Public Domain
Häxan
1922 · Alsvensk Film · Dir. Benjamin Christensen
Grave robbing, torture, possessed nuns, and a satanic Sabbath: Benjamin Christensen's legendary film uses a series of dramatic vignettes to explore the scientific hypothesis that the witches of the Middle Ages suffered the same hysteria as turn-of-the-century psychiatric patients. But the film itself is far from serious-- instead it's a witches' brew of the scary, gross, and darkly humorous.
Confidence
95
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
Häxan (also known as Witchcraft Through the Ages) is a silent film released in late 1922 in Stockholm, Sweden. Under the rule that all works published before January 1, 1928, are now in the public domain in the United States, this film is definitively public domain regardless of its renewal status or country of origin.
While the film was a foreign production, works from this era entered the public domain in the US prior to the enactment of the URAA (GATT) restorations if they were published before 1928. Because it passed the 95-year threshold for corporate authorship/publication before the copyright extensions could apply to it, there is no active US copyright protection. This status is further confirmed by its wide availability via public domain distributors and the Internet Archive.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- U.S. Copyright Office - Circular 15a (Duration of Copyright)
- IMDb - Häxan (1922) release info
- Internet Archive - Häxan (1922)
- Silent Era - Häxan database entry
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.