Performance of or Showing Films in the classroom"...the Copyright Act actually provides a straightforward answer: the Act contains a specific exception for the performance of works such as films in the classroom.
17 U.S.C. § 110(1) permits “the performance or display of a work by instructors or pupils in the course of face-to-face teaching activities of a nonprofit educational institution, in a classroom or similar place devoted to instruction….” It applies to showing of entire films, and also to those that involve less extensive clips from one or several sources. Noteworthy limitations-- it applies only to face-to face teaching activities, not distance education. The exception applies only to the showing of films in physical classrooms or similar places devoted to instruction, and not in remote locations. The key question is where the film will be viewed by the class, not where the physical copy is located. The exception does not apply when the instructor knowingly shows an unlawful copy of a film.
However, the exception still applies if the instructor reasonably believes that she is showing a fair use copy of a film.
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