a script in the beneath video or on the US Copyright office's website.

What is the Difference Between WGA Registration & Copyright?

While this tin all seem a footling complicated, The Writer's Store gives you this helpful infographic to weigh both options.

Should y'all register or copyright?

Personally, I'd just annals information technology with the WGA considering information technology's fast, easy, and instant. If you're super worried, submit that copyright.

I desire to stress that idea stealing is not a rampant occurrence in Hollywood, but in that location'south a good Today Article about the times information technology has happened. Recall,Ideas are not field of study to federal copyright protection, only finished products.

So get writing and end your piece of work!

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