by Coop Cooper Fan films – or films based on popular established Film and TV franchise properties – have been around a lot longer than the internet. For example, in the early 80's a group of teenage friends in Biloxi, Mississippi took a videocamera and painstakingly made a shot-for-shot remake of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” in their backyards and basements. Years later, their film was rediscovered by film festival programmers and the boys (now men) have become a worldwide sensation, even garnering praise from “Raiders” director Steven Spielberg himself. Now in the age of instantaneous internet video, fan films have become a hobby, a passion and a source of opportunity for many budding filmmakers around the world.