Mestre
Mestre v. Vivendi Universal U.S. Holding Co.
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
Yvonne Mestre (“Mestre”) appeals the district court’s summary judgment in favor of the defendants in her copyright infringement claim. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1338 (a) and (b) and we affirm.
Mestre claims the author, producers, and others involved in the creation of the movie Billy Elliot (collectively, “the defendants”) stole her original screenplay, The Sunday Hat. Contending that there are genuine issues of material fact regarding both access and substantial similarity, she argues that the question of copyright infringement should be presented to the jury. Because we agree with the district court that the scripts are not substantially similar, we do not reach the question of access. See Olson v. Nat’l Broad. Co., Inc., 855 F.2d 1446 , 1448 (9th Cir.1988).
Having reviewed the record, we conclude that there are some general similarities between The Sunday Hat and Billy Elliott. These similarities, however, do not extend beyond generic plot lines, or scenes a faire, which are not protected by copyright law. See Funky Films, Inc. v. Time Warner Entm’t, 462 F.3d 1072 , 1077 (9th Cir.2006). Although “[a]t first blush, these apparent similarities appear…