Releases For Use in Film and Video

Obtaining proper written permissions is the responsibility of the producer. Below are five types of common releases:

1. General Release which should be used for non-actors.

2. Talent Release which should be used with professional actors and models.

3. Minor Release which must be signed by a parent or legal guardian of a minor (the legal age varies from state to state).

4. Materials Release is used for obtaining permission to use photographs, video, film or other media which may be copyrighted or owned by others.

5.Location Release when you wish to photograph, videotape or record property which you do not own.

Sorry, we are unable to give you legal opinions on these matters. Save any of these releases to your hard disk. Proofread and rewrite them as necessary.

General Release in RTF
General Release in txt

Talent Release in RTF
Talent Release in txt

Minor Release in RTF
Minor Release in txt

Materials Release in RTF
Materials Release in txt

Location Release in RTF
Location Release in txt

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31 Comments »

Thank you for posting these forms for free. I am new to this and it was incredibly helpful to find such an easy format to use.

Comment by Marie Segre — June 4, 2010 @ 7:50 am
You guys are the best!!! Thank you so much!!

Comment by Chase Masters — July 12, 2010 @ 9:33 am
Thanks from me too, I so appreciate it. This might be a legal question, or a stupid question, forgive if so, but does anybody know if a General Release is good for people interviewed in documentaries. Thanks again, Julius

Comment by Julius, the Julius — October 2, 2010 @ 11:50 am
Yes, I use that release for docs and other projects.

Comment by Hal — October 2, 2010 @ 10:09 pm
THANK YOU!!!

Comment by Jonathan — February 25, 2011 @ 9:19 am
Thank You! This is a great help!

Comment by Malaika — March 23, 2011 @ 10:26 am
Thank you very much. Exactly what I needed! I owe you a beer!

Comment by CJ — April 1, 2011 @ 8:59 pm
Ok, this is going to sound absurd. But

say for a student film, we forgot to get these signed and there is no way of meeting the actors again. But have their complete agreement, is it better to sign the forms in their names or just leave out the forms completely ?

Comment by LJ — April 24, 2011 @ 10:07 am
Thank you so much. This is going to save me and the non-profit I’m doing a promotional for a lot of time and effort. If I can be of gelp feel free to contact me.

Comment by Paul Corby Pratt Productions — April 29, 2011 @ 10:31 am
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I TEACH A DIGITAL ARTS COURSE, AND I FIND THAT YOUR FORMS WERE MOST RELEVANT TO MY STUDENTS USE AND WORKED WELL WITH SOME MINOR MODIFICATIONS FOR OUR PURPOSES.

ALEX WASHINGTON
INSTRUCTOR OF FINE ARTS
THE HILL SCHOOL
POTTSTOWN, PA

Comment by ALEX WASHINGTON — May 11, 2011 @ 7:19 pm
dumb question…legally, can we just go ahead and start using these forms or does a lawyer need to look at first? Is it that easy?

Comment by JP — May 20, 2011 @ 10:50 am
These documents are a great resource for emerging video producers and film makers. Thanks for sharing them! I will be modifying them to suit a current documentary film project I’m producing in South Australia.

Comment by danimations — August 4, 2011 @ 5:03 pm
KISS principal at their best!

Do you have similar for use for Director and or a Producer Release Form for work on a doco? Thank you again.

Comment by Keith — August 22, 2011 @ 3:32 am
I plan to shoot/produce a short movie all done outdoors, on public property. I plan to obtain the local jurisdictions permits. Does anyone know if I need release forms for buildings in the background. The shots won’t be on the properties but stores and other businesses will be in some of the footage.

Comment by Brad white — September 19, 2011 @ 6:11 am
The buildings in the background are OK. You do not need any permission from them.

Comment by Hal — September 19, 2011 @ 7:08 am
Thank you so very much for providing useful information on your website.

Comment by Dewayne — December 2, 2011 @ 5:04 pm
I am part of a local non for profit charity that displays a Memorial Day weekend event. Professional photographers usually use this event to take photographs. I welcome them and actually encourage them. The location is on private property. I asked a photographer last year if he would kindly give me some of the photos he was taking at my event. He said “I have to charge you like anyone else”. Is there some kind of agreement I can have them sign?

Comment by Christine — March 12, 2012 @ 11:44 am
Tremendously helpful in getting our new film company off on the right foot! Thanks!

Comment by 5FamFilms Inc — May 3, 2012 @ 12:58 pm
I really want to thank you for publishing these. They helped me a lot and I am very appreciative because I needed them badly.

