Not necessarily…
We are a City Museum that is connected with the Public Library --
I don’t mean we are located in the same place, but that the Museum
Manager reports to the Library Director. The Library has a blanket movie license,
but this applies only to films shown in the library building—I tried.
I know this because last Halloween during a free event we showed
“Abbott and Costello Meets Frankenstein” in one of our buildings
(it was shown more like “wallpaper”, meaning people came in and out
throughout, no tickets).
Every film title is licensed by a different company. This one, covered
by Swank, cost $250 plus $21 in shipping (they send you their own copy, DVD or
VHS, of it. You may watch it once to assure there are no defects, and then once
during your event. Then you must UPS it back to them.) The movie “Mad
Monster Party” is licensed by Criterion, for $225 but after explaining
the circumstances of our event he offered it for $150.
We didn’t sell tickets for our event and we didn’t
pre-advertise the movie title. I think this might have mattered, but maybe not.
In some cases of ticket-selling the agreement would have been something like “you
must pay X unless your ticket sales are Y in which case…”
Most of the public wouldn’t believe we had to pay so much
to show a movie one time, but that is the case.
Maybe somebody would be willing to sponsor you.
-Anne Nagrant
Troy Museum & Historic Village (Michigan)
From: Museum discussion
list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Brenda L. Abney
Sent: Saturday, January 19, 2008 1:02 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Movie licensing problem / Big Read plug
If you are partnered with another organization with a blanket
license, you can show the film under their auspices.
Brenda Abney | Director
(509) 888-6242 | [log in to unmask] | www.wvmcc.org
COMING UP AT THE MUSEUM:
SAVE THE DATE! January 26, 6 - 9 p.m.
Winter Wine Gala featuring wine tastings from fourteen Columbia Cascade
wineries and tastes from five local restaurants. Advance tickets:
$40. Call to reserve (509) 888-6240.
CALENDAR ON-LINE, WVMCC.ORG OR
CALL 888-6240
From: Museum discussion
list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Jerrie Clarke
Sent: Friday, January 18, 2008 11:17 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Movie licensing problem / Big Read plug
Hello all,
I've read with interest the
variety of copyright issues over the last couple of months. I'm
now embroiled in (or maybe that's just my mood after dealing with this issue)
in a movie licensing problem. We want to show a couple of movies as
activities for our participation in "The Big Read" program. I
learned, partly from this list, that we had to have a license to show the
movies. So I did some Internet research and made several calls (we can't
help you, call.....). It turns out that we have to pay $150 each for the
movies we show and that's the non-profit discount.
Schools and libraries can buy an annual blanket
license. However museums, even though they are educational
facilities, are not eligible for a blanket license. Unintentional
non-compliance can bring a $750 fine. Intentional is way more.
Before I write to the Copyright Office and my Congresspeople, has anyone else
had a different experience? I want the actors, writers, etc. to
make a living. However, this seems a bit steep to me.
Otherwise, we're having a great time with our NEA "The
Big Read" grant. We've partnered with the Public Library and the
local schools for 6 weeks of activities to promote reading among children and
adults.
Jerrie
Jerrie Clarke
Director
Sheldon Museum
PO Box 269
Haines, AK 99827
(907) 766-2366
fax: (907) 766-2368
www.sheldonmuseum.org
Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo
your homepage. =========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information
about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to
[log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read
"help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to
[log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read
"Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information
about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to
[log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read
"help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to
[log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read
"Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).