Last month, independent filmmaker Matthew Fulks sued Beyoncé, Sony, Columbia and Parkwood Entertainment over the trailer for Lemonade, claiming that it copies, without his permission, several elements from his 2014 short film Palinoia.
Fulks believed that her team had had access to his film prior to the release of her visual album because he’d previously been in talks with an exec at Columbia Records regarding an opportunity to direct another artist’s music video.
Beyoncé just earned an Emmy nomination for directing
But Beyoncé‘s camp isn’t buyin’ it.
THR reports that, according to a motion filed Friday to dismiss the lawsuit, her attorney Tom Ferber says that a comparison of the projects “provides a textbook example of what does not constitute a legally cognizable claim of infringement.”
The original similarities in question included “graffiti and persons with heads down,” “red persons with eyes obscured,” “parking garage,” “black and white eyes,” “the grass scene,” and “side-lit ominous figures,” and Ferber is arguing that the described elements and features are “so broad as to be meaningless.”
Kanye West sued over “New Slaves” sample
Additionally, Ferber goes on to say that as Palinoia tells the story of a “tumultuous relationship” between a white man and woman, Lemonade follows a woman through “the Kubler-Ross stages of grief” in the context of African-American culture.
A hearing is currently set for Aug. 25.
Vince Staples petitions for copyright reform
Since we’ve all seen Lemonade by now, feel free to compare it to Palinoia below.