Entertainment Law News for 11.19.09

• Director James Toback has lobbed one heck of a charge against the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences over the omission of his film, “Tyson,” from the Oscar shortlist of 15 documentary films, Toback tells the NY Times. He says he experienced something connected with the selection process, “which I put fully in the category of extortion that I did not go along with.”
• SAG is probing animated motion capture technology in advance of negotiations over a new labor deal with the AMPTP. The thesp guild has invited members and non-members to discuss the issue with them on Dec. 3. SAG may push to have specific language in contracts spelling out “wages and working conditions” for motion capture work.
• The MPAA has sent a letter to Congress seeking support for the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement. The international treaty, which would commit nations to new copyright enforcement measures, has been the subject of much controversial speculation due to its secrecy.
• Jonathan Fuhrman, former vp of legal and business affairs at The Weinstein Company, is penning a new column for Mediaite entitled “Smart Hollywood.”
• Could there be a coming class action lawsuit for the food at movie theaters?