IT'S A WONDERFUL STORY ON SCREEN

St. Louis, MO – December 21, 2022 – It’s A Wonderful Life is a beautiful, timeless story that audiences love. I love that film. It is one of my favorites.

I love Frank Capra films. I’m a bit of sucker for a feel-good movie. I love them. While I recognize they are formulaic, I love most romantic comedies.

The fact that It’s A Wonderful Life is still being watched and loved by audiences speaks to the quality of the story and the storytelling. The 1946 film is still going strong. It is a Christmas classic watched over and over again by families around the world.

The film is based on a short story and booklet called The Greatest Gift, which was self-published by Philip Van Doren Stern. It is clearly based of the 1843 Charles Dickens novella A Christmas Carol, which has been turned into many films.

The film cost over $3 million to make. When it was released, the film fell short of box office success. It also received mixed reviews by critics. It became a Christmas classic after its copyright lapsed in 1974 and it fell into the public domain. That means it could be broadcast without significant licensing or royalty fees.

A lot of TV stations jumped at the chance to share free programing, especially at a time when they are short staffed. Today, the film is considered one of the best films ever made.

Litigation following the lapse of the copyright resulted in claims of derivative rights from the original story by the studio who owned it. The net of all of that, as I understand it, was that Republic Pictures, which was a successor of NTA (and before that M&A Alexander, Paramount Pictures…tracing back to Liberty Pictures who made the film), made a deal with Turner Broadcasting and ultimately NBC.

There are two lessons from this film that are relevant to you from my STORYSMART perspective. First, invest in great storytelling. Telling a story well means it can last forever. Lifetimes.

The second lesson, own your story. Don’t let your copyright lapse. I have no doubt someone lost their job of letting that copyright lapse.

The practical reality is that you can create your own media and reach your own target audience today. You can and should invest in telling your own story.

We believe strongly that how you tell a story matters. Tell a simple, timeless story and invest in good video storytelling. If you do that, it can last more than a lifetime and people will tell you it’s a wonderful story.


About STORYSMART

You have a story to bring to the screen, but you don't have the time or resources to do it yourself. Telling your story well with video can be hard. And let’s be brutally honest. No app will turn you into a great filmmaker. Few are capable of producing a do-it-yourself (DIY) video or film we actually want to watch, much less remember.

To do justice to your story on screen, you need the right skills and equipment, not to mention time, money and talent.

That is why STORYSMART developed our premium video storytelling as a service. We help clients tell their story in the amazing way they deserve with a proprietary done-for-you video storytelling service unlike any other.

STORYSMART provides a nationwide premium video storytelling service that empowers individuals, families, celebrities, small businesses and other organizations to have their stories told professionally while retaining their intellectual property rights as though they did it themselves.

STORYSMART provides clients an experienced television reporter or journalist filmmaker to help them tell their story following our proprietary high-integrity brand journalism system. Our transparently priced premium services for businesses and families ensures that each client gets an authentic, high-quality story they own the intellectual property rights on forever.

About Ron Watermon

Ron Watermon is the founder and CEO of STORYSMART, a premium video storytelling technology startup that empowers anyone to have their stories told professionally while ensuring they retain the intellectual property rights on their productions.

A creative and innovative communications leader with nearly three decades of experience, prior to founding STORYSMART, Ron was responsible for modernizing the St. Louis Cardinals communications by leading the team’s investment in video storytelling, brand journalism, fan engagement and social media.