Fan Film, Fan Films

Lord of the Rings Hunt For Gollum Fan Film Courts Controversy

the hunt for gollumThe long-awaited fan film, The Hunt For Gollum, based on obscure parts of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, will finally debut on May 3, appearing at dailymotion.com and on the big screen at The London Sci-Fi International Film Festival. The pre-release goodwill shown the 40-minute film by Metro Online and SFX Magazine has extended to London tabloid paper The Sun, which wrote up the film, slipping some incendiary quotes into the mix.

While stating that they “wanted to show filmmaking is not just about money,” Gollum producer Spencer Duru derided the average fan film as “dodgy,” describing Gollum as “the first ever fan film with serious production values. We aim to bring a unique high quality HD cinema experience to the internet.”

Of course, what qualifies as “serious production values” is a matter of opinion (I’d say that plenty of films fit that description), but unquestionably, numerous fan films have been shot in High-Def, including Star Wars: Revelations, the James Bond effort Shamelady and Star Trek: Phase II, among many others.

It’s no secret that FCT is looking forward to this flick (I posted as much in the Sun article’s comments section). A high-profile production like Gollum has the potential to both introduce new people to the world of fan films and likewise change a lot of disdainful minds about the fledgling genre.

As a result, it’s disappointing to see Duru promote his film at the expense of others. Nevertheless, if Gollum meets now-raised expectations, hopefully it will inspire other fan filmmakers to improve their films, rather than simply quit or be ashamed of their “dodgy” efforts.

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