The licence holder of a film is most usually the films’ UK distributor. Many films, from many different distributors, are available through what are known as ‘gateway distributors’. The major ones in the UK are
Filmbankmedia
BFI
MPLC
* 1 – Find out who the Licence holder may be
Try the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) or search on imdb.com
* 2 – Confirming the Licence Holder (Gateway UK Distributors)
A list of which catalogues Gateway Distributors represent can be found in our FAQ, along with their contact details.
Contact details for individual distributors can be found on the ICO website here
* 3 – If the film doesn’t have a UK Distributor
Locate the production company or funding body using imdb.com
* 4 – If the UK Distributor no longer exists
Contact the Independent Cinema Office (ICO) or the BFI to see if they can help. For foreign language films it is advisable to contact individual consulates in the UK – see below for some suggestions.
For a detailed walk through we will follow the steps for following films:
1) Mamma Mia (Phyllida Lloyd, 2008)
2) Antichrist (Lars von Trier, 2009)
3) Comrades (Bill Douglas, 1986)
4) The Princess and the Frog (Ron Clements and John Musker, 2009)
5) Sexy Beast (Jonthan Glazer, 2000)
6) XXY (Lucia Puenzo, 2007)
7) One Hundred Mornings (Conor Horgan, 2009)
* 1 – Find out who the Licence holder may be:
Start by searching for the title on the BBFC. Every film screening in cinemas or available to buy on DVD has to be passed for exhibition by the BBFC, and the distributor who submits the film for certification is the licence holder at the time of submission, so this is the good place to start.
Once you’ve searched by title you’ll notice several versions (listings of different films, varying running times, and additional material listings). Click on the most recent date entry listed as video/film.
Clicking on the title you will be taken through to a list of versions and companies submitted. Again look for the most recent and the video/film type:
1) Mamma Mia – Universal Pictures Int UK
2) Antichrist – Artificial Eye Film Co.
3) Comrades – the most recent entry of 2009 was submitted by BFI (British Film Institute)
4) The Princess and the Frog – Buena Vista Home Entertainment
5) Sexy Beast – Although not the most recent, Film Four Distributors should be the one we look at first as they have submitted both film and video versions.
6) XXY – Peccadillo Pictures
7) One Hundred Mornings – is not listed – this will be addressed later on in 3.
imdb.com sometimes lists the UK distributors of a title, so this is also worth checking.
* 2 – Confirming the Licence Holder (Gateway Distributors)
So the companies we think are the licence holders we need are: Universal Pictures, Artificial Eye, BFI, Buena Vista and Film Four.
Part-time Cinema Space (Art Centre / Multi-purpose Venue / Film Society / Community Group): If you are not a permanent cinema you will most likely go through a Gateway Distributor who manage the licences of a number of individual distribution libraries. For the contact details for the licence holders we are looking for, visit the pages on the ICO – contacts for booking on DVD.
Using the ICO’s page you will notice:
1) Universal are handled by Filmbank – for Mamma Mia
2) Artificial Eye are handled by the BFI – for Antichrist
3) BFI handle their own – for Comrades
6) Peccadillo handle their own – for XXY
Both Buena Vista and Film Four are not mentioned. For these, take a look at our FAQ on Gateway Distributors and their libraries. You will find the following information:
4) Buena Vista is handled by Filmbank, MPLC – for The Princess and the Frog
5) Film Four is handled by Park Circus – for Sexy Beast
You should then search the online catalogues to confirm these titles are available, and then book them (be sure to find out whether the screening copy will be supplied or whether you have to supply your own):
A) Filmbank can licence both 1) Mamma Mia and 4) The Princess and the Frog.
B) MPLC can licence 4) The Princess and the Frog
C) BFI can licence both 2) Antichrist and 3) Comrades
D) Park Circus can licence 5) Sexy Beast.
E) Peccadillo can licence 6) XXY
Permanent Cinema Space: If you are operating a permanent cinema you may approach the individual distributor direct for a licence as opposed to going through the Gateway Distributor. For contact details go to the Film Distributors page on the ICO (Independent Cinema Office) website here
* 3 – If the film doesn’t have a UK Distributor
If you could not find the film you’re after via the BBFC it could be because the film has not got a UK Distributor. This may be the case if you are trying to screen a film you have seen at a Festival, or watched abroad. If this is the case you should look at imdb.com to try and locate a production company or sales agent.
7) One Hundred Mornings is listed here. Scroll down to the ‘Additional Details’ box and click to see more information about the companies. The companies you should look for are the production company, or the national funder. In this case you should search for contact details of both Blinder Films and the Irish Film Board.
If you cannot find these details you should contact the Festival to see if they can forward your email onto their contacts for the film.
* 4 – If the UK Distributor no longer exists
If the film is listed on the BBFC but you cannot locate the company listed there, nor find any reference in the online catalogues of the Gateway Distributors, then it may mean that the film cannot be licenced (and there are a lot of titles like this).
You can contact the (ICO) or the BFI to see if they are able to help source the licence holder – but it can be the case that even if you are able to buy the film on DVD you are not able to licence it for a screening.
If the film you are looking for is from a particular country, the following organisations may be able to help:
Goethe-Institut (Germany)
Institut Francais (France)
Consulate General of Japan in Edinburgh