What's New?
ORPHAN WORKS UPDATE
Thanks to the tireless efforts of our friend Bill Vann, many area artists and arts supporters have heard about the Orphan Works legislation now being considered by Congress. The legislation, which would reform the copyright law, is intended to help libraries and museums make use of copyrighted works by owners who are impossible to identify or locate. But opponents say it would infringe on artists’ rights.
We asked one of our volunteer attorneys, Jennifer Visintine, to prepare an even-handed summary of the proposed legislation.
While VLAA has not taken an official position on the bills, we see wisdom in the observation made by our colleague Jim Grace, executive director of the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts of Massachusetts. “It’s like killing a mosquito with a machine gun,” he said. And on May 20, copyright reform advocate Lawrence Lessig came out against the orphan works bill in an op-ed column in the New York Times.
We encourage you to follow the debate and to make your views known to your Senators and Representatives. One good source of information is the Illustrators Partnership site, which includes a link that will help you contact your elected officials.
FOR INDEPENDENT FILMMAKERS
Check out our new pages for independent filmmakers, brought to you, in part, by support from CALOP.
VLAA 25th ANNIVERSARY SHORT FILM CONTEST
And the winners are....On September 15, we presented cash prizes to the winners of our "Left Brain/Right Brain" short film contest. We are proud to post the winning films on our site. To view them, please click here.
First Prize ($1,000)
underwritten by Spencer Fane Britt & Browne
88.1% by Tim Snider
Second Prize ($750)
underwritten by Thompson Coburn
The Two Sons and their Crogzookles by Dale Ward
Third Prize ($500)
underwritten by PricewaterhouseCoopers
Processing a Memory by David Raymond
Honorable Mentions ($250)
underwritten by RubinBrown and Anders Minkler & Diehl
Conflit d'Interet by Brian Spath
The Loss of the St. Louis Drive-In by Lynelle White
BoardLinkStL IS MAKING MATCHES
VLAA is pleased to be a partner in the introduction of a new tool for the nonprofit community called BoardLink. The new service is preparing individuals to serve on boards and linking them with area nonprofits. For more information about upcoming readiness training sessions and BoardLink's innovative technological component, click here.
RAC LAUNCHES ARTSZIPPER
Our friends at the Regional Arts Commission have launched ArtsZipper, the hot calendar of cool culture. Check it out!
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FACT SHEET
Click here for a brief overview of our organization.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION POLICY
St. Louis Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants for the Arts (VLAA) provides free, arts-related legal and accounting assistance to artists and arts organizations who are unable to afford professional assistance. VLAA also provides information about arts law and business through its educational programmings and collaborates with other agencies in promoting the arts.
To determine eligibility for pro bono assistance, we use established income/budget guidelines and a broad definition of art. Referrals for one-on-one consultation with a lawyer or an accountant are subject to acceptance of the case by a volunteer.
VLAA believes that the arts enrich our lives and that aesthetic and cutural diversity is dependent, in part, on artists who adopt a provocative approach to their disciplines and who work in experimental forms. We acknowledge that standards of taste vary, but firmly believe that our community is always better off supporting freedom of expression.
While it is not the role of VLAA to take sides in any dispute concerning the content of artistic works, we will argue against censorship and for an add-to-the-debate approach designed to promote the marketplace of ideas.
Consistent with these principles, VLAA's referral service will be made available to qualified artists and arts organiations without application of standards based on the content of the work(s) in question. In addition, we will promote freedom of expression in our educational activities.
ANNUAL REPORT
If you'd like to receive a copy of our most recent annual report, call 314/863-6930 or contact us.
IRS 990
VLAA's 990 Forms are posted on Guidestar.
