James Westbrook Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 So up until now all the music videos I have shot I have managed to get a copy of and have put my favourite ones on my personal website & vimeo. Just recently I have come across two different situations. The first is a director who only wants one version of the video online and for that to be his. ( it was a competition entry on genero that didn't win) The other is an american artist who again as firmly stated that only one version shall exist on her own youtube channel. Can you please give me some advice of where I stand legally and whether these things need to be signed in a contract before shooting starts? Ideally I would like both and i don't see anything wrong in that. I see lots of DOP's with big name artists all over their personal site Thanks in advance James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member David Mullen ASC Posted October 3, 2013 Premium Member Share Posted October 3, 2013 Generally a deal memo states that you will be provided with a copy or clips that can be used for non-commerical purposes, i.e. for a demo reel. But in the case of a music video, I suppose it can be a bit trickier legally if you want to use the whole video because of the song and the artist's control over it -- you might be forced to use just the images and recut it. I don't think your particular conflict comes up that often, after all, the whole point of music videos, like commercials and movie trailers, is promotion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Rencher Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 I run into this situation all the time, and the solution is simple: Just embed the Youtube video to your site that the artist has uploaded on their official channel. I do that with commercials, too. You can see it in action here: http://www.alanrencher.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adrian Sierkowski Posted October 4, 2013 Premium Member Share Posted October 4, 2013 It all depends on what you agreed with before hand, but quite a few music videos I've shot stated in their deal memos that I couldn't even use the footage for my own promotions. Though those normally paid pretty well so I didn't/don't mind. If the artist has enabled embedding, then yes, just embed into your site as that is their call to put it out there and allow that feature. In future, in your deal memos, make sure you spell out what you are and aren't allowed to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Phil Rhodes Posted October 4, 2013 Premium Member Share Posted October 4, 2013 The other is an american artist who again as firmly stated that only one version shall exist on her own youtube channel. Good luck with that, American artist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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