Question concerning copyrights

[ArthurLovat]

Hello,

I'm working on a Hong-Kong-action-style one-shot for Savage Worlds and I planned to use a lot of pictures to illustrate the action.

My plan is to take screen-captures from movies and use them at appropriate moments (e.g. big building goes BOOM -> "Die Hard"-Nakatomi-Plaza-picture).

If I played my scenario privately, offline, I could use those screenshots without problems, but due to the online-nature of FG2, I ask myself if I can do this.

The images would be used in a closed campaign, visible only to players. And since you can't save images sent by the GM, it should be fine.
I'm not planning on making the pictures available in module-form.

So, what do you think?

[unerwünscht]

The technical answer is it would be a copyright violation.

However, there have been many court battles fought over people using one frame from a movie and it falling under fair use as it does not degrade the value of the original work. Further as you will not profit from the project it would also go to help your case out.

The fact that you are only planning on using it in a closed game seals the deal. You will be fine.

[ArthurLovat]

Thanks, unerwünscht!
I will do it, because it's just so much fun! ^_^