A Certain Point Of View...

So, there's a new controversy over the TFN webcomic. SW artist, Tom Hodges made a comment on the project:

"I've been quiet up to this point... but here's the thing...

I almost was taken off the webstrip a full year before I even started
on the "Reversal of Fortune" webstrip due to my involvement in
illustrating Spoiler Images of Episode III (primarily Grievous) for
TFN.

You need to understand that Lucasfilm isn't going to be too crazy
about this (I actually know for a fact they won't be). The truth is,
you are doing something to get recognized... in a negative way by
being involved in these webstrips.

Now before you all decide it's me, the Official webstrip artist being
threatened... it's not.

I'm not threatened by other potential artists who want to be seen by
Lucasfilm to be Star Wars approved. In fact, I've recommended 3
artists (Grant Gould, Otis Frampton and Paul Gutierrez) and I'm
trying to get 2 others approved. The fact is, you could be messing
with potential stories for upcoming Books, Comics, TV series or any
other outlet Lucasfilm uses for their property.

Fan Fiction, while some fans like it, is usually frowned upon no
matter what the property is(LOTRS, Star Wars, Anne Rice, Buffy), by
the properties owner. It's a legal issue. Fan Fiction plays out the
way a FAN wants it to, not the way the Owner does. There are Legal
issues beyond what you think involved.

I was asked to do a "cover" for someone's fan fiction for this very
site just after the webstrips debuted and I was going to get paid
very nicely for it and I mentioned it to LFL and I was told if I did
it, I'd likely be taken off the webstrip and not likely be used for
any further projects.

Now I see people just taking bits off my website and piecing them
together for their stories or "covers"... but I really have little
control over that.

I see it this way... If you're an artist and you want Lucasfilm to
recognize what you're doing, just keep putting yourself out there via
doing Fan art on TFN, post in DW Forums, visit our site
http://www.artists-allied.com/ and read how some of us were found,
visit our blog http://artists-allied.blogspot.com/ and just create
your own website to showcase yourself. get a free LiveJournal account
and post in darth_artsy.

I really think you guys doing the webstrips are asking for trouble.
Lucasfilm is tightening their grip on the SW Universe, they're taking
stuff like this very seriously."

Wow. And I thought this was just for fun. How can Lucasfilm justify comments like the one above? I'm coming away from this with the notion that if you aren't a professional artist, writer, whatever, you have no right placing anything on the web. Now, as an artist and writer and owner of this blog, I take more than a little offense to that. I'm also sensing a catch-22 here.

Of course, we can go to the "legitimate" websites out there, and get our own commissioned work. And I probably will. Or, I'll work on my own stories with the characters I already have. But that's not the point. The point is that Lucasfilm is trying to enforce a chokehold on the market and it smells faintly of censorship. Now, that's a big word out here in cyberland, and I'm not trying to get anyone in trouble. It's just how I see it.

I can't speak for the other artists who were interested in working with TFN, but for myself, I had no intention of getting any other satisfaction than seeing if I could do it. I haven't done anything like a daily comic strip, ever, so I was excited to see if I was up to the challenge. For me, it was a chance to prove something to myself. That would have been it's own reward.

However, I can see both sides of the argument. Lucasfilm is just trying to protect their property, and TFN is just wanting to do something fun, with possible reward on down the line. I can see the problem-and it's valid-but I'm not sure that killing the project was the best solution. I'd be interested in hearing Scott's opinion on the subject.


Jane made another good suggesting about the spec-script. She mentioned not worrying about writing your script is such a way that you have to anticipate where the series may be headed in future seasons. Sure, it would be nice if the spec could last you a few years, but don't be concerned about writing one that dates itself. Good advice, that. In my first rough draft, the main plot of my spec centered around a bar mitzvah, which could only be shown during this present season. I had worried about it becoming too out-of-date, so I shelved it. Now, however, I think I may go back to it. It was my strongest idea, and I really liked the direction the script took. We'll see....


We're getting busy here and the hours are starting to add up. I'm still waking up around 3, but at least I'm able to go back to sleep. I've this feeling that change is in the air. And, for the first time in a long time, I find myself looking forward to it...

-Jos

"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson