Leaked Video: “Change Incorporated” by VICE
Internal video shows VICE wooing industry using stolen content from independent creators.
Leave it to Vice to re-purpose footage of a Parkland shooting victim to line their pockets with money from Big Tobacco. The video was made to pitch “Change Incorporated” to S&P500 companies including Philip Morris International with whom they have a sprawling, three-year partnership making ads disguised as documentaries.
Update Mar 25, 2019: Reached for comment, March for Our Lives said “We can assure you when it comes to the tobacco industry, no MFOL employee supports or condones their actions.”
We can all agree ‘Fair use’ is a good thing: Highschoolers making a slideshow, movie critics showing short clips of a movie don’t need to be paying thousands of dollars to make a video. In the world of internal videos, there are certainly grey areas in Fair use but a billion dollar corporation trying to extract money from another billion dollar corporation is not.
The video leaked to not vice is a hypnotic barrage of emotional imagery. This high-gloss, low-substance video is compelling at first glance. It is, as one anonymous reader pointed out, all part of Vice’s Recuperation Politics “the process by which politically radical ideas and images are twisted, co-opted, absorbed, defused, incorporated, annexed and commodified within media culture and bourgeois society, and thus become interpreted through a neutralized, innocuous or more socially conventional perspective.” Basically, putting the famous portrait of Che on a t-shirt.
Vice’s goal was twofold:
- Get money from industry.
- Compel crew and subjects to participate in what might seem like a documentary — but is in fact an ad.
Stealing Change
Vice borrowed footage and music from over two dozen sources. From the dozen creators I was able to contact, they all told me they were unaware Vice used their footage and music. None were able to say that Vice sought or acquired permission.
“Unchecked industrialization and consumerism is destroying us” —From a Vice video that stole from creators.
Vice used footage from several documentaries:
- Ten clips were taken from Leo DiCaprio and Fischer Steven’s ‘Before the Flood’ (the movie has a scene that advocates for the rise of taxes on cigarettes). Director Fisher Stevens and RatPack films were reached for comment — no response.
- Two clips from ‘Samsara’ (sequel to Baraka). Responding on Twitter the film’s distributor said they “can confirm this was not licensed from us or the filmmaking team directly. Nor was any attempt made to do so and we were unaware of it. Also, fuck Big Tobacco.”
- At least one clip from ‘A Plastic Ocean’ of a child walking on plastic on the small island of Tuvalu the film’s tagline is “Change is possible it starts with us”. Director Craig Leeson was unaware of the clip’s use. Distributor has been reached for comment — no response.
- A clip (maybe stock) found in ‘Human’ was used. Director Yann Arthus-Bertrand was reached for comment — no response.
- Two clips from ‘Midway / Albatross Film’. Director Chris Jordan told notvice he “did not license any footage to VICE for this Change Incorporated video”.
- Two clips from “Endurance Test: Ruqsana Begum” were used. Director David Leon was unaware Vice used the footage. The production company Archer’s Mark has been reached for comment — no response.
Vice used footage music, fashion and dance video:
- “Nobody Speak” by DJ Shadow ft. Run the Jewels. Director Sam Pilling works for Pulse Films which is majority owned by Vice.
- A short clip of Lil Buck dancing at Foundation. Director Andrew Margetson to me they did not give permission, client Nowness has been reached for comment — no response.
- Four clips from Le Fix: Happy Nothing. Director and producer told me they did not license footage but Vice may have obtained permission directly from Le Fix — awaiting response from Le Fix.
Vice stole stock footage from someone who sells stock footage. Uli Hamacher licences his footage to stock houses like Getty. While the clip Vice used is not on Getty it was in a compilation video called “Industry” and labeled consistent with the way stock footage is privately negotiated. Vice cropped out the watermark and contact info. I contacted the email watermarked on the video and within 24 hours Uli responded saying “chances are high that the Video was stolen”.
Vice used footage from itself (also cropping out their own logo):
- Clip from Charlottesville: Race and Terror where resident Timothy Porter says “This is my town, we did not want these [audio digitally muffled] motherf**kers here.”
- One clip from Doctors Explain Why U.S. Healthcare Is So Expensive. Host: Michael Moynihan. Vice on HBO
- One clip from Life as a Truck Stop Stripper by VICE. Hosts: Natalia Leite and Alexandra Roxo.
There may be good journalists at Vice but, as I’ve written several times, the good work adds credibility to the more nefarious advertorial / sponsored content.
Silver lining? I guess this means you can use Vice’s films and music for internal use without permission.
🕵️ Help identify the remaining 40 clips here 👇
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
DANIEL VOSHART started writing about Vice Media in 2015 as he was leaving the documentary industry. He now focuses on Virtual Reality in architecture and design. He occasionally does forensic video consultation.
ABOUT NOT VICE
not vice is a critical blog about Vice Media.
Further Reading:
Video Transcript:
Voice Over: “These days, everyone’s a pessimist and only a fraction of us believe things will get better.”
TEXT: ONLY 35% BELIEVE THE WORLD WILL IMPROVE (no source)
VO: “We’ve been let down. Again and again. By systems, leaders [trump waving] and even our heroes.
Lance Armstrong: “Probably do it again”
Kanye West at Trump Tower: “I just want to take a picture right now”
VO: Unchecked Industrialization and consumerism is destroying us. We don’t agree on much be we can all agree that this…isn’t… working.
Charlottesville resident Timothy Porter: “This is my town, we did not want these [audio removed of: ‘these motherf**kers here’].” (source: VICE: Charlottesville: Race and Terror)
VO: Radical change is something we need. All of our survival depends on it.
TEXT: “BY 2027 75% OF CURRENT S&P500 WILL BE EXTINCT”
VO: “We’re tired of change just being talked about”
TEXT: “51% BELIEVE RADICALLY NEW SYSTEMS ARE NEEDED”
Leo DiCaprio talking at UN: “No more talk. no more excuses […] You are the last best hope.”
VO: “We’re tired of our future being used as a bargaining chip.”
TEXT: “41% THINK CORPORATIONS SHOULD LEAD THE CHANGE”
TEXT: “ONLY 13% BELIEVE THEY DO”
VO: “We’re looking for action. Introducing: Change Incorporated”
John Kerry: “Let me tell you why this is different and it really is different”
VO: “We’re partnering with companies at the heart of the world’s biggest issues who have the guts to transform their business to embark on radical missions to achieve real, measurable change. From health to energy. Food waste to transportation. Oil addiction to deforestation. Online hate to discrimination. We can’t look backwards — the future depends on it.”
MUSIC: “Palace Instrumental” by Clams Casino.
VO: This is Change Incorporated
IMAGE: VICE’s Logo
