How to License Music for a Festival Film

You’re about to send your film to festivals, or you’ve just been accepted. Sooner or later the question comes: is the music actually cleared?

Often the honest answer is “partly.” The music may be cleared for the festival screening, but not for what comes after it: a streaming deal, a broadcast sale, a theatrical run. Having worked with filmmakers on music licensing, I’ve seen some expensive mistakes happen in that gap.

Most indie festival films get their music in one of three ways: a commercial song licensed for the festival run, a music library, or a composer. Each can work for a festival, and each needs a different check before distribution. Here’s what to look for.

Two rights in every recording

Every piece of recorded music carries two separate copyrights. The composition (the written music, plus any lyrics) is cleared with a sync license, and the recording itself with a master license. You need both, and buying the track on a CD or from iTunes gives you neither. A library or a composer usually grants both in one license. A commercial song usually means two deals, with the publisher and the label. If you commission a score, the composer agreement decides who owns the music and which uses your film gets, so make sure it reaches past festivals.

Commercial songs: a festival-only license is a legitimate plan

Licensing a song for the festival run only is common, and often sensible. Festival rights cost far less than full rights, and many labels and publishers won’t quote distribution fees until a film actually has distribution. Many indie films play festivals with a song and replace it if a distributor picks them up. A festival license isn’t a half measure; it may be exactly what your film needs right now.

The point is to plan for that rather than discover it. A festival license won’t carry over to distribution, and its fee usually can’t be credited toward a later license. So ask the rights holders up front what broader rights would cost, or whether they’ll agree on fees for later uses now (a “step deal”). And cut the scene so it could survive a swap: if the song is the scene, replacing it means a re-edit, not just a re-mix.

Library music: five questions to ask your license

For licensed music, as opposed to a commissioned score, most indie films lean on music libraries, and library licenses differ more than most filmmakers expect. I compared the current terms of several of the largest, and the differences are significant. Here’s what to check.

1. Does it cover festival screenings?

Don’t assume it does. Among the libraries I read:

• One covers independent films at festivals – only when both the film and the festival are non-commercial. Anything bigger goes to its enterprise plan.
• Another’s mid-level plan covers “short films submitted to film festivals,” and says nothing about features. If yours is a feature, ask.
• A third says a subscription download isn’t the way to enter festivals at all. It wants a custom license built around your project.

A license doesn’t have to mention festivals by name to cover them; some are simply written broadly enough to include them. If you can’t tell, ask the library to confirm in writing before you submit. Students should also ask about student plans: TuneReel, for example, offers free music for film students that covers festival screenings, with a credit in your film. Like any festival-level license, though, it won’t cover the film once it reaches distribution; that takes an upgrade.

2. When does coverage stop?

Picture’s locked, you’ve canceled the subscription, and the premiere is three months away. Is the music still covered? Usually, but it can hang on one word. Some licenses require the film to be completed while you’re subscribed; others require it to be published. A festival film often isn’t public until its premiere, so a “published” condition can catch you in that gap.

Picture lock also isn’t the end of a film’s versions. A distributor may want a shorter cut, a new trailer, or a broadcast edit. One library’s license says that once your subscription ends, you can’t use its tracks to create “any new versions” of a production. Keep the subscription until the versions are settled, or check what your license says about re-edits.

3. What counts as distribution?

You’ve spent years on the film, the festival run goes well, and a streaming service makes an offer. This is the moment a festival-level license stops being enough. Streaming, TV and a commercial theatrical run are all distribution, and that includes free, ad-supported services like Tubi. Several of the libraries I read leave all three out of every plan except their top, custom-priced tier. Posting the film free on your own YouTube or Vimeo channel usually isn’t distribution, but check your license’s definition.

The mistake I see is nobody upgrading the license before the release. The film is then outside its license, the distributor is the one who’ll ask for proof, and at worst a cue has to come out of a finished film.

Before you pay for broader rights, ask the distributor exactly what it needs. Some want every cue cleared for all media, worldwide, in perpetuity; others accept less. Don’t buy the broadest license because it sounds safest. Buy the rights your film needs.

4. Where, and for how long?

“Perpetual” and “worldwide” aren’t a given. One library’s single-use broadcast and streaming license runs three months in one territory unless you pay for more. A festival run is often international and a streaming release can last years, so make sure the territory and the term are written down, and that they match where your film is going.

5. Can you upgrade, and will the track still be there?

Upgrading starts with an email to the library. Explain the film, its budget and where it’s going. In our experience, small projects that explain their situation get flexibility on price, and it’s easier to negotiate before a distributor is waiting rather than after.

Tracks can also leave a catalog. Licenses already bought stay valid, but some libraries, TuneReel included, may not be able to upgrade a track that’s been removed. If you expect streaming, license for it up front. If an upgrade isn’t possible, treat the cue like a song you can’t clear: replace it before delivery, and leave time for the re-mix.

Keep the paperwork distributors and insurers ask for

Keep two things together from the start:

• The license agreement for every cue, naming the track and your film. Library licenses are usually tied to one project, so a license for a different film doesn’t count.
• A music cue sheet: each cue’s title, composer, publisher, timings and how it’s used (background, featured, main title). When the film is screened or broadcast, collecting societies such as PRS for Music in the UK and ASCAP or BMI in the US use it to work out which composers and publishers to pay, so keep it accurate.

If a distributor picks up the film, you’ll likely be asked for errors and omissions (E&O) insurance. E&O applications commonly ask whether the music’s sync, recording, and performing rights are cleared, and your license agreements and cue sheet are how you answer. Missing clearances can hold up the policy and the deal behind it.

A checklist before your festival run

• Every cue has a license agreement that names your film.
• Each license covers festival screenings, and you’ve checked its limits (eg. non-commercial festivals only, shorts only).
• Any festival-only song license is noted, with a plan: an upgrade quote or a replacement.
• You know whether coverage depends on finishing or publishing the film while subscribed, and what happens to re-cuts after you cancel.
• The territory and the term are in writing.
• Your cue sheet is done, and required credits are in the end crawl.
• You know what each cue needs for streaming, broadcast, or theatrical release, and who to contact to upgrade.

Your film may be ready for its first festival screening. Make sure its music is ready for whatever comes next: sorting it out before a distributor calls can save you money, time, and a painful re-edit.

For more on reading the contract itself, see Raindance’s guide to navigating music licensing for film.

This article is general information, not legal advice. If you have a distribution deal, check your music with your distributor or an entertainment lawyer.

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