Contractual, Legal and Ethical obligations in the TV and

Film industries.

Contacts: Types of contracts – A contract of employment is between the employer and
the employee, in which they both set out their employment terms of rights, responsibilities
and duties. There are different kinds of contract employment such as long term, short term
and fixed term.

Confidentiality – In the production of a film or TV programme there are certain things
that need to be kept secret so that other companies can’t copy their idea and so it doesn’t ruin
the plot of the story to the audience. Employers will often need to sign a confidentiality
agreement form when working on a project.

Exclusivity – The exclusivity act stops people from working with more than one party on a
project. This means that no matter what happens you can only deal with the one party you
signed up to first. For example a person working on one TV show can not appear on any
other show for at least 6 months after broadcast.

Employment legislation – Employment Legislation refers to all types of employment

measures such as health and safety, equal opportunities, employers liability, employee rights,
trade unions and copyright.

Health and Safety – Health and Safety Advisors in the TV and Film industry give help
and advice on health and safety management systems within each film or production,
reviewing each company’s Health and Safety policy, and ensuring that health and safety
arrangements and the appropriate personnel are in place.

Equal Opportunities – Equal opportunities is an act where people should be treated as an

equal and not be looked down upon because of their age, disability, sex, religion or ethnic
origin. The Equal Opportunities Act took effect in August 2011. This new act replaced the
1995 equal opportunity act, with some changes to discrimination laws and changed key
definitions.
Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 –  Is a piece of secondary legislation
in the United Kingdom, which prohibits employers unreasonably discriminating against
employees on grounds of age. It came into force on October 1, 2006. It is now superseded by
the Equality Act 2010
Employer’s liability – Most employers are required by the law to insure against liability
for injury or disease to their employees arising out of their employment. Employer liability is
compulsory, as set out by the Employer Liability Act 1969.
Employee Rights – All employees in the workplace automatically have employees rights
which must be taken into account by the employer. These rights can include; A safe clean
workplace, Pay during sick leave, The right to request flexible working, Request breaks,
Training time, Changes to employment conditions and many more.
Belonging to a trade union – The trade union purposes are to protect and improve
people’s pay and conditions of employment. They also campaign for laws and policies, which
will benefit working people. Trade unions exist because an individual worker has very little
power to influence decisions that are made about his or her job.
Intellectual property – is a legal term that refers to creations of the mind. Examples of
intellectual property include music, literature, and other artistic works; discoveries and
inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs.
Copyright – This law gives out creators of literary, dramatic, musical, artistic works, sound
recordings, broadcast, films and typographic arrangement of published editions, rights to
control the ways in which their material may be used.
Trademarks – Trademarks is a certain indication used by a business or company that
defines that company and makes it stand out from all the other company’s also making it
unique.
Other forms of intellectual property – Intellectual property rights include patents,
copyright, industrial design rights, trademarks, trade dress, and in some jurisdictions trade
secrets.
Passing off ethical codes of practice – A document that outlines the values of business
and organizations.
Policies and procedures – Policy is very high in the film and TV industries. For example
the BBC policy are high on the policy for advertising, children protection, decency and the
TV watershed. The BBC broadcasts its own shows, therefore when it comes to advertising
they do not permit to carry advertisement or sponsorship on its public service. This keeps
them independent of commercial interests and ensures that they can be run instead to serve
the general public interest.
Emerging social concerns and expectations – Its when the media companies deal
with digital and social media within the wide range and individual expectations.
Representation, e.g individuals, groups, religions, issues Legal Race Relations
Act 1976 (and later amendments) – Its when someone can speak on behalf on someone
else being represented.
Broadcasting Act 1990 (and later amendments) – Is a law of the British parliament,
often regarded by both its supporters and its critics as a quintessential example of
Thatcherism. The aim of the Act was to reform the entire structure of British broadcasting;
British television, in particular, had earlier been described by Margaret Thatcher as “the last
bastion of restrictive practices”. In television, the Act allowed for the creation of a fifth
analogue terrestrial television channel in the UK, which turned out to be Channel 5, and the
growth of multichannel satellite television. It also stipulated that the BBC, which had
previously produced the vast majority of its television programming in-house, was now
obliged to source at least 25% of its output from independent production companies.
Obscene Publications Act 1959 (and later amendments) – Is an Act of Parliament
that significantly reformed the law related to obscenity in England and Wales. The act created
a new offence for publishing obscene material, repealing the common law offence of obscene
libel which was previously used and also allows Justices of the Peace to issue warrants
allowing the police to seize such materials.
British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) – In order to protect children from
unsuitable and even harmful content in films and videos and to give consumers information
they might need about a particular film or video before deciding whether or not to view it, the
BBFC examines and age rates films and videos before they are released.
Ofcom – The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-
approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and
postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-range powers across the television,
radio, telecoms and postal sectors. It has statutory duty to represent the interests of citizens
and consumers by promoting competition and protecting the public from harmful or offensive
material.