Can we use "The Lovely Bones"?

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I have another question, I am at a filmmaker meeting:

A friend wants to shoot a film where she references the book The Lovely Bones.

The story surrounds the book, and talks about the book, but does not go into what the book concerns or what the book is about. Basically, it is more about the reaction the characters have to the book.

The question is whether or not to be able to show the actual book. Can she do that? Should she do it or avoid the issue altogether? What happens if she just uses the book? What are the alternatives?

Thanks again! Lots of ideas come out at filmmaker meetings :D

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She cannot show the book without obtaining permission from the publisher of the edition being shown. Publishing houses typically have "Permissions" departments that are set up to deal with those requests, and there is usually a fee involved, though I'm not sure how much. (My first job out of college was with a major publishing firm. That's the way I remember it.)
 
My suggestion to her was to come up with a mock-up of the book, something that maybe resembled the book and use it instead of the actual book. She could get away with that couldn't she?


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Maybe. I don't know about that one. If the title of the book is visible and identifiable in the shot, it may still be an issue. My suggestion would still be to call the publishing company, ask for the permissions department, and explain that you want to make a simple mock up of a book jacket with a title of one of their books on it (to be used as a prop in a video project), and then ask if it is acceptable for you to use the book title on a cover that they did not create.
 
I think that is what she's doing.

The mock up I suggested was a book with the same color cover and a different title that might pass for The Lovely Bones if looked at quickly, but not if given close scrutiny. Point being to fool the eye but not to violate any copyright laws...


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