University officials are considering changes to SUU's Student Services procedure governing the screening of films on campus.
Vice President of Student Services Donna Eddleman cited examples of copyright violations by various groups and organizations on campus, including the university itself.
The latest incident involved the SUU Cinematheque Club and its attempt to show the film Snatch, said the club's advisor Robert Ogie, Student Support Center administrative secretary.
"We screened two films this semester, on the third we got busted," he said.
Ogie said he did not know the club was violating any laws until he received an e-mail from Student Involvement & Leadership Office Manager Deniece Allred on Sept. 19 asking him to cancel the showing of Snatch.
In the e-mail, Allred also informed Ogie that all further movie screenings were suspended until further notice.
In a Sept. 24 SUUSA Executive Council meeting, Eddleman said SUU has been violating federal copyright laws by allowing clubs and organizations to show films on campus without obtaining proper permission or fulfilling specific criteria for educational screenings.
Some individual students had been renting movies and showing them at the theatre in the Sharwan Smith Center, also in violation of copyright laws, she said.
In a draft proposal distributed to members of student government, university officials and relevant club leaders, Eddleman laid out her plans for clarifying and updating a procedure for film screenings.
The procedure will only affect clubs, organizations and individual students under Student Services, not instructors and their classes, Eddleman said.
It is illegal to publicly show movies and other copyrighted materials without permission from the copyright owners, she said.
Buying the right to show a film publicly can be pricey, with a license to show a film costing up to $700 to $1,000, Ogie said
Copyrighted materials may be shown without a license for educational purposes under specific circumstances, according to the proposed procedure.
At this point no clubs on campus meet all the criteria for being allowed to show movies without paying for the right to do so, Eddleman said.
Ogie said teachers may show movies for classes as long as the film is an official part of the syllabus and only students enrolled in the course view the film.
Cinematheque Club President Alexei Djalagonia has approached Associate Professor of Theatre Arts Richard Bugg about the possibility of combining the club's efforts with Bugg's class, Introduction to Film, Ogie said.
Eddleman's proposal is a "good policy," Djalagonia said.
The new procedure will allow the screening of R-rated films without prior permission from the director of Student Activities and the Sharwan Smith Center building manager, as required in the current procedure
"As a state school we really need to balance the educational value of some R-rated films with the inherent values of the university," Eddleman said.
To not acknowledge the balance between free speech and the personal beliefs or opinions of students on campus is na've, she said.
"You have to consider everything," she said.
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