I believe that Licensed IP Brickfilms have just as much potential as any other form of brickfilm to be good.  The trouble is that they usually aren't.

I don't think there is any one single factor since Licensed Brickfilms themselves vary widely.  Indiana and the Quest for the Platinum Waffle is as distinct from LEGO: The Force Unleashed as Paint. is from Pirates Rule!, to cite some random examples.  Sometimes, watching a LEGO recreation of a movie trailer barring a certain Star Wars teaser can be just as much fun as an original brickfilm set in a pre-existing universe.  All of the choices you've listed in the poll could greatly improve a Licensed Brickfilm in some capacity or another.

I think the main problem is that most Brickfilmers don't think about the possibilities enough and take an idea to its fullest potential.  A lot of young Brickfilmers seem to be aping ForrestFire and his ilk.  I suppose it's inevitable to some degree, but it's kind of sad since a ForrestFire video is just a tiny bit of what is possible with a Licensed Brickfilm (and, let's face it, not exactly something to be proud of).  I'm not here to debate whether or not his videos are good--my point is that just because some random person found fame this way doesn't mean it's the right path for someone else to take.

Basically it depends on what you want to achieve.  If it's a straight-up recreation of a scene or trailer, technical quality is paramount, as the creative storytelling aspect of film-making has no room to shine.  If it's badly made and rushed it'll just look amateurish and lolzy in the worst possible way (see: 90% of all the recreations of the aforementioned SW teaser).  Same with fight scenes.  I myself have one or two "recreations" in mind, though I don't feel brave enough to even contemplate tackling them until I drastically improve my animation and VFX skills.  I'd also like to see Brickfilms based off more diverse IPs.  It would be nice to have Licensed Brickfilms that aren't based off of something LEGO has made a theme out of, instead seeing yet another Star Wars or Batman flick.  All of my current "Licensed ideas" involve IPs that aren't affiliated with LEGO in any way.

If making an character-driven Licensed story, all of the considerations regarding "normal" brickfilms apply here (since it essentially is the same as an original Brickfilm, with the exception that you're using characters, locations, and concepts that some other person created).  Indiana Scones works, despite bad picture quality and audio, because of the excellent writing, voice-acting, and animation (Can-Can skeletons], anyone?).  While it does send up the old Indiana Jones tropes in a hilarious manner, it doesn't rely on them alone for humour, and there are plenty of original jokes that nevertheless fit well within the universe that eanimation has created for us.  Clubbins feels just as developed as, say, Jack Darter or BIRDFaCE.  He has a life of his own, instead of being a boring plastic puppet spouting parodies of famous lines in an attempt at being "funny".  As a result we get a Brickfilm that manages to pay homage to the source material and still give us something completely new and fresh.

Bottom line, I believe that Brickfilmers need to think outside the box a lot more and break the mould when it comes to Licensed Brickfilms, and think about all of the possibilities available.  Making short BrotherHood Workshop-style animations is all well and good (and great fun to watch), but it'd be nice to see something more developed than a quick one-joke film quickly digested and forgotten about.  Whilst I personally don't entirely understand the appeal of making character-driven Licensed brickfilms (if you're going to put that much effort into something, why not just go all the way and create your own world and story and free yourself up creatively), I love seeing what people come up with, and I can't wait to see what other Brickfilmers will do!

EDIT: Yeesh, that ended up being a lot longer than I thought.

Last edited by Mr Vertigo (February 7, 2015 (06:20am))

I feel Star Wars is the most under utilized licensed theme out there. Yes "wars" is a big part of Star Wars, but there is also an amazing story behind those battles. But it seems all we get from brickfilms is senseless saber duels and explosive ground battles (most of witch have terrible VFX). But look at Star Wars: A New Hope, with  the exception of a few skirmishes, there is no real battle till over half way through the film. Most of that film is character development. Character struggle, the great battle between good and evil (not told through excessive violence), and concepts and theologies of the Force are just a few things I would really love to see incorporated in future Star Wars brickfilms.

Look, when you just start out brickfilming, story will probably be the last thing you think about due to you trying to figure out how to animate correctly. Story comes once you feel confident with your animation.

I agree. That's when tests come in handy. I spent three years making stop motion off other stories like Ninjago, LOTR, and Star Wars and my animation was still bad. I honestly think that after you get good at stop motion with the tests, then you should try original stories. But that's just my opinion I won't inflict upon anyone else.

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I think that brickfilms based on pre-existing/licensed themes should slit away from the main story and invent a new story. Instead of Superman saving the news lady from a giant gorilla, the film could focus on his home life, and what he does on his average non super day. Or instead of The Hobbit brickfilms re-hashing the movies, they could focus on minor characters that have their own adventures but nobody appreciates them. Branching out from the norm is what makes them successful. Like Squid said, Brotherhood Workshop did that well, especially with their first LoTR brickfilm where the Orks just wanted an autograph.

For example,take my "Captain D. Rom" mini-series I have done for BRAWL 2014 and THAC 12 (even though it's not technically a licensed theme it still applies). I didn't invent Captain D. Rom. His character was from the LEGO Island video game, I just used his name and design and re-invented his role. Instead of him being the goofy sidekick, he's now the goofy main character.

Re-inventing the characters is crucial for making a good brickfilm that already has a base story. Sure, you're not building from the ground up, but you are remodeling a little.

