Film Australia today announced the continuation of the Zero Fee Licensing (ZFL) initiative, following it’s success since being launched in July 2006.
The initiative is a part of Film Australia’s ongoing commitment to increasing production opportunities for the Australian documentary sector, through licensing up to ten minutes of material in which Film Australia wholly owns or manages copyright on behalf of the Australian Government to Australian independent documentary producers without charging a licence fee.
Since being launched 12 months ago, ZFL has been received favourably in the independent sector with 41 documentary filmmakers using both footage and stills drawn from Film Australia’s unique audio-visual record of Australia’s social history.
Productions that have utilized ZFL include The Fibros and the Silvertails (Filmcamp Pty Ltd), Vote Yes for Aborigines (Denise Haslem Productions), The Greatest Australian Albums (Mushroom Pictures), Vivian Bullwinkle (Waterbyrd Filmz Production Group Pty Ltd), Cattle Drive (Becker Entertainment) and Not All Tea and Scones (Purple Pictures).
ZFL will continue to employ the same guidelines for usage, providing up to ten minutes of fee-free footage, plus up to 40 stills from the Film Australia collection, per documentary.
The initiative applies to Australian documentary producers where a project:
– has an Australian free-to-air or pay television pre-sale, or
– has funding from the AFC, FFC or state funding bodies, or
– has a letter of interest from a broadcaster or funding body, or
– is made by an accredited film student at an Australian education institution, or
– is made by a member of SPAA or ASDA.
The initiative is designed to support independent documentary in Australia and, as such, other forms of production are not eligible for the fee waiver, including drama, advertising, news and current affairs, internet, exhibitions, retail products and broadcasters’ inhouse productions.
The rights licensed, fee-free, will be for worldwide free-to-air, pay TV and theatre for ten years, with online rights for promotion of the production. Research and handling charges for transferred material will still apply.
The Film Australia archive is a unique heritage collection of film, video, stills and sound recordings, which dates back to the turn of the 20th century. Documentary makers can access details of the zero-fee licensing agreement or make an enquiry through the Film Australia website at www.filmaust.com.au/library.
[release from Avviso PR for Film Australia]