Comment by Darius F Talley — May 9, 2012 @ 6:18 pm
Incredibly thankful that you published these-. I’m new to all these details and having this easily accessible has been a tremendous help.

Comment by Mia Moraes — June 9, 2012 @ 10:55 am
Y’all Are Some Life Savers Thanks For the Help

Comment by Stadic Jones — June 20, 2012 @ 12:58 am
Anyone ever have an interviewee who signed a release try to retrack and insist the footage be destroyed? I am looking for legal support for the proposition that, once signed, the Release cannot be withdrawn unless the film maker breaches a promise made in writing (or perhaps even orally if provable) to the interviewee. Any experience out there?

Comment by Sue Maslow — July 25, 2012 @ 5:35 pm
At the end of the general release form it mentions that the release shall be governed by Virginia law. Does this need to be changed from state to state?

Comment by Ethan — September 21, 2012 @ 2:29 pm
Hi Ethan,

Yes, you need to change that to the state where you live and do business.

Hal
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Comment by Hal — September 21, 2012 @ 3:42 pm
I live in Canada and worked on an entertainment event over a year ago with the understanding it was simply for those in attendance. Fast forward a year and the promoter is now about to air the event on television without my consent or a release ever signed or verbally agreed to to use my perfomance on television which I would very much like them not to do. Do I have any rights?

Comment by Michael — October 24, 2012 @ 11:56 pm
I have a small production company and produced a promo for friend which included one of their client as the main character.

She signed an actors release form, and up until a couple of weeks ago was a nice as you can imagine with a pushy demeanour which I took for ambition to be famous, but somewhat endearing, mistake No:1 (Big lesson learnt)
After a heated discussion she now wants to sue me saying she did not give permission for it to be aired, even though the agreement was not with her as she is merely the face of the companies products.
The director of the said company has said that they will not pursue this on her behalf as she is being ridiculous, yet she still insists she will get advice from her solicitor to try and get the said promo off of an internet media platform site as she is not happy with her acting/image in scenes.
The underlying issue is because of the fact that in a phone call she made to me a couple of weeks back her interaction within the conversation was insulting, I lost the ability to count to 10 and breathe after several attempts, that I finally said that firstly this was not her production but her employers, and that I will edit the final piece as instructed or I will pull the project, and that she was a rude ungrateful person to have had over £3000 of production work for nothing, as it was produced free to the company that she works for.
This person is a Z list celebrity and has Diva tendencies which I tolerated for four months of her relentless phone calls and texts demanding constant changes to a project that should have been a five day freebie for a friend *the said company that I produced the promo for.

After a chat with this person (company director) we agreed that it was ready to be aired on said internet media site, as he was insistent that the post production should never had included the main character having any say in the editing, but he out of politeness allowed her to see the rough edit, which i was apprehensive about in the first place but trusted his decision, and she ended up being a major headache from aug 12 – present day which has been a nightmare for something that i did as a favour for a friend, in return for a mention on his company website (which is still going to be the case), as he is embarrassed by her behaviour, but she at the end of the day is a client that make his company money so has to pacify her ego.

I thought that a release form was watertight if it had all the required element within the form, or has this character whom is the face of the companies products, or is she whistling in the wind, or out of somewhere where the sun doesn’t glisten?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

But after discussion

Comment by george smith — November 21, 2012 @ 4:15 am
Hey George,

Sorry to hear of your problem. Unfortunately anyone can sue anyone else at any time, regardless of what contracts have been signed. The release you have should protect you in a court of law. So if she sues, I think you would be in good shape. And if she sues, no one in their right mind would put her in another video. She’ll probably figure that out and drop it.

This woman sounds like a real handful. Casting is 90% of the director’s job. I think Woody Allen said that.

Good Luck.

Hal

Comment by Hal — November 21, 2012 @ 8:38 am
* Don’t forget about the importance of casting your crew too! (first)

Comment by avery — January 2, 2013 @ 9:50 am
I’m in the process of starting a small, short film festival in a rural Georgia town. What do I need with respect to a release to screen any films selected by the selection committee and then post them (at least the finalists) on our web site?

Comment by Tom — February 8, 2013 @ 8:21 pm
Thank you very much for the release forms.

Comment by M.B.Lamont — March 1, 2013 @ 12:04 am
Thanks for these forms. Easy to use and format. You guys are the best.

Comment by Bob Johnson — June 1, 2013 @ 1:53 pm