Running Head: FAN CULTURE (FAN FILMS) 1

Fan Culture (Fan Films)

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Introduction

The most common reference to fans by most of their superstars, idols, franchises, leaders,

and audience is that “fans are everything. Without the fans, fame would not be possible for the

superstars’. The appreciation of fans has been a long-standing value that has been prevalent in

the society due to the influence that they carry towards fame and stardom. Pool at al. (2018)

point out that most fans have an attraction to the content object provided to them, and how their

satisfaction based on specific demands are met. Fans are controlled by feelings of emotion and

satisfaction that dictate their interests on even minor details of the objects of their fandom, which

leads to the investment of large amounts of energy and time in their fascinations. Therefore, fan

culture can be explained as a culture that is produced by fans and other casually interested

persons that draw its content from the commercial culture and enables the circulation through

underground economies (Pearson, 2010). This is achievable through developing a fan interest

that focuses on an object such as a celebrity, an idol or a public figure when narrowed down.

Additionally, widely defined fan interest encompasses much more than singularity to attract

trends such as fashion, hobbies, or genres.

Purposes of Fun Work

The importance of fans in the society has come in handy in various areas of academics

including cultural studies and media sociology, due to the exciting possibilities that they

represent as contemporary consumers, media producers, and as active and dedicated audiences

(Newman and Levine, 2012). Without the fans, most of the franchise associations would be

impossible, and the commercial gains to the economy of consumption of some of the arts would

never have been realized. Therefore, the importance of fans is second to none in the realization
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of the value of products and intangibles that offer satisfaction and interest such as fan films. Fan

films that portray Marvel Comic Studio’s superhero movie Deadpool are among the most

exciting productions available on the internet.

Jenkins (2007) identifies that fans develop expertise and source for knowledge about their

movies and shows since it helps satisfy their fandom and provides a typical feeling of ownership

over the object. Most of the sort after fan films create value and provide value addition to the

production works of arts through association with a fan base. In fan films, creators do not

influence the narrative for the fan base but often try to shape the interpretations for the fans of

their work (Jenkins, 2007; Scott, 2012). While various purposes of fan films exist, the most

common is to provide a franchise with a marketable and commercial product and to provide

satisfaction to the fans of the product.

Fan films and Transmedia Franchise

The exciting bit on fan films is that they are extensively exploited to provide the fan base

with information as well as lure the fans by focusing their attention on the objects of their

fandom. Most of the Deadpool fan videos that are made are short and precise to offer a sneak

peek on the exciting bits of the upcoming Deadpool movie release, to entice the fan base to

anticipate the new production from Marvel Comic Studios. Marvel franchise allows the use of

fan films for this purpose since it provides them with the necessary clientele focus to generate the

maximum possible revenues on their production. Additionally, the use of snippets, trailers, and

other Deadpool fan films are utilized to ensure that the fans are always kept interested as well as

attract new fans to the existing and upcoming Marvel Studio’s productions.
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Transmedia franchises such as Marvel Studios, allow the creation of fan films since they

aid in advertising and awareness creation through media outlets and social media platforms, to

reach the most number of fans possible. Not only do fan films provide marketing of franchise

products but also they influence the fandom in the areas that they reach (Wall & Dubber, 2010).

Furthermore, fan films such as Deadpool creations are increasingly popular due to the presence

of social media in today's society, and it has influenced the reach and scale of Marvel Comic

Studio franchise in the society in their efforts to push their products to the fans.

Transmedia Franchise Compliance

For any transmedia franchise, the most critical goal is to provide a systematic dispersion

of the fan films across many channels to ensure unified and coordinated satisfaction to the fans

by creating an entertaining experience (Ryan, 2015). Accomplishing this objective requires the

understanding of the fandom dynamics that a particular transmedia franchise is aiming for, and

how to provide satisfaction to the fans of their products. The Deadpool fan films that are

produced by fan creators provide Marvel Studio franchise with a relevant and focused approach

towards advertising, interesting the fans and commercializing their product.

