Saving Happy Birthday's primary photo
  • Saving Happy Birthday (2016)
  • Short | 16 min | Documentary, Short
Saving Happy Birthday (2016)
Short | 16 min | Documentary, Short
Saving Happy Birthday is a short documentary about filmmaker Jennifer Nelson's legal battle challenging Warner Chappell's copyright claim to the song "Happy Birthday To You." The film explores how a corporation assumed the copyright to the...See moreSaving Happy Birthday is a short documentary about filmmaker Jennifer Nelson's legal battle challenging Warner Chappell's copyright claim to the song "Happy Birthday To You." The film explores how a corporation assumed the copyright to the worlds' most popular and recognized song and why it's not in the public domain? As the film recounts, Nelson never intended to end up in a legal battle lawsuit, but as it turned out Good Morning To You Productions vs. Warner Chappell (2015) became a central part to the story. While filming a documentary about the 100-year history of the Happy Birthday song, Nelson found that a large corporation was profiting off a dubious copyright claim, to the tune of some $2 million a year in licensing fees. She was faced with a tough decision: take on a giant corporation that has considerable power in her business or simply pay a fee to use the song and do nothing. Nelson chose to file a class action suit, and after years of litigation, in September 2015, Judge King ruled in her favor. A classic David-and-Goliath story, Nelson's suit garnered worldwide media attention. The New York Times called it a "Lawsuit for the Ages". The film explores the song's; Nelson's fight to free the copyright; the wide impact of the suit in popular culture; and the litigation process. In POV narrative style, the film explores Nelson's plight to save the song. Similar to Roger & Me, Nelson became a part of her own movie, despite being a reluctant activist. See less
Read more: Plot summary
Director
Jennifer Nelson
Cinematographer
Jennifer Nelson
Editors
Vito DeCandia | Alexis Johnson
See all filmmakers & crew (5)
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Status
Edit Released
Updated Aug 6, 2016
Release date
Jul 2016 (United Kingdom)

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