Future of Cultural Production to Be Discussed at OSU Conference

“Obama Girl” Creator, Hoop Dreams Director, Prominent Academics to Participate

The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and the Wexner Center for the Arts have collaborated to present the conference Remix/Mashup 2009: The Future of Creative Production and Ownership—exploring issues of intellectual property and copyright law associated with user generated content and the growing use of mashup in the arts—March 12-13 at OSU.

Bringing together new media artists, prominent academics from across the country and OSU, and influential members of the national media and blogosphere, this event will delve into the artistic and legal issues surrounding mash-ups and remixes, in which pre-existing sounds and images are appropriated, reshaped, and shared with unprecedented ease (especially online)—sometimes to the chagrin of the original creators. Organized as a series of panels, roundtables, and presentations, the conference will engage presenters and audience members to think broadly about the legal, political, economic, and cultural landscapes accompanying mashup art and collaborative creation. Events will be held at the Moritz College, the Barrister Club near Moritz, and the Wexner Center’s Mershon Auditorium.

Notes faculty organizer Professor Peter M. Shane, “At a moment of radical change in our media landscape, it's imperative to understand how law operates as a force shaping the prospects for democratic discourse and artistic creation. We wanted to bring artists and legal experts together to help us understand both the current state and impact of intellectual property law -- especially  our ideas of "fair use" -- and how future law can best balance the cultural benefits from unimpeded access to cultural products and from economic incentives that can help underwrite the creation and effective distribution of art.”

Amanda Potter, conference co-organizer and educator for public programs at the Wex, says, “The Wexner Center strives to collaborate on and present programs that explore issues that affect contemporary artists and their practice. We have and will continue to feature artists whose work includes mashups and remixing, and so the evolution of a system that allows artists to create freely and without risk of prosecution is of great importance to us and the artists with whom we work.”

EVENT INFO: Remix/Mash-up 2009: The Future of Creative Production and Ownership will be held Thursday, March 12-13. The keynote address by Paul D. Miller (DJ Spooky) on March 12 at 7 PM will be free and open to the public. Registration for the rest of the conference is $30 for the general public, and free for Ohio State faculty, staff, and students (attorneys seeking CLE can register for $250 by March 5).

Conference Highlights (March 12–13)

• A keynote address by renowned composer, multimedia artist, and writer Paul D. Miller (aka DJ Spooky), reflecting on the influence of mashup and remix art in the time of Web 2.0.

• Multiple roundtable conversations on such varied topics as user-generated content, political and social expression, and the future of cultural production.

Appearances by Ben Relles, the creator of the “Obama Girl” YouTube video; Gordon Quinn, the director of Hoop Dreams; and Dan Cooper, Vice President, Business and Legal Affairs Fox Interactive Media.

EVENT SUPPORT

Cosponsored by Ohio State’s Moritz College of Law, I/S: A Journal of Law and Policy for the Information Society, and the Wexner Center, with additional support from Porter, Wright, Morris, and Arthur, LLP.

Major support for the Wexner Center’s 2008–09 education season is generously provided by Battelle.