Full Rules

Fanedit.org is one of the largest and most extensive sites for the art and critique of fanediting. When the site was first created in 2006, there was no single website dedicated to the listing of fanedits. Since that time our website has evolved into a highly collaborative community of passionate editors and fans of film. Answers to common questions can be found on our FAQ page. More detailed information can be found below.

What you will find on this site:
Fanedit.org is a news and discussion site, dedicated to promoting and sharing information about the art of Fanediting. It is a place where people come to learn about fanediting, find fanedits, and collaborate with other fans and faneditors about our shared passion. To this end, the site is comprised of three main sections:

  • A public facing NEWS SECTION which announces the latest projects, site news, tutorials, and movie news.
  • IFDb (Internet Fanedit Database) which lists over 1,000 known fanedits. This powerful tool allows you to search for virtually any edit listed by our community.
  • A FORUM which provides a place for editors and fans of fanediting to come together and discuss everything from in-the-works projects, ideas for new projects, technical guides and discussion, and of course, general discussions of anything that has to do with fanediting and film.
  • A CHAT room, where members can get together to discuss fanediting, what a parsec is, how many cylons it takes to screw in a light bulb, etc.

What you won’t find on this site:
Because fanedit.org is a news and discussion site only, you will not find links for downloading fanedits. Distribution of fanedits is strictly the responsibility of faneditors. Membership/participation at fanedit.org is voluntary and the site and its administrators cannot dictate what faneditors do with their projects, nor is this site or its team responsible for making fanedits available. More information on ethical editing guidelines can be found below. The following detailed information about our site is expanded from our General Rules page:

Hosting

Fanedit.org is a discussion and listing site only. Editors are responsible for making their edits available to those who want to download them. Typically editors use a variety of methods to make their edits available for digital download including usenet, torrents, and digital file-lockers such as Mega or Mediafire.

Because Fanedit.org is a discussion site only, direct links for downloading of copyrighted material are NEVER allowed on the site–this includes the forum, chatroom, the news pages, and the edit listings themselves.

Quite often, faneditors will use an external indexing site (e.g., fanedit.info, tehparadox) as a means of providing direction on how to acquire their edits, however these sites are NOT affiliated with fanedit.org, and as such please do not contact the fanedit.org staff about any issues you encounter on any of these external websites.

It is okay to discuss the fact that such sites exist, and that edits may be available there (such as, “this edit is available on rapidshare” or “dlc is now available at info”) but NEVER include full URLs or direct links to any site, or any link which is for downloading copyrighted material of any kind. If you have questions about this policy, please contact a staff member DIRECTLY. Do not post in the forum. These posts will be deleted and continued abuse of this rule will lead to infractions and temporary/permanent bans from the site.

Members of fanedit.org can do what they want via private messages as fanedit.org is unable to control or monitor private messages. If you are having difficulty locating an edit for download after checking the resources mentioned above, there is a section of the forum dedicated to trading fanedits (Trades and Requests). Do not make any requests to download or obtain an edit outside of this section or private messaging.

Own the Source

Because fanediting involves the use of copyrighted material, the staff of this site take protecting the rights of copyright holders seriously. While the site’s position is that fanediting is protected under Fair Use copyright laws, we recognize that fanediting is built upon the hard work of those who make the original films and content, and as such our site enforces rules to help ensure that copyright holders are never cheated out of revenue. Fanedits are not-for-profit and should only be obtained if you own the sources which comprise the edit. Members who are found to be making personal profits from fanedits will be banned from the site. To ensure the copyright owner receives compensation for their work, a faneditor must used an officially released source they purchased. Examples include: Blu-ray, DVD, and a downloadable copy through a site like iTunes, Amazon, or Google Play. Captures of streamed copies through subscription based services are not acceptable. Further, you must own a legal copy equal to or of higher resolution than the fanedit (e.g., an official Blu-ray would be more than sufficient if viewing a DVD copy of a fanedit).

Illegally obtained material such as workprints leaked/stolen from the studio are strictly prohibited, and edits containing such material will not be listed on in our database.

Forum Conduct

The foundations of any forum are quality threads. Please be sure to follow these rules when posting in the forum.

  • Starting new threads. Titles should be descriptive and relevant to the topic being discussed. Before starting a new thread, use the search function to see if the topic already exists or your question has already been answered; use an existing thread if it is relevant.
  • We do not tolerate bad behavior. This is a pleasant community. Let’s keep it that way. There is no room for hatred or bigotry on fanedit.org. Posts which are offensive or derogatory to any ethnic or other group is the surest way to get yourself banned. Additionally, we do not permit nudity (posted images or direct linking). This is a PG-13 forum. You can easily find pr0n anywhere else on the interwebs…
  • Posts should be constructive. Posts consisting of nothing, but “That sounds great!” or “I am looking forward to this” or the likes, should be kept to a minimum. If you post rubbish nonsense continuously, you will get warned, and banned in repeat cases.
  • Multiple accounts or deceptive posting is forbidden. Multiple accounts, either because of forgotten login information or intentional usage of a sock account is forbidden. We regularly scan IP addresses and remove duplicate accounts. If we find that you are using a fake account to deceive forum members about edit feedback or ratings, you may receive infractions or be banned.
  • Do not post download links or ask for them. Don’t do it. See the section on HOSTING above. This rule applies not only to fanedited material, but it obviously applies to copyrighted media and software. We do not condone piracy.
  • Reporting Posts. If you see a post or series of posts that you feel violates any of the rules listed here, please select “report this post” under the actual post(s) in question. Please do not act as a Moderator or Administrator if you are not one. Do not interpret rules for others–just report suspected violations.
  • Do not debate our rules on the forum, especially details of the Own the Source rule. If you have questions about our rules, PM a staff member for clarification.

