Festivids letter
Dear Festividder
First off, I love you for making a vid for me in one of these fandoms. Seriously, anything at all you come up with will make me happy.
Most important: Please ignore all my prompts and suggestions if you have a better idea!
They are only there to give you some inspiration if you're drawing a blank. I am not deeply attached to any of them and I would hate to think of anyone slaving away on a vid for a pairing or song that they hate just to try and make me happy. Seriously, ignore everything I'm about to say.
However, I love using 500 words where one would do (see my prompts) so will ramble on for a bit anyway. Did I mention you can ignore all this? You can ignore all this.
Safety: If you're not keen on the fandom you matched on and want to go for the safety option, you should note that besides The Slipper and the Rose (which is an awesome musical you should watch anyway), the 1930s Fred and Ginger movies are all quite short and easily obtainable on DVD. As I said in the prompt, I'd be just as happy with a vid focusing on one of the movies than across all of them.
ETA: I would also point out that Jekyll is dark, funny and brilliant and only 1 series, 6 hours in total; it was written by Stephen Moffatt who wrote Coupling, Press Gang and the best episodes of New Who. Spaced was written by and starred Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson (now Hynes), directed by Edgar Wright, and is a fantastic show that every geek should see at least once; it's also only 2 series, just under 6 hours in total.
Vids: I love everything. Gen, slash, het; funny, serious, silly, angsty. I seem to have asked for mostly het ships for some reason, but it's just the way the fandoms have worked out - I love gen vids or slashy vids and I honestly would be very happy with anything at all in any of these fandoms.
That said, I do particularly love vids where the music is at odds with the source material and it still works, if that makes sense; a modern rock song for a period piece or old film (The Slipper and the Rose or the Fred & Ginger movies), an old Disney song for a modern TV show.
Music: Anything at all! There are no genres or artists I really dislike, and one of the best parts about watching vids for me is discovering songs I never would have heard of otherwise. I haven't made many specific music suggestions for that reason and the ones I have made were just off the top of my head. Again, please feel free to ignore them!
For shippy vids, I do love quirky or unconventional love songs rather than straightforward, romantic ones; e.g. 'Unluckiest Man in the World' or 'Liddle Biddy Help from Elvis' by Space (or 'Bad Days' or 'Me and You vs The World' - most Space songs fit this category!), 'In Pursuit of Happiness' by The Divine Comedy, 'Me & You Song' by the Wannadies, and so on.
I would prefer it for the fandoms that already include musical numbers (specifically requests 1, 3 & 7) if the music for the vid is original rather than one of the songs from the show.
Request #1: The Slipper and the Rose (Movie)
Details: Anything! A Prince Edward/John slashy vid, a Cinderella-centric vid, Stepmother-centric, something focusing on the insanity of the Royal Family or anything else you can think of.
I love this fandom for the childhood nostalgia and the fun of it. I firmly believe that John/Edward is practically canon (the lingering looks, the lyrics of 'Why Can't I Be Two People'), but I also, hand on heart, love Edward/Cinderella as a pairing (they're just so adorably dopey!). I'd just love to see anything at all you can come up with for this fandom.
Somehow the Fairy Godmother got left out of my request despite being my favourite character in the film (because I'm a numpty), so please pretend that something focused on her was also one of my suggestions!
Request #2: Doctor Who - 1963-1989 (TV)
Music: 'Stiff Upper Lip' by the Gershwins (for UNIT!)
Details: Would love a tribute to the Brigadier or UNIT in general, either comic or serious! Or anything companion-centred rather than Doctor-centred - I love all the companions (yes, even Adric and Mel), so a multi-era vid featuring all of them would also make me very happy.
When I said I love every companion? I really do love every companion. I also pretty much watch Doctor Who for the companions rather than the Doctor (any of them). I know that makes me pretty odd in the DW fandom, but I came to terms with it years ago. :D At the moment, I'm particularly in love with all of UNIT, but it changes from day to day, so if you're not a UNIT fan anything at all would be great.
