Wikipedia talk:Notability (films)/Archive 2

Archive 1

Archive 2

Archive 3

Nff

Ive come accross this a couple times especially after trade shows that announe video games. In general a few of the secondary sources spur up and are just regurgitations of the original primary source announicing the game. My query involves treating video games under simmilar criteria as notability (films) in paticular WP:NFF. Unless im missing that something like this already exists. But can we extend NFF to video games? thanks a bunchOttawa4ever (talk) 12:08, 7 June 2009 (UTC)

That's a discussion probably better broached at WikiProject Video games. Girolamo Savonarola (talk) 20:40, 7 June 2009 (UTC)

No reason why there couldn't be a similar guideline for video games, but WP:NFF should remain for films only. PC78 (talk) 21:18, 7 June 2009 (UTC)

(Un-)Reliable Site: Movie-censorship.com

Hello,

I was sent here by IllaZilla from his board: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:IllaZilla#Alien_vs._Predator_References'

As you can see, I posted a complain on his discussion-board and would like to pick up his suggestion to build consensus as to whether http://www.movie-censorship.com is a reliable source or not. As I already posted on IllaZilla's Board, m-c.com is the counterpart to the German website http://www.schnittberichte.com which is the biggest website dealing with censored movies and different movie-versions in the German countries. It has over 40.000 visitors per day.

Every author spends hours/days/weeks in order to make an as detailed comparison between two movie-versions as it gets. Nearly every comparison is made on the PC by watching both versions in two windows. A lot of them are made with Virtualdub to get a frame-by-frame-comparison. The DVDs which are necessary to make the comparisons have been bought so every author has two originals to make the comparison. A lot of DVDs also being provided by the labels themselves. The German-Site exists since 1999, so it would be ten years by now. The English counterpart is online since March 2008. The German-Site contains over 5200 comparisons. The Englishsite so far 230.

Regarding the objection made by IllaZilla, that there is no list of authors: That is right. There is no list on the English-site. But there is one on the German-Site: http://www.schnittberichte.com/page.php?Show=Mitarbeiter . Beside that, you can find the author of every single comparison under the concrete report.

I think the site should not be marked as “unreliable site”. If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask.

(Please excuse my English, but it is not my native language)

Kind Regards —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.192.229.58 (talk) 00:18, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

This is a question for the reliable sources noticeboard as it has nothing to do with film notability. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 00:29, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

Damn. I'm sorry. I am not a wiki-expert and at the beginning, sometimes it is hard to find the right places on such a big thing like wiki. I postet on the source-board. If you want to, you can delete this posting here

Apologies, I meant to direct you to Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Films, but I used the wrong shortcut. --IllaZilla (talk) 00:35, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

Direct-to-video

Would it be helpful to mention Direct-to-video, perhaps to suggest that DTV films are presumed to be not notable (though sufficient evidence of notability - secondary coverage - could overturn that presumption in specific cases). Just a thought. Disembrangler (talk) 08:14, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Regional Films

Do regional films that are made for a limited audience fall under the notability criteria?--Shashankgupta (talk) 12:33, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

If they have coverage from reliable secondary sources within that region or outside of it, it should be notable. —Erik (talk • contrib) 13:07, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Notability from awards

Living With Fibromyalgia is independent documentary about illness fibromyalgia interviewing some patients, screened at the WorldFest in Houston, a independent film festival. I put it for deletion] BC it had only one source and it was a dead link and I could not find one source for it in RS. There is some patients blogs and illness self help groups that talk about it but there is not independent sources and no reviews any where. I do not think it is important, this movie stays on Wikipedia or goes, i think it is important, the notability checklist is more clear. It says a movie is notable when it gets a "major award for excellence," people are interpereting it as, any film that gets any award at any film festival also when the film does not have one RS for it.

WorldFest at Houston is a medium film festival, about 125 independent films and alot of shorter things but it has like 200 awards catagories every year. Top award is Grand Remi, then Special Jury award, then platinum, gold, silver, bronze Remi. 2008 there was 9 grand prizes and 67 Special Jury prizes and 200 platinums. Documentary "Living with Fibromyalgia" got one from the 200 platinum Remis, there were 6 other documentaries in three documentary catagories with platinum after 7 got Special Jury. I am wondering, this is what wp:nf means, "major award for excellence"? When it is not, can the NF say about the awards more clear?? Thx, RetroS1mone talk 03:05, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

Merging of a future film article

There is currently a discussion at Talk:Wes Craven#Merger proposal regarding the potential merging of 25/8 back into the Craven article. Additional opinions are requested.  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 00:35, 22 July 2009 (UTC)

Low and No-Budget Films

While participating in a Article for deletion discussion regarding a low budget independent film, it was suggested that I broach my concerns about the Notability (films) guidelines here.

It appears to me that the guidelines at present are weighted heavily towards major productions, and not grassroots low to no-budget filmmaking. This is, of course, completely understandable -- as that would constitute the bulk of film articles.

However, I feel that independent films, particularly horror and other niche genres that often attract the beginner and/or avocational filmmaker are not being well served by the current standards. Some contributors seem unwilling to grant any leeway towards these productions, deeming them not Notable, despite reliable (within the limited scope of the form) sources which are in my view, easily verifiable. The leaves articles on the films highly vulnerable to calls for deletion.

