Paul Laurence Dunbar: Sunset

This short film is a US production from 1902, capturing the renowned African-American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar. Under the Copyright Act of 1976 and the 1998 Copyright Term Extension Act, all works published in the United States prior to January 1, 1928, have entered the public domain. This film reached the end of its maximum possible protection period decades ago. The film was produced by the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company. It is widely recognized by the Library of Congress and film historians as part of the early silent era body of work that is no longer subject to copyright restrictions. Because it predates the 1923/1928 cutoff window entirely, no search for renewal records is required for public domain determination.