Cephalopodcast

We are gearing up for some video productions at my day job. While working on pre-production, the issue of shooting crowd scenes came up. In many cases, you have to get clearance from anyone who appears in a scene. For video in public venues, where people are part of a crowd scene, it is often required to place notices about the presence of recording equipment. A typical example is available here [doc].

But what about the gonzo, DIY videographer who is on the move? You would think the presence of a large video camera would be enough indication that recording is taking place. But I wondered if a more portable disclaimer would make a difference. I still don’t have an answer. But I added an example to my CafePress shop for your consideration:

IMPORTANT NOTICE

IF YOU CAN READ THIS SHIRT, THEN YOU ARE IN PROXIMITY TO AN AREA WHERE VIDEOTAPING IS TAKING PLACE AND YOU MAY APPEAR IN THE PICTURE.

BY ENTERING THIS AREA, YOU GRANT TO _______________ THE RIGHT TO PHOTOGRAPH YOU AND RECORD YOUR VOICE WITHOUT COMPENSATION IN CONNECTION WITH THE VIDEO: _______________ AND ITS DISTRIBUTION AND EXPLOITATION. YOU RELEASE _______________ AND ITS LICENSEES FROM ALL LIABILITY. _______________ ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR INJURY TO YOUR PERSON, OR DAMAGE OR LOSS TO YOUR PROPERTY.

The use of camera or audio recording equipment is prohibited. Thank you.

I am not a lawyer. This shirt is for entertainment purposes and (probably) does not consitute a legally binding contract. But you can grab a Sharpie™ and fill in the name of your video production to see if it works.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 19th, 2007 at 10:15 pm and is filed under Humor, Meta, Television, Video. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.