I suggest that some flexibility be granted towards such productions, and ask for suggestions from others who are better versed in the intricacies of Wikipedia policies.

My apologies if this subject has been brought up previously, a quick check of the archives revealed nothing bearing directly on the matter. TVPowers (talk) 22:33, 25 August 2009 (UTC)

They are not notable without actual significant coverage in reliable, third-party sources, the same as every other film. There are plenty of notable low-budget, independent films, just not all of them nor the majority of them. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 00:19, 26 August 2009 (UTC)

Agreed - the goal here is not to be comprehensive, but rather to cover what is considered relevant for the scope of an encyclopedia. Girolamo Savonarola (talk) 00:44, 26 August 2009 (UTC)

• My point was that third party sources that are generally considered quite reliable for reviews and verifiable information regarding low and no-budget films are being (in my view) arbitarily declared not reliable, by individuals that don't seem to have any evident knowledge of this field.

These films, by their nature, are not likely to garner reviews by mainstream reviewers, or be discussed at length in academic journals. This does not mean that they are not notable, but rather that they are being held to an unrealistic standard. Of course, as I have an interest in Micro-Cinema, what I consider relevant and worthy of inclusion may well differ from others' point of view. TVPowers (talk) 19:16, 26 August 2009 (UTC)

It should also be noted that verifiability, reliability, and notability are each entirely separate principles. Girolamo Savonarola (talk) 02:53, 27 August 2009 (UTC)

• :I'm certainly no authority on Wikipedia policies and principles, but surely there's some amount of interdependency between notabilty and reliable, verifiable sources.

That appears to be a point that the members urging deletion seem to be making. Is this incorrect? TVPowers (talk) 02:39, 28 August 2009 (UTC)

Not necessarily. For example, the phonebook is reliable and verifiable, but there's nothing notable about its content, on the whole. In other words, the existence of confirmable information does not necessarily automatically create notability. Girolamo Savonarola (talk) 07:06, 28 August 2009 (UTC)

A General Rule

I was wondering if it was safe to assume that a film is notable if i can find it in the New York Times move review? Thats the rule i was going on. Tim1357 (talk) 20:43, 28 August 2009 (UTC)

You mean a full review, right? I think that if The New York Tilmes reviewed a film, it's very likely that reviews and other kinds of coverage exist elsewhere. I don't know if it's a guarantee, though, especially as one goes back in time. —Erik (talk • contrib) 20:45, 28 August 2009 (UTC)

Suggested deletion of section: Wikipedia:Notability (films)#Other evidence of notability

I believe this section should either be removed entirely or be properly clarified. Please correct me if I am mis-interpreting it, but WP:NF's General principles section begins with "As with all subjects, a film should satisfy the general notability guideline" (I note the use of the word "should" as opposed to the word "must"), and then proceeds with a number of inclusion attributes. This is fine. However, what follows is a section titled Other evidence of notability, which begins with "Some films that don't pass the above tests may still be notable, and should be evaluated on their own merits. The article's ability to attest to a film's notability through verifiable sources is significant." Is this section meant to indicate that a film that might otherwise fail the WP:GNG, still might be able to show notability through other means if supported by a reliable source? If yes, is it then mandated that the reliable source used as verification of one of the listed criteria be itself substantial and in-depth? I have had discourse with editors who indicate that the GNG is the only [1] way that a film can show notability and that all reliable sources, even ones used as WP:V for these other attributes, must themselves be substantial and in-depth (thus meeting GNG). My sense is that the Other evidence section was set to specifically cover instances where the GNG might not be met, by its showing how notability might 'be otherwise ascertained' if the GNG is not met. If that is the case, then I suggest this should be clarified within the section. However, if this is not the case, and it is indeed true that films MUST ALWAYS meet the GNG in order to be notable, I suggest the Other evidence section should be deleted entirely as redundant and unneccessary. Thank you, MichaelQSchmidt (talk) 00:33, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

I actually agree with you here. The "other evidence" section seems to run contrary to the GNG and to the other notability criteria. Presumably, if such things are notable, they will already meet GNG as such extraordinary claims should be well documented by reliable sources. If there are no reliable sources, then the claims in "other evidence" are not verifiable and can not be used as inclusion criteria. The only good line from that section "the article's ability to attest to a film's notability through verifiable sources is significant" is redundant to the requirement that films meet the WP:GNG, and unnecessary. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 00:41, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

Ah. Yes. There are many reliable sources in the case above, and that begins my difficulty. Verification is easy. GNG in this case is not. So where is the guideline that demands that all reliable sources used as verification must themselves all be substantive and in-depth? I do not read that anywhere in WP:RS. Hence, my quandary. MichaelQSchmidt (talk) 06:30, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

The GNG does not trump all other notability guidelines, not last time I checked anyway. Obviously, because this would make a nonsense of any other notability guidelines. I'm not really sure what the problem is here. PC78 (talk) 00:48, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

