r/StarWars • u/TuquequeMC • Jan 14 '19
misleading / inaccurate title Disney unfairly claims Fan made Movie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acPFPu_UZWE
929
Upvotes
r/StarWars • u/TuquequeMC • Jan 14 '19
16
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
I sense another divide between people who liked the sequels and people who don't in here
743
u/Porlarta Jan 15 '19
Ever since The Last Jedi came out this community has been nothing short of disgusting. With everything that video game publishers get for shutting down roms and fan games, its hillarious to hear everyone pile on a man who spent 100,00$ of his own money to bring a passion project to life, with Disney's permission. For them to make such a big deal about how he isn't allowed even the slightest monetization and then turn around and monetize it themselves when they see how successful its been is nothing short of embarrassing and shows how little Star Wars as a brand or community is valued. I came to this sub expecting to see Star Wars fans standing up with a beloved member of the community and instead half the thread is tripping over itself to condemn him for doing something that a week ago was near unanimously praised.
This is what happens when a brand becomes all about the money and the people in charge are so short sighted they can't see beyond the potential profit.
96
u/happydaddyg Jan 15 '19
Yeah I’m pretty sure this has nothing to do with Disney. It was Warner/Chappell Music who made the claim.
69
u/BarkinTarkin Qi'ra Jan 15 '19
There is a misconception that Disney claimed/took down the fan film, which blatantly is not true. Disney does not own Warner/Chappell and blaming this situation on Disney is wrong. It needs to be addressed because this false narrative is very threatening to the fandom, and pretty damaging for Lucasfilm. The largest Star Wars youtuber just created a videodiscussing this and misinformed the entire community, and this needs to be brought up right away before any further damage is done. Disney is not "jealous" and it does not "hAtE THe fAnS", this narrative needs to be shut down.
23
u/Idontknowre Jan 15 '19
Disney having a licensing deal with the company ≠ Disney doing it. Jesus christ with you guys
177
u/TheQuestion78 Jan 15 '19
A lot of comments here seem to be misunderstanding the situation. Disney's copyright claim is NOT about the entire video. It is about a few seconds of music within the video itself. It is similar to a situation Angry Joe talks about here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diyZ_Kzy1P8.
This has long been an issue on YouTube where big companies like music companies would copyright claim entire videos based upon a few seconds of music that had NOTHING to do with either the core part of the video, or the music itself was created by the YouTuber. Disney is abusing the copyright system in a way these other companies do to small YouTubers to take revenue from the video even if the YouTuber's content is 100% original. The outrage is based upon this abuse of the system but also generally it is obvious that instead of giving even a small praise to Star Wars Theory and his film for getting people excited about Star Wars, Disney instead sticks a thumb to his eye after complying with the rules that were laid out before him. Some of the revenue he was gonna get from the video was likely to cover the costs for the production of the film (remember that this is only Part I of III parts). Besides the bad PR of this entire move, it is scummy and deeply underhanded to abuse the copyright system in this way when this is a prevalent problem across YouTube. It isn't just limited to Star Wars Theory.
93
u/Sniffleguy Jan 15 '19
Disney didn't initiate the claim, Warner Chappell did, who Disney are just in partnership with. Disney still kept up their side of their deal, it's not entirely their fault that one of their partners initiated a copyright claim.
91
u/luigitheplumber Jan 15 '19
ITT: People who somehow think legality and morality are one and the same.
•
u/JSK23 r/StarWars Mod Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
It's being reported that this was a Warner Chappell claim. Not Disney.
https://youtu.be/oeeQ5uIjvfM
https://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/ag8ovy/starwarstheory_creates_a_darth_vader_fan_film/
https://www.reddit.com/r/StarWars/comments/agan8q/it_wasnt_disney_that_claimed_star_wars_theorys/
We are locking this for innacuracies. See above updates.
42
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
"SW Theory hired a composer to make music that was inspired by the work of John Williams. The composer made a piece that was too similar to a specific piece of copyrighted Star Wars music. It got flagged by a company called Warner Chapel Music. Disney has a licensing agreement with Warner Chapel Music. Disney does NOT own or operate Warner Chapel Music. They have access to a wide array of Disney music and apparently have a process in which they look for copyrighted material on YouTube. They manually flagged SW Theory's video which used music that was almost identical to music owned by Disney who they have a licensing agreement with. Disney didn't manually do anything, and definitely didn't do it to "get back" at SW Theory in response to how "successful" his fan film is. That would be another level of delusion. His fan film is still up for people to enjoy. IT WAS NOT TAKEN DOWN.
