Business
Copyright & IP for Filmmakers
Your film is intellectual property — and understanding copyright is what lets you protect it, own it cleanly, and use others' work without getting sued. This course covers copyright from the ground up: what it is, who owns it, how to register your script and film, chain of title, fair use, clearances, public domain, and infringement — in plain language for filmmakers.
By Will Roberts — updated August 14, 2026
What you'll learn
✓What copyright is, who owns it, and how it protects your work
✓How to register your screenplay and your film, and build chain of title
✓Fair use, clearances, and using others' work without getting sued
✓Public domain, infringement, and treating your IP as an asset
Pairs with this tool
Contract Assistant
Copyright lives in the paperwork — rights assignments, releases, and chain-of-title documents. The Contract Assistant helps you organize the agreements that keep your film's IP clean and owned.
Open Contract Assistant →Course chapters
Module 1 — Foundations
I7 min
What copyright is and why your film is intellectual property
What Copyright Is
II7 min
Copyright vs. trademark vs. other IP — what protects what
Copyright vs. Other IP
III8 min
Who owns the copyright in a film — and how ownership gets messy
Who Owns What
IV7 min
How copyright works — when it starts, what it covers, how long it lasts
How Copyright Works
Module 2 — Core Craft
V8 min
How to copyright your screenplay — registration, done right
Copyrighting Your Screenplay
VI8 min
How to copyright the finished film and what registration gives you
Copyrighting Your Film
VII8 min
Chain of title — the paper trail that proves you own your film
Chain of Title
VIII9 min
Fair use — what it really is, and why it's riskier than you think
Fair Use
Module 3 — Putting It to Work
IX8 min
Using others' work — clearances, licenses, and releases
Rights, Clearances & Licenses
X8 min
Public domain — free-to-use work, and the traps that catch people
Public Domain
XI8 min
Infringement — how it happens, and how to protect your work
Infringement & Protection
XII9 min
Your IP as an asset — protecting and leveraging it over a career
IP as an Asset