That was my understanding as well... but it seems many others believe fervently that it does do just that. My difficulty was/is is that there is an ever-growing number of demands at AfDs that reliable sources being offered simply to verify a fact must themselves be substantive and in depth. WP:Verification of criteria in the "other evidence" section is being hit with a catch-22. If the sources were substantive and in-depth in the first place, there would be no need for a section that allows they might not be so... "Some films that don't pass the above tests (IE: GNG) may still be notable, and should be evaluated on their own merits." I can understand the wisdom in not presuming everything in the world of any note has itself been covered elsewhere in depth. But why then wisely allow other ways to consider notability for cases WP:GNG is not net, if editors may still demand that everything meet WP:GNG? AnmaFinotera is correct that the sections are in conflict. THAT is what is causing the furor. So I'm here. Either the section should be clarified so it is obvious that it is not a conflict with the GNG worshippers, or it should be taken out and something simpler put in its place. Perhaps... "Toward the establishing of notability, meeting any of the following criteria may be acceptable if verified in a reliable source. The sources in these few instances need not be be substantive or in depth, but must qualify as reliable." I hate to have had to come and ask. What is the best guideline and policy supported answer when a demand is made for GNG when guideline specifically indicates that there are other ways to determine notability? MichaelQSchmidt (talk) 06:30, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

I don't think that there is one. In my experience the number of people who argue that the purpose of subject specific notability guidelines is to exclude topics that might technically meet the GNG but are of only local or temporary interest and those who feel that the guidelines should sever to include material which does not meet a strict interpretation of the GNG but are necessary for complete coverage of a topic area are about equal. In practice this means that articles are generally judged on the basis of the guidelines as written, but any attempt to alter the guidelines themselves to track the GNG more or less closely is opposed by one group or the other, preventing consensus. In my view, their real utility is as descritptions of common deletion outcomes, to explain to authors what an article should contain to avoid being nominated for deletion and there use in AfD be regarded as persuasive rather than prescriptive. Eluchil404 (talk) 07:30, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

• So... if I may summerize.... the GNG does not trump other notability guidelines and there DO exist circumstances where other factors may be considered. And if pushed, all I might best do is politely respond... "I agree that significant and in-depth sources are best... but when a film does not pass the test of meeting the GNG, WP:NF does allow that there are some instances where a film may be judged by other factors, factors which do at the very least need verification in reliable sources... and even if the source itself is not substantive (failure of GNG), the article's ability to attest to a film's notability through the verifiable sources is itself significant".... and if the matter is pushed further, I might suggest an editor ask the question here just as I have done? MichaelQSchmidt (talk) 05:53, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Not sure what you mean by "trump"—you could say it "trumps" them because if a film satisfies GNG it is notable even if it fails NF; or you could say they trump it because if a film satisfies NF but fails GNG it is notable, so I would avoid using that term. My summary would be:

• Satisfying GNG or NF (general principles) leads to a presumption of notability.
• Failing GNG and NF (general principles) leads to a rebuttable presumption of non-notability.
• The presumption of non-notability can be rebutted with reference to factors including and similar to those described at NF (other evidence), but such films must be "evaluated on their own merits". E.g.:

• demonstrably being a "unique accomplishment" is not de facto sufficient, but rather community consensus that the unique accomplishment gives rise to notability is required;
• demonstrably featuring significant involvement of a notable person, even in an important role for the film and as an important part of his/her career is not de facto sufficient, but rather community consensus that the notable person is so significant, and that the role is so significant for that person, that the film should be considered notable (like the determination for authors or other artists that they are so important the every one of their works is notable—not something that is ever automatic);
• etc.

The "other evidence" section is not intended to be an automatic determination, as can be seen from its plain language, and is designed to open conversations to editors' opinions rather than solely by reference to cut-and-dried rules. Nobody shold argue that "other evidence" mandates a conclusion of notability—rather, unlike in reference to GNG or NF (general principles), editors should seek to demonstrate that the "unique accomplishment", "significant involvement", or "major studio equivalent distribution" in fact makes the film notable, than simply standing on the underlying facts. ^Bongo_matic 06:19, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

• Borrowed the word 'trump' from PC78's comment above. I was trying to phrase a proper response when editors tell me without equivocation, that if a film fails GNG, it cannot be notable... no way and no how. When I try to look to the 'other evidence' section to continue determination toward notability, there are some fine editors who will insist that any 'other evidence' must itself meet the GNG. If the film passed the GNG, the 'other evidence' section would have no reason to even exist. So in brief, I was trying to develop a succinct way to express what you related above, as I find sadly that it rarely opens conversations.. MichaelQSchmidt (talk) 10:53, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

I think it is clear from context that the facts that give rise to consideration for NF (other evidence) must verified in reliable sources, but it is equally clear that those facts need not be "significantly covered"—they just need to be (reliably sourced) facts that give rise to a consensus view of notability. Where I believe you (MQS) and I have disagreed in the past is that (as I recall—I haven't reviewed AfD discussion to confirm) you have suggested that the "unique achievement" implies intrinsic notability rather than opens up a discussion about whether the achievement establishes notability in a particular case.

Clearly, "significant coverage" of a unique achievement is persuasive evidence that the achievement is notable, so GNG-style evaluation of the coverage of the unique achievement (or the significance of a project in a notable person's oeuvre) is not inappropriate. While such coverage isn't required, it is not unreasonable for some editors to opine that the quantum or tone of coverage of the other evidence is sufficient or insufficient to convince that editor of the notability of the film. On the other hand, it would be inappropriate for them to say (as I believe I have said to you in the past) that other editors' opinions of notability—based on such other editors' views of the achievement in their own light—were invalid because the achievement (for example) didn't receive sufficient coverage. ^Bongo_matic 14:43, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

I do not think there is any actual agreement about the relationship between the GNG and other guidelines--in any case the fact that something meets the GNG does not require that we have an article, at most it permits us to. All relationships between guidelines of this sort need to be interpreted with good judgment. DGG ( talk ) 04:45, 4 September 2009 (UTC)

remakes

films that have been remade but hold the same plot and same director and producer shall stay within the the same article or different article if it has notable sources. Please i need an answer for this one.Bread Ninja (talk) 05:51, 12 September 2009 (UTC)

mentioning future films in other articles?

