Virgin Sacrifice

Virgin Sacrifice (1959) is a film shot in Guatemala by Pan-American Productions and distributed in the United States by various independent outfits, including Revere Film Corporation. Under the US copyright law for films released between 1928 and 1963, copyright protection was contingent upon a valid initial registration and a subsequent renewal filed in the 28th year. A search of the Stanford Copyright Renewal Database and the Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries (CCE) yields no record of a copyright renewal for this title. Furthermore, there is no evidence that an initial registration was ever performed for this specific production. While foreign works can have their copyrights restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA), restoration only applies if the work was still under copyright in its home country (Guatemala) on the date of restoration (January 1, 1996). However, the film is widely documented as being in the public domain by various reputable sources and is frequently featured in 'Public Domain' film collections (such as those from Alpha Video or Mill Creek Entertainment) and on the Internet Archive without takedowns. The lack of any renewal or registration record for a minor 1950s production typically results in public domain status in the US.