Dear Colleagues,

We, 16 member organisations of KLYS (The Swedish Joint Committée for Artistic and Literary Professionals), who among other artistic groups represent creative and performing artists involved in the making of films, would like to address your organisation in a very important matter concerning the Moral Rights of film creators and performers and the review of the EU Council Directive 89/552/EEC ‘Television without frontiers’ (the TV-Directive) that is taking place this year.

As you probably know article 11.1 in the current EU TV-Directive states as a principle rule that advertisements shall be inserted between programmes. However the effect of this very clear regulation is undermined by the following paragraph, which says that under certain conditions advertisement interruptions are permitted during programmes in such a way that the integrity and the value of the programme and the rights of the rights holders are not prejudiced. The condition concerning commercial breaks in feature films or films made for television is that advertisements must be broadcast within certain intervals.

In our opinion this loop-hole in the EU regulation is in conflict with the moral rights granted to authors in the Berne Convention, which assures that the author shall have the right to object to any distortion, mutilation or other modification of, or other derogatory action in relation to the work, which would be prejudicial to his honour or reputation. It is quite obvious that breaks and interruptions in a film are such mutilations of a work which constitutes a violation of the moral rights of filmmakers.

Until 1 April 2002, the Swedish Radio and Television Act totally prohibited commercial breaks during the broadcast of films or programmes with respect to the audience and to the moral rights of filmmakers. Despite strong protests from the organisations of Swedish authors, performers and film producers as well as individual authors and performers, the Swedish parliament has now implemented article 11.3 of the TV-Directive, which allows advertisement interruptions in films within certain intervals, in the Swedish Radio and Television Act. The reason for this change is partly the stiff competition from satellite transmissions to Sweden from Swedish broadcasters domiciled in other countries within the EU, who are not bound by Swedish law, and partly the way that the Swedish commercial TV company TV4 skirted the prohibition by interrupting films or programmes with news summaries and other short programmes surrounded by advertisements.

Since the amendments were introduced in the Swedish Radio and Television Act TV4 has systematically used the new possibility to mutilate films by interrupting them with advertisements. Unfortunately, few authors or performers take legal action against broadcasters – not because they do not care, but because a lawsuit is always inconvenient and can also be very costly in terms of time and money. However two Swedish filmmakers, Mr Vilgot Sjöman, and Mr Claes Eriksson are now, with the support from KLYS, going to court to try if TV4 has infringed their moral rights to their films (‘Alfred’ and ‘Hajen som visste för mycket’) by inserting advertisement interruptions in their films.

At the ceremony of the awards of the Swedish Film Academy the internationally known film director Ingmar Bergman publicly praised the efforts of Vilgot Sjöman to stop advertising interruptions of films when exhibited on Swedish TV4.

Film producers and commercial TV channels often claim that film directors have agreed to allow commercial breaks when their films are broadcast. But this is a false claim, since it goes without saying that the companies’ great economic power puts them in a position where they can force filmmakers to make such concessions.

It is our considered opinion that both European national legislation and EU regulation should stipulate that films must be broadcast in the version that the authors have approved. Now that the TV-Directive is being revised, it is high time to protect the moral rights of the creative people involved in the making of films without whose work there would be little to broadcast. Adding a clear stipulation that advertisements and other programmes may not be inserted into any feature film, documentary or film made for television is of greatest importance for television viewers all over Europe as well as for authors, performers and other artists. An added advantage is that such a stipulation would render pointless the argument about reducing competition.

To conclude, we need to convince the EU-Commission that moral rights must be better protected in the future TV-Directive. The artistic authors and performers of films shall have the right to have their work exhibited in the form in which it was originally created.

A public consultation on the review of the TV-Directive was initiated a few months ago. This consultation consists of public hearings and an invitation to all interested parties to provide the Commission with written contributions responding to questions specified in a discussion paper by the 15 July 2003. See attached, further information about the public consultation process and the relevant part of the discussion paper.

We urge you, in your capacity as an organisation in the field of arts, to support the moral rights of film authors and performers and to take action towards the EU Commission by using this possibility to react in written form before the 15^th of July.

KLYS will soon send you our written contribution to the EU Commission for your information. Please feel free to contact the KLYS office if you have inquiries on this matter.

KLYS’ coordinator/legal adviser Ulrica Källén or the president of KLYS mr Peter Curman can be reached by e-mail: council@klys.se, phone: 0046 (0) 8 – 667 88 90, fax: 0046 (0) 8 – 667 88 11,

Address: KLYS, Skeppargatan 26, 114 52 Stockholm, Sweden, Internet: www.klys.se

Yours sincerely,

The Swedish Writers Union

The Swedish Association of Authors of Educational Material

The Swedish Playrights’ Union

The Swedish National Artists’ Organization 

The Swedish Photographers’ Union

The Association of Swedish Illustrators       

The Swedish Association of Craft and Design                  

The Swedish Union of Architects

Society of Swedish Composers

The Swedish Society of Popular Music Composers            

The Swedish Federation of Professional Musicians            

The Swedish Musicians Union

Swedish Union of Theatrical Employees                  

The Swedish Association of Directors

The Independent Filmmakers’ Union of Sweden

The Swedish Union for Clerical and Technical Employees in Industry