Disney is in no way obligated to support this guy creating unofficial content. It was his choice to put the money forward to make this passion project. He is using an IP that he doesn’t own, so Disney has an obligation to claim it.
I get what you’re saying, but Disney has a right to do whatever they want with their IP, and this YouTuber should’ve known this from the beginning. Disney owns Star Wars, bottomline. They have to claim material that falls under their intellectual property. Otherwise, it would set a legal precedent that could lead to their claim of ownership falling apart in court if another party came and wanted to try and use/make money off of any of Disney’s intellectual property. IP law can be a slippery slope. It is really not Disney trying to spit on their fans. It has less to do about what little money they will get from this video and more about protecting their IP.
It is easy to vilify them because they are a faceless company, but them being lenient with one person can be used against them later down the road if another party wanted to take advantage of their goodwill.
Sure, you can call them scummy or douchebags. I personally don’t think things are so black and white, and I kind of think he is playing the victim card just a little to garner more support for himself. But that’s my opinion. I think eventually there will be a way for companies and fans to figure out a better way to make content in agreement, but that has yet to happen, and until then I think it is unfair for him to keep hinting that he should be making money off of a Star Wars fan film. By not being clear about the legalese with his audience, he is stirring up his fans that don’t understand it and creating drama, which could make it harder for other fans to make fan films in the future if it were to set a new precedent.
Like I said, that’s just my opinion. I just think fans shouldn’t make money off of fan films, and that the copyright holder has a right to protect their property. To me, what makes fan films great is the fact that they’re works of pure passion. Once people can make money off of them, it’ll change that.
This whole situation just feels a little manipulative, and I think it is unfair to the fans, especially younger fans, to paint this picture so black and white. But “the fans vs Disney” is easier to understand, and people are drawn to controversy.
And it is not like he is “losing” money. He shouldn’t be making any money off of this anyway even if Disney hasn’t monetized it. No one making a “fan film” should really be making money off their content unless they made some kind of arrangement with the copyright holder. If anything, him feeling entitled to compensation for this could endanger future fan film projects if this stirs up drama.
If you want to make a fan passion project, then make it. But if you want to make money, then don’t. He wanted to make this knowing he couldn’t make any money off of it. Yes, these YouTube copyright claims are getting out of hand, but this situation is different. If they were let him make money off of a fan film, it would set a precedent that would make it more challenging to protect their IP in future situations where other people wanted to make money off of unofficial Star Wars content. It is not personal whatsoever.
But of course, apparently no one understands copyright law and thinks Disney is personally attacking this guy out of spite.
Star Trek fans have so much trouble with Paramount/CBS over making Trek fan films, whereas Lucasfilm/Disney have been pretty lenient, and Lucasfilm has had fan film awards for years, and still do. But now this guy makes a video like this and acts like a victim? Man, you know going into this you can’t make money off a IP that you don’t own. If you want to make money, make something original. That’s it.
After seeing this, plus Thor’s video, I can’t believe how entitled both Star Wars Theory and Thor Skywalker are. Just because they make Star Wars videos that makes them think Disney should be thanking them? That they owe them something? Especially considering how much they complain about the new films they still want to act like that?
God, it makes me sick how they just manipulate the emotions of their audience. I wish they would both get off YouTube or maybe stop talking about Star Wars if they hate it so much. This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen from the fan base so far. I just wish it would stop.
EDIT: Seriously, these YouTubers are MANIPULATING YOU. They want your views, your subscriptions, your money on their side of a straw man debate. It is really disgusting how they are acting. Acting so coy, like they’re innocent. They either know exactly what they’re doing, or have just managed to create a platform to preach their very biased, narrow-minded and narcissistic opinions and have managed to get the attention of a young, naive audience who can’t do their own research or have their own opinions. I’m really tired of this side of the community. There is just so much truth in the phrase, “no one hates Star Wars more than Star Wars fans”. Look no further.
DOUBLE EDIT: I’m just sitting here thinking how much time I wasted typing my issues with this whole situation. Seriously, all of this stupid drama about an entitled YouTuber who is stirring it up to get more attention. This is exactly what he wants. The best thing to do would be to move on with our lives. What a waste of time over this complete nonsense. I just want to sleep and forget about this.