Fans of cult films don't just watch the movies they love-they frequently engage with them in other, more creative ways as well. Making European Cult Cinema explores the ways in which that fandom could be understood as an alternative economy of fan enterprise, through a close look at how fans produce and distribute artifacts and commodities related to cult films. Built around interviews and ethnographic observations-and even the author's own fan enterprise-the book creates an innovative theoretical framework that draws in ideas from cultural studies and political economy to introduce the concept of an 'alternative economy' as a way to understand fan productions.

Dr. Oliver Carter is a lecturer in media and cultural theory and a member of the Centre for Media and Cultural Research at Birmingham City University. His research focuses on alternative economies of media production, particularly fan production.

ContentsPreface Introduction Fancademia - The Limitation of Fan Studies Defining the fan Choosing a direction Celebrating fandom Fan studies as fan production The structure of the book 1. Fan Enterprise as an Alternative Economy Fandom as an economy Defining the 'alternative economy' Fans as creative workers Fan produced texts as exchangeable artefacts Fans transgressing rules and regulations Conclusion 2. Researching an Alternative Economy A (fan) ethnographic approach A new model for fan ethnography: the 'combined ethnography' Using combined ethnography Limitations and ethical considerations Conclusion 3. Defining European cult cinema Trash or cult? What is European cult cinema? The 'giallo' Conclusion 4. Historicizing the Alternative Economy of European Cult Cinema Fan Enterprise The fanzines The significance of VHS The British horror fanzines Media Communications - The first fan enterprise Media Communications and The Fantom Kiler Dark Publications - The second fan enterprise FAB Press - The third fan enterprise Conclusion - Diversifying Production 5. Sharing European Cult Cinema: Encouraging and Rewarding Fan Enterprise Commercially releasing gialli on home video What is CineTorrent? Polices, rules and regulations Constructing an archive The Giallo Project The Giallo Project and user creativity Conclusion - CineTorrent as a fan enterprise 6. Informal Enterprises: Selling European Cult Cinema The Shop with the Crystal Plumage Pronto! Giallo T-Shirts From 'supply and demand' to 'demand and supply' Tough to Kill and Lulu European cult t-shirts on Spreadshirt Conclusion Conclusion: Making Fandoms From the alternative to the formal? Crowdfunding Eurocrime Making European Cult Cinema New directions for fan studies Bibliography