[Rumori] Academic use of film clips question

[Tim Maloney]

Here's a specific problem I've encountered lately.  I wonder if  
anyone here has any knowledge/expertise in the matter.  I had a  
lively discussion with a colleague about this and I think I need new  
perspectives.

I am a film instructor, so that's where this hypothetical case  
begins.  I'm wondering what would happen if I published an academic  
work - i.e., a book, which used film stills.  Technically, under U.S.  
Copyright Law (and I am in the U.S.) this may be considered Fair  
Use.  But I am publishing the book, and a publisher, academic or  
otherwise, is profiting from the book.  Is Fair Use still invoked?

I know that many publishers clear those rights for use, but this may  
be unnecessary on the part of the publisher, or a good way to get  
high quality reproducible materials, by working with the studios in  
question.

So let's make it more complicated.  Let's say I want to include with  
my book a DVD full of film clips that demonstrate the various topics  
I discuss in the book.  If I show these in my class it is considered  
Fair Use.  I do not have to pay anyone to exhibit films in this  
manner.  What about on a DVD?  That I publish/duplicate/distribute?   
I realize that if it can be proven that I overcame copyright  
restrictions with certain software (DeCSS, for example) to get these  
clips then I am immediately in trouble with the DMCA.  But if I  
somehow used legitimate means?  (Which means I can only guess about,  
perhaps involving some generation-loss scheme of recording the clips  
right out of a DVD player, etc?)  Does Fair Use come into play?  Or  
am I a pirate?

We could all guess that an American Media Company of one kind or  
another would not LIKE such use, and would characterize it as  
piracy.  We can all speculate that they would sue for such uses.  But  
what would the likely legal outcome be?  Would I be in the clear,  
only subject to the humiliation and finance-depriving processes by  
which the Big Media Companies would destroy me?  I won't tell you  
what side of this argument I am on, but I am interested in responses  
to it.

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