General Guidelines
When taking videos and photos to submit to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (“Church”) through Intellectual Reserve, Inc., or another Church-affiliated entity, please:
- Focus media content on those being served.
- Avoid (where reasonably possible) taking videos or photos that show logos, art, books, posters, or any other potentially copyrighted or trademarked material (even in the background). For example, please avoid taking videos or photos showing clothing (such as shirts, coats, hats, ties, and so forth) that has logos, corporate designs, artwork, or other trademarked or copyrighted material.
- Where possible, please avoid taking videos or photos in business establishments, such as stores, theme parks, museums, and so forth. If you do take videos or photos in a privately owned facility, such as a resort, a stadium, or the like, please complete and retain a signed Location Release, as discussed below in the “Legal Form Guidelines for Video/Photo Submissions.”
- Make sure that the videos or photos do not contain anything that would reflect poorly upon the Church or others (for example, other people, churches, businesses, and so forth).
- Fill out and retain (for at least five years) the applicable legal forms (namely, the Release to Use Image form and/or the Location Release), as discussed in the “Legal Form Guidelines for Video/Photo Submissions.”
- Submit all videos or photos electronically through the Church’s website. Everything submitted to the Church will become the Church’s property and will not be returned. Therefore, you may want to copy any video, photo, or other materials before sending them to the Church.
If you have any questions as to whether something is appropriate for use in a video or photo submission, please contact Peter Evans from the Church’s Welfare Department at 801-240-1382 or dayofservice@ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
Video Guidelines
- Keep your video to three minutes or less.
- If you use background music, please use music that is taken directly from the Church’s Music Library websites (available at publicaffairs.ChurchofJesusChrist.org and ChurchofJesusChrist.org/churchmusic; please avoid using any other background music in video submissions).
Photo Guidelines
- A maximum of five images may be uploaded.
- Please submit your best in-focus pictures.
Story Guidelines
- Keep your written story to 2,000 characters or less (approximately 350 words).
Legal Form Guidelines for Video/Photo Submissions
Along with each photo or video that you submit to the Church, there are two legal forms that may need to be completed. If, after reviewing the following instructions, you believe that your video or photo requires that either of the two forms be completed, then please ensure that the applicable form or forms are properly completed and that you retain a copy of those forms for at least five years. If, at some future date, the Church has a need to review the legal forms, then the Church will contact you and request a copy of the applicable forms. A brief description of these forms and an explanation of who should complete the forms are given below.
This form allows the Church to use photos and videos of the person who signs the form.
This form should be signed by:
- Anyone who is personally interviewed or who is the specific focus of a video or photo that is being submitted to the Church. If the person who is interviewed or who is the focus is a minor at the time this form is signed, then that person’s parent or legal guardian should sign the form.
However, where photos or videos are either (a) of a group of people and do not focus on one person individually or (b) are not submitted to the Church, then no one in the group needs to sign this form.
This form allows the Church to use videos or photos that are taken in privately owned places (such as resorts, stadiums, and the like).
This form should be completed by:
- The manager or director of the privately owned place where videos or photos are taken—as long as those videos or photos are submitted to the Church.
However, if the videos or photos were only taken in a Church member’s home, on Church-owned property, or in a natural setting (such as a forest, lake, mountain, or the like), this form does not need to be signed by anyone.
