Video of stumbles and falls at weddings have been a staple of blooper reels and internet merriment for years.
But one San Francisco bride is not laughing after video of her drunk groom went viral. She’s suing the videographer hired to record her wedding memories.
The bride, who is only named in the lawsuit as Jane Doe, claims the video of her new husband trying to remove her garter left the newlyweds "shocked, mortified, anguished, humiliated and shamed," according to court documents.
The video has been removed from YouTube, but portions can still be found online. Suffice it to say the groom appears intoxicated, he does some things he shouldn’t be doing in front of his mother, and the garter removal does not go as a bride would wish. She appears to be upset.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensation for "intentional infliction of emotional distress" from George Street Photo and Video. The lawsuit says the viral video clip, which racked up more than two million hits in a few days, is longer and more mortifying than the DVD they received and keep locked up at home.
Privacy expert Ann Cavoukian says few people realize that photographers and videographers hired to document events own the images they capture.
“The videographer has ownership because it’s his creative work,” Cavoukian, the former information and privacy commissioner of Ontario told CTV’s Your Morning Wednesday. There really are no limitations on how the author of a creative work can use the material and that use requires no consent from those depicted. That extends to things like school or sports photos, she said.
“When people sign contracts with photographers or videographers, they don’t take into account that they should be adding something. They should be negotiating the purchase of the copyright.”
Cavoukian, who is now the executive director of the Privacy and Big Data Institute at Ryerson University, says a client could ask the photographer or videographer to simply revoke copyright or they could offer to pay a fee, such as $100.
“I always tell people that privacy is about control; personal control of your information. It is essential and we have a responsibility and unfortunately, it’s becoming very complex.”
In a statement, George Street founders said: "In our 12 year history of capturing, editing, and delivering thousands of wedding photos and videos, we have never experienced anything like this. We are very disappointed and upset by this situation, and we have spent considerable time removing our video from the internet."
