Copyright Criminals is a 2009 documentary film directed and produced by Benjamin Franzen examining the creative and the commercial value of sampling including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law, and money.

[citation needed] The documentary contains interviews with several sampling artist pioneers, including hip-hop groups.

A longtime area of contention from a legal perspective, early sampling used portions of other artists' recordings without permission.

Once hip-hop, rap and other music incorporating sampling began generating a noticeably substantial income, the original artists began to take legal action, claiming copyright infringement and demanding high-sum royalties.

It is the debut film for Franzen, a graduate of University of Iowa and founder of Atlanta-based production company Changing Images, and Kembrew McLeod, a professor specializing in copyright law at University of Iowa.