Legal and Ethical Considerations
Copyright - Is a very important part of the business especially when it comes to writing. If you as a writer make your own world, characters, lore and other things entirely from scratch, then its important that you copyright it. This ensures no one else can steal what it is you are working on, and no one else can jeopardise what you have created by writing a considerably worse story using all your created assets. For example, if a writer created a fantasy world and the screenplay sold really well, but they didn't copy right it and someone else came in and wrote another script in that world, and that script performed poorly it might leave a sour taste in the audiences mouths, and make it so when you release another film set in the world, that they just have lost all interest. It’s also good to keep copyright in mind as a writer, so that you don’t unknowingly break the law by incorporating other franchises or characters into your own writing. For example, if i wrote a totally original superhero movie, but included the likes of Superman, batman, iron man etc. Then i would be dealing with a major lawsuit from Marvel and DC, and it could potentially put an end to my career.
Bias - Having a bias when writing a script can be a very dangerous thing. Especially if it is under the basis of religion or ethnic groups. For example, if a racist white man wrote a story about all muslims being terrorists and portrayed it that way in his story, then he would be letting his bias show through. And could end up in a great deal of trouble. An example of this happening is when Mel Gibson wrote and directed “The Passion of Christ”. A film he felt very passionate about which tackles the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. And in the film he portrayed all the jewish people as traitors who gave up Christ. Something that sparked controversy in itself, though old Mel didn’t help matters when he went on to say “Jews are responsible for all the worlds wars”. This was Mel Gibson showing his bias against the jews.
Censorship - Usually proteins to violence and sexual content within the production, depending on when the show airs and what network it is one. For example, a show like the Simpsons, which airs before the water shed, has to be tasteful with the jokes it makes and what it can show on screen. Homer will get into some precarious situations but nothing graphic will be shown or nothing too violent. Then if you look to game of thrones, which airs after the watershed and is on the network HBO. This show is allowed to show nudity, swear till it’s heart is content and show extreme violence, as well as acts of sexual abuse. But then we have shows like the walking dead. Which are after the watershed, but are on a network like AMC, which allow violence and graphic content to be shown, but do not allow anything like nudity, and limit the shows use of profanity greatly.
WaterShed - Keeping in mind the Watershed is a good idea as a writer in particular. If you are tasked with writing for a show that airs before the watershed then you have to make sure your script doesn't include profanity, extreme violence and other things that may be stress inducing to younger viewers. It’ll make you more professional and more likely to be asked to write for the project again if you abide by these rules.
Libel - Is something else to keep in mind, especially if you are writing about a real person’s life. Libel tends to be a remark about a person or an indication of something they have done that can ruin their reputation. For example, if i was to write a movie about Mike Tyson, and in that movie i gave him a comment where he admits to doing illegal activities such as drugs or more violent crimes, then that would be Libel because it could easily influence people into believing it actually happened and therefore damaging his reputation.
Plagiarism - Plagiarism is essentially theft. If i came up with a unique idea i was writing about, and someone saw that and before i could finish it they copied it all and released it before me, then that would be plagiarism. This can lead to deep legal trouble, fines, and possibly prison time.