Rise of the Fan Film (and other original content oriented towards people like us)

Many, MANY years ago all the way back in 1997, a couple of guys were hanging out and one of them said to the other, "Hey.  We should make a short movie based on the TV show cops but focused on Storm Troopers." The other guy put down his Phish CD and said, "K."  And thus the fan film "Troops" became a reality.  People watched it, loved it, and thought, "I could make a video too." and thus came Dawn of the Fan Film.

Seventeen years later, it is no longer just a passion held by a few and seen by a few more.  It has become a full-blown trend and, for some, a career and a way of life.  There are literally hundreds, possibly thousands of videos, films and series dedicated to the love of established film characters, video games, tabletop games, game games, comic books and non-illustrated literature for our viewing pleasure, the most recent being the original web series, Caper, brought to you by the fine, God-fearing people at Geek & Sundry, the brainchild network of Buffy alum and Dr. Horrible star, Felicia Day.  While not the first scripted series in her independent repertoire, this is the first series to include notable stars as series regulars including Beth Riesgraf of Leverage and Harry Shum Jr. of Glee fame. [SPOILER ALERT] pay attention throughout the episode for other nerd surprises [/SPOILER ALERT].

What am I trying to say here?  I don't really know.  What I do know is there are a lot of beloved bodies of work out there and a multitude of huge fans dedicated to them.  Some of them have cameras, some of them have computers, and a lot of them are coming together in unity to take those cameras and those computers and throwing some people in the mix (or digital/hand-drawn representations) and giving those concepts new life beyond what was originally offered by their respected creators.  And this some this work goes way beyond "I set up a camera in my garage and invited some of my WOW buddies over to drink and talk strategy"-level production value.  You have film and TV accredited writers, directors and specialists adding there talent and passion to these projects to provide a much richer viewing experience.  

[WHERE MY RANT WOULD HAVE GONE] - I had this whole diatribe about how all of this content was available online circumventing the FCC and network/studio/advocacy group influence but with the passing of recent net-neutrality legislature, I will keep this argument in my back pocket until the situation has played itself out and  I know the little man is safe from the crushing boot of censorship. [/WHERE MY RANT WOULD HAVE GONE]

I encourage anyone with the passion, the drive and the resources to create their own ideas and their own adventures.  If it based on an established body of work, go with it.  History has shown that people that create content in our area of interest are, for the most part, open-minded about satires and homages created around their original work and others just brush it off.  And if you get a C & D letter, move on to the next project.  If you have an original idea, you should feel obligated to create and share it with the rest of the world because you never know who will appreciate your vision.  Stuff like this is what brings our little community closer together.

Also, be on the lookout this summer/fall for the new series, Geek Cred starring a bunch of people including Michele Boyd, formerly of Team Unicorn, and the guy that played Thanos for a split second at the end of The Avengers.

*I apologize for so many links in the post.  If anyone knows a better way, I'm all ears.

#fanfilmsrule
#dukeofearl
#ilovebacondontyou