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University Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

How to Find Media

Use this guide to find and utilize media sources.

Public Performance Rights

Only items for which we have been granted public performance rights can be shown to groups other than for face-to-face instruction as part of the regular institutional curriculum.

When viewing a record in the online catalog, look for the "Terms Governing Use and Reproduction" field under the "Location Items" section.

  • If the Terms Governing Use and Reproduction field shows "Personal viewing or face-to-face teaching exemption only," we do not have any public performance rights for that item. To show this item to a group, you would need to obtain a license for each performance. A large licensing company is Swank Motion Pictures.
  • If the Terms Governing Use and Reproduction field shows just "Public Performance Rights," this can be shown to groups, so long as no admission is charged. If there is anything more after "Public Performance Rights," it will specify further restrictions.
  • If there is no Terms Governing Use and Reproduction field displayed, please email mediaorders@library.illinois.edu to ask for a rights search. Please include the title and complete call number from the catalog record.

*Media items from the library's collection may never be used in any setting in which admission is charged or for any commercial purposes. Public performance rights differ significantly from digital rights, so please note that items for which the library has public performance rights may not include the ability to reformat or distribute electronically. Duplication is also prohibited.

Copyright Questions?

If you have specific questions about film or other types of copyright, see the Library's Copyright Reference Guide or contact the Copyright Librarian, Sara Benson, at srbenson@illinois.edu.