NewsPaper Headline Copyright

[lifeismymovie]

Hi,

I am new member and looking forward to using this great site. I guess all lawyers are not assholes...lol Please excuse the bad humor...

We are working on a documentary film that requires a montage of old to current news paper headlines.

Are the headlines and newspaper trademarks under a copyright? If so how do we define what it is were trying to do in the film. We are not showing the entire article. We are cropping the headlines and not leaving it on screen to be read in it's entirety. We have contacted PARS International, and I don't really think they understand what we are attempting to do by giving a price of $845 for use and $250 for a digital copy of the article that we can just get from the micro-film at the library. My understanding is that there is no copyright on a headline, and the trademark for a news company is fair game if not being taken out of context. We are not changing the headline or it's content. It's in a documentary motion picture with no slander device being used for the articles.

Please help me clear this information up.

- Best

Vincent Vittorio

 

[Michael Wechsler]

Vincent, I hope your opening to the movie is better than the one here. Please also watch the language, which we try to keep friendly as well.

My understanding is that you shouldn't have copyright problem since its use - on the surface - would seem to fall under the "fair use" exception to the Copyright Act. It's difficult to say without knowing exactly what you're doing and you should consult with an attorney who will have full knowledge and can give you a true and best legal answer.

Here's an interesting article I read a while ago that might give you some direction:

Boundaries of Copyright - A Film Maker's Perspective

 

[lifeismymovie]

Clarification

Sorry for the bad joke concerning lawyers. I never meant for it to come off that way.

The articles you provided for my question were very helpful. Are there any examples of previous cases that I could look up on this? Or better yet any more resources on the definition of "fair-use." I am having a little problem trying to digest this language and apply it to our current film. If were using things for educational purposes is there harm?

Thanks,

Vincent