A creepy and annoying Anti-Piracy PIF created by the Motion Picture Association of America in cooperation with the Federation Against Copyright Theft and the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore and released in 2004 and shown on (almost) literally every single DVD produced by Fox in the United Kingdom and Australia during the mid to late 2000's. Rated U when shown in British cinemas.
Description[]
We see a black screen for a second before we cut to a teenage girl illegally downloading a pirated film on her computer. Then, on a rapidly flashing background, we see the text, "YOU WOULDN'T STEAL A CAR" the text acts like a speaker. Then, we see a man trying to steal a car. the text, "YOU WOULDN'T STEAL A HANDBAG" Then appears and does the same animation as the text before. a man then steals a woman's purse whilst she is not looking in another scene. "YOU WOULDN'T STEAL A TELEVISION" Appears on the same background as the previous 2 scenes and does the same animation as "YOU WOULDN'T STEAL A CAR". In the next scene, someone hands yet another man a television. Then, he runs away with it. "YOU WOULDN'T STEAL A MOVIE" Then appears on the same background yet again. Another man walks into a shop and steals a DVD and puts it inside his jacket. Suddenly, every single scene in this PIF reverses rapidly. The words, "DOWNLOADING PIRATED FILMS IS STEALING", Appear one by on the same background as before. The PIF then comes back to the teenage girl downloading the film, but the download is nearly done. "STEALING IS AGAINST THE LAW" Appears on yet the Same background. Two by two, as the scene, constantly changes to the screen. Then, The teenage girl cancels the download and walks away, picking up her backpack as she leaves her room. "PIRACY, IT'S A CRIME" Shakes rapidly on, once again, the same background. the PIF cuts to black with a scratchy print effect before finishing.
Variants[]
- On some UK and US VHS tapes and DVDs, such as the ones released by Buena Vista Home Entertainment and its subsidiaries, the scenes of the teenage girl downloading a film illegally on her computer and a thief stealing a television are replaced by two teenage girls (one of them being the girl from the original version) being invited by a man to pick a pirated DVD and a different thief stealing a cell phone. As a result, "MOBILE PHONE" and "BUYING" respectively replace "TELEVISION" and "DOWNLOADING".
- On American DVDs and Blu-rays, "DVD" replaces "MOVIE", and the PIF cuts to the MPAA Illegal Downloading rating bumper on a black background after its completion, Click here to watch the "Buying" version of it, for example: [1]
- The PSA is translated into different languages depending on the country the DVD was released in.
- On Filipino VCDs, "PURSE", "CELL PHONE" and "MOVIES" respectively replace "HANDBAG", "MOBILE PHONE" and "FILMS".
- On Australian DVDs with the "Downloading" version, an extra "L" is added in "CANCELED"
- On some UK DVDs, "MOVIE PIRACY" replaces "DOWNLOADING PIRATED FILMS IS STEALING" and "BUYING PIRATED FILMS IS STEALING". This causes "IS STEALING" to appear on screen for a longer period of time.
Trivia[]
The original title of this PIF is "You wouldn’t steal a car", which became an internet meme.
The music in this PIF was thought to be actually stolen before being used. It was rumored that the music was supposed to be featured in an anti-piracy advert, but was going to be exclusively be shown to a local film festival. Unfortunately, no known copies of the ad were found. Melchoir found out that his music was stolen after he had heard it through an overseas Harry Potter DVD. In 2017, this rumor was debunked, with the truth revealed being that the music was composed exclusively for this PIF.
FX/SFX[]
It’s a combination of live-action and CGI animation.
Cheesy Factor[]
COMPLETELY OBLITERATES THE SCALE! First off, the thief stealing the handbag is a man but here's the thing, What sort of male thief would want to steal a handbag of all things (unless they were doing it for their wife or some other female in his family, or even as a prank). Second of all, TVs are extremely heavy. So in reality, The TV Thief would actually fall over. Thirdly, the "DVD" the man is trying to steal doesn't even look like a DVD! It looks like someone's homework project. Worst still, in spite of the internet taboo of porn and viruses in the early to mid 'noughties, the fact that it has the gall to show off a now almost universally standardized movie-delivery method, comes off like the people who okayed the PIF just threw out the kitchen sink when they dismissed downloading as piracy, rather than the revolutionary innovation they were showing off on their DVDs! (Blockbuster anyone?) Combined with the rumored hypocrisy of using someone else's music without their permission (which was later proven false), it has some of the worst logic ever used in a PIF!
Music/Sounds[]
Groove rock and metal music accompanied by sirens and a reverse sound effect, with an echoing sound of a door slamming at the end. The music was thought to be composed by Dutch composer Melchoir Rietveld and used without his consent. It sounds suspiciously similar to the song "No Man Army", by The Prodigy.
Availability[]
Extremely common, and it's very possible this is the most commonly seen PSA ever.
- If you own a DVD or even a pirated DVD from the mid-late 2000s, this will most likely be shown before the film. For instance, it appears on worldwide copies of the 2005 DVD release of Robots. It also seen on overseas CTHE, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., and Universal Studios DVD releases.
- In the United States, the "Buying" version debuted on the 2005 DVD release of Flight of the Phoenix (2004) and was last seen on the 2008 DVD/Blu-ray releases of Golden Door and Con Air, and the "Downloading" version debuted on the 2005 DVD release of Fat Albert (2004) and was last seen on the 2007 DVD release of Porky’s Revenge. It appears on American DVDs released by Paramount, MGM, Fox, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood Pictures, and Miramax Films as well as the 2006 Dimension Films DVD of Venom (2005) and most early Disney/Buena Vista Blu-rays such as the 2007 Blu-rays of the first two Pirates of the Caribbean films. The first Paramount DVD to use it in general was the 2005 DVD release of Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, and the final one to use it was the 2007 DVD release of Babel. Other American releases with this PSA include the DVDs of Robots, Flight of the Phoenix, Taxi (2004), Fat Albert (2004), Fantastic Four (2005), Millions, Rebound, Roll Bounce, Hide and Seek, In Her Shoes, The Ringer, The Sandlot 2, What’s New, Pussycat?, State Fair, I, Robot, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Garfield: The Movie, Napoleon Dynamite, Elektra (2005), The Boondock Saints, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Because of Winn-Dixie, C.H.O.M.P.S., Come See the Paradise, Beauty Shop, Undertow, the Pink Panther Collection DVD box set, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, Babel, The Machinist, Enduring Love, Mad Hot Ballroom, Barnyard: The Original Party Animals, Nacho Libre, Hustle and Flow, Four Brothers, Elizabethtown (2005), various Strawberry Shortcake DVDs, Proof (2005), Deja Vu (2006), The Prestige, Stay Alive, The Invisible, Keeping Up With the Steins, Wild Hogs, Our Very Own, and The Queen, and the Blu-ray releases of Dinosaur (2000), The Wild, and Scary Movie.
Scare Factor[]
Medium to High. Although it is not on the same level as "The Pirates are out to Get You", it can still come off as jarring thanks to the rapidly flashing background, the music, and the subject matter. In fact, it scared many people including children, due to the fact that this PIF has also appeared on children's media since the day it debuted. Many people will also be annoyed because of its presence on almost every single VHS, DVD, and/or VCD during this time period. But the scare factor is low to medium for those who are used to it or somewhat like it for nostalgic reasons.