Licensing and Distribution Considerations

Contributors

  • If you will have actors, videographers, editors, or any other contributors who collaborate in the creation of the film, please provide their e-mail addresses to your project editor. We will ask contributors to sign a work release form, and this will help us to build our credit screen.

Third-party Content

  • Original and non-original images, pre-published video clips, or non-original audio should be reviewed and approved by Cognella for inclusion before filming. Please track these types of third-party resources in an image, video, or audio log and provide this to your project editor before filming. This step is important to ensure your video content is available for release to the national and larger markets and will reduce the chance that content will need to be edited or rerecorded. The following links to Cognella resources will help you to select third-party content from approved resources.
  • Software: Please let your Active Learning project editor know if you plan to include or show any software programs in your recordings, such as Excel, SPSS, or other proprietary programs. This includes non-essential pieces in the background, such as a PowerPoint logo or toolbar ribbon. The use of any software in a recording must meet fair use standards for inclusion in a recording. Share a sample with your Active Learning project editor. In many cases, you can feature these programs if they are incorporated in a way that meets necessary editorial critique standards.

Backgrounds

  • Please use a plain-colored or blurred background for individual speakers and interview settings. Do not include any visible artwork or third-party images in the background.
  • Use a plain-colored background or the Cognella template for screen presentations that include slides. Slideshow backgrounds, such as those found on PowerPoint or Canva, are not freely available for commercial republication at this time. Your project editor can provide you with the Cognella PowerPoint template if you would like to use this.

Duplicate Versions

  • Because we are publishing your video content under the Cognella imprint, we ask that your videos be exclusive to your textbook package with Cognella. Please remove any duplicated versions that are publicly available online, such as through video-streaming channels like YouTube, personal websites, or your university.

Preparing Content for Adopting Instructors

  • Original videos will be offered as resources for other professors who adopt your textbook package. To ensure videos are useful in multiple courses, we recommend keeping video content broad enough for use in classes other than those you teach. Avoid references to specific universities, names or codes of terms and courses, assignment requirements, due dates, or other course-specific content.
  • If you are filming a screencast, consider an audio-only approach instead of embedding your web camera into the recording.