Fan Film copyright stuff

[TheCosplayGuy]

What copyright stuff do I need to look out for if I was to do a fan film with an original script using Lord of the Rings characters?

 

[Cephus]

You're already violating copyright just by doing it. The estate can sue you at will if they want to. You can try to get permission first but it's not going to be free and there's no guarantee they'll grant it.

 

[batguy]

Yeah, there's no getting permission for this stuff.

Most big IP-holders just let it slide as long as you don't give them a reason to crack down on you. Keep a reasonably low profile and don't do something that would piss them off or set a bad legal precedent.

 

[TheCosplayGuy]

Is there any incident where an ip holder did go after a fan film? Doesn't have to be Lord of the Rings. How do films of such huge popularity like Scene 38 Reimagined (Star Wars), Unworthy (Power Rangers), The Search for Gollum (Lord of the Rings) and the Bat in the Sun shorts survive? Or are all of these projects constantly living under threat? Even during production?

 

[Lord Boron]

Trying to profit from it, i.e. selling DVDS, or setting up a Kickstarter is a sure way to draw unwanted attention. Some companies are more tolerant than others. If you so much as say the word “Mario” Nintendos lawyers will be at your front door before you can say “mamma-mia”

 

[Funky]

I suppose you could argue that you are doing the characters from the books rather than the movies.

 

[Treadwell]

Is there any incident where an ip holder did go after a fan film?

Just once that I know of. (Apart from small asks like please don't use this trademark, etc.) Look up Axanar. The guy behind that went WAY past any reasonable line, though, (raised over $1M and spent most of it on himself), so you'll probably be fine.

 

[batguy]

Yeah, from what I remember of the 'Axanar' incident, that guy was a grifter who swallowed up a bunch of crownfunded money. And then he basically crapped the scene for the rest of the ST fan film community. In the aftermath the studio made the rules a lot stiffer.

 

[asalaw]

Is there any incident where an ip holder did go after a fan film? Doesn't have to be Lord of the Rings. How do films of such huge popularity like Scene 38 Reimagined (Star Wars), Unworthy (Power Rangers), The Search for Gollum (Lord of the Rings) and the Bat in the Sun shorts survive? Or are all of these projects constantly living under threat? Even during production?

Yes, see below.

Yeah, from what I remember of the 'Axanar' incident, that guy was a grifter who swallowed up a bunch of crownfunded money. And then he basically crapped the scene for the rest of the ST fan film community. In the aftermath the studio made the rules a lot stiffer.

I recommend this article from Fall 2023:

Axanar Creator Faces New Legal Threat - Plagiarism Today

Turns out Alec Peters continued poking the bear even after he got sued, even after the settlement. Breathtaking behavior, and yes, he absolutely ruined fan filmmaking in the Star Trek universe.

Alec was arrogant. Alec made CBS very angry. Don't be like Alec.

 

[cboath]

I suppose you could argue that you are doing the characters from the books rather than the movies.

That isnt free reign either. Regardless of the book, someone owns the rights to those characters.

The general rule here is along the lines of dont poke the bear and dont try to make money off it.

 

[asalaw]

That isnt free reign either. Regardless of the book, someone owns the rights to those characters.

The general rule here is along the lines of dont poke the bear and dont try to make money off it.

Correct, the books are not in the public domain. That IP is currently owned by the Tolkien estate.

However, the motion picture rights (which is what you'd be infringing with a fan film) and merchandising rights are a patchwork. Here's an article breaking it down:

'The Lord Of The Rings' Copyright: Who Owns What? — CultureSlate

 

[asalaw]

I suppose you could argue that you are doing the characters from the books rather than the movies.

This wouldn't work. You'd still be infringing the motion picture rights. That's the right to make a motion picture play of any sort out of an adaptation of the books. See above for a link to who owns the film rights.

 

[Probe Droid]

Be careful. Tolkien's estate is known for being litigious.

 

[laellee]

It's not quite the same thing, but too bad more people don't do things like Stephen King's "Dollar Baby" program. He would let people adapt stories to screen for $1, as long as there was essentially a no profit made (I am sure I am grossly oversimplifying).

Wikipedia breaks it down pretty well. I want to say his publicist handled it until around '23 (apologies if it's in the wiki post, ain't got time for read'n lol), but when she retired, he decided to also retire the program.

Dollar Baby - Wikipedia

 

[Cephus]

Be careful. Tolkien's estate is known for being litigious.

For good reason, given how much money they make off of it.

 

[Probe Droid]

For good reason, given how much money they make off of it.

Agreed. The $$$ must be staggering.

 

[TazMan2000]

If you do a parody of Lord of the Rings, then you can claim "fair use", but even that has limitations.

TazMan2000

 

[asalaw]

If you do a parody of Lord of the Rings, then you can claim "fair use", but even that has limitations.

TazMan2000

This is true, and if your parody is non-commercial (as fan films tend to be), then you have a leg up on the fair use test that a court would apply. Of course, that's not going to help you if legal representation is out of budget for you.

But just for giggles, here's a very good FindLaw article on parody and fair use:

https://corporate.findlaw.com/intellectual-property/parody-fair-use-or-copyright-infringement.html