Arab-Japan

[Aaron Gerow]

Najib,

I think the most relevant issue here would be the definition of  
quotation. Courts in Japan have rather liberally recognized  
quotation, which is why, for instance, manga researchers no longer  
have to get permission to use panels from longer manga in their  
discussions of manga history. There are several conditions for the  
fair use of quotations, such as proper attribution, not using more  
than a fraction of the work quoted, having a real reason in your  
usage for quoting it, not altering the work, etc. I have seen many  
academic presentations at conferences where presenters played  
portions of popular songs. That is no problem whatsoever.

The question in your case is whether your use would fit these  
conditions. Is the music part of the Syrian artist's work? If so, you  
would be in no trouble for using it to illustrate the artist's work  
(though you could be blamed for revealing that the artist used it  
improperly, which is another issue entirely). If the music is not  
part of the artist's work, but you are adding it just for effect,  
that could be considered superfluous and unjustified.


Aaron Gerow
KineJapan owner

Assistant Professor
Film Studies Program/East Asian Languages and Literatures
Yale University

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