Per NFF they should not have their own articles, but what's the guideline regarding mentioning them in other articles? There are a lot in e.g. Dollar Baby and I wonder if they should really be there or not. Шизомби (talk) 16:46, 18 September 2009 (UTC)

It appears to be more of an issue of verifiability and editorial discretion. The so-called "definite list" of Dollar Baby films should be verified, and if released films are listed, I think it would be okay to list future films, too. I'm not familiar with these kinds of works, but the list should be edited accordingly if a planned film does not get to production. Listing planned films in the meantime seems okay to me. Hope that helps? Erik (talk | contribs | wt:film) 17:23, 18 September 2009 (UTC)

uniqueness of film section seems to invite OR

Hi, I am worried that the section on "uniqueness" might invite Original Research. For example, a keen-eyed Wikipedia editor realizes that the non-notable film Visions of Darkness IV:Bloodsplatter Park (silly made up title!!) was the only direct-to-cable horror film ever produced in Alaska. So she creates an article for the movie, with the notability argument being "this film is the only direct-to-cable horror film ever produced in Alaska". Another keen-eyed Wikipedia editor looks at his collection of 99 cent Bargain Bin DVDs and studies the box credits, and then realizes that Naval Navels: Secret Peeping is the only erotic DVD shot on digital video that was ACTUALLY shot on board an battleship at a US Naval dock....and so on...and so on. I argue that nothing about any film is unique unless a reputable source (e.g., a movie critic, film historian, film professor, entertainment writer) says so, in print. If Roger Ebert writes a review of Visions of Darkness IV:Bloodsplatter Park, and states that it is notable that the film is the first direct-to-cable horror film ever produced in Alaska, then it could be a notable aspect of uniqueness. Am I proposing an unreasonable bar here?OnBeyondZebrax (talk) 15:34, 6 December 2009 (UTC)

As with all things on Wikipedia, if they make the claim, they must verify it and back it up with reliable sources, or it doesn't matter what they say. It doesn't need to be spelled out in such detail, that is a given. Wikipedia is not a platform for original research. The criteria does not invite original research any more than anything else. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 15:42, 6 December 2009 (UTC)

Automate archiving?

Does anyone object to me setting up automatic archiving for this page using MiszaBot? Unless otherwise agreed, I would set it to archive threads that have been inactive for 30 days.--Oneiros (talk) 18:24, 2 January 2010 (UTC)

No objection from me. Would have done it myself if I'd realized it wasn't already doing it :-P -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 18:33, 2 January 2010 (UTC)

 Done The bots should start in the next 24h.--Oneiros (talk) 16:59, 3 January 2010 (UTC)

Re-release defined

The guideline says that a film is historically notable if The film was given a commercial re-release, or screened in a festival, at least five years after initial release. At Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Revengers (film) MichaelQSchmidt is asserting that release for television broadcasting counts as a commercial re-release. That seems counter to the guidelines, as almost all movies shown on television that were made before 1940 would be notable under that standard. Could anyone give me guidance on this? --Bejnar (talk) 03:59, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

"Commercial re-release" lends to the possibility that there is additional coverage about the film, and I believe that it has more to do with theatrical releases. After all, many notable and non-notable films are broadcast on television, and such broadcasts do not equal coverage. Best to defer to WP:N and look for significant coverage from multiple reliable sources. Erik (talk) 04:05, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

I'm not aware of any definite discussion on this exact question. My opinion is that being shown on television, even a national network, should not count towards the re-release criterion. It makes more sense, to me, to see it as looking toward a new release in the same manner as an initial qualifying release under "widely distributed", but this may be an area where the guideline could use some clarification. Eluchil404 (talk) 09:00, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

My opinion would be that we should clarify the guideline to say, "The film was given a commercial theatrical re-release, or screened in a festival, at least five years after initial release" (adding the word "theatrical"). On the other hand, I would not require that the theatrical re-release be a wide re-release. For example, Akira Kurosawa's Ran is now having a 25th anniversary re-release through Rialto Pictures. It's not a wide re-release, but it is a sufficiently commercial release that is the kind of thing that should count. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 14:55, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

True, but Ran (film) was notable in the first place; definitely meets WP:N. I think that the criterion is basically trying to say, "If it has been released a second time, the re-release indicates possible notability through interest in bringing it back." I think adding "theatrical" would help clarify matters. Erik (talk) 15:01, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

Most films that get re-released are going to have been notable in the first place, which means that this criterion is not going to be used too often anyway. I would also note that screening at a single theater in repertory should not qualify as a re-release. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 15:12, 8 March 2010 (UTC)

It would be nice to get the wording clear. Anyone have a specific suggestion? --Bejnar (talk) 16:29, 10 March 2010 (UTC)

I would just say, "The film was given a commercial theatrical re-release, or screened in a festival, at least five years after initial release." But we ought to notify Wikipedia:WikiProject Films of this discussion. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 18:31, 13 March 2010 (UTC)