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Typically, IP brickfilms fall into three categories: the spectacle, the mockery, or the recreation. Spectacle brickfilms are all about the fights, action scenes, and visual effects, and almost always are lackluster in character development or story. The typical brickfilmer's skill at animating has gotten so good that pretty much anyone can animate a convincing fight scene. And unfortunately, this means most fight scenes look the same, whether they are Thor vs Spiderman, Darth Vader vs Luke, or Spongebob vs Steve from Minecraft. If I'm going to care about a fight scene, I need to be invested in the characters. Otherwise it's yet another film where minifigs throw punches with exaggerated swings and weightless reactions.
Some of my favorite brickfilm fight scenes are from Zach Macias's The Profession and Robinson Wood's Grace, because those fights play a part in the story, they aren't the entire story.

Mockery IP brickfilms are more about making fun of the source material, such as Philip Heinrich's Station Tribulations. These types of brickfilms are much more interesting to me, because generally, to be any good, they have to be clever in their writing. They actually have to have knowledge of the source material, beyond "Hey Iron Man is a strong guy and Batman is a strong guy, so they should fight!"

Recreation IP brickfilms just recreate a scene or trailer. I have no time or interest in them, and there's no way to improve them. They just exist to grab views on YouTube.

My distaste for IP brickfilms stems from the fact that most of them are just extended fight scene tests, with no actual story attached to them. If more IP brickfilms actually had a compelling story, if even if that story is just cleverly mocking the source material, then I'd be much more welcoming to IP brickfilms.

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Nathan, you've got some great observations there, but I'm wondering where you would put stuff like my Secrets in the Shadows. I know films that genuinely respect the source, but also add their own story are rare, but they do exist.

In fact, that is my favorite kind of IP film. I agree about the over saturation of mindless fight scenes, though I grudgingly respect a well-executed scene recreation. (But only if it's very high-quality.) Parodies are on odd spot for me, since my sense of humor doesn't always match up with the creators. Therefore, certain kinds of parody drive me up a wall, while others I adore.

But something that seemlessly fits into the wider universe, and does so well, you just can't beat that. They can echo the tone and feel of the source, and give you the sense of truly opening a window into that world, rather than some random child's poor imitation. Good fan-fiction can work, it can take the IP and build on what is already there. Rather than disrespect or destroy our appreciation for the original, it can add to our love for both the brickfilm, and the source material.

One point I will agree with is the need for good writing. There has be a reason for stuff to happen more than just the usual "Hey, it'd be cool if-" that many IP films play off of. Respect and knowledge of the source is essential, but ultimately there is also a need for balance. A film that sounds like a trivia game of random facts is nearly as off-putting as one that can't remember which dwarves were actually at the Battle of Azanulbizar. That balance also needs to extend beyond the plot to sounds and music, since endless repeats of "I am the Doctor" do little for a DW film when they are overused, or used in place of more appropriate, but less recognizable tracks.

This would be fabulous. I think it'd make a really interesting brickfilm.

"Nothing goes down 'less I'm involved. No nuggets. No onion rings. No nothin'. A cheeseburger gets sold in the park, I want in! You got fat while we starved on the streets...now it's my turn!" -Harley Morenstein

My very first flick was a recreation.  It's the best way for any beginner to go IMO.  Sets, characters, camera angles, dialogue - its all provided on a platter.  All beginners should start with a recreation IMO.

My next was a fight scene, wasn't much, but I wanted to see if I could do it.

My next was a mockery - the next stage of maturity

My next three have been non-IP original content.  The final stage of maturity IMO.  By the Fox scale of technical ability (tm):

Bronze: recreation
Silver: action
Gold: mockery
Platinum: non-IP.

These are things I'm aiming to do this year, with the Marvel Brickfilm Universe (though my next brickfilm, Avengers Tower: Invasion, evolved out of a fight scene I was originally making for another channel and so has annoyingly ended up being pretty vacuous). There's nothing to say an original story in a licensed IP world can't be as good as a totally original brickfilm: Secrets in the Shadows is a great example, and there are plenty of others out there too. Atlas Animationz' Marvel series is very action-centric but makes a strong effort for story, while this Bionicle fanfilm by Vrahno captures the spirit of that era of the saga while telling its own story in a fun and (in parts) novel way.

I think it's possible to find a solid marriage of 'Story' and 'Spectacle' in licensed IP brickfilms, but it takes work to do so. It's easy to fall into the trap of "yeah, that would look cool", but ultimately if you're a good storyteller, you're a good storyteller. Of course, I think pure spectacle brickfilms have some merit too (if done well) but that leads into the argument of high brow and low brow culture, which would massively derail this topic, and could possibly become inflammatory (it tends to do so in some of my uni seminars whenever the subject comes up, particularly about UK TV regulation).

What's been really interesting about this topic is how varied everyone's opinions are. Some people firmly for, some firmly against, some who don't see it as black-and-white, and what this suggests to me is that the matter of licensed IP brickfilms is predominantly a subjective issue; there's no way to say they inherently have a lack of quality by being based on licensed IPs, but it's interesting how we all have different views on how that fact may or may not impinge on quality. This topic was not meant to create a categorical 'no' or 'yes' approach to licensed IP brickfilms, but what it has done is shown one thing for certain: whether we enjoy them or dislike them, we are all far more critical of them than we are of original brickfilms, and this is an interesting conclusion that we've come to.

"Nothing goes down 'less I'm involved. No nuggets. No onion rings. No nothin'. A cheeseburger gets sold in the park, I want in! You got fat while we starved on the streets...now it's my turn!" -Harley Morenstein