Evanston Arts Council presents: "Talk Arts: The Legalities of Art ? Legal Basics" May 11, 2005

The Evanston Arts Council is proud to announce the third installment of a quarterly series of FREE events entitled "Talk Arts", informational evenings for artists of all disciplines. Each of these gatherings consist of a panel of experts sharing their knowledge and personal experiences in an informal and interactive exchange with others who are looking to further their understanding of what it takes to build a successful career in the arts.

The upcoming event, "Talk Arts: The Legalities of Art ? Legal Basics", is set for Wednesday, May 11, 2005 from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center (located at 927 Noyes Street in Evanston, IL). The panel consisting of Andrea E. Friedman (attorney specializing in advertising/marketing transactions), Linda Forman (tax and consulting practice president), Shawn Murphy (Midwest Director of Membership for ASCAP), William Rattner (Lawyers for the Creative Arts Executive Director), and moderators Valerie Calloway and Brent Ritzel (members of Evanston Arts Council) will address a variety of legal issues concerning the creative and performing arts. Included in the discussion will be protecting ones creative expressions under intellectual property laws, keeping others from using ones creative expressions without permission, tax and accounting basics for artists, legal limits of marketing ones creative expressions, plus valuable insight on most other legal matters associated with creative expressions, such as publishing agreements, lease agreements, performance agreements, partnership agreements, and recording and distribution agreements.

Panelists in detail:

Andrea E. Friedman is an attorney with the law firm of Neal & McDevitt, LLC in Northbrook, Illinois. Her practice focuses on advertising law and marketing practices matters as well as trademarks, trade dress, unfair competition and copyright law. Ms. Friedman specializes in advertising and marketing industry transactions, including talent/spokesperson, advertising agency/client, and event-related agreements. Ms. Friedman has handled adversarial matters at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the NAD, the television networks, and has served as a consultant in U.S. Federal Court litigation. You can contact Andrea at afriedman@nealmcdevitt.com.

Linda Forman is president of a tax and consulting practice in Evanston, Illinois. The firm concentrates on small businesses, retirement plan consulting and the financial issues of divorce. Linda is a past U. S. Small Business Administration Accounting Advocate Award Winner and a past Vice President of the Illinois CPA Society. She was an executive board member of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) as well as a founding member of its advisory board, a group providing strategic perspectives for business and marketing issues. She was recently presented NAWBO?s Hall of Fame Award. You can contact Linda at LFormanCPA@aol.com.

Shawn Murphy is currently the Director of Membership, Midwest for ASCAP and a Governor of the Chicago Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. He has worked for nearly a decade in performing rights, music journalism and live sound production in Nashville, New York and London and has lectured extensively in public schools and universities on copyright issues. Shawn is constantly searching the venues and clubs of the Midwest for talented songwriters and artists in order to help expose regional talent to the national music industry. You can contact Shawn at SMurphy@ascap.com.

William Rattner has been the Executive Director of Lawyers for the Creative Arts since May 2000. Mr. Rattner graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Law School. He practiced law in Chicago for 38 years, most recently as a senior partner at Hopkins & Sutter. Specializing in business and litigation, Mr. Rattner practiced in state and federal courts throughout the country. He is an Adjunct Professor at the Northwestern University School of Law and at Columbia College Chicago. He is a certified mediator and arbitrator for the Circuit Court of Cook County. He has served as Chairman of the City of Evanston Board of Ethics; as President of the Chicago Chapter, and a National Director, of the American Jewish Committee, and as a Trustee of the Evanston Art Center. Mr. Rattner is a member of the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs? Arts Management Service Network and City Arts Grants Review Panel, the Legislative Committee of the Illinois Arts Alliance and is a frequent speaker and lecturer on the legal aspects of arts and entertainment. You can contact William at wrattner@law-arts.org.

Moderators in detail:

The panel will be moderated by Valerie Calloway, who's currently an Evanston Arts Council Member and intellectual property attorney for Kraft Foods outside of Chicago where she's responsible for the patent copyright, and trade secret matters for the company's Research, Convenient Meals, and Foods Service organizations. Before joining Kraft and the Evanston Arts Council, Ms. Calloway worked as an intellectual property attorney for several Fortune 500 companies and in private practice. You can contact Valerie at Valerie.Calloway@kraft.com.

The panel will also be moderated by Brent Ritzel, current Evanston Arts Council member and chairperson of the Talk Arts subcommittee. Originally the primary force behind two cooperative independent record labels & bassist/guitarist for Chicago band The Great Brain, Brent has more recently found himself publisher and editor of Zine Guide - the definitive independent press resource guide - and Tail Spins Magazine, along with being co-founder of Self-Publishers Event Council of Chicago. He currently works for textbook publisher McDougal Littell. You can contact Brent at brentritzel@yahoo.com.

Past events:

The inaugural ?Talk Arts? evening took place November 10, 2004 at Evanston?s Noyes Cultural Arts Center and concerned the D.I.Y. ethic in the arts: "Talk Arts: Doing It Yourself." A packed room enjoyed a lively conversation that featured visual artist Christa Donner, comedic filmmaker Willy Laszlo, musician Damon Locks and freelance writer Kari Lydersen, and was moderated by Brent Ritzel (Evanston Arts Council member, publisher of Zine Guide).

The second evening, "Talk Arts: The Business of Art - Bottom Line Basics", took place on February 7, 2005 and featured a highly interactive panel that consisted of Greg Kot (Chicago Tribune music critic/columnist), Peter Strand (entertainment lawyer), Preston Klik (musician/record label owner), Amy Lombardi (PR firm owner/representative) and moderator Lois Roewade (Evanston Arts Council chairperson).



Future dates include:

Wednesday, September 14, 2005: "Talk Arts: Transitions and Variations", moderated by Evanston Arts Council member Ginny Roeder, this evening will include a discussion of the fact that in the 21st century, where events and sensory stimuli are moving and changing at a rapid rate, and where individuals are living longer, many contemporary artists have found themselves pushing their art and their jobs in various creative directions in response to this complexity. You can contact Ginny at ginginr@msn.com.
Each of these FREE events will take place at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes Street in Evanston, IL (home of the Piven Theatre Workshop and Next Theatre) from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm in studio 106. Refreshments will be served and audience participation is highly encouraged.


CONTACT INFORMATION:

For more information about the "Talk Arts: The Legalities of Art ? Legal Basics" May 11, 2005 event contact Valerie Calloway at Valerie.Calloway@kraft.com.

For more information about the "Talk Arts" quarterly series contact Brent Ritzel at 847.866.3696 or brentritzel@yahoo.com

For more information on the Evanston Arts Council, contact chairperson Lois Roewade at 847.328.5864 or lroewade@sbcglobal.net.