But there are cases where a film bombed at the box office and then received wider coverage and notability after a successful commercial DVD re-release. My thought is that the word "theatrical" should not be set as an limiting absolute, and I suggest per the proffered example of adding the word "DVD" or "video" to the re-release caveat. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 20:59, 31 January 2011 (UTC)

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy

Bignole requested that I post this here. Bignole keeps saying that reviews don't show notability for Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy, despite no proof and community consensus going against that. Joe Chill (talk) 01:47, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

The DVD documentary fails this guideline. It has no significant coverage and doesn't warrant a separate page. It's already covered on the franchise article just fine. I have started a discussion at Talk:Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy#Notability? regarding the notability of of said film and its need to have its own article. Please provide opinions on the above linked page. Thank you.  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 01:55, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Provide it here. Two discussions about the same thing is disruptive. Joe Chill (talk) 01:56, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

No, it should be on the article talk page so that any future discussion won't have to search through this page's archive just to find out what was once said. All individual article discussions should take place at the article itself. Thanks. Everyone, please forward all discussions to the article talk page. Thank you.  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 01:58, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

No, it's not should be. It's can be. Stop making up rules. Joe Chill (talk) 01:59, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Bignole is correct on why the discussion should occur there, nor is your initial post really an invitation for discussion, rather it reads like a complaint against an editor with no specific question asked. A notice here pointing to the discussion on the article talk page is preferable, as discussion here on a specific article has nothing to do with the notability of films in general. I have responded at the article talk page regarding this issue. A little good faith would be good here. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 03:35, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Follow-up: We are still seeking more opinions on this topic. Please feel free to come over and review the discussion and provide additional input. Thanks.  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 23:28, 16 May 2010 (UTC)

To clarify...

There is a current request for comments HERE that is discussing whether the article Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy should be merged and redirected to the Elm Street franchise article at A Nightmare on Elm Street (franchise), or whether it has met, or has the ability to meet notability inclusion criteria in order to remain an independent independent article and be allowed to grow through regular editing. Findsources: [2],[3] All viewpoints are welcome. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 06:54, 17 May 2010 (UTC)

Notability of upcoming animated films

The guidelines for upcoming films is based on whether or not principal photography has begun. However, for purely animated films, there is no "photography" per se. Is there a similar landmark in the production of animated films that we can add to clarify this guideline? SnottyWong ^verbalize 21:34, 21 June 2010 (UTC)

While I agree in theory, I don't know the answer to your question. It would be good to be sure of how animated films are produced, though, to confirm what would be the similar dividing line for an animated film. There are probably some good sources discussing the process, maybe a bit Disney focused, that may help. Meanwhile, the same basic guideline of "significant coverage" still applies. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 23:37, 22 June 2010 (UTC)

I admit I'm not intimately familiar with the animation process, but I think the sentiment of my attempted addition was in line with the rest of the NFF guideline. Essentially, we want to make sure that a substantial amount of money has been spent on creating the film. The more money that has been spent, the less likely the film will be cancelled. In the case of live action films, principal photography denotes a point at which a lot of money is being spent (on actor/director salaries, crew mobilization, etc.) A similar landmark for animated films would be once the talent has started recording their voice-overs (as it is presumably quite expensive to have big name actors do this), and once the animation team begins drawing/rendering the frames of the animation. SnottyWong ^speak 23:44, 22 June 2010 (UTC)

I found a few sources for the animated film production process: [4][5] among other, less "reliable" sources (believe it or not). The process seems to follow this general pattern:

• The idea for the film is pitched.
• If the idea has legs, then a storyline will be written and storyboards will be created.
• If the storyline and storyboards are accepted, then a scratch voiceover track will be recorded, and a rough "reel" will be created (which is basically a very rough animation of the storyboards).
• Once the reels have been approved, then the project is officially green-lighted and production will begin. (If it gets to this point, it should pass WP:NFF.)
• The final voiceovers are recorded (usually by big-name actors).
• The 3D animation team begins drawing detailed models of characters and sets, and animating them, creating the final frames.
• Final background music tracks are recorded, foley sound effects are recorded.
• Once all of the scenes have been animated, it goes to post-production which adds shading, lighting effects, etc.
• The final frames are rendered.

The sentence I tried to add was: In the case of animated films, reliable sources must confirm that the film is clearly out of the pre-production process, meaning that the animation frames are actively being drawn or rendered, and final recordings of voice-overs and/or music have commenced. Any opposition to that sentence, or suggestions on how to tweak that? SnottyWong ^yak 00:01, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

That seems like a reasonable wording. If anything, I's consider the animation of a frame sufficiently analogous to principle photography not to need a clarifying sentence, but if there's a dispute, I don't have any objection to adding the clarification. Eluchil404 (talk) 18:00, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

• There have been a couple of AfD's for upcoming animated films where people are starting to claim that WP:NFF doesn't apply to them because there is no principal photography in an animated film. I think that argument is borderline wikilawyering, but adding a sentence to the guideline would resolve that "loophole" by clarifying the demarcation point for notability of future animated films (rather than letting everyone interpret the intent of the guideline as they see fit). I'll wait another day or two and then re-add the sentence to the guideline if there are no other objections. SnottyWong ^communicate 18:22, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

