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Are fan films the future of Hollywood?

Posted Monday, March 21, 2016 at 4:01 PM Central
Last updated Monday, March 21, 2016 at 4:04 PM Central

by John Couture

The speed at which technology is evolving is changing the way that we view entertainment. Recently, the industry debuted the latest physical media format, Ultra High Definition Blu-ray players and their corresponding discs.

Technological advancements are also lowering the bar of entry in making entertainment. Camcorders have allowed people to film their own movies for the last 30 years or so, but new digital and computer advancements are making those films look surprisingly close to the real thing being put out by Hollywood.

In the past, fan fiction allowed people to connect with the characters and worlds that they love from the big screen, but now we can actually create stories and share them immediately with pretty much everyone. The onset of video-sharing sites such as YouTube and Vimeo makes finding an audience and distributing your film pretty easily.

Social media helps to fuel the fire and Smart TVs allow you to watch these films in much the same ways that you would watch the real thing. Over the last few weeks, two fan films have taken the Internet by storm and they might signal the start of a new age in entertainment.

One film is grounded in the Harry Potter world, while the other resides in the Star Wars galaxy far, far away. These are two fertile worlds to create content in and they both have rabid fanbases that will eat up quality entertainment.

The first film is called, "Severus Snape and the Marauders" and fleshes out an important moment from the series before Harry Potter was born. This moment was included in the books and movies, but it was sort of glossed over and this fan film gives it the attention that it deserves.

The second film helps to fill in the training backstory of Darth Maul before he shows up in The Phantom Menace. Both films feature a bunch of action and show off the advancements in special effects and technology.

What do you think? Will these films open the floodgates to more fan-made content or will they simply exist as fun little distractions until the next real thing from Hollywood debuts?