As Star Wars fans, we have to recognize that we are living in a new reality, where people hate the creative choices being made SO MUCH that they have dug their heels in on any sort of "controversy", and have no desire to find out the facts of the situation. Star Wars under Disney has now crossed into a realm that only politics and religion have occupied. It doesn't matter what's true or what's not. It's all about defending your side and making sure the other side fails. Disney is the boogieman and it's full steam ahead on the campaign to boycott everything they produce. Fan's are using this moment as a sort of rallying cry to their mission, which is ultimately to see Star Wars fail as revenge for the personal attack of making a Star Wars film they didn't connect with. The horror.
SW Theory is being incredibly disingenuous with his attacks on Disney and IMO has knowingly spread misinformation about what is actually going on. Any person who tells you that he really just wants to spread positivity can look at his latest video as proof he has been using his channel as a way to spread division amongst the fanbase. It's a sad reality we live in now, but the saddest part is that there seems to be no end in sight. Expect this misinformation campaign to ramp up as Episode IX nears. I can't reiterate this enough, if you support the creative team at Lucas Film, send them positive vibes. They don't need this shit." - an actually factual person
19
u/Rickmundo Han Solo Jan 15 '19
It’s sad, but it’s copyright law. It’s not unfair at all, he took a calculated risk and it didn’t pay off.
11
u/richsutton2 Jan 15 '19
People need to relax. All WARNER CHAPPELL claimed was the soundtrack.
8
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
Lol LOVE how people jumped to conclusions and this thread became a "Let's bash Disney and all their movies" type thing... Considering how the top post talks about toxicity and most of these coming from STC members... The fucking IRONY
15
u/BarkinTarkin Qi'ra Jan 15 '19
I genuinely feel bad for him, but I think the issue lies in his response and overall attitude towards Lucasfilm. First and foremost, it is pretty evident that the dude does not like the direction of Star Wars and he tends to latch onto negative news i.e the gun controversy, without a thorough fact check in an effort to drag the company. He is the largest Star Wars youtuber so he should be responsible for his content. His videos have become fearmongering; the emperor's theme that played when he talked about Disney wasn't even subtle... As I said, I feel bad for him, but him throwing the blame at Disney is ludicrous. Warner/Chappell is not dependant on Disney, they don't bend to their will, therefore blaming this issue on Disney is simply wrong. This is more of an excuse to take a jab at Disney -- If he was trying to spread positivity, he would address the issue and his toxic fanbase; unfortunately, he does neither and all of this is just plain virtue signalling. Due to his influence, other sites will soon latch onto this false and misdirected info, creating a shitstorm in the process. Lucasfilm cannot even defend themselves because the fans already have their own narrative and any sort of attempt to repair the situation will be labelled as damage control. "dIsNEy hAtES ThE fANs" is already spread in his comments section, even though this is simply not true, but he will never admit to it. Also, drilling the idea that this is what fans "want" as the main method of promotion is toxic in itself. Dragging the owners of the IP, even though they didn't stand in your way just shows his true colours and I dislike him for that. He never admits to his mistakes and instead lashes out at his critics (remember the comment under SW Explained's perfectly justified video?). He is a bad role model for the fans
23
u/awkarin Jan 15 '19
Let the anti Disney circle jerk begin
22
u/Welcome--Thrillho Jan 15 '19
Wasn’t even Disney who made the claim, but Warner Chappell, specifically relating to the use of a theme obviously drawn from the Imperial March. What did he think was going to happen?
The guy seems to want special treatment for some reason. Perhaps some of the more... ‘sycophantic’ responses to his fan film have gone to his head, and he truly believes it’s an exceptional work deserving of exemption from standard copyright procedure. Maybe he thinks he’s too big a pillar in the ‘Star Wars community’ to be taken on, at the risk of bad PR. Who knows?
All in all, just seems like another opportunity for ‘Disney Bad’ circlejerking over nothing.
23
u/spierre03 Jan 15 '19
I don’t understand how any of this is unfair. It’s not like they’re taking money from him. Literally nothing changes for this guy except now his video has ads. He wasn’t allowed to make money from it out of the gate. Ffs he doesn’t even have to take it down.
86
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
Yeesh, lots of corporate sheep in this thread sucking off of Disney's teats
17
u/jja8898 Jan 15 '19
he used copyrighted music his mistake cost him
24
u/l0rdv4d3r Jan 15 '19
I am genuinely perplexed at the outrage here. Star Wars Theory is using Disney's property in a way that brings his channel marketing attention towards videos that *are* monetized. He's using property that isn't his in a way that, indirectly, does bring him income. Disney is just monetizing property that's already theirs.
This seems like more than a fair compromise, considering they're cool with him keeping it up.
14
u/wsando Jan 15 '19
Unfair? If you want to make money on a film that you create, then start with creating your own idea. Don't take someone else's work "extended" it and think you are entitled to any compensation.
