If I&#39;m the director of photography for a project, does the production company need a model release from me if I film myself in the project?
<p>I am the DP (director of photography) on a streaming TV show filmed in New York state.  I am not employed by the production company, but rather work as a contractor with them.  The production company gets model releases for all the actors and actresses that play roles in the show.  I ended up playing a bit part in the show as a news camera man that I personally captured the scene using an aerial camera while I was in shot.  </p>

<p>This brought up an interesting legal question for me.  Does the production company need a model release for my appearing in the show or does my DP agreement already cover it through my transfer of copyright ownership?  As I understand it, as the cameraman, owner of the production equipment being used and the individual making the artistic decisions about the photography, the footage inherently is my copyright, which is then transferred automatically to the production company by contract.  Since I am filming myself, it would seem to imply consent to be filmed.  I'm unsure, however, if this consent would transfer along with the copyright or not.</p>

<p><strong>Copyright and Model Releases are separate legal concepts</strong></p>

<p>Copyright belongs to the "author" of a "literary" work - the person(s) who first fixed the the work in permanent form (or possibly not - copyright in spoken words is possible in some jurisdictions). For a product of multiple authors (like a film) they are each an author for the purposes of copyright. Producers, directors, camera operators, cinematographers, sound technicians, screenwriters, editors, actors etc. are all authors of a film.</p>

<p>A Model release is a different creature entirely - it is permission from the subject of a photo, video or sound recording to use their likeness for commercial purposes. They will need one of these.</p>

copyright right-of-publicity