Westbrook Media is set to produce a short film that explores the process for copyrighting dances from the perspective of a group of creators who made viral dances on TikTok, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
The project, funded by Logitech’s Logitech for Creators extension, will follow Keara Wilson, Jalaiah Harmon, Young Deji and others as they go through the process of copyrighting their dances. Last summer, Logitech began working with these creators to begin the copyright process, which included creating labanotations, or an arrangement of symbols representing human movement in specific patterns, of their dances.
But the film will also focus on story of JaQuel Knight, the choreographer for artists like Beyoncé, Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B who made history in 2021 when he copyrighted the “Single Ladies” dance he created. Knight, whose production company J.K. Creatives, Inc. is co-producing the film with Westbrook and Logitech, will help guide the creators through the process.
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Speaking with THR, Meridith Rojas, Logitech for Creators’ global head of entertainment and creator marketing, said she wanted to have the copyright process documented to help educate and encourage other creators to take ownership of their original work — especially as many Black creators on platforms like TikTok have spoken out about not receiving credit or recognition for creating trends on the app.
“There was this real frustration at one point where so many [TikTok creators] felt like there was no way to protect their ideas and their creativity,” Rojas said. “There has to be a new standard and there has to be a safe place for creators to feel like they can be free enough to create, and that their work will equal their success if people like it — not somebody else just taking it and using it and making money from it.”
That mission quickly resonated with Westbrook Media, the digital arm of Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook Inc.
“The minute we took the phone call, we’re like, ‘Yes, this is super bullseye for us,'” Brad Haugen, the president of Westbrook Media, told THR. “We believe that all artists deserve to get paid fairly for their art, and dance is a form of art and it should be treated, in my opinion, as music is treated, as visual art is treated, as film is treated.”
The short film is currently in pre-production and slated to release later this year with an eye toward festival and streaming distribution. Westbrook Media will co-produce the film with Logitech’s Meridith Rojas, David Neyman and Linnea Gibson Stalberg and Knight’s J.K. Creatives, Inc. A director has not yet been announced.
“I am ecstatic for this partnership with Logitech for Creators and Westbrook. Who could ask for better partners on championing a story that means so much to me and my community — a community who has become my family,” Knight said in a statement. “Through this collaboration, I hope to shed a light on the inequalities that we continue to face as creative artists in a billion dollar industry. Here’s to a brighter future where we can all be seen as equals.”
