In present day, fans are no different than they were in 1915 with the first fan club. Fans enjoy this participatory culture we now call fandom. Fans today have found a place to belong just as they did all those years ago. There is camaraderie and a sense of family within most fandoms, and they… Continue reading Labors of Love and Why Fans Give to Crowdfunding Campaigns
Category: Fandom
Butterflies in the Sky and Why Fans Give
I’ve given some examples of fandom and what happens when fans go the extra mile only to be exploited in some way, and my last case in point for the research of crowdfunding and fandom is the much-loved PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) series, Reading Rainbow. “Butterflies in the sky, I can go twice as high,… Continue reading Butterflies in the Sky and Why Fans Give
Supernatural and the Exploits of The Fangirls
With the discovery of fan exploitation through the case of Firefly/Serenity, there is another case that probably shares a personal point-of-view of a particular fan, their fandom and their experience with fan labor. The ones I am talking about are Katherine Larsen and Lynn Zubernis; remember me mentioning these two ladies before? These two professors… Continue reading Supernatural and the Exploits of The Fangirls
Firefly, Serenity and Exploitation
I would like to discuss a few case studies on exploitation, outside of crowdfunding with fandoms. The first will be about the movie Serenity created and directed by Joss Whedon in 2005. The movie was a sequel to the popular cult show Firefly (2002) also created and directed by Whedon The television show aired on the… Continue reading Firefly, Serenity and Exploitation
Fans, Fandom and Participatory Cultures
Another interesting aspect of Crowdfunding is that it is a type of “participatory culture.” People have to participate in order for the campaigns to succeed. No campaign can work without the crowd. Why should we discuss participatory culture? Because one must understand how people in a fandom participate within its culture to really understand why… Continue reading Fans, Fandom and Participatory Cultures
Fan Labor Back in the Golden Age
Back during the Golden Age of Hollywood, some of the first fan clubs were created and with them fan labor. In Samantha Barbas’ book, Movie Crazy: Fans, Stars, and the Cult of Celebrity (2001), she explains the beginning of fan clubs and fan contributions as early as 1910 through to the 1940s. She shares the… Continue reading Fan Labor Back in the Golden Age
Crowdfunding and Fandom: An Introduction Part II
In my research I have discovered that there are different models of crowdfunding. The platform wasn’t always called “crowdfunding.” In the early days (2005), it was called “crowdsourcing,” dully named by journalist Jeff Howe in an article he wrote for Wired Magazine (Wikipedia, 2015). The initial definition of crowdsourcing was “the process of obtaining needed… Continue reading Crowdfunding and Fandom: An Introduction Part II
Crowdfunding and Fandom: An Introduction Part I
As a young girl I remember staying up late to watch the celebrities come out and perform on the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon (Lewis, 1973) on television. Every year Mr. Lewis took two days on a national television station, and all their affiliated stations, to air this telethon to earn money for a… Continue reading Crowdfunding and Fandom: An Introduction Part I
Annotated Bibliography
1. Barbas, S. (2001). “Movie Crazy: Fans, Stars, and The Cult of Celebrity” FALGRAVE, St. Martin’s Press. Kindle Edition The fascination of Hollywood started from the beginning. In 1910 citizens who went to the picture show were enamored of the stars on the screen and the behind the scenes stories of how to make movies.… Continue reading Annotated Bibliography
