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On July 25th, Philips Electronics and The Film Foundation co-hosted the opening night of the UCLA Film and Television Archive’s 11th Festival of Preservation at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. The evening included the world premiere of the newly restored THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA (1954, d. Joseph L. Mankiewicz) and a VIP reception. The screening was introduced with a special taped message from TFF Chair Martin Scorsese about the complex restoration of THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA from the original Technicolor three-strip negatives. The audience was welcomed with opening remarks by filmmaker and long time preservation advocate Curtis Hanson.

Los Angeles, CA—Martin Scorsese, Chair of the ‘newly’ established The Film Foundation, Inc., announced on June 26, 2002 the consolidation of two non-profit organizations, The Artists Rights Foundation and The Film Foundation, under the umbrella of the Directors Guild of America.

This new entity will continue to raise awareness and funds for film preservation, as well as champion the artistic rights of filmmakers. In addition, the foundation will educate the public about the importance of preserving and protecting film through national educational programs and outreach campaigns.

“In the decade or so since The Film Foundation and The Artists Rights Foundation were created, there has been a tremendous increase in awareness of these issues both in the industry and the public at large,” said Martin Scorsese. “With this consolidation, and the support of the DGA, we're increasing our resources and strengthening our ability to protect and preserve film art. After all, the first right of any artist is to have his or her work survive.”

Scorsese will be joined on the board of directors by prominent filmmakers Woody Allen, Robert Altman, Francis Ford Coppola, Clint Eastwood, George Lucas, Sydney Pollack, Robert Redford, and Steven Spielberg, each of whom, working separately and together, has a record of commitment to the social, aesthetic, and cultural dimensions of motion pictures.

In addition, Martha Coolidge, President of the Directors Guild of , and Gil Cates, Secretary-Treasurer of the Directors Guild of America, will serve The Film Foundation in those same capacities.

“The Directors Guild of America has always been an ardent supporter of both organizations. We are pleased to join Marty and The Film Foundation in actively pursuing ways to promote the protection and preservation of film,” said Coolidge. “By creating an Artists Rights Education and Legal Defense Fund council, we can ensure that the issue of film protection is a part of our ongoing commitment to artists rights.”

The Artists Rights Education and Legal Defense Fund has been created as an advisory committee to provide the “newly” established organization with guidance on all issues relating to the protection and expansion of artists rights. Governors of the council will include, among others, Tom Cruise, Miloš Forman, Taylor Hackford, Dustin Hoffman, Anjelica Huston, Bruce Ramer and Ken Ziffren. Elliot Silverstein will serve as Chair.

“Artists Rights is absolutely essential to the survival of the integrity of the medium of filmmakers. It protects and acknowledges their basic rights as authors,” said Silverstein. “With the joining of these organizations, the opportunity is greater for spreading the message of the importance of protecting an artist’s vision, and preserving motion picture history.”

The foundation will continue to support film preservation projects nationwide through its annual funding of its seven member institutions, including five major archives: Academy Film Archive, George Eastman House, Library of Congress, Museum of Modern Art, and the UCLA Film and Television Archive, and two affiliated grant-making organizations: the National Center for Film and Video Preservation at the AFI, and the National Film Preservation Foundation. Robert Rosen, Dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, will continue to serve as Chair of the Archivists Advisory Council.

"The directors on the board have been in the vanguard of advocacy for film protection and preservation," explains Rosen. "The fact that they are now joined by the DGA -- representing the broader community of film directors -- is proof of the success we've had in making the industry aware of the importance of this issue and how essential it is to the filmmaking process."

Raffaele Donato, Founding Executive, will carry on The Film Foundation’s work, with Margaret Bodde and Kathy Garmezy serving as Co-Executive Directors.

The Artists Rights Foundation, together with U.S.C.'s Annenberg School of Communication, School of Fine Arts, and Law School, sponsored a major national conference on ownership and control of creative property. Titled "Artists, Technology, and Ownership of Creative Content," the conference was held in Los Angeles in the spring of 2001. The focus of the conference was how technology, such as digitization, affects the ownership and control of creative property. The conference explored who should have rights to use and change works of creative property and under what circumstances, with an emphasis on how these issues arise in film, music, and the visual arts. The conference brought together artists, performers, producers, distributors, and scholars from many different disciplines to discuss this vital topic. Leading national experts presented cutting-edge issues concerning control of creative content, and a series of panels was held, discussing these problems from many different perspectives. Each panel included artists and performers, producers, practitioners, and scholars. 

A key feature of the conference was its interdisciplinary nature. In addition to considering many different types of arts, the conference brought together scholars from different fields, such as communications, economics, history, labor and intellectual property law. The conference also had an international focus, examining law and practices in the and throughout the world.

It is expected that the conference will lead to many published works, both scholarly and non-scholarly. For example, it is hoped that the problems and supporting materials will be published to facilitate further study and discussion. Also, this conference is seen as the first of several programs to explore issues concerning ownership and control of creative content.