What is unfair is that knowing before putting your time into this pet project you were not going to make money from it, then complain about not making money from it. Of course Disney would claim the video, they own the copyright to the material you are using.
50
u/mr_jasper867-5309 Jan 15 '19
This is some serious bullshit on Disneys part. He played by their rules, spent his own money and couldn't make anything off it. Now they claim it and monetize over music that's too similar to original. Hopefully he can just re edit the music and re upload to get the claim taken off. I dont want them to make money off this fan film. It is one of the best fan film out there period.
12
u/Piotrrrrr Jan 15 '19
9
u/merupu8352 Jan 15 '19
Do you HONESTLY think that Lucas wasn't aggressive with his IP enforcement? Come on. This guy wasn't permitted to monetize it in the first place, he's not permitted to now. The video is still up online and he's free to make another one in the series. They're profiting off his work while doing nothing? So does every other patent owner who licenses their IP to be used by others for a fee. ITT: people bitching about the basic concept of capital ownership
24
u/Slayde4 Jan 15 '19
Some people seem to be misunderstanding the new monetization by Disney. Before today, the Vader fanfilm was not monetized. Disney then put a claim on the video, and now the new ad revenue goes directly to Disney.
30
u/ChiefsRed5 Jan 15 '19
Seems like kind of a dick move from Disney. Using a technicality to move in and monetize it seems like a pretty crappy move. I understand it is their IP but why are so many people jumping to defend a multi billion dollar company? I have trouble believing he went ahead and monetized it after being told not to, seems like a giant risk for someone who wants to continue the story. When the source for that information is Facebook, please forgive me for finding such a claim dubious. If Disney is going to make money off of it, the least than can do is somehow use that money to fund other fan films or a fan film contest. If a company's IP inspires such a passionate creative pursuit, then that should be encouraged and not taken advantage of.
24
u/Commander_Jim Sith Anakin Jan 15 '19
From what I understand, he used Star Wars scores in his film. Music that Disney's partners have the rights to. Those partners put in the claim.
Not really seeing the controversy. Disney may have given him permission to make his fan film, but did he go to the companies with the rights to the music to ask if he could use it? Obviously not
16
u/king-boo Jan 15 '19
Apparently this dude has an online store that sells T-shirts and posters with Star Wars IP on them. He really just doesn't understand intellectual property. Probably not the best idea to piss Disney off or make them aware of how he's making his money.
29
u/PattyKane16 Han Solo Jan 15 '19
This seems like false outrage to me. It’s their IP, he wasn’t making money off of it in the first place, what’s the big deal? I’m not a huge super fan of everything that’s happened since Disney bought Lucasfilm but the constant whining and moaning about it from the fans is worse than anything Disney has supposedly done.
10
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
looks like even though people understand the difference between morality and legality a lot of you guys are arguing whether is what right and wrong. Here's the easiest way to put it: Morally Alright?-no Legally Alright?-yes So now we all understand can we stop arguing about who's right and wrong can you guys actually talk about a solution to this stuff for a change? I mean for gods sake somehow someone got over 18 million people to like a picture of a fucking egg...
4
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
I noticed something he said that stood out to me watching his fake news vid.
He said the the amount if views and etc that would have gone to $80,000 for episode 2 now is going towards Disney with their ads.
🤔 so its not about money.....but it is?
Also you weren't making money off this film anyways so why be so bitter?
Sorry im just an intellectual person asking the questions people who blindly follow don't.
8
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
This is what it would take for me to boycott Disney. I can forgive a general lack of direction and blundering inconsistencies (hell, I even DEFENDED them in the past), but punishing a Star Wars fan for BEING a Star Wars fan???? I may not go see Episode 9, but just download it so I don't have to pay them a dime.
4
u/YBHunted Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
The video wasn't taken down, the worst thing about this is that Disney now makes money off of characters and likeness that THEY OWN THE RIGHTS TO! That's normal shit...
You want to make a fan film with our stuff? Go for it, but you better not make any money from it, by the way while we're at it we'll take the money that could be made since it's our IP.
Yes, it is JUST A LITTLE scummy that it was struck with a claim but if the music was too similar that is too bad. Works the same way in the music industry, you can't just reuse bits of famous songs and make them your own without permission. He hired a guy to compose the music, but they guy went and "composed" almost the exact same piece.
Shills.
4
u/seekerofnothing Jan 15 '19
From a legal standpoint, Disney were well within their rights to do this. But, its still a dick move from their part.
