One of the pleasures of working in the IP field is the chance to deal with artists of all types hoping for a big break. Today, much artistic attention is directed to filmmaking, which has become the dominant commerical outlet of a generation of creative artists (perhaps only now being replaced by the creative freedom taking place on the Internet).
The legal issues confronting aspiring filmmakers are daunting, particularly the clearance of rights. Good legal help is expensive, often prohibitively so, but litigation arising from the failure to do things right in the first instance can be even more expensive and can destroy a career.
What can the artist do?
First, read enough to understand what's involved. Learn how others do it. Much of this information is available online. Ignoring this "business" side of art because it's not "artistic" is a mistake.
Second, find knowledgable legal help. Experienced counsel may appear more expensive due to high hourly rates, but they will probably get more done in a shorter amount of time than a less expensive but inexperienced lawyer.
Third, seek out artist groups that offer help. Chicago is home to Lawyers for the Creative Arts. Other cities have similar groups dedicated to providing knowledgable volunteer services to artists.
Here are a some Internet resources for filmmakers:
This site includes .pdf files of actual scripts for a wide variety of films. It's a great place to learn how to format a screenplay. Follow the example of professionals. Chinatown is a great model.
Includes many helpful articles on IP issues relating to filmmaking, such as "How do I get the rights to use a song/music in my film"
You may have other favorite resources. Please leave a comment to share them here.
