Intelligence and passion knows no limitations when it comes to fan art. A fan does not think of the intricacies of our copyright laws when he create his own artwork.  Juan Dela Cruz would not even think of the grave consequences of such act , all he thinks of is how he will express his joy for the movie that likes or how he will support his favorite marvel superheroes character/characters. An ordinary Filipino would not even attempt to think of the grave consequences of such act if ever he’s work will constitute infringement. I would even bet all my marbles that Juan Dela Cruz does not know that such law exists. From the perspective of a fan, there is no intention to profit from such work, all he simply wants is to express his joy or support or sometimes disgust.

Why should we bother Juan Dela Cruz with the complexities of our copyright laws when lawyers  and sometimes judges themselves cannot pinpoint the exact demarcating line between what is prohibited and what is not as far as fan art is concerned.

In an article written by Stepehen Paul in www.legalzoom.com he defined fan art as  is artwork that is based on a character, costume, collage, item, or story that was created by someone other than the artist, such as a fan, from which the word is derived from. The term, while it can apply to art done by fans of characters from books, is usually used to refer to art derived from visual media such as comics, movies or video games. In addition to traditional paintings and drawings, fan artists may also create web banners, avatars, or web-based animations, as well as photo collages, posters, and artistic representation of movie/show/book quotes.

Our Copyright laws does not even provided a clear cut definition of when one’s derivative work would constitute infringement or when it is not. It will be decided on a case by case basis. There is no hard and fast rule with regard to this matter,

From the viewpoint of an ordinary Filipino, or in my case to be more safe, I wouldn’t even dare to venture into the unchartered waters of the legalities of my artwork. The Legality of Fan Art in the Philipiines is a misnomer as far as Juan Dela Cruz is concerned. Why would I bother with these alien terminologies when my supposed to be upright Senator is even guilty of plagiarism?

This is why I bother ladies and gentleman. According to one of my professors enacting a law is one thing, enforcing it is entirely another. In theory one can say that there was a violation of our copyright laws but if one does not enforce his rights in a court of law it does not mean that no violation is committed. In the absence of any clear cut distinctions under our copyright laws as to when one’s work will constitute infringement or not and in the absence of any jurisprudence regarding the matter, the only yardstick that I could suggest is to know the intention of the author, nothing more nothing less.