Names and faces

In this Aug. 15, 1996, file photo, rapper Tupac Shakur attends a voter registration event in South Central Los Angeles.
In this Aug. 15, 1996, file photo, rapper Tupac Shakur attends a voter registration event in South Central Los Angeles.

A magazine writer has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the creators of the new Tupac Shakur biopic, saying that portions of the film are based on his articles about the late rapper. Kevin Powell says in the suit filed Friday that All Eyez On Me borrows from articles he wrote and interviews he did with Shakur in the 1990s for Vibe magazine. The lawsuit says, for instance, the film’s fictional character Nigel is based on a character Powell wrote about in one of his magazine articles. The suit says the character is based on Jacques “Haitian Jack” Agnant. “There are stories with fictional characters and re-worked narratives that are unique to the Original Work that appear in the Infringing Work,” the suit said. “Rather than contact Plaintiff, Defendants, while fully aware of Plaintiff’s copyright in the Original Work, willfully and improperly developed, produced, filmed and released the Infringing Work derived from Plaintiff’s Original Work.” Powell is suing Lionsgate, Program Pictures, Morgan Creek Pictures as well as producers and screenwriters of the film. A representative for Lionsgate declined to comment Saturday, and a lawyer for Powell didn’t reply to an email seeking comment. All Eyez On Me debuted last weekend at No. 3 with $27.1 million. Shakur, one of the most prolific figures in hip-hop, died in 1996 from gunshot wounds.

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AP file photo

Actress Mira Sorvino poses prior to a news conference at the 54th Berlin International Film Festival, on Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2004.

Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino urged all nations and the business community on Friday to ramp up financial support for victims of human trafficking, saying the services such funds provide “mean the difference between life and death.” Sorvino, who has been a U.N. goodwill ambassador for the global fight against human trafficking, told a U.N. meeting that “government and private sector funding is sorely lacking in providing the life-rebuilding shelter, services and legal help survivors desperately need.” The session was part of the preparatory process for a high-level U.N. meeting in September to review the Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons. Sorvino said world leaders need “to craft a better, more victim-centered response” that puts survivors at the negotiating table where the global plan is readjusted. Survivors know “exactly what policies are needed … as well as how to attack underlying causes,” she said. “We must fully commit our political will and resources.”

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