UCC Film Society Constitution

Constitution of the UCC Film Society

1.0 General

1.1​ The title of this society shall be ​ UCC Film Society​ , hereafter referred to as ​ the Society​ .

1.2​ The aim of the Society is: • To provide an outlet for students and staff to learn and create using the medium of film.

1.3​ The objectives of the Society are: ­To give students and staff the opportunity to learn new film making skills that would otherwise be prohibitively costly or simply not available to many people due to location etc. ­To provide a forum where students may come together and interact on a creative and social level. ­To put these skills to use through the production of original cinematic production hereinafter referred to as Society Productions. ­To promote these films and enter them into Competition. ­To share an appreciation of film & television (i.e. all video media) through screenings and talks from professionals and invited speakers throughout the year.

1.4​ There shall be one class of membership: Ordinary membership of the Society shall be available to all current University students and staff.

1.5​ If a Member of the Society is deemed by a two thirds [2/3] majority vote by the committee to have brought the Society into ill­repute, they may be expelled from the Society.

Any eligible person shall become a member of the Society on signing their name to the official membership list of the Society as maintained by the secretary of the society.

The assumption of membership by a Member of the Society to the Society shall automatically result in that Member of the Society indemnifying the Society from all legal liability that could otherwise arise, as a consequence of that society misbehaving, defaming others, breaking copyright laws or otherwise breaking the laws of the state.

1.6​ The Society committee may appoint anywhere between 0­3 Honorary Life Members, or HLMs, of the Society each year. These HLMs will be recorded in the society’s records. They will not be entitled to vote at general meetings of the society, but shall be entitled to attend society events. The purpose of being appointed as a HLM of the Society is to recognise the substantial contribution the person in question has made to the society. HLMs will be appointed at a general meeting of the society.

2.0 The Committee

2.1​ The committee shall be elected solely from the ordinary members. It shall be composed of the following officials;

• Auditor • Treasurer • Secretary • Public Relations Officer • Events Officer • Equipment Officer • Webmaster • Productions Officer • The Network Representative • Special Projects Officer • First Year Rep • Film & Screen Media BA Rep • Ex­Officio

It may also include the following officials to aid in the operation of the society: • OCM (x2) • Archivist

2.2​ The number of committee members elected shall be decided upon at a General Meeting of the Society.

2.3​ The position of Ex­Officio will be assumed by the outgoing Auditor after the Society AGM. In the situation where the outgoing Auditor does not wish to or cannot fulfill the position, the Ex­Officio will be appointed by the out­going Society committee.

2.4​ Two Committee positions may be combined by a simple majority vote.

2.5​ In addition to the above committee, a sub­committee may be established to aid the society committee in the organization & running of certain events or for a specific purpose. Once this event/purpose has been fulfilled, the sub­committee will be dissolved. At least one society committee member must be on a sub­committee. In the event of a sub­committee being established to deal with the operation & production of ‘The Network’, the sub­committee shall be chaired by the Network Representative.

3.0 Election of Officials

3.1​ The method of election shall be by simple majority vote at a General Meeting of the Society.

3.2​ Members of the committee may resign by giving one week’s written notice to the Secretary, or in the case of the Secretary, to the Auditor.

3.3​ In the event of a tied vote, the Auditor shall have the casting vote.

3.4​ In the case of a vacancy on the Committee due to resignation, the Committee shall have the power to reallocate the position by interview, in keeping with the Societies’ Guild rules and regulations (Auditor, Finance, Secretary and PRO must be elected by general meeting).

3.5​ The election of the First Year Representative shall be held at the EGM in the first term of each academic year.

3.6​ The position of Archivist shall be assumed by a current Society committee member as a role in addition to their existing Committee office. It shall be elected by the committee following the First Term EGM. Election shall be by secret ballot, or if agreed to by all candidates, show of hands. If no current committee member wishes to fulfill this position, the Society Committee has the option to Co­Opt a Society Member as an additional Ordinary Committee Member, whose responsibilities shall chiefly be the ones of the Archivist, as defined in Article 4.13.

3.7​ In order to be elected to the position of Auditor, one must already have been on the Society Committee for one year, or have the support of at least two current committee members. In the absence of any suitable candidate under the above conditions, the position will become open to all ordinary members of the society.

3.8​ The Film & Screen Media BA Rep shall be a representative elected by the first year class of the BA in Film & Screen Media. This election should be carried out by the society on behalf of the UCC Students’ Union, but if this election has already occurred, then the Society should co­opt this individual onto the society committee.

4.0 Duties of Officials

4.1​ ​ The Auditor​ shall chair meetings of the Committee and any general meetings that may be held, shall have overall responsibility for the affairs of the Society and shall chair all meetings of the Society, save where they are unable to attend or where otherwise provided for in this constitution.

4.2​ ​ The Treasurer​ shall control all finances of the Society in coordination with the Committee.

They will also act as ​ Vice­Auditor​ of the society. If the Treasurer does not wish to hold the role of Vice Auditor, another Society Committee member may be appointed as Vice­Auditor at the Auditor's discretion.

4.3​ ​ The Secretary​ shall maintain a record of the meetings and deal with any correspondence and other administrative duties. They will be responsible to maintenance of the membership list

and the script database.

4.4​ ​ The Public Relations Officer​ will be responsible for the maintenance of the profile of the society. It will be their responsibility to maintain contact with the press and the media as well as acting host to visiting officials and guests as well as the maintenance of the Society’s online presence in the absence of the Webmaster.

