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  • BAFTA Research

Unlocking Film Rights: Understanding UK Copyright

A free online course to help researchers, producers and archivists understand UK film and TV copyright, and how to apply it.

5,220 enrolled on this course

A crowd applauds at BAFTA and BFI Screenwriters’ Lecture Series. Photo by BAFTA/Jonathan Birch
  • Duration

    2 weeks
  • Weekly study

    2 hours

Whether you’re a junior researcher, producer or archivist, this free online course from BAFTA Research, Film London and UCL will help you get to grips with the fundamentals of UK copyright for film and TV.

Over two weeks, you will hear expert advice from academic specialists along with real life case studies from the wider film industry.

You’ll learn the underlying principles of copyright in an easy to digest way, supported by practical examples of how these are applied across archives, distribution, production and exhibition. You’ll also hear why getting your rights right could repay your efforts.

Each week, our experts will break down the theory and provide you with real examples and useful samples and case studies. There will also be space for discussion and exploration of wider concepts and your own projects.

At the end of the course, you’ll be able to test your knowledge and be directed to further sources of support and information, to unlock the potential of your own work and projects.

1 - What is copyright – principles, context and potential
2 – Working with copyright – applying from principles from Week 1 and licensing

BAFTA Research has teamed up with Creative Skillset to offer this course as part of the Visible Rights Project funded by Innovate UK.

The course will give you a practical grounding in UK copyright and the mechanisms that allow work to be seen, to develop and to create value.

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

Who is the course for?

You don’t need to have prior experience working with rights, or a specific level of education to join us. We’re going to explain UK copyright to people working with film and TV materials, who want to understand the potential of effectively using rights. Whether you’re an archivist, producer, researcher or artist interested in working with film and moving image, we welcome you to the course.

Who will you learn with?

Head of Digital Development at the Onassis Cultural Centre and a Senior Research Fellow at The Media Institute at UCL/ BBC.

Film Project Manager working for BAFTA Research. I am distilling the Visible Rights Project's aims & practical learning into the online course: Unlocking Film Rights.
www.twitter.com/annabel__always

Who developed the course?

Creative Skillset

Creative Skillset empowers the Creative Industries to develop skills and talent.

BAFTA Research

Endorsers and supporters

supported by

Film London

supported by

UCL logo

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control

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You can use the hashtag #FLcopyright to talk about this course on social media.