Dear Friends,
Have you ever imagined what it would be like if you could make a Star Wars fan film, have George Lucas watch it, certify it, have LucasArts do an official release of it, and share the profits with you for your work? Or, perhaps, you might have daydreamed about creating a new episode of Fringe, having JJ Abrams watch it, greenlight it, give you an extra secret element of Fringe mythology to add in about Peter’s backstory, and then release it as an official part of the series? Well, so have I.
Having run MicroFilmmaker Magazine for nearly six years at the time of this writing, I’ve seen lots of other filmmakers who wanted to be part of a larger mythology making fan films for films they didn’t have the rights for. Even though studio IPs like Star Wars, Star Trek, and Battlestar Galactica wouldn’t outright sue fan filmmakers and fan fic writers (unless they tried to make any money off their work, of course), their very work is, technically, illegal.
Because of this inequality of creativity, I wanted to help birth something that was completely different that the traditional iron grip of the Hollywood studios and SAG cartels. A complex world of mythology and intrigue that could compete with any science fiction franchise out there, but one that was actually accessible to low-budget filmmakers and other creatives! As such, we created a post-apocalyptic world that’s destruction came from man’s personal violence, but which didn’t deal massive devastation to the landscape or nature that requires millions of dollars in special effects money (or living in the Sahara desert) to shoot.
Economy, however, wasn’t the only reason we looked at this sort of world. We at MFM are keen studiers of sociology and have seen a rise in cross-cultural awareness of apocalyptic concerns, not just in Hollywood, and not just in comic books, but in every strata of creative expression. It’s clear that there are mysteries that are here which tie into the psyche of humans the world over, especially to creatives like filmmakers, story writers, artists, musicians, and the like. Gavin Hesterdale would call these seekers of the mysteries of death and destruction the Dark Dreamers. Perhaps, like Depleted’s Dark Dreamers, we all possess clues to the most compelling mystery in human history… I like to think so.
So that creatives from around the world could help explore this world, we’ve created a massive black sandbox for people to play in. While it is necessary for there to be gatekeepers to help the most profound tales rise to the top, we try to streamline the process for creators everywhere to get involved and bring their own pieces to the table! Because we’ve taken a many months to hammer out the most fair way to enable creators to work together with the bare minimum of hassle on their part, Contributors will be able to easily build on the contributions of the past so that our exploration continues to draw others to this community.
All contributors whose work is officially accepted will be able to share in profits associated with their work and, for those who are Canonized, their work will officially sculpt out the world’s physical, social, and story boundaries. (Plus, many of these Canonized creators will receive secret elements of backstory mythology to weave into their films, stories, novels, comics, and songs.) And of course, new content will encourage more fans to follow what we do, so that all contributors benefit from getting their work out there.
With that I say, welcome to the Black Sandbox and the world of Dark Dreamers, friends!
-Jeremy Hanke
Founder & Co-Creator, World of Depleted
February 16th, 2011