Afterwards, he alleged, Marchick passed the script off to Disney. Disney then copied Woodall’s work and spun it into “Moana” which was released in November 2016.

That woman, Jenny Marchick, worked for Mandeville Films, a company that had a contract with Disney and was located on the Disney lot. He sent her follow-up materials through the years.

A federal jury sided with Disney, swiftly rejecting a copyright lawsuit in which a writer accused the company of stealing his ideas for the animated hit Moana.

A jury on Monday quickly and completely rejected a man's claim that Disney's "Moana" was stolen from his story of a young surfer in Hawaii.

Woodall claimed that around 2004, he provided his story outline to Jenny Marchick, who was then employed at Mandeville Films.

Woodall accused Marchick of using legal loopholes to pass on his materials to Disney and claims he received copyright protection for his Bucky materials in 2004 - a copyright that was updated in 2014.

Woodall argued that his story—about a teen surfer in Hawaii who meets Polynesian demigods and goes on a quest—reached Disney through a relative, Jenny Marchick.

Disney wins $100m copyright trial against animator over Moana plagiarism claims Animator Buck Woodall claimed Disney copied elements of hit film from his decades-old screenplay ...

To that, beginning in 2004 Woodall says he handed Jenny Marchick his copyright-protected Bucky the Surfer Boy trailer storyboards, “intellectual property and trade secrets” (including a 2011 ...

Woodall’s initial filing stemmed from the fact he shared an outline to “Bucky the Surfer Boy” with Jenny Marchick, his brother’s wife’s stepsister – who worked for Mandeville Film ...

A jury quickly rejected a man’s claim that Disney’s “Moana” was stolen from his story of a young surfer in Hawaii.

To that, beginning in 2004 Woodall says he handed Jenny Marchick his copyright-protected Bucky the Surfer Boy trailer storyboards, “intellectual property and trade secrets” (including a 2011 ...