The wording seems good to me, though may be good to add a footnote that the animation does not include the rough reel/wireframe stuff, but the actual stuff for the film :-) -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 19:12, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

Must we have citations stating that BOTH animation and sound recording have commenced or is one or the other enough? --TriiipleThreat (talk) 16:40, 25 June 2010 (UTC)

I think the requirement is simply that the film is clearly not in pre-production. The reference to animation and sound recording are simply examples of such evidence. However, to answer your question, I think it would be best to have citations stating that both animation and sound recording have commenced. Typically, they will both start happening shortly after the project is green-lighted. The voice-overs are actually done quite early in the production process, because the characters are animated to the voice-overs, not the other way around. SnottyWong ^gossip 17:11, 25 June 2010 (UTC)

Proposed ammendment to WP:NFF

Through an interesting discussion at a recent AFD, and in order that future contributors might better understand the burden placed upon them as authors in their requirements to both assert and show notability for film-related articles, I think we might discuss the possibility of clarifying a couple things within the NFF guideline to better reflect existing policy,

First: It is generally accepted that meeting the criteria set at WP:GNG allows a reasnable presumption that a topic, no matter what the topic might be, could merit a stand-alone article. WP:GNG does not concern itself with judging the topic itself.

Second: It occasionally occurs that we have suitable non-film articles... articles that are seen as "film-related" but that are not about a made film, being rather articles whose topic discusses a film's progress or lack.

Third: Policy specifically instructs "It is appropriate to report discussion and arguments about the prospects for success of future proposals and projects or whether some development will occur". To imply through an ommision in guideline that unmade films can never have the notability for a stand-alone article is sometimes in direct conflict with policy.

I do understand that the NFF guideline was devised to help adjudge suitability of film topics, and was set in place to guide or even sometimes limit the creation of articles on unreleased projects, but as we have a possible conflict of guideline versus policy, it may be prudent to acknowledge within this guideline the instructions of that policy. My thought is that it may be appropriate to tweak the guideline NFF slightly in order to bring it into line with WP:NOT and acknowledge that per that policy, and in certain (rare) cases, NFF might be somewhat less immediately applicable and the GNG may itself move back to the fore. Toward that end, and to address the rare circumstances allowed per "occasion exception" and "commonsense", I wish to propose an amendment to WP:NFF.

Current wording at NFF ends with the paragraph:

"Additionally, films that have already begun shooting, but have not yet been publicly released (theatres or video), should not have their own articles unless the production itself is notable per the notability guidelines. Similarly, films produced in the past, which were either not completed or not distributed, should not have their own articles unless their failure was notable per the guidelines."

I think it might help lift the veil of abiguity and actually allow the guideline encouraged consideration of the occasional and allowed (rare) exception if it were to instead read:

"Additionally, film projects that have not begun shooting, or that have already begun shooting, but have not yet been publicly released (theatres or video), should not have their own articles unless the production itself is notable through application of existing notability standards. Similarly, films produced in the past, which were either not completed or not distributed, should not have their own articles unless their failure was notable per the guidelines. Being non-films unless or until actually released, such articles should be treated as non-film articles and not make use of film article templates or style. "

As infoboxes, critical response, release, box office, and other post-release information can always be added through regular editing upon a release, is this wish for a bit of clarity sensible? Or will such a proposal bring down the castle walls? Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 03:59, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Discussion

I am here to seek input. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 04:00, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

I don't have any particular reservations about the proposed wording. My feeling is that in the majority of cases a merger is the preferred outcome even if the GNG is met. NOTNEWS and CRYSTAL are, in my view, impediments to the creation of articles regurgitating "buzz" about potential films that haven't met the criteria of NFF. Thus, I'm not sure that the tension you cite between WP:NOT and NFF is particularly large or urgent. Eluchil404 (talk) 04:20, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Well, the tension arose at an ongoing AFD where merge and/or redirect have been discussed as well as keep/fix. And as I do not wish this concern to be seen as forum shopping, I will no longer involve myself in that particular AFD discussion unless specifically requested. What happens there happens there. I have said there what I could and done what I might to address concerns inre the article being discussed. While anyone who wishes is welcome to bring attention there to this request here, I feel I now cannot. But as the issue has come up, and should be addressed for the future, I brought my concern here. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 04:33, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

• I don't see the need for rewording. Your proposed rewording doesn't change the meaning of the guideline nor does it clarify anything. Additionally, the last sentence you added appears to be trying to define MOS-like rules, which is inappropriate in the context of a notability guideline. SnottyWong ^gab 12:19, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

  It clarifies by specifically adding the same cautions toward unmade films as it does toward in-production films. If the caution is not there, its lack could be seen as an excuse to create improper articles. And acknowledgement of governing policy also acts to clarify. The last sentence about not using film-style formating for non-film articles is out of respect to User:Erik's real concerns voiced elsewhere that there is a difference between articles about films and film-related articles about non-films and that articles about unreleased or unmade films should not be made to look like or appear to be about released films. Though perhaps yes, that sentence could be folded into other guideline where it is appropriate: Wikipedia:Manual of Style (film). That point is well made. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 17:52, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