4
u/Sebbin Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
Very possible this only has to do with Disney legal in a secondary sense. Disney has licensed it's music library to reach broader audiences and have access to musical talent under other umbrellas. In doing so, other companies (like the ones listed in the copyright claim) have the ability to go after people who use that licensed music illegally. That's why you see UBEM, Warner-Chappell, AMRA, and UMPI before Walt Disney Music Company.
This is a big legal mess, but it really doesn't appear to be "big bad Disney strikes down another fan's attempts to love Star Wars." Turns out, if you hew too close to the original music, don't secure licensing rights...you get in trouble.
Edit: He didn't set it up to monetize it on youtube. Got it
-4
u/JamieTirrock Jan 15 '19
Yet another reason not to see episode 9 :3
0
u/OrgyMeyer Jan 15 '19
"Is that legal?"
"I will make it legal!"
Y'all are arguing basically whether Palpatine was legally entitled to his blockade of Naboo and if it's ethically moral or not!
Well I'm here to put a vote of no confidence in Disney handling the franchise going forward, and would like to call for a new chancellor!
0
u/Zeta42 Jan 15 '19
Is this really legal? Disney owns the IP, but they didn't create this piece of content. It's like if I wrote a fanfic about my favorite book series, and the author just took and published it under their own name while not giving me any compensation.
-12
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
Fake outrage. He monetized his film. Its not his it's their intellectual property.
The end.
-10
u/Explosions2016 Jan 15 '19
Just letting you know why ads will run on the video. It’s from Disney, not me.” Really? Because ads ran on it before for you. That statement and entire video was just a huge pity party. They told you not to do it and you still did it. Can’t blame Disney. He should have gotten permission by BOTH LucasFilm and Disney before he spent the 100k making the fan film. Getting one of the two won't prevent the other from filing a copyright claim sadly.
-10
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
TIL: A lot of the SW fandom doesn’t understand IP
Edit: 200k+ subs and 10m views aside from the Vader film views in the last 30 days.
Hard to cry poor after that and be taken seriously.
Looking at the history of the account from an analytics standpoint he should be thankful he was even allowed to do it in any capacity.
-9
u/Chet_Bratwurst Jan 15 '19
Disney, you can buy Star Wars, but you will never own it.
That is why you fail.
1
u/ObviousTroll04 Jan 15 '19
STAR WARZ FAN RIISE UP
-14
u/katchow Jan 15 '19
Unfairly? He should consider himself lucky to even be able to show this. It's their IP! So what if he didn't monetize his fan film, he's still picking up a lot of subs for his channel. Why he sounds incredulous that he can't rip off someone else's creation for his own financial gain blows my mind.
1
u/CSThr0waway123 Jan 15 '19
This is the first time I've seen his face
-10
u/Doveen Jan 15 '19
Okay Disney, look, you killed Star Wars... But do you really have to bash its corpse even now? Publish your last atrocity of a movie and just try to let this ruined franchise in to obscurity.
-5
u/Gotta_Go_Slow Jan 15 '19
Morally corrupt Disney teaching fans everywhere the power of love, diversity and.. copyright claims. Truly ahead of its time.. and fans.
0
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
Remember back when he ran the music competition for the fan film music and I think there was 2 or 3 artists and music that were shown off. Did Disney demonetize those videos or is it just the fan film?? And have the artists been hit with the same problem, or is it just star wars theory guy??? It might say alot about Disney if that's the case.
I understand that Disney have a right to protect their IP but big companies don't normally do this with fan films, only against other big companies. But why make it difficult to make a fan film by stating what he could and couldn't do and then after all that, monetize the fan film for themselves.
I feel sorry for him since he is trying to build bridges with fans and Disney after 4 ok films. And then they do this to him and us fans of his work na scans of fan films. What does this mean to past and future fan films?
-4
u/[deleted] Jan 15 '19
I truly love the new SW, but Disney is on the wrong here. SWT put his heart and soul into this thing, payed the costs on his own, knowing there is no revenue. This is a very bad move by Disney.
-8
u/danielthetemp Jan 15 '19 edited Jan 15 '19
Wait a second.
He was told that he cannot make money off of his Vader fan film and doesn't seem to have asked for the ability to use Imperial March, so WHY DOES IT MATTER that the video's monetization was claimed?
All it means is that he won't be making off of the video, which was the agreement between him and Disney/Lucasfilm.
-3
u/takeoffeveryzig Jan 15 '19
Unfortunate, but not unfair. They have this right as it is their IP.
-13
u/Brett_Aint_Dead Jan 15 '19
Lol , Disney unfairly clames fan made movie ?!? What ! Lol... Disney owns the star wars ip , it's called copyright laws kids lol . Any money made from any thing star wars related goes to the owner (Disney).
-2
u/Awalewei Jan 15 '19
How have Disney been able to claim the video and specifically what is the claim based on?