Web activist and filmmaker Brett Gaylor explores issues of copyright in the information age, mashing up the media landscape of the 20th century and shattering the wall between users and producers.

The film’s central protagonist is Girl Talk, a mash-up musician topping the charts with his sample-based songs. But is Girl Talk a paragon of people power or the Pied Piper of piracy? Creative Commons founder, Lawrence Lessig, Brazil’s Minister of Culture Gilberto Gil and pop culture critic Cory Doctorow are also along for the ride.

A participatory media experiment from day one, Brett shares his raw footage at opensourcecinema.org, for anyone to remix. This movie-as-mash-up method allows these remixes to become an integral part of the film. With Rip: A Remix Manifesto, Gaylor and Girl Talk sound an urgent alarm and draw the lines of battle.

Festivals & Awards

Winner: Special Jury Prize: Festival Nouveau, cinéma Montréal, 2009
Winner: Audience Choice: Whistler Film Festival, 2009
Winner: Audience Choice: International Doc Fest, Amsterdam
In Competition: South by South West, 2009
Closing Film: Docs Barcelona, 2009

Offical Selection: Rendez Vous Cinema Quebecois, 2009
Offical Selection: Adelaide Film Festival, 2009
Official Selection: Munich Dokfest, 2009
Offical Selection: Tempo Dokumentar Festival, Stockholm, 2009
Official Selection: Club Transmediale, Berlin, 2009
Official Selection: AFI Dallas, 2009