The essence of Deadpool fan film is to provide all the possible objectives mentioned to

the Marvel Studios franchise jointly without separation of its goals. Moreover, the fun films

produced, need to conform to the forms and conventions of Marvel Comic Studios to provide a

sense of association, originality, and uniqueness of the material it provides to its fan base. A fan,

who views the fan films on Deadpool, should be able to relate the work to Marvel Studios and

their infamous superhero character. In addition, Scott (2012) notes that transmedia franchise fan

films do not dictate the narrative for the fans; however, they influence the interpretations of their
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work to the fan base, which is equally compliant to their conventional methods to their fandom

(Jenkins, 2007).

Fans and Fandom Dynamics

The fans of Marvel Studios often rely on snippets, trailers, short films and other film used

to provide sneak peeks to their favorite movies and shows. In the digital era, the fans can quickly

obtain access to their favorite entertainment media due to the ease of access and availability of

the internet worldwide (Gray, 2010; Scott, 2012). Marvel Comic Studios has similarly tapped on

the potential opportunities that the use of the internet has presented, and has exceptionally

utilized the internet with the invention of social media platforms that connect fans and amateur

associates of a particular fandom.

The associations of a transmedia franchise fandom are made up of a vast community of

fans who have similar interests on a specific product (Ryan, 2015). The fandom is created due to

identical interests on an object such as the Deadpool superhero character and due to the unique

satisfaction that it provides to the fans. Most fandom members of Marvel Studios franchise are

internet users, which provide a lucrative platform for reaching them using fan created fan films

that are advertised and posted on social media platforms. Finally, by using Deadpool fan films,

creators of fan films identify the niche in communicating their work to, by highlighting what

appeals to the fandom to generate interest in the works of Marvel Comic Studio’s franchise

production.

Conclusion

Fans will always dictate the material that they are interested in by popularizing the work

of arts that they relate to and avoiding objects that do not appeal to them. This is done through
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creations of fan films that generate interest and curiosity of the fans of the famous object, in this

case, such as the Deadpool Comic and Movie productions. Fandoms provide more significant

interests in the work of creators, authors, writers, and publishers, among other artists, due to the

appeal and satisfaction that these produced works provide. On the other hand, transmedia

franchises such as Marvel Studios, have utilized the influence of fandom to create material that

their fans can relate to and that which offers an experience of satisfaction and entertainment.

While content from Marvel studios is made for the fans, they also need to create commercial

value for the franchise and the parties involved in the realization of their productions. Fan

creators are interested in finding out what their fans need and gauging their interests to provide

material that is in line with the original content and satisfactory to their entertainment needs. As

alluded to earlier, indeed ‘the fans are everything’.

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References

Jenkins, H. (2007). Transmedia storytelling 101. Confessions of an Aca-Fan.

Gray, J. (2010). Show sold separately: Promos, spoilers, and other media paratexts. NYU Press.

Newman, M. Z., & Levine, E. (2012). Legitimating television: Media convergence and cultural

status. Routledge.

Pearson, R. (2010). Fandom in the digital era. Popular Communication, 8(1), 84-95.

Pool, J. K., Dehghan, A., Jamkhaneh, H. B., Jaberi, A., & Sharifkhani, M. (2018). The Effect of

E-Service Quality on Football Fan Satisfaction and Fan Loyalty toward the Websites of

Their Favorable Football Teams. Sports Media, Marketing, and Management:

Breakthroughs in Research and Practice: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice, 470.

Ryan, M. L. (2015). Transmedia Storytelling: Industry Buzzword or New Narrative Experience?.

Storyworlds: A Journal of Narrative Studies, 7(2), 1-19.

Scott, S. (2012). WHO’S STEERING THE MOTHERSHIP?. The Participatory Cultures

Handbook, 43.

Wall, T., & Dubber, A. (2010). Experimenting with fandom, live music, and the Internet:

Applying insights from music fan culture to new media production. Journal of New

Music Research, 39(2), 159-169.