• Just commenting here since I'm not necessarily vested in films, but seeing whats happening on the upcoming Avengers film AFD: I understand the purpose of NFF as a means of preventing rampant speculation on a smattering of sources as well as to avoid having articles on films that never get past the writing table (we have similar issues in video games where people want to rush to create one sentence articles and then add tons of speculation just because a teaser image of a sequel was revealed) That said, using NFF as a very hard line for when a film article should be created on the basis the start of principle photography is too strong. There are a lot of factors, however, that go into that: how much we know on the pre-photography phase, how many of those are reliable sources, to what degree are we being more a news repeater than summarizing information (per WP:RECENTISM), and many many more. Sometimes a failed production is notable (see Duke Nukem Forever). I'd easily argue that the Avengers film is the rare exception to the rule here as whether the film goes through or fails, it has achieved notable before the cameras have started rolling. Now, as written, NFF says "should not", thus allowing for the Avengers film article to be created, but I would argue that the way NFF is presently written, it is too much treated as a hard edge go or no-go rule. I don't think MQS's proposed language necessarily improves it as I think it still leaves a hard edge rule, but exactly how I'd change it, I'm not sure. --MASEM (t) 13:24, 2 August 2010 (UTC)
• No change. The guidelines have sufficed very well for a long time and has made a clear distinction between plans that are not almost certain to take place and films that are almost certain to take place. Planned films that are covered so early are covered because there is an underlying notability from somewhere else, may it be the director or the source material. The relevance of such plans belongs in the proper context. WP:GNG presumes notability, but of course when the filmmaker is famous or the source material is famous (or both), there will be headlines. Repeated statements of intent does not equate enduring notability for a stand-alone article; this is a particularly unfortunate example of an enduring topic made out of someone's wishful thinking with nothing tangible to show for it for years and years. Examples like The Avengers film project are purely about history; it is not about an end result like an actual film. If The Avengers starts filming, then that history becomes part of a film article's background. The mobility of such content clearly reflects its impermanence and thus its inability to be a topic of enduring notability, which is what Wikipedia's topics all need to be. I dislike seeing this can of worms being opened that collections of statements of intent can serve as permanent articles. Headlines about planned films are extensions of topics that are of enduring notability; they are not their own enduring notability by being gathered. Erik (talk | contribs) 19:52, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

  If there is a perception of ambiguity and grey areas, then it is not a "clear distinction"... and being ambiguous for a "long time" is no reason to continue that ambiguity if it can be addressed. Ashes to Ashes (Goldie Hawn film project) acts as an example of film-related article about a non-film that survived on its merits through meeting notability standards and being found, per policy and guideline, as worthy of note. Would films coverage be less if notable were not involved? Maybe... but not germain. The GNG does not state "applicable except when notable persons are involved". Meeting the GNG requires significant coverage in reliable sources independent of the topic. But the GNG does not judge the topic nor the reason for coverage. The GNG is not interperted that way. And simply put, it is through meeting the GNG that a topic is presumed to merit inclusion if not in violation of policy.

  To that point, NFF is not policy and should never be treated as if invioloate. NFF is a guide set in place, like all notability guides, to encourage diligent searches for sources in determing the notability or lack for a "topic" (in this case unmade/unreleased films)... and it is through the meeting (or not) of the GNG that notability (or lack) is to be determined for any topic. If a topic is about a "made film", then naturally WP:NF is used as a guide. If a an article is about a "film-in-production" or "not yet released", then NFF is used as a guide. But NFF as worded is not set to address film-related "topics" unless the topic is a film in some state of unreleased production, and this lack then acts to encourage refusals to acknowledge the notability of occasional film-relaed topics that are well-documented and significantly covered. That lack forgets that per policy, articles on future events are specifcally allowed. This lack forgets that notability is found through a topic's coverage meeting WP:GNG, and not in the topic itself. All NFF needs is a teeny tweak to bring it in line with policy. It needs to acknowledge that notability can exist in other circumstances than the ones currently described in NFF, specially as considerations of exceptions (if notable) are encouraged by all guidelines and by policy. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 22:18, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

• WP:CRYSTAL says that articles on future events are allowed if the event is notable and almost certain to take place. An example like Ashes to Ashes fails policy because clearly, it is not certain to take place after all these years. When WP:CRYSTAL says that it is appropriate to report referenced discussion, it is not advocating for or against a stand-alone article. When it comes to future films, we do not have a problem with referenced discussion; we almost always work with references. The passage is just advocating that if speculation is verified and discussion is referenced, the discussion can be reported. It is not explicitly about putting referenced discussion in a stand-alone article. Honestly, WP:CRYSTAL sends mixed signals when we apply it to film. The policy wants the expected event (i.e., the release of the film) to be "almost certain to take place" yet it okays "well documented" speculation even if preparation (either development, pre-production, or production) has not taken place. This is a problem because the announcement of a planned film does not equate near certainty of its release, yet we can report verifiable speculation? What do you think, MQS? [EDIT: It may be worth considering that WP:CRYSTAL talks about individual events; referenced discussion of planned films is typically in strong relation with preexisting subject matter (filmmaker, source material) that is notable. WP:NFF seems to apply here with referenced discussion in a non-individual presentation.] Erik (talk | contribs) 23:18, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

• In addition, WP:NRVE in the WP:GNG guideline defers to the WP:NOT policy, under which WP:CRYSTAL falls. Erik (talk | contribs)

