The Screening Room

SHOW #29

Piracy

This month, The Screening Room examines the biggest problem facing the film industry today - piracy.

When an unfinished copy of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" was leaked onto the internet, it was downloaded for free four million times, causing actor Hugh Jackman to declare himself "heartbroken". The film went on to top the box office listings with more than $250 million in takings. Studio executives say the leak damaged profits. Pirates say big profits mean piracy is a victimless crime.

The Motion Picture Association claims more than 18 billion dollars a year is lost to piracy - affecting everyone from actors to directors to technicians, cinema owners and staff at the local video store.

Pirates argue that sharing free copies of studio blockbusters is a victimless crime and claim prices of DVDs and cinema tickets are too high.

Efforts by the industry to combat piracy include training cinema staff with night vision goggles to spot pirates with camcorders. Several governments are advocating action to disconnect frequent offenders from the web to prevent file sharing. Others argue that's an infringement of human rights. Meanwhile, Sweden has elected its first member of The Pirate Party to the European Parliament.

As the next Harry Potter film hits cinemas around the world, The Screening Room reports on the pirates' efforts to get a hold of it and the studio's efforts to stop them.

From Europe to Africa to Asia, we talk to pirates and producers, film-makers and file sharers about an issue which will have a huge impact on the future of cinema around the world.