Fan-made Star Wars movies are more popular than ever. The force of fandoms are strong—and on YouTube Star Wars tributes are thriving and earning millions of views. Since the ‘70s, fans have entertained each other with short films based on the franchise, and Lucasfilm used to host annual fan-movie contests (before Disney acquired the company). But Disney’s stewardship combined with the “wide availability of higher-quality movie making tools” has stemmed “a new era of fan creativity.” According to the NYTimes, of the nearly 150 fan films on YouTube with at least 100K views, more than 75% were uploaded in the six years since the trailer for The Force Awakens premiered. (NYTimes)
