Using visual sources in print and/or videoa

What is the name of your state? (This is going to be an international publication, probably printed in the UK or Canada)

...so, assuming that this is an inernational copyright issue, here's my conundrum:

Our human rights NGO is about to publish a booklet, the text of which deals with historical matters, and all the written work is properly cited, of course. The issue is one of pictures and photographs. In our infromal presentations of the material we have incorporated centuries-old reproductions of paintings (now housed in various museums, and we found them in art books) as well as photographs from the 1920s-1950s (also in already published books)...

so, who do I need to contact to obtain permission (if at all) to use these visuals (art & photos)???

The second part of my question is that we want to then make this work into a video/film format...are there different laws for that? So far we we thinking of filming the images themselves as they appear in the books - is this an infringement? (This is NGO work, but because the material will also be for sale, I can't say that it is exclusively 'non-profit' or 'teaching' materials). Do we need to seek permission from museums that house the materials, publishing houses (some of which are now defunct), or the authors of the books we have consulted?

Thirdly...we are publishing this work as an international network, which spans North America, Europe, Africa and Asia...are we bound by a single country's laws? (I'm asking here because US law seems to be pretty standard, but I'm not sure...) Is there an international law which governs this sort of thing?

Whew, that's it...sorry so many questions, but I would be grateful if someone could even address a few of these issues.

Thanks!

do the words "Used by permission of....." have any meaning?

Since the reproductions you wish to use come from a copyrighted source, the book, then get permission. And that goes for ANY form

A couple of other things.

"so, who do I need to contact to obtain permission (if at all) to use these visuals (art & photos)???"

If the art is really "centuries old" then you would simply need permission from the photographers to use their pictures. Or you could go the museums and take your own pictures.

"The second part of my question is that we want to then make this work into a video/film format...are there different laws for that?"

Generally yes, but the fact that you will need permission to reproduce and use a copyrighted work does not change.

"So far we we thinking of filming the images themselves as they appear in the books - is this an infringement? (This is NGO work, but because the material will also be for sale, I can't say that it is exclusively 'non-profit' or 'teaching' materials). Do we need to seek permission from museums that house the materials, publishing houses (some of which are now defunct), or the authors of the books we have consulted?"

Even if it were "nonprofit" or for teaching, you would still need permission. Just because a work is nonprofit does not mean that you don't need permission to use the works -- certainly a for profit work is more likely to be found infringing (as opposed to a "fair use") than a nonprofit work, but there are other factors that come into play in determining fair use beyond profits. There are some exceptions for use in a teaching environment, but the exceptions are somewhat limited, and likely wouldn't extend beyond use in a classroom, and certainly wouldn't include republishing a work.

"Thirdly...we are publishing this work as an international network, which spans North America, Europe, Africa and Asia...are we bound by a single country's laws?"

Well, that depends. The way copyright law works (in those countries that have signed onto the Berne conventions, which is most developed countries) is that each country will apply their own laws to any copyrighted work originating in a country that is also a Berne signatory. So, if you publish in Canada but sell the work in the U.S., in Canada you will be subject to Canadian law, and you copyright will be Canadian in origin. The copies sold in the U.S. will also have a Canadian copyright (unless you were to also register your copyright in the U.S.) but will be subject to U.S. law. However, even in the U.S. (unless you register a seperate copyright in the U.S.) the term of the copyright, for instance, will be based on Canadian law, and not U.S. law (unless the U.S. law allows for longer copyright durations, than the U.S. law would apply, but only in the U.S. The copyright can be expired in one country but still in force in another country). As you can see, this gets pretty complicated.

"(I'm asking here because US law seems to be pretty standard, but I'm not sure...)"

No, U.S. law is not standard. There is a standard "framework" of laws (the Berne convention) that provides some minimum standards for copyright protections, but beyond those minimums, each country can set there own terms. As an example, the U.S. copyright laws do not recognize "moral rights" for authors, while virtually all other countries do recognize moral rights. Moral rights are the rights an author has to keep his work "his" even after selling the rights to another -- basically this covers rights of attribution and the right to not change the work into something that misrepresents the author in some way. In the U.S., copyright law doesn't touch on moral rights -- only trademark law provides a limited similar protection in the U.S. And that is just one example.

"Is there an international law which governs this sort of thing?"

No. As I noted before, the Berne convention "harmonizes" copyright laws to a certain extent, but the laws are NOT the same country to country, and you are subject to the national laws of each country that you might do business in. There is TRIPS, which is part of GATT, which covers international IP protections, but this only affects countries doing business with one another, and not individuals.

Basically, what you are going to need to do is what oberauerdorf originally -- you will need the permission of each copyright holder whose work you are going to use.