For Independent Filmmakers

Welcome

Welcome to our Independent Filmmaker pages, which were conceived, researched and written by student volunteers attending St. Louis University School of Law and Washington University School of Law with guidance from filmmakers and our volunteers. Their work was edited by VLAA Executive Director Sue Greenberg and filmmaker/writer Jim Klenn.

Our goal is to provide an overview of the most important legal and business matters facing low-budget independent filmmakers. We do not intend this to be an exhaustive treatment of the issues every filmmaker might face. Instead, we simply offer practical answers to the questions we hear most often from Missouri- and Illinois-based filmmakers.

Also, we make available for download some basic agreements (Collaboration, Work-Made-For-Hire, Permission, Personal Release, Cast Deal Memo, Crew Member Deal Memo and Location) that can be used to anticipate and avoid certain legal problems. They are brief, easy-to-understand and evenhanded. We provide these forms with some reluctance because using forms found online is by no means an adequate substitute for the advice of an entertainment attorney. But we also believe that with access to plain-English information, some legal legwork is within the capability of filmmakers willing to spend the requisite time and energy. 

If you live in our service area and you (or your production company) meet our financial eligibility requirements, you may qualify for free legal or accounting assistance through VLAA. For an application form, click here. For a list of volunteer lawyers for the arts organizations located throughout the country, click here. 

Please help us improve this site. If you notice an error or have a suggestion for a link or additional information, let us know. 

THIS WEB SITE HAS BEEN PREPARED FOR EDUCATIONAL AND INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE OR A LEGAL OPINION. ONLY YOUR ATTORNEY CAN ADVISE YOU ABOUT WHICH LAWS ARE APPLICABLE TO YOUR SPECIFIC SITUATION.

Introduction

If you learn nothing else from this Web site, we hope you take to heart these two guiding principles: (1) when in doubt about using something in your film, get permission (or be prepared to make a compelling argument for fair use); and (2) always get everything in writing.

This may sound like common sense advice, but it can save you a lot of trouble throughout post-production and distribution. Not having written permission and other proper documentation might affect your ability to enter contests or film festivals, submit your movie for broadcast (even on public access cable) or sell the rights because other parties will be unwilling to undertake any legal risks.

If you think you might want to seek a distribution deal, your paper trail of documentation will be part of the collection of finished products or "deliverables" required before your film can be released.

Deliverables fall into three categories: Print materials  — actual film in the form of negatives and/or video transfers; publicity materials, such as still images, press releases, a synopses and profiles of leading actors; and legal documentation — the paperwork required to prove that you have secured all of the rights necessary to make and distribute the film. This documentation includes release forms and contracts for cast and crew, location agreements, product clearances, music licenses and your “chain of title.”

The chain of title traces each step of ownership of the film from inception through the final product. Many documents are required to create the “chain,” including certificate of authorship, copyright certificates and transfers, and clearance reports (for an in-depth explanation, see Clearance & Copyright by Michael Donaldson). Deliverables also include proof of Errors & Omissions insurance.

The least expensive and most efficient approach is to anticipate the deliverables process from the time of the production’s inception. Many horror stories involve inadequate preparation during pre-production, the shoot and post-production.

This site is loosely organized in the chronological order of legal and business matters you might face throughout your project – from treatment to final cut. Because our focus is on low-budget films, we have not addressed distribution deals.

Feel free to skip around to the issues that concern you and your movie. If you need more information, please use the pull down menu, follow the appropriate links within our text or consult the recommended publications. Our goal is to provide the best, rather than every, possible resource.