Have you ever stolen a film? Or have you ever copied a film for viewing when you are not "authorised" to do so?
The issue of piracy has divided the film viewing public into those who stand for and against the institution of copyright while leaving many uncertain between the divide.
Steal This Film 1 that featured in the recently concluded first International Video Festival of Kerala at Thiruvananthapuram positions itself strongly on the side of the "pirates"- people who share audio, video and other files on the internet.
It tells the story of Private Bay, a popular website based in Sweden which distributes torrents or links to unlicensed copies of copyrighted material on the internet. In 2006, the Motion Picture Association of America, cracked down on Pirate Bay, invoking intellectual property rights. The film critiques the attempt of Hollywood lobby to curb the spirit of peer to peer networking and emphasises the need for a new approach to copyright.
The film had a sequel Steal This Film 2, which delves into the technological and cultural aspects of the copyright wars. Other films featured in the festival's free software package include Elephants Dream, Good Copy Bad Copy and Trusted Computing. The package was put together by SPACE and Mediact with the support of Kerala State Chalachithra Academy which organised the festival.
