“How big can we make it?”: il dibattito intorno a The Veronica Mars Movie Project

Abstract

This essay aims to analyze the case of the Veronica Mars Movie Project crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter and the debate that sparked among television critics, academics, and experts. The first part describes the context of the VM project; the second part summarizes and analyzes the main issues that emerged from the debate, from the ambiguous position of the production company, Warner Bros., to he problematic involvement of money within the framework of fan practices. Using the Veronica Mars Movie Project as a case study, this essay focuses on the conflict between the principles of Kickstarter and the corporate interests of the entertainment industry, and it raises questions about the blurried boundaries between legitimate fan involvement and fandom exploitation.