Making a short film to send to NYU Tisch school of the arts.?

Question

However I really want to use "How soon is now?" by the Smiths near the ending of the film to support the moral of the movie. I really think this song can end the film with a bang. The problem is I dont really understand the rights of songs too well, and dont know whether I can use it without getting sued.

I've seen other student films which use copyrighted music but were sent to NYU Tisch, and they got accepted. I dont know whether they asked permission or not, but NYU appears to not have mind. So what I really want to know is: Can I put copyrighted songs in my film, and credit them in the credits??

Answer 1

Technically no.

Whenever you use any music you are legally obligated to obtain a license.  In your case you could obtain license/legal permission for "self-promotion" purposes.

Often times students do not obtain music rights and then are in trouble (either they have to pay for the cost to replace the songs or can't be accepted into the festival) when they get accepted to a film festival, because they don't have music rights for "film festival" purposes.

Many times amateur film makers/students use music anyway, because the likelihood of a company or artist to take legal action is a rarity.  

The equivalent example is like students who make photocopies of a book for research.  Legally, it is against the law to make photocopies of copyrighted material without permission from the publisher.  However, as a student, I'm sure that you know that many people do it anyway.  It doesn't make it right--it's just an indicator of the low percentage of persecution.

So to answer your question, legally "no," it's not "okay".  

However, asking if it's "okay" ethically is something you need to consider for yourself and your particular situation.