Submitting a Fanedit

Fanedit.org (IFDB) provides a listing of known fanedits submitted by, or on behalf of faneditors which respect the rights of copyright holders. As such, the overriding rule is that Fanedit.org will not list any edits that contain sources which are known to be illegally obtained. A general guideline is that if the copyright holder is not losing income then it’s likely OK. Additional notes on sources:

  • If the copyright holder has made their material commercially available, then the editor and the downloader should own a commercially available copy of the material at the same or greater resolution.
  • If something has been purposefully delivered to the public free of charge, whether by internet, broadcast, cable or satellite broadcast and has never made it available for purchase, the copyright holder has not lost revenue, and has also clearly released that material into public domain. US courts have roundly affirmed individuals’ rights to record television programming for personal use and free of charge. As long as the material is not available for purchase, caps of deleted scenes are allowed to be recorded and kept.
  • We absolutely refuse to allow anything where a source is either known to be illegal, or cannot be reasonably proved to be legal. Examples include copies of films which were leaked prior to the commercial release of the film, leaked workprint footage which has never been sold/distributed, illegal duplications of edits, etc…
  • Notable sources which can be OK given correct observance of the copyright rule include digital copies of privately, legally owned film prints, as long as the editor owns the commercially available material. In such cases the source is a legal copy (privately owned film) and all parties involved (editor and downloader) own a commercial source (DVD, BD, etc.) then the copyright holder’s rights have been respected and financially compensated.

Listing Process
As one of the largest fanediting sites on the internet, Fanedit.org seeks to provide a balance for visitors to the site. Edits listed here are expected to maintain a required level of technical achievement in order to ensure that those who then go seek out these edits can expect a basic level quality as a reward for their diligence. Read In The Spotlight: FE Quality for more information.

As such there is a vetting process for first time fan editors. Editors new to the site have their first edits reviewed by forum members of The Academy. If the edit demonstrates the ability to create sound edits both in terms of technical and narrative execution, they will be given access to submit their edits for listing. If an ‘approved’ editor later submits an edit which has serious flaws, forum members can report/request that the edit be reviewed by The Academy to determine if the editor needs to rework the project before it can be listed on the site.

Fanedits made of a newly released film (ex. “The Last Jedi”) will not be accepted until 15 days after the physical media version is released. As an example: “The Last Jedi” was released on physical media March 27, so no fanedit of “The Last Jedi” will be accepted before April 12. This is for two reasons: it ensures people aren’t rushing to release their edit and creating mediocre fanedits, and it gives us some peace of mind that people will continue to adhere to our rules. In other words, edits must remain in Ideas or In-the-Works forums for at least 15 days after physical release before being submitted to the academy/IFDB.

The staff can choose to list edits by editors who are not forum members and/or have dropped off the grid so-to-speak. There are a lot of great edits out there, and Fanedit.org seeks to ensure that as many people as possible learn about them! The staff also reserves the right to refuse listing of any edit for any reason.

Do not post your work-in-progress in any other forum besides In-The-Works or Ideas. If you post it in any other forum it will result in it being moved or deleted at the discretion of the admin/mod.

Note: We reserve the right to ask for proof of purchase by way of a redacted receipt (personal information blacked out) if we feel a faneditor is not complying with the Own the Source rule.

Rating Fanedits

All ratings/reviews on The Internet Fanedit Database are moderated. This is to put quality control into reviews and to maintain a friendly atmosphere on the site.  Ratings need to be fair and should go alongside a comment explaining how you came to such a score. Lengthy or detailed reviews are not a requirement but are highly encouraged. The only time a detailed review is required is for a negative rating (see below).

When rating, please consider ALL of the following criteria:

  • Technical quality: Were the image and sound quality up to par?
  • Editing quality: Did you notice any jarring video or audio cuts? Did the fanedit flow well?
  • Narrative: How well did the editor achieve his/her goals? Were there plot-holes created (or resolved?) Does it work?
  • Enjoyment: Were you entertained by the fanedit?

It is not a requirement to rate every category for an edit, but it is highly encouraged as it gives a better overall picture of a fanedit’s quality and merit.

Any rating of 5 stars or lower requires a clear and detailed explanation of the reasoning for such a low score because ratings lower than 5 call into question the quality of the edit. Any rating below 5 stars and without a sufficient comment will be rejected. And be fair when rating and reviewing edits. Don’t abuse the ratings system to get back at the guy who called you a bad name or rated your fanedit a 6…

Faneditors are not permitted to rate their own fanedits; however, they are allowed to comment on reviews if they feel the need to.