Every so often, I've been SO taken by a film that I wanted to be IN the film. Some people are so resourceful (or nerdy) that they decided to make their OWN film in the spirit of the original! *gasp* I've had the guilty pleasure of enjoying Fan Films over the years, and my favorite ones to watch are the Star Wars variety. I watch them not only for the amazingly professional ones, but for the ones that are creative, inventive, and downright silly.

More often than not, you get what you see pictured here, a little bit of substance and a lot of "I think lightsabers and stormtroopers are cool". I think 95% of Star Wars fan films include at least 9 lightsaber battles*. I imagine George Lucas can feel himself rolling in his grave, even though he's not dead yet.

Here is a recap of most Star Wars fan films. Keep in mind this encompasses most fan film plots:

[Star Wars John Williams knockoff opening credits/story]
[Jedi1 flies ship, lands on a planet]
[Jedi1 roams around the woods behind the 7-11 near the park]
[Sith1 appears, hooded, following Jedi1 from afar]
[Jedi1, woods, Sith1, Jedi1, woods, Sith1, Jedi1, Sith1]
[Sith1 steps in Jedi1's path]
[Sith1 and Jedi1 stare each other down for 30 seconds]
[Sith1 removes hood, his face painted to look like the 4th cousin of Darth Maul]
[Sith1 sneers]
Sith1: "You are weak, Jedi!"
Jedi1: "You're wrong! UR weak!"
[Sith1 ignites a double-sided red lightsaber]
[Jedi1 shrugs off his cloak and ignites a single-sided blue, green, or pink lightsaber]
[Jedi1 and Sith1 reenact their 7th grade drama stage-fighting fencing routine]
[Either Jedi1 or Sith1 gets skewered by a lightsaber]
[End credits]

If anyone uses the above script for their fan film, they will not only NOT have to pay me royalties, they will also no longer be able to be called my friend.

There ARE a few gems in the Star Wars fan film pot, and here are some of my recommended home-brews (I admit, there are some lightsaber fights):

The guy in the blue shirt got a job with LucasArts for his entry in the lightsaber coreography contest (along with other things he'd created)!

For the TRUE story of the Rebellion's victory...

In case you missed one of the episodes, dude.

What IS the true essence of the force?!?

I am amazed by what people can create on small budgets. I think I will go make my own fan film. It will just need to be of equal caliber to my two previous films I have starred in, Jerusalem Dragnet and Mighty Mormon Potty Trainers .

*This might be off base. I think the actual amount is closer to 25.