Picturehouse, distributor of the film, threatened legal action in a letter to the Chabad Center of Passaic County, N.J. To educate the public, the company also placed ads in publications such as the Jewish Journal. Though the matter was settled amicably this week, the episode provided a glimpse into a clash of cultures over the issue of intellectual property rights.
When sharing runs afoul of the law
While shooting the Israeli film “Ushpizin,” Gidi Dar’s critically acclaimed fable about the power of faith, filmmakers adhered strictly to the rules of Orthodox Judaism, vetting the story with rabbis and declining to shoot on the Sabbath. But when two U.S. synagogues recently screened foreign DVDs of the movie, they ran afoul of Hollywood’s own orthodoxy: to charge admission requires permission.
Picturehouse, distributor of the film, threatened legal action in a letter to the Chabad Center of Passaic County, N.J. To educate the public, the company also placed ads in publications such as the Jewish Journal. Though the matter was settled amicably this week, the episode provided a glimpse into a clash of cultures over the issue of intellectual property rights.
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