Research Proposal: Twilight Videos

My project will explore the practice of fans creating their own versions of Twilight videos on YouTube. These videos question the idea of authorship, because the creators borrow from Stephanie Meyer's original creation, but also add to the extensive works of unique and creative multimedia publications available on the web.

There are 355,000 hits on the website when you type in the keyword "Twilight," and this number increases extraordinarily with each passing day - adding to the cult-like following that Meyer's work has inspired. These videos range from fan-created trailers, to remixes, to spoofs, to parodies,to alternate endings, and to a range of creative inventions. While this practice is like fan-fiction, some of the videos borrow images and clips from the movies or use the same central storyline with different actors. Other videos transform the movie and plot in a more comical manner, such as "The Twilight Puppet Saga" and the "Twilight Trailer Spoof." Overall, the videos remake the original subject matter of Stephanie Meyer into an expression of creativity and multimedia prowess.

These videos lead to multiple questions about ownership and credit: Can the creators of the videos claim full "credit" or "ownership" for their ideas? Or do they have to credit the actors, the directors, the authors, etc.? Is this practice of "remixing" or "plagiarism" legal? Since the images and scenes are used without permission, could some sort of legal repercussions occur? How does the author, Stephanie Myer, relate to the videos? Is it plagiarism because they "steal" and "borrow" from her work? Who is considered the author for this new form of multimedia expression?

My topic rethinks authorship because the creators of the videos borrow from the same central theme. The creators present their own point of view, remixes, and expressions of the saga, and then publish their work in an online forum for the entire world to view free of charge. Yet, while these videos are unique and innovative, they still infringe upon the ideas and copyright protected work of the original author. In order for these videos to exist without consequences on the internet, it is necessary to redefine the term authorship as well as extend upon the terms plagiarism and copyright? Are these video directors creating a new, 21st century, multimedia form of publication and ownership?

References

Hetcher, Stephen. "Using Social Norms to Regulate Fan Fiction and Remix Culture." http://66.102.1.104/scholar?q=cache:DPYIDz1VnXMJ:scholar.google.com/+hetcher+fanfiction&hl=en. 9/15/09.

PlagiarismdotORG. "Resources." http://www.plagiarism.org/. 9/13/09.

Reynolds, Emily. "Screams, Vampires, Werewolfs and Autographs: An Exploration of the Twilight Phenomenon." http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/ETD/image/etd2908.pdf. 9/14/09.

"So You Wannna Write/Read FanFics?" http://www.liannesentar.com/fanfiction/fanfictionhelp.html. 9/14/09.