Can I sell a video of a couple bands I shot 16 years ago?

Cavemandude

Cavemandude

Well-known member
I videotaped, for free, a couple bands back in 1990. They played at local clubs here and I was just starting out in video production and was asked if I could videotape them. They agreed and it ended up nothing was ever done with the videos I shot.

The lead singer of one of the bands actually came to my house next day because something happened that night which caused the band to split up and he wanted to view the tape that I shot to watch how one of the band members was acting on stage. This was the last time that this specific band lineup ever played.

It was a simple one-camera shoot using a Panasonic AG-450 SVHS single chip camcorder in the back of the club and the audio was recorder with the on-camera mic. One band actually had a #1 billboard hit a couple years later, which they did play that night, and continues to have a large fan base.

My question is, what are my rights with these two videos. I was not paid to shoot the videos but I was given permission to videotape the bands. I was thinking of making a DVD from these two shoots and selling them. Any thoughts?
 
Technically the original performers own the rights in their performance, and most importantly the original songwriters still own the rights in the songs, which means you do take the risk that someone will come after you if you start trying to sell the DVDs. Certainly, a broadcaster would never feel comfortable paying to air this footage. You haven't "cleared" the rights. You own the video, but the musicians own the songs. Of course there's a chance they don't care--or they might even be thrilled to see the stuff get out there. And are they really going to go through the hassle of trying to sue you if you do sell them on DVD? Well...if you start selling thousands of copies it might be worth their while to care! If the members of the band are now famous in their own right, it might be worth their while to stop you from selling the footage. So basically, I guess you sell the DVDs at your own risk (the risk might be slim depending on who the musicans are and how many you sell).
 
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