Public Domain
The Brave Hunter
1912 · Independent Moving Pictures Co. of America (IMP) · Dir. Mack Sennett
Here it is nice to see Sennett playing a different character than his usual hillbilly lover. Sennett looks quite dashing as the big game hunter. He's quite comically cowardly when the real big game shows up. Mabel is so calm and natural with the bear that she appears like a goddess or other worldly creature. She acts as if she's doing the scene with a cat or dog.
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The film 'The Brave Hunter' was released in 1912 by the Independent Moving Pictures Company (IMP). As a motion picture published before January 1, 1928, it has entered the public domain in the United States regardless of its registration or renewal status. Under current US copyright law, the maximum term of protection for works published before 1978 was 95 years from publication, but all works published before 1928 have since expired.
Secondary databases such as the AFI Catalog of Feature Films and IMDb confirm the existence of this short film produced by Carl Laemmle's IMP studio. Because it predates the 1928 cutoff, there is no need to query the Stanford Renewal Database or the Library of Congress for renewal filings, as any potential copyright has legally lapsed by operation of law.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.