Legal · Intended use

These are copyrighted frames, shared for inspiration, learning, and commentary.

FrameThrower is a reference library — a place to study how films are made. We don't own these frames and we don't grant you a licence to them. We do not endorse using them as AI training or generation inputs, or reselling them downstream.

Roughly a one-minute read

Use them to

  • Study lighting, composition, colour, and blocking — the way you would in a library.
  • Build private mood boards, references, and pitch decks for your own work.
  • Teach, critique, or comment — the classic ground for fair use.

We don't endorse

  • Feeding frames into AI models as training or generation inputs.
  • Selling, licensing, or redistributing frames as if they were yours.
  • Passing any frame off as your own original work.

Your responsibility, not ours

  • We do not indemnify you for how you use these frames. Editorial use — study, critique, pitching, teaching — is the safe ground; commercial use, like ads, products, or anything you sell, needs the owner's permission and is on you.
  • Frames can also contain logos, brands, and people's faces. Those carry trademark and likeness rights of their own — separate from copyright, and not covered by fair use.
  • If you post one publicly, credit the rightful owner — film, studio, and year — and respect their rights. They made the work; the credit is theirs.
  • When the use is close to the line, ask the owner or a lawyer before you publish.

Fair use, in brief

  • U.S. law (17 U.S.C. § 107) permits limited use without permission for criticism, comment, teaching, scholarship, and research.
  • Courts weigh four factors: purpose & character of the use (is it transformative? commercial?), nature of the work, the amount used, and the effect on the market for the original.
  • Fair use is a case-by-case defence, not a guarantee — a single frame from a whole film often favours it, but nothing here decides it for you.

Common questions

  • Can I post my mood board on my website or socials?

    Yes — a mood board of references for your own project is a classic reference use. Keep it clearly a reference (not a product you sell), and credit the films where you can. Don't present the frames as your own footage.

  • Can I put these frames in a pitch deck or client presentation?

    Yes, for pitching and pre-production. Label them as reference / temp visuals from existing films, not as your final look, and credit the sources. This is the same way the industry has always used lookbooks.

  • Can I feed frames into an AI model to train it or generate images?

    No. FrameThrower isn't built for that, and we don't permit it. These are copyrighted frames we don't own — using them as training or generation inputs is a legal grey area you'd be taking on entirely yourself.

  • Can I sell something that includes these frames?

    Not the frames themselves — don't sell, license, or redistribute them. Commercial use of the underlying work needs the owner's permission, and we don't indemnify you for it. When money is involved, clear it with the rightsholder first.

  • Do I have to credit the film if I post a frame?

    Please do. If a frame is public-facing, name the film, studio, and year. Credit isn't a substitute for permission where permission is needed, but it respects the people who made the work — and that's the whole spirit of this.

This is a plain-language summary to help you use FrameThrower responsibly — it is not legal advice, and it doesn't create any licence or guarantee. For your own situation, rely on the sources above or a qualified lawyer. This summary is governed by our full Terms of Service, which control if anything here differs.

Need advice or legal support? Email us at legal@framethrower.ai.

Own a work and want a frame removed? Reach us at copyright@framethrower.ai and we'll take it down.