What happens when you release a straight-to-video movie with the same premise as a giant blockbuster, releasing your "mockbuster" the same day as the film you imitate? Is it plagiarism? Or is it fan fiction?
I vote fan fiction. For years I've been following the work of amateur writers inspired by the characters in popular stories, from Silence of the Lambs to Dr. Who to Harry Potter. These fan-based writing groups have formed some of the best online communities for writers.
Today, Steve Bryant alerts us a new breed of knock-off film, the tie-in videos that ride a wave of popular attention for a specific kind of story. It's fan fiction meets B-movie meets do-it-yourself video storytelling. I love it:
"I find these knock-offs completely riveting, like alternate versions of reality wondrously full of cheese-laden actors. Check out the trailer at Slashfilm. Also check out this article in the NYTimes about the "mockbusters" genre of films, including Transmorphers and The Da Vinci Treasure."
For the last ten years, The Asylum has dominated this field of tie-in creations, letting struggling directors find a strange, dedicated audience. What do you think about this crazy sub-sub genre?
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