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Video Editing: Media, Attribution & Permission

Equipment, resources, and tools available at Addlestone library for video editing projects.

Movie Making @ The Library

Step 2: Find and Record Media, Provide Attribution, and Request Permission

Request Permission

It is important to request permission when recording a meeting, interview or presentation (virtually or in person). If the recording is intended to be distributed outside of the classroom (i.e. YouTube) it is recommended that you get permission from your participants prior to filming. For more information visit:

Fair Use, Copyright, and Attribution for Media

Fair Use is built into the copyright law to address the tensions between the rights given to the copyright holder and freedom of speech. If you want to use copyrighted material without requesting permission from the copyright holder, you must engage in a four factor Fair Use analysis.

  1. Purpose and character of the use
    Is your use a non-profit educational use? Is it "transformative"? Does your use add "new meaning, expression, or message" to the original copyrighted work (Gerhardt and Wessel 59)?
  2. Nature of the copyrighted work
    Is the original creative or more factual in nature? Using creative works is considered less fair than more factual works. Is the work unpublished or widely published? Using unpublished works is considered less fair than widely published works.
  3. Amount
    Is the amount appropriate to the use? Did you use just what was necessary to get your point across?
  4. Market Impact
    Would the original copyright holder be negatively impacted by your use? Is there a market to license the use?

Aufderheide and Jaszi, in their book Reclaiming Fair Use, argue that while you need to ask yourself all four questions to conduct a Fair Use analysis, the courts have shown they are most interested in the answers to the following three questions (24). Is your use transformative? Is the amount you are using of the original copyrighted work appropriate to your use? Is your use consistent with the norms of your community? (---excerpt taken from Multimedia Production Guide, The Tufts Libraries)

For the purposes of an academic project, fair use applies for the re-use of images, audio, or video in multimedia projects for educational purposes (not including print or electronic publication of any kind) if they are not distributed outside of the classroom or housed in campus systems that require a college login and password (i.e. OAKS, Kaltura). Best practices dictate that if media used in a project is not an original creation of the author, it constitutes a borrowed idea and should be attributed accordingly. If you plan on distributing the project outside of the classroom (i.e. YouTube), you need to determine whether or not the image is protected by copyright, then find out how to get copyright clearance (Images: A Guide to Finding, 2014).

The University of Cincinnati Libraries summed up citing images well in its Library "Media" guide by providing the following information:

Documenting sources for images can be challenging, especially with the variety of new electronic resources now available. Many different style manuals exist.  Listed below are several writing style manuals that may be consulted along with examples. Always ask your class instructor for the style appropriate for the course.

The basic information you will need:

  • Artist’s name
  • Title of the work
  • Date it was created
  • Repository, museum, or owner (in other words, where it is now located)
  • City or country of origin
  • Dimensions of the work
  • Material or medium (oil on canvas, marble, found objects, etc.)

If you found the image in a book, you will also need the author, title, publisher information, date, page, and figure or plate number of the reproduction.  If you found the image online, you will need an access date, the web site address (URL), and, in some cases, an image ID number  (Media, 2014).

Additionally, you may need to obtain permission to publish images found in licensed Library databases or digital collections (i.e. The Library of Congress, College of Charleston Digital Collections, Artstor). In many cases, you will need to write to the institution that owns the physical image and request permission to publish it. There is often a fee associated with acquiring permission (Images: A Guide to Finding, 2014).

Share, Remix, Reuse Legally - Find Audio, Video, & Images 

Creative Commons is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to making it easier for people to share and build upon the work of others, consistent with the rules of copyright.

They provide free licenses and other legal tools to mark creative work with the freedom the creator wants it to carry, so others can share, remix, use commercially, or any combination thereof.

See the Additional Resources on the right of this guide for additional search tools and archives.

Recording

Equipment Checkout
The Addlestone Library has a variety of loanable technology available to help you with your projects.  For a full list of equipment and availability visit Circulation Services.

Recording with a Smart Phone or Tablet
Most smart phones and tablets are cable of recording video that is of high enough quality for academic projects.  Some tips for using a smart phone or tablet to record a subject include 1) record in landscape, 2) consider how you frame your subject, 3) get closer to your subject for a clear zoom, and 4) avoid backlit settings.  You will want to check the file format on your device and make sure that it is compatible with the video editing program and platform you plan on using to complete your video project.

It is also possible to record the screen of your mobile device. Since all devices are different it is best to find the instructions for your device and verify that the file format will be compatible with the video editing program and platform you plan on using to complete your video project. 

Lecture/Presentation Capture

  • VoiceThread is an online digital storytelling program that allows users to upload pictures, video, or presentations then add a voice or video recording as commentary. College of Charleston has a campus license for VoiceThread and OAKS integration. The software is free for all faculty, staff and students.

Online Screencasting Software

  • Screencast-o-Matic - Online screen recorder for one-click recording from your browser.  The free program allows for 15 minutes of recording and free hosting and exports screencasts to MP4, Avi, and FLV. There is a built in feature to upload videos to YouTube.  The pro version is $15 per year and includes password protected screencasts, SOM scripting and editing tools.  Online tutorials are available on the website.

Creative Commons Search Activity

  1. Enter your search query into the search bar.
  2. Select the modify, adapt, or build upon option.
  3. Click on the archive you want to search (i.e., Flickr).
  4. Select an image and review the copyright information.

Helpful Search Tools and Archives

Search Tools & Archives

Scholars Studio

Scholars Studio

A suite of spaces, equipment, resources, and services for curricular activities related to digital scholarship and media creation located in Addlestone Library. 

Scholars Studio

Production Lounge

Production Lounge image

A workspace for media creation, digital scholarship, and DIY activities that support curricular assignments.

Production Lounge

Sample Permission Forms

Resources

Copyright Resources

Citation Resources

LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning

Interested in learning how to make a movie or podcast? Need to learn more about XCode for an assignment? Interested in learning Canva to make buttons? Want to use Photoshop to edit images or Illustrator to draw digital illustrations?

LinkedIn Learning is a great resource for learning and it is available for free for College of Charleston students, faculty and staff.

LinkedIn Learning

Contact

Location