In a way, posting the images online might make you even more vulnerable. Use of a finished tape/DVD product is controllable since people have to physically acquire something.

When you publish someone's image on the internet, you are not only potentially liable for your posting, but could concievably be held responsible for every pervert who downloads and re-posts it elsewhere.

What about street shots ... you know the ones with groups of people walking up and down streets in a downtown area? You don't need releases from all of them, do you?

If you are just getting b-roll and no interviews then no you don't need releases. If you interview anyone then yes you should. Tv news stations interview people everyday that are on the street and they do not get people to sign releases. But you should just to be safe if you are doing "man on the street interviews."

Mark

What about street shots ... you know the ones with groups of people walking up and down streets in a downtown area? You don't need releases from all of them, do you?

In what type of production and used for what purpose? If you're talking about movies, episodic TV, and commercials, virtually everyone you see on-camera is an actor, even the background people. I've also seen barricades on the streets near location shoots that announce so and so is filming in the vicinity and walking past that point is a grant of implicit permission for them to use your likeness if you are accidently photographed in the background.

Mark hit it. I'm shooting b-roll to cover edits.

I'm having some release puzzlements with a documentary I'm currently working on. We're filming several students in an elementary school, with their parents' full permission and signed releases and the principal's/teacher's approval. When we film in the cafeteria or classroom do we need to get a signed release from the parents of every child recognizable in the background? I know news crews get around this, don't they? Can you get around this with documentary?

I just filmed my son at school and was told "do not film anyone except my son and his teacher (who signed a release)" by the Superintendent. I would say ask the Super and get him to sign a release stating that you are authorized to film others (good luck!).

Sam, you have to shoot the kids with out releases from the shoulder down.
(heads cut off) or you have to blur the kids in post who didn't have their parents sign releases. I have a lot of experience with this. For example, in a cafeteria situation have the kids who can be photographed all sit at 1 table. This will save you from having to blur out the others in post, just be aware of the background. Parents are very particular about this subject, and yes they will sue you, the school, and anyone else they can, so be very careful. My advice is too keep the kids with signed releases as seperate as possible from the others, or if you can just shoot everything, and do a lot of bluring in post. But that will cause you and your editor a lot of headaches.
So I would say keep them seperate if you can. Also just try and get as many releases as you can. The less seperation the better. Usually if the parents are well informed about your project they are more willing to let their kids be in it. Good luck,
Mark

Thanks Chris and Mark... groan... I understand all the issues, but I sure don't like the tedium of dealing with them. I have a verbal okay from the super, but I doubt he would agree to sign anything. I'm working on sending home an explanation and releases to the parents of kids in the same classrooms as our three subjects, but the cafeteria presents a challenge with kids from different classes. By the time we organize waivered students in the shot it will hardly seem like a documentary anymore... I think we'll stick to trying to frame non subjects from the shoulder down and close ups and high shots on our subjects. Thanks for helping me sort it out.

I will be putting together a video year book for the Boy Scouts. I will be taping at one of their ranches in New Mexico. So, there will be minors at the ranch. I will be taping at 30 base camps on the Rocky Mountains during an 11 week period. There will be 25,000 scouts and troop leaders come through the ranch during the summer. As you can imagine keeping track of releases is going to be a nightmare. The scouts are not made to sign a release, but the are sent one in a package they receive. Some have them and some don't. All the staff is made to sign one , so no problem there. The land is owned and operated by the BSA. The DVD will be sold for profit. Some footage will be used for promotional material and web content.

My question is: What do I do? How can I legally tape the scouts without knowing if they have a release or not?

Also, if a scout needs a release, their parents are normally thousands of miles away. It is a production nightmare. Help!!!

Matthew, I shot something similiar at big bear in California. We made the camp put the kids who had signed releases together. This way we didin't have to worry about shooting kids with unsigned releases. When we shot scenes aroungd the park we stayed wide so no one in particular could be identified. Talk to the people who run the camp, they may be willing to accomodate you in this matter. You can still get all of the activities the camp offers, you just stick to the one's who have releases for your close shots.

