Technical Services: Films

DVD/VHS/Laserdisc

• Library-owned films on DVD, laserdisc, and VHS DO NOT include public performance rights UNLESS you see a note in the catalog record that states otherwise.
• Showing library-owned films outside of the classroom without public performance rights may be illegal.
• If the library did not purchase public performance rights, it is the responsibility of the individual or organization intending to publicly screen the film to secure public performance rights.

Obtaining Permission to Screen Films on DVD/VHS Publicly 

If a copyrighted movie is not licensed for public performance (i.e., it's licensed only for home use), you will need to to obtain permission from the copyright owner. There are 3 ways to do this:

1. Contact the copyright holder directly.
2. Contact the distributor to see if they have the authority from the copyright holder to grant licenses.
3. For major feature films, contact the licensing service representing the particular studio or title. Services vary in the types of licensing offered and the scope of materials represented. Costs are usually related to the film's release date.

For links to producer, distributor, and licensing services, see Producer & Distributor Sites box at left.

Streaming Video

1. Alexander Street Press video collections DO include public performance rights as long as no admission fee is charged.
2. Kanopy streaming video collections MAY include public performance rights. You must ask Acquisitions about any films in question
3. OhioLINK Educational and Instructional video collections DO include public performance rights as long as no admission fee is charged.

Some Netflix original educational documentaries are available for one-time educational screenings.

• To find out which titles are available for educational screenings, go to the Only On Netflix section of media.netflix.com.
• From here, navigate to All Alphabetical.
• Titles that are available for educational screening will display the following grant of permission on their details page:

GRANT OF PERMISSION FOR EDUCATIONAL SCREENINGS

Netflix is proud to present original documentaries that speak to our users in a meaningful way. We know that many of you are as excited about these films as we are; and because of their informational aspects, you’d like to show them in an educational setting -- e.g., in the classroom, at the next meeting of your community group, with your book club, etc. Consequently, we will permit one-time educational screenings of any of the documentaries noted with this information, on the following terms:

• The documentary may only be accessed via the Netflix service, by a Netflix account holder. We don’t sell DVDs, nor can we provide other ways for you to exhibit the film.
• The screening must be non-profit and non-commercial. That means you can’t charge admission, or solicit donations, or accept advertising or commercial sponsorships in connection with the screening.
• Please don’t use Netflix’s logos in any promotion for the screening, or do anything else that indicates that the screening is “official” or endorsed by Netflix.

We trust our users to respect these guidelines, which are intended to help you share and discuss our documentary content in your community.

To the extent your institution requires you to demonstrate that your have a license for your screening, please show them this page.

Example title: My Beautiful Broken Brain

Kanopy videos include classroom rights, but no longer include public performance rights (public performance allowed as long as no admission fee is charged) for every film. If there is interest in showing a film publicly you must ask the Acquisitions & Access Librarian to inquire about PPR with Kanopy.

If a faculty member asks you to purchase a DVD, please check our holdings in Kanopy before sending the request to Cara Calabrese. 

Kanopy is a streaming video platform with more than 8,000 films from a variety of collections and producers, including the California Newsreel, Green Planet, PBS, BBC Active, and Stanford Executive Briefings collections.

Kanopy PDA Pilot Information

View/download at Google Docs:

• Kanopy Launch Guide
• Kanopy clip-making and playlist instructions

Access

You must use one of the two links below to access to Miami's Kanopy collection:

http://www.lib.miamioh.edu/indexes/redirect/1276

https://proxy.lib.miamioh.edu/login?url=https://miamioh.kanopystreaming.com/

Kanopy Search Widget

Use the following code to embed the search box widget below into your website:
<iframe src="https://miamioh.kanopystreaming.com/widget/search/searchbox" width="350" height="150" frameborder="0"></iframe>