4.5​ It will be the duty of the ​ Equipment Officer​ to advise the Society on the technical details of its productions and to maintain any Equipment belonging to the Society. They will also maintain an up­to­date list of The Society's equipment on an ongoing basis.

4.6​ ​ The Productions Officer​ is responsible for the management of any productions undertaken by the Society. They will also maintain any non technical assets belonging to the Society and be responsible for the acquisition of permission for filming on premises.

4.7​ ​ Events Officer​ shall be responsible for all events held by the Society, including film screenings, trips away, quizzes, socials and joint events with other societies.

4.8​ ​ The Webmaster​ shall be responsible for maintaining the Society’s website, updating it regularly and promoting society events through it, along with the social networking sites.

4.10​ ​ The Network Representative​ shall represent the Network sketch show,informing the Committee of its production progress; they shall be responsible for the execution of the show.

4.11​ ​ The Special Projects Officer​ shall be responsible for the organization of specific events that the society undertakes, in order to aid the Events Officer during the academic year.

4.12 The Ex­Officio​ shall act in an advisory role to the Society committee. They shall be entitled to vote at meetings of the society, but do not have to play an active role in the day­to­day running of the society. In the event that the society is brought into disrepute, the Ex­Officio shall act as mediator.

If the ability of the Auditor is brought into question, and a vote of no­confidence is called, the Ex­Officio shall chair that meeting in the place of the Auditor. If the Ex­Officio is unable to fulfill this role, the responsibility will fall to another member of the society committee, who will be appointed by the Ex­Officio.

The Ex­Officio will be able to vote on matters in­absentia by emailing the Society’s email account and notifying either the Auditor or the Secretary. The Ex­Officio must be notified of any matters which must be voted on at least two days in advance of such a vote.

4.13 The Archivist ​ shall be responsible for maintaining the Society's archives, mainly the Society tape collection, Society Committee records, achievements list, Honorary Life Members of the Society, Society productions, Society publications, Society Members lists, Society minutes books and anything else deemed relevant to be recorded for the sake of posterity. The

Archivist may also be permitted to devoting time to researching the Society's past history in the College, and beyond.

4.14​ The ​ Ordinary Members​ of the Society shall take an active part in the Society, shall represent the Society on any outing/activity and shall represent the Society when communicating with bodies outside the Society with permission from the Society committee.

4.15​ In the event that the Committee is understaffed, then positions may be combined by a majority committee vote. In addition to this, the Committee may co­opt any member of the society to an ​ Acting Committee Position​ . This will be done at a meeting of the society committee. The proposed member must be nominated and seconded by existing members of the society committee, one of which must be the Auditor.

4.16 ​ In the event that a committee member is not fulfilling their duties, as stated in the above committee guidelines (4.1 ­ 4.15), and/or not attending regular committee meetings (5.1), they may be dismissed from the committee by a majority vote, after due warning(s) are provided to said member(s) by the Auditor. The Ex­Officio is not obliged to attend any committee meetings, and as such is excluded from this rule.

5.0 Meetings

5.1​ Committee meetings shall be held fortnightly at least. All committee members will be entitled to attend and vote.

5.2​ For a committee meeting to be deemed official, and for a decision to be made at a committee meeting, Quorum must be met. Quorum shall be defined as half of the Society Committee plus one. This must also include the Auditor, and one of the following: Treasurer, Secretary & Public Relations Officer. If the Ex­Officio has sent in a vote in­absentia (as defined in ​ Article 4.12​ ) they shall be included in the Quorum. If they have not responded in time for the vote, they shall not be included in the overall Quorum count.

5.3​ Minutes of the previous society committee meetings shall be read at the beginning of each meeting. They can, at the discretion of the Auditor, be taken as read.

6.0 Productions Policy

6.1​ A prospective director who wishes to have his/her script filmed can submit a single or a number of scripts to the Productions Officer for initial review. After that, the Productions Officer will then forward them onto the rest of the committee.

6.2​ Approved scripts shall enter into the production process.

6.3​ The Productions Officer must then meet with the individual prospective directors to gain an

insight into the production such as costs, set design etc.

6.4​ The committee will decide by simple majority vote which films are to be chosen to go forward for filming.

6.5​ It is the duty of the Productions Officer henceforth to organise the auditions for the scripts. If the director wishes, rehearsals can also be arranged by notifying the Productions Officer.

6.6​ The director of any film will have the right to adapt the script in any way they see fit in coordination with the screenwriter & Productions Officer.

6.7​ Any society production produced by the society will be the property of the society.

6.8​ The society has the ability to hold competitions, award ceremonies etc. related to productions.

7.0 Film Footage Policy

7.1​ For UCC Film Society productions, all participants on film shall be asked to sign a “film release form.” This is to ensure that all parties are aware of what is going on.

7.2​ In the case of the society recording footage on behalf of another UCC society, club or group, or any external group, the society must make an agreement with the relevant parties about the storage of the footage before the production may begin.

7.3​ Unless stated otherwise, all tapes & recordings must be stored and maintained as a record of the society’s activities.

8.0 Interpretation of the Constitution

8.1​ The Auditor shall rule on the meaning of the constitution whenever any dispute arises. This may be overruled by a simple majority vote at a general meeting.