Videographers Have Fundamental Rights To Their Work
These days, nearly everyone takes videos. But most people don’t think about what they do with those videos. Many of them end up on social media, get deleted, or are just added to a personal media library.
Professional videographers, however, earn their living filming video content. Some videographers work for hire, recording weddings, music videos, or sporting events. Other videographers work independently and produce their own content to stream or sell to others.
All videographers should be familiar with their legal rights and obligations and how they relate to the work they create. Understanding how the Federal Copyright Act applies to videography can help you protect your work and enforce your rights.
At Sanders Law Group, our US Copyright Attorneys understand the challenges of being a professional videographer. It takes patience, creativity, time, and effort to monetize your talent. Part of our job is to ensure that you get paid for your videos and hard work.
If someone violates your legal rights and uses your work without permission, we can help you collect the maximum compensation and damages allowed by law.
Videographers And The Importance of Copyright
The most basic legal protection videographers have for their work comes from the US Copyright Act. This federal law protects “original works of authorship” that are in the form of tangible expression. This means copyright does not protect ideas or concepts.
Copyright protects videos and films when they are original and become fixed in tangible form.
Videos are “fixed” when they are permanent enough to be perceived or communicated. The standards for originality and fixation regarding video copyright are relatively low. Essentially minimal creativity is required. Downloading your video to your computer or even taking it on your phone is generally sufficient to satisfy fixation.
What does this mean for you, the videographer? It means that it is protected by copyright from the moment you create an original video.
Copyright is automatic. You own the exclusive rights to your work, and no one else may use it without your permission.
Copyright Gives Videographers Exclusive Rights
Copyright gives the author exclusive rights to utilize their copyrighted material.
There are some exceptions to this, but in general, no one but the copyright holder may
- Reproduce,
- Modify,
- Display,
- perform, or
- distribute the material.
Anyone who violates your copyright by doing the above without your permission is a copyright infringer unless their use falls into an exception or they have a valid defense.
Videographers Have The Right To License or Sell Their Work
Because copyright gives videographers exclusive rights, you can decide what, if anything, you want to do with your work. If you are a professional videographer, your goal is probably to earn money from your videos. This means you will likely enter into licensing agreements that set the terms to allow others to use your films, clips, or videos.
Licensing agreements come in many forms. You can give someone exclusive or non-exclusive rights to your work. You can also set the scope of how, when, and where the work can be used. Of course, your compensation is also part of the licensing agreement. Whatever terms you and the other party agree to can become part of the contract.
Videographers' Rights When Working For-Hire
When videographers work for hire, their rights are modified. Someone who agrees to shoot a video for someone else surrenders some, if not all, rights to the material.
In other words, if someone employs you and your work is created as part of your employment, the copyright belongs to the employer.
Many videographers are hired or contracted to film specific footage or events for someone else. The copyright to these videos usually belongs to the hiring party.
As a professional videographer, you should understand how your rights can change in different work situations. By creating material for an employer, absent an agreement stating otherwise, you give away your rights to another party.
Videographers Who Register Copyrights Can Seek Damages For Copyright Infringement
Copyright attaches automatically to original work fixed in tangible form. However, to file a lawsuit to collect damages for copyright infringement, you must register your copyright with the US Copyright Office.
You should file your registration as soon as possible, even after discovering someone committing copyright infringement. The timing of your registration could affect the damages you collect if your lawsuit is successful.
Your Right To Collect Actual Damages or Statutory Damages For Copyright Infringement of your Videos
You may receive actual damages or statutory damages when you file a lawsuit for copyright infringement and win.
Actual damages represent the amount of your losses due to the infringement. Actual damages are often calculated by the profit the infringer earned from your work or the amount you would have charged to grant a proper license to use your video.
You can only receive actual damages for infringement that occurred before the date of your copyright registration.
Statutory damages are available for infringement that takes place after your copyright registration or if your video is registered within three (3) months from your legitimate first publication or registered as unpublished prior to making your video public.
Statutory damages range from $750-$30,000 per infringement. Statutory damages can be up to $150,000 if the court finds willful copyright infringement.
Because it can be challenging to calculate actual damages, statutory damages often afford the best chance of receiving a meaningful award of damages. For this reason, the sooner you file your registration, the better. In the event of copyright infringement, you want to be positioned to receive the maximum damages allowed.
Publishing Your Videos On Internet Platforms Can Compromise Your Exclusive Rights
Part of understanding your rights to your videos means knowing how your own actions can affect them. In general, when you create a video, you have the exclusive right to reproduce, publish, distribute and display that video.
However, when you publish your videos to certain social media or other platforms, you may be compromising some of your rights. By posting a video, you might be granting a license to the site host or the public.
You must read the terms of the platform’s policies and understand what rights you might be surrendering by publishing your work.
Videographers Must Beware of Copyright Infringement
Professional film and video-makers need to understand and protect their legal rights to the work they create. However, when you make a film or video, you should also be careful not to infringe on the work of another creative professional.
You should consider copyright infringement any time you include work by a third party in your own. Whether you give credit to the work’s creator, use only a tiny portion, or make their work “shine,” you might still be committing copyright infringement.
If you plan to use someone else’s music or photographs in your film or video, make sure you get a license or permission. You run the risk of violating multiple copyrights. You do not want to have to pay damages for copyright infringement.
How Does Fair Use Apply to Videos?
Fair Use is a defense against copyright infringement with origins in case law. It became part of the Copyright Act in 1978.
Fair use means that even though someone uses another’s work without permission, it does not support a copyright infringement claim. The court considers things like the work itself, how it was used, the portion of the work used, its purpose, and how the use affects the market value of the original work to decide if there is a valid, fair use defense.
Fair use can be important to you for various reasons. It can help you understand that there might be instances where someone can use your video or a portion of it without your permission.
There also might be occasions when you can use someone else’s material in your work without permission. However, it is always good to get permission in advance to avoid potential legal issues down the road.
Remember That You Control Your Copyrighted Videos
Videographers and filmmakers generally have exclusive control of their copyrighted material. If you work for someone else or post your content on specific platforms, you are parting with some of those rights. Essentially, you are granting permission to others to use your work.
In many instances, using license agreements, you get to control how, when, where, and what portion of your copyrighted material can be used.
For example,
- You can grant exclusive rights to another party to distribute your film.
- You can grant limited rights to a business that wants to show a clip of your video in their commercial that will run for six months only.
- You can charge a gaming company a large lump sum for the unlimited use of your video.
- You can charge a marketing business 2 percent of all sales they make for t-shirts displaying images taken from your film.
- You can grant permission to anyone to use your work with no boundaries and at no charge.
The terms of licensing agreements are often negotiable. Having US Copyright Attorneys review your licensing agreements can help ensure your rights and business are protected.
Call Sanders Law Group, US Copyright Attorneys, Today
If you are a videographer, filmmaker, or other creative professional and need copyright help, call us at 888-348-3090 to schedule a free consultation. Do you need a licensing agreement? Did someone use your video for commercial purposes without your permission? Do you want to register your copyright or file a copyright infringement lawsuit?
If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” call Sanders Law Group. We understand how difficult it can be to earn a living as a creative professional. We know the long hours and dedication it takes to get your videos and films just right. We want your work to get the respect it deserves and you to get the compensation you have rightfully earned.
Our copyright lawyers are dedicated to protecting the creative community from copyright infringement. When someone violates your rights, we work to ensure you receive the maximum damages allowed by copyright law.
Call Sanders Law Group today at 888-348-3090 for all of your copyright needs.