If you wanted to focus on a particular era or character, my favourite companions are: Ian & Barbara, Vicki, Steven, Jamie, Zoe, the Brig, Benton, Jo, Sarah Jane, Harry, Leela, K-9, Romana II, Nyssa, Tegan, Turlough, Peri, Ace. (And you wouldn't believe how much it cost me to narrow it down that far! Poor Victoria.)
Would prefer no Doctor/companion shipping (with the exception of Four/Romana II), but if you feel a strong desire to make a slash or het vid for any combination of companions, go for it! Please, no New Who unless it's fairly minimal, and feel free to include the Fox TV movie.
Request #3: Fred & Ginger RKO series - 1930s (Movie)
Details: I love the chemistry between Fred and Ginger, so would love to see a vid celebrating that; shippy or friendship-focused, either across all the movies or focusing on one in particular.
Nothing really to add for this one! I'd love to see a vid including all of the movies (including The Barkleys of Broadway if you want), but if you'd rather do just one movie than all of the series, my favourites are Shall We Dance, Swingtime and Top Hat.
Request #4: Jekyll - 2007 (TV)
Music: Something rocky or epic; 'An End Has a Start' by the Editors or 'Unintended' by Muse
Details: Something darker would be great, maybe looking at the twisted relationship between Hyde and his 'Daddy'?
This is really the only fandom I've requested this year where I'd really like something epic or angsty, but if you can make a comedy vid work for this fandom, go for it! I love all the characters in this fandom and their relationships to each other, so anything exploring canon would be lovely. One of the things I love best about the show is all the strong women in it - Claire, Katherine, our lesbian detectives - so something focused on them would also be great.
Request #5: Jonathan Creek (TV)
Details: Anything at all, I'd just love to see a vid in this fandom! Not so fond of Carla and the later series after Maddy left and I'd love some Jonathan/Maddy shippiness if you're up for it.
I love Maddy and Jonathan both individually and together with all their lovely UST; I have no real problems with Carla and don't mind at all if she's included, but would prefer her not to be the focus of the vid. If you want to focus on Jonathan solving cases instead, that's fine with me!
Request #6: Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (TV)
Details: A fluffy, shippy Lois/Clark vid would be very much appreciated! Or anything centred on the two of them; I love the first two seasons with all the UST in particular.
Not much to add, really! If you want to use one of the overused songs in Superman-related fandoms ('It's Not Easy', 'Kryptonite', 'Superman', etc.) I have absolutely no problems with that, never having seen a Lois and Clark vid to one of them, and I'm equally happy with something I never would have thought of. Would prefer a happy vid for Lois/Clark, especially something that reflects the fun and the flirting of their relationship.
I suggested 'A Liddle Biddy Help From Elvis' by Space for the fandom Spaced but it's just occurred to me it would also work here if you were looking for a music suggestion!
Request #7: Maid Marian and Her Merry Men (TV)
Details: I'd love something fun or silly in this fandom; Holding Out for a Hero with all the Merry Men being cowardly or incompetent, or a montage of all the musical numbers to Groove is in the Heart. I love Marian, so anything celebrating her awesomeness would also be fantastic!
Firstly, if you're reading this letter having never heard of MM&HMM, go check out my Yuletide letter which has some pimpage links for this insanely brilliant kids show.
Secondly, I'm just so tickled by the thought of a vid in this fandom I will love whatever you come up with. If you've thought of a wacky, off-the-wall pairing and you're not sure if I'll be up for it, trust me, I will be. Go wild!
Request #8: Spaced (TV)
Music: 'A Liddle Biddy Help From Elvis' by Space
Details: A shippy Tim/Daisy vid would make me very happy, but I'd love anything featuring the wackiness or geekiness of the gang as a whole. The above song suggestion was inspired by Daisy's Elvis impression in S2, but please completely ignore it if you have a better idea!
If you can think of a song and make a vid that somehow captures the mood and feeling of Spaced, I will love you forever! I ship the hell out of Tim/Daisy, my favourite character is Brian and I've always preferred Series 2 to Series 1 for some reason, but there is no part of this TV show I don't love so please feel free to do whatever you want with this one.
And that's it! Sorry for going on so long. Whichever fandom you've matched on, I can't wait to see whatever you come up with!