Public Domain Calculators/Film

= How do I tell if a work is in the public domain? =

Microshort film about how to determine whether or not a work is in the public domain and the Open Knowledge Foundation's public domain calculators project.

Tasks

 * Create transcript (below)
 * Create footage of people reading the transcript
 * Create visuals to accompany and illustrate transcript
 * Edit the footage into a short film
 * Disseminate

Draft transcript

 * [Opening sequence]
 * [Title: How do I tell if a given work is in the public domain?]
 * Creative works - such as books, paintings, films, sound recordings, photographs, sculpture and architecture - are automatically protected by copyright.
 * Copyright is an exclusive right that means that for a certain period of time, the creator (or whoever else holds the copyright) controls how the work may be copied, distributed, rented, performed, broadcasted and adapted.
 * After this limited period the work falls into the public domain, which means that anyone can copy it, share it and do all the things that previously only the creator or rightsholder could do.
 * For example:
 * Public domain images can be freely reused in collage;
 * Public domain sound recordings can be freely remastered, incorporated into new sound recordings or films;
 * Public domain texts can be freely translated, incorporated into new editions
 * And so on.
 * Also, with rise of digital networks and devices such as computers, mobile phones, media players and book readers - public domain works can be endlessly copied for zero cost.
 * This means that a vast wealth of cultural works that have fallen into the public domain are free for anyone to enjoy, reuse or build upon.
 * But how do we know whether or not a work is in the public domain?
 * Though there are many international and multinational copyright agreements and copyright organisations, the exact details of copyright law vary from country to country.
 * Different countries have different legal systems and traditions - and copyright laws reflect these differences.
 * For example, in Hong Kong copyright lasts fifty years after the death of the author, in France it is seventy years after, and in Mexico as of 2003, copyright lasts for a hundred years after the author dies.
 * Hence different works are in the public domain in different countries.
 * While we speak of 'the' public domain, there are really many different public domains which are determined by the nature and duration of different national copyright laws.
 * In order to make it easier to find and identify public domain works - we are building a set of public domain calculators.
 * Each calculator says whether a given work is in the public domain in a given jurisdiction.
 * Each calculator requires input from legal experts to represent the copyright laws of a certain country in a flow diagram.
 * These flow diagrams can help you determine whether or not a work is in copyright or in the public domain in each country.
 * With the assistance of a community of legal experts in each country, errors can be spotted, details can be added - and the flow diagrams will become more accurate over time.
 * The flow diagrams are used to create the computer software that runs the public domain calculators.
 * With the calculators and certain basic details, such as the date of death of the author of a given work, we can automatically determine which works are in copyright, and which works are not.
 * With lots of information about works - such as can be found in library catalogues - we can start to build up a better picture about which works are in the public domain for a given country.
 * This will help to make it easier for everyone to find out which works they are allowed to freely copy, reuse and incorporate into new works.
 * The Public Domain Calculators can provide information and guidance to existing online sources for public domain works - such as Europeana, the European Digital Library, Project Gutenberg, Wikimedia Commons, the Internet Archive, the websites of libraries and archives, and countless other sources.
 * It will help make it easier for anyone to find, use and enjoy the vast and expanding wealth of cultural works that our laws open up to the public.
 * If you are interested in helping to build a public domain calculator for your country - please get in touch!
 * [Credits and contact details]

Shots, stills, footage and visualisations that we need

 * Footage of public domain calculators workshop, any relevant discussions, slides, flipcharts and so on.
 * Interviews or one-on-one foorage with lawyers and scholars talking about topics relevant to transcript above. E.g.
 * History of copyright
 * Talking through a specific flow diagram, etc.
 * Image showing dates/names of important authors (to pan down with green for all who's works are in pd, red for all who's works are still in copyright
 * Timeline showing borderline author who's work is/isn't in copyright depending on jurisdiction - including dates of works, date of death of author, date that works pass into public domain in different jurisdictions...
 * Animation showing year, and showing works falling into the public domain in one jurisdiction
 * Animation showing year, and showing works falling into the public domain in another jurisdiction
 * Animation showing year, and showing comparison between works falling into the public domain in two different jurisdictions
 * Images showing different types of works (books, films, recordings, sculpture, etc.)
 * Public domain recordings