One, limits are beneficial to art, not a hindrance.
I don't see how the Guidelines allow for greater art. There's really nothing you can do now that you couldn't do before the Guidelines. You don't get better art by simply limiting what kind of art can be made.
Secondly, fan films have operated under limits for years, with Star Wars ones being the more famous examples. Some studios don't allow them at all.
I don't know if you've noticed, but over the years, copyright has been continually expanded and the public domain has actually shrank. I think there was actually a case where copyrighted works that were in the public domain were put back under copyright as the result of copyright treaties. This type of copyright law have been largely pushed by media corporations and publishers, so expecting them to set some high bar for use of copyrighted materials by fans is absurd.
They may need some clarification, which likely will come as productions get made. But, the idea that they are bad because rules=bad is poor argumentation at best.
This is a straw man argument. People who object to the Guidelines are not going around saying "We are strong! We have no need for laws, or government!" They object to the content and nature of the Guidelines, not their mere existence.
How about if CBS/Paramount just says "screw it. This isn't worth the trouble" and bans every fan production of any kind?
Either the fans have true influence over CBS, in which case it makes perfect sense to bring their concerns about the Guidelines to CBS's attention, or the fans have no influence on any decision CBS makes, in which case CBS is entirely responsible for their own actions and you very well CAN blame them.
So changing the title spoiled everything for you?
His point was that the the Guidelines drove Renegades completely out of the Star Trek fan film community. Suggesting that his concerns are about a name change is disingenuous.
However, there is a time limit now in place. But that’s hardly a destructive limit. That doesn’t prevent fanfilms from being made.
Seeing as productions that were already underway were slimmed down in run length to meet the guidelines, I fail to see how it's not destructive. You can measure the destruction in reduced run length, and that's not even mentioning the prohibition on series fan films.
The guiidelines do not stifle creativity. In fact, they force you to be more creative because you can't just ape the real shows.
Except that imitating the original shows it the point. It's what makes it a fan film in the first place. People who make fan films are not in a contest for who can be the most creative. They simply want to participate in the franchise they love.
I still want to see where the overly entitled fan community will land when (not if, but WHEN) someone is inevitably hurt on a set. I strongly suspect most of these productions have no insurance, or it's inadequate. Do you really, REALLY want Liberty Mutual (or whoever) grabbing the entire policy (if there is one) and then going after your homeowner's insurance if someone like Tim Russ gets hurt and can no longer work? Because his loss of earnings is a rather different calculation from yours or mine.
Construction. Plywood. Electricity, with wiring done by amateurs. Sharp metal. Steps. Drills, hammers, and saws. Hot lights. Sheesh, it's a wonder there hasn't been a claim filed yet - and there may have been and it didn't hit litigation, hence it was missed.
Wow, that is the best argument I've ever seen against preventing professionals from participating in fan films. I hadn't even considered the extreme dangers of not employing professionals for your fan film. Sets could collapse or catch fire because they weren't properly made. People could get electrocuted. You could loose your house if someone gets hurt because you don't know how to properly produce a film and therefore don't know to properly obtain insurance. People could collapse from hunger or dehydration while shooting on location because the director and production manager are amateurs who don't know to provide proper catering or first aid kits on a long shoot in the middle the woods, and they probably don't know to have permits to shoot at that location either.