Mark

We made the camp put the kids who had signed releases together. This way we didin't have to worry about shooting kids with unsigned releases.
Mark
Thats the problem. Everything is already pre-planed . A troop comes in on day one and then the next day the go to the mountains, a week later they show back up at camp and then leave.

I'd like to use some photographs whose copywrite is owned by a professional photographer - does anyone have any release forms for said use?
Thanks

I've shot a music video this week and am now in the editing stage. Once completed i am hoping the video is popular enough for broadcast, the track is a rap song by artists who are now both signed but this song itself isnt. As the song isnt owned by a label im hoping i just need an agreement from the rapper on the track and the guy who made the music

ive looked at this thread

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=4039&highlight=music+video+permission+form

which is quite helpful (although the wording of the form is quite complex)

the guy who made the music is actually french and apparently doesnt have the best english but i do have a friend who can translate the contract for me

is it advisable to word the contract

I DJ MONKFISH allow Stick Tully ....

or do i need to find out his actual name and use that wording?

sorry its a bit of a vague thread, this is the best and most professional work ive done yet and so also the first time ive needed to go through this

Stick

I can't help with the legalities but I will say this - next time get all the required releases and other paperwork signed BEFORE you shoot. Otherwise you could end up with a beautifully shot and edited work that no one will ever see because the necessary paperwork wasn't signed.

[disclaimer/info: I worked for 3 years as head of video production at a small record label in Los Angeles. In addition my boss and owner of the label was an entertainment lawyer, so I learned a lot from him]

There's quite a few issues here. Nobody is going to know what to tell you on this, because you're in a real weird one. Music vids are usually paid for and owned by the label that commissioned them.

It sounds like you now have a video that I suppose technically you own, because you were not commissioned to make it. But the recording the music video is set to is owned by somebody (either the artist, or the label that has now signed them), and the publishing is either owned by the artist or a company the artists might have sold his publishing to (not necessarily the label).

So technically you would need a licensing agreement saying you can use the recording and the song. But I very much doubt they are going to license anything to you...it's not in their interest. BTW, "DJ Monkfish" doesn't fly on a legal doc. It would have to be his real name.

There's ONE more sticky issue with this, and I'll try to be brief. With rap/DJ acts, when they get signed, a lot of the time the label can't use prior work of the artist because they used uncleared samples. In other words, if a label is signing an artist, and agreeing to release songs, the label has to go through the process of clearing samples for them with the sample's original artist/songwriter, etc. That may be the reason this song isn't associated with the new label.

If you started sending this video out and it had uncleared samples on it, technically you could get an earful from somebody.

There's a boatload of issues involved in you trying to get airplay for your work, even if the artist says ok...there's a roomful of other people that have to sign off on it too.

I'm sorry to bring all this bad news to you, but this is the nature of doing un-commissioned music videos. Usually things like this are only good for the director's reel, and that's it.

If you want the thing to see the light of day, my recommendation would be to find the video dept at the artists new label, and hand it over to them. They have the resources and know-how to get it out. Video programs typically get their videos from the labels, not random video directors.

[disclaimer/info: I worked for 3 years as head of video production at a small record label in Los Angeles. In addition my boss and owner of the label was an entertainment lawyer, so I learned a lot from him]

There's quite a few issues here. Nobody is going to know what to tell you on this, because you're in a real weird one. Music vids are usually paid for and owned by the label that commissioned them.

It sounds like you now have a video that I suppose technically you own, because you were not commissioned to make it. But the recording the music video is set to is owned by somebody (either the artist, or the label that has now signed them), and the publishing is either owned by the artist or a company the artists might have sold his publishing to (not necessarily the label).

So technically you would need a licensing agreement saying you can use the recording and the song. But I very much doubt they are going to license anything to you...it's not in their interest. BTW, "DJ Monkfish" doesn't fly on a legal doc. It would have to be his real name.

