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Stock footage in showreel?
Hello all!
I’m just developing a new showreel an my dilemma is more an ethical one- i did a project a while ago for a big client, but most of it was done from stock footage. However they weren’t just cut clips, i did a few cool things to them, and obviously the stock footage was bought and paid for. Seeing as I edited them together, do you think it would be unwise/ unethical to use the stock footage in my showreel, because it still demonstrates my cutting ability? Or should I simply not use this project at all in the showreel?😀
Tom Morter-Laing
Certified Apple Product Proffessional, 2010
Production Assistant, Grace Productions
Degree; TV Production -
1 Reply
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If the purpose of your demo reel is to demonstrate your editing abilities, then I would think it would be wholly appropriate — even advantageous — to use stock footage. After all, if you can take stock footage and make it interesting/exciting then you can pretty much conquer the world! (Only half-joking.) 😉
Think about it — editors don’t shoot footage, they ingest what others provide them and it’s their job to cut it into something useful, which is exactly what your reel demonstrates. You might go one step further and note the stock footage libraries you used at the end of your reel. But use your editing skills and make THAT interesting/exciting as well.
Good luck!
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