OK after finding out if i could post a wallpaper derived from a computer game.. I'm now wondering where do we stand on posting a still from a movie?? If there was an image from a movie that i really liked and wanted to create a wallpaper with ... whould i be ablke to do that and post it on here.. or is there a copyright issue?
Each and every frame of a major Hollywood studio or major independent film is copyrighted. That's right. Each and every frame (24 per second at sound speed). If you unwittingly choose one under copyright to manipulate or in any way to distribute over the internet, you stand a good chance of being penalized under US Copyright Law for unjustful enrichment, infringement, theft of services, and plagerism. Penalties would most certainly include destroying your image and paying royalty fees and possible peneltaies to the original author or company.
However, I get the impression that many members here do not fully understand the rights that fail use doctrine gives in situations like this. If you make a wallpaper that uses a frame from a movie and the movie frame does not constitute the bulk of the value of the work then you're free to use it. This means that you have to significantly alter and/or add to the movie frame in order for it to be ok.