There's ONE more sticky issue with this, and I'll try to be brief. With rap/DJ acts, when they get signed, a lot of the time the label can't use prior work of the artist because they used uncleared samples. In other words, if a label is signing an artist, and agreeing to release songs, the label has to go through the process of clearing samples for them with the sample's original artist/songwriter, etc. That may be the reason this song isn't associated with the new label.

If you started sending this video out and it had uncleared samples on it, technically you could get an earful from somebody.

There's a boatload of issues involved in you trying to get airplay for your work, even if the artist says ok...there's a roomful of other people that have to sign off on it too.

I'm sorry to bring all this bad news to you, but this is the nature of doing un-commissioned music videos. Usually things like this are only good for the director's reel, and that's it.

If you want the thing to see the light of day, my recommendation would be to find the video dept at the artists new label, and hand it over to them. They have the resources and know-how to get it out. Video programs typically get their videos from the labels, not random video directors.

thankyou so much for your help thats really great of you to reply, although its not exactly good news atleasts its honest

ill keep you posted

Thanks again

Stick

I had to go into that length of detail, because your simple question, "What do I put in this agreement?", is not answerable. Even if you drafted a document saying "I, DJ Monkfish, give Stick Tully permission to distribute the music video he directed for the song "xxxxx xxxx" and he signed it, it'd be meaningless, because it's not his permission to give, most likely.

If you want a real answer, from a real entertainment lawyer, for free, call up my old boss's radio show in Los Angeles tomorrow from 9am to 10am PST. That'll be somewhere around 5pm your time I think. www.barelylegalradio.com

It's the best resource for free answers on stuff like this.

Music vids are usually paid for and owned by the label that commissioned them.
Huh? I thought the band/artist usually paid for the music videos themselves...

Huh? I thought the band/artist usually paid for the music videos themselves...

The label commissions the work, and pays for it up front. Which would be the short story.

The long story is that 50% of the cost comes out of the bands recoupables, which is money from the sale of the record that goes to the album recording and promotion costs. So a little bit down the line, the band pays for 50%.

But often in the beginning of the band's relationship with the artists, the label handles everything about how the video gets made, including almost all of the say on who directs it.

I need to get a contract form for a video shoot. Shooting a project on an hourly rate.

Also, need to get a talent release form.

and a shot list form would be nice too.

Thank you
Lisa

Lisa,

This link doesn't have a shooting for hire contract but does have some release forms and other useful utilities and tools:

http://www.dependentfilms.net/files.html

Good luck,

Hi Lisa,

Try this site;

http://www.sonnyboo.com/downloads/downloads.htm

Lots of free stuff.

Cheers,

Liam.

Hi Lisa,

Try this site;

http://www.sonnyboo.com/downloads/downloads.htm

Lots of free stuff.

Cheers,

Liam.

That's an awesome resource. Thank you!

Try office depot, they have all sorts of basic contracts there.

anyone know where i can download a generic model/talent release form? i tried finding one, but only found release forms for specific websites, film schools and such, like for example a release form for istockphoto or the university of pennsylvania.

thanks.

IIRC, Hal Landon has one at Video University dot com.

This question is common enough that I've merged together a number of threads which discuss it.

I really like a book called "The Independent Film Producer's Survival Guide" by Gunnar Erickson, Mark Halloran, and Harris Tulchin. Not just a list of documents/templates, but a thorough description of legal aspects of producing independent movies/videos.

They offer a CD-ROM with files of all the documents in the book; I am wondering if anyone here has been able to purchase those. I placed an online order (the CD is only available through one of the authors directly) almost two weeks ago and haven't seen anything, not even a confirmation e-mail. Last week I sent them an e-mail, asking to confirm that they have my order, and I haven't received a response yet.

As I said, I really like the book, so I am hoping that this will come to a good end. Has anyone here purchased this CD and can comment on the ordering process?

- Martin

Does anyone know where can I find some templates, or maybe a completed contract to use as a basis?
Keith

I have used this book for a while and found it valuable:

Business and Legal Forms for Photographers
by Tad Crawford

Now I have the 3rd addition that comes with a CD-ROM of all the forms included formated for Word and in PDF.

Here's the release I use. It's based on the one from the book and one from the local community college.