A Dash Through the Clouds

A Dash Through the Clouds (1912) is a historic American short film directed by Mack Sennett and starring Mabel Normand. It is notable for featuring early aviation footage with pilot Philip Parmelee. Under US copyright law, all works published or registered before January 1, 1928, have entered the public domain. Because this film was released in 1912, its maximum possible copyright term expired many decades ago. Specifically, films of this era were subject to a 28-year initial term and a 28-year renewal term (56 years total), meaning it would have entered the public domain in 1968 even if it had been renewed. As per current law, the 1928 cutoff is the definitive boundary for public domain status in the United States.