• Which is why my discussion is in context to WP:NOT. The Avengers film project as an example, underscores the amiguity inherent in the current version of NFF. Your partial quote from policy did not include the policy's preceding sentence: "All articles about anticipated events must be verifiable, and the subject matter must be of sufficiently wide interest that it would merit an article if the event had already occurred." The policy instruction toward future events does not mandate that the event MUST absolutely and positively occur, but stresses rather that the topic be of sufficiantly wide interest that it would merit an article if the event had already occured. If The Avengers film is ever made, the event would be of sufficiently wide interest. That non-film article has its content verified in multiple reliable sources, and in sources covering ongoing and "sufficiently wide interest as if the event(s) had already occured"... and tone and format specifically and carefullly following the policy instruction of "If preparation for the event is not already in progress, speculation about it must be well documented." The Avengers film project as an example is 1) well documented, 2) contains no original research, and 3) represents an event that would be of sufficiently wide interest were they to occur... per policy. NFF smply needs a minor tweak to remove ambiguity, even if only to acknowledge that exceptions exist and to underscore the importance of proper sourcing toward notability in meeting policy as well as guideline. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 23:59, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

• To be honest, I'm not sure if WP:CRYSTAL could logically apply to film. First, after some reconsidering, #1 as applied to film-related articles would strictly be film festivals and award ceremonies, with all involved examples working on a timetable. I think that for any purpose, it is misleading to treat a single film as a "scheduled or expected future event". A film is not an event; there can be an event presenting the film, but retrospectively, it is not about the presentation event but about the film itself. WP:CRYSTAL, if you step back, is mainly event-oriented, and I suspect that it was not intended to be product-oriented. Since we have used WP:CRYSTAL toward film anyway, I'll treat "event" as film for now, but it is something worth considering. You mention criteria for The Avengers film project, yet I'm finding that the very same criteria can apply to Ashes to Ashes (Goldie Hawn film project). A film directed by Goldie Hawn would obviously be of sufficiently wide interest. This is the problem: Announcements about planned films are already published because the underlying assumption is that it will be of sufficiently wide interest if it does come out. So I cannot see this interpretation as a "minor tweak" of WP:NFF. It would instead mean that it is permissible to have a stand-alone article based on bare-minimum announcement-related coverage about a planned film from the very onset, regardless of whether or not it is actually made. It means that something like Hancock 2 would get its own article, which sits badly with me. WP:CRYSTAL strikes me as problematic as we try to look at films as so-called events. Clearly, the section acknowledges articles about yet-to-be-released films, but that particular sentence is very much an afterthought compared to the event-related orientation of the rest of the section. We're lacking a product-oriented aspect of WP:CRYSTAL. I imagine it's because there was not an expectation of so much interest in films yet to be made, and all parties involved are trying to apply policies and guidelines explicitly to this set of topics. For example, WP:GNG is generally for people, places, objects, concepts, etc. It was not quite as intended for referenced discussion about a non-film. At this point, I'm not sure what even applies well now, heh. Erik (talk | contribs) 00:52, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

• If policy WP:NOT is seen as being flawed in its having not anticipated change, then that could be a reason to have a discussion at Wikipedia talk:What Wikipedia is not to address that perceived flaw. And as the GNG does not make any stipulation about source topic, and instead involves itself in defining what constitutes "significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject", disagreement with that could be cause to have a discussion at Wikipedia talk:Notability to address that issue. However, I'd be surprised if policy were ever set forth as subordinant to guideline, or if conversely, guideline was ever accepted as over-ruling policy. Recognizing that coflicts between policy and interpretation of guideline could arise, is probably why WP:POLICY offers the instruction "Where a guideline appears to conflict with a policy, the policy normally takes precedence". But as we are here at Talk:NF to discuss NFF and its ambiguity, let's see what we can do to bring it more into line with what policy actually says, and not what we think policy should say. Seeing the ambiguity inherent in the current wording of NFF, and in its appplication and interpretation, is the reason I proposed the minor tweak. Too many times I've heard the call at AFD, "Delete... it fails NFF..." when the topic might actually not... and then there follows the discussion that might have so easily been avoided if NFF did at least underscore that there are allowable, policy supported exceptions. And to address your concern that an acknowledgement of occasional exceptions being allowed per policy would make it "permissible to have a stand-alone article based on bare-minimum announcement-related coverage about a planned film from the very onset, regardless of whether or not it is actually made", I'd have to respond, no... it wouldn't. We do still have WP:GNG, and failing the GNG pretty much means no article (and even this has exceptions). In the examples we have been using on this page, we have been dealing with two topics that have ongoing and continued in-depth coverage over a period of years... not an "announcement" with bare-bones coverage. Topics lacking the sources to create a lengthy, in-depth, and comprehensive article, are best folded into some other article... includable per policy, but lacking coverage for a stand-alone article. The example above, the policy and guideline supported exception The Avengers film project, could not be folded into another article without either overburdening the recipient, or without great loss of substantive sourced content. My tweak simply seeks to address the ambiguity and misinterpretations by acknowledging policy allowances for certain articles and encouraging meeting applicable notability standards if intended as a stand-alone. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 02:23, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

I am glad to see this topic is being discussed. I hope to see a move from the current zombie-like following of NFF to a common-sense approach to movie articles. It could be mentioned that a 2,974 page book was recently published on Stanley Kubrick's Napoleon project, which was never realised, and does not have a Wikipedia page. Surely by GNG, this non-existent film is more notable and has more independent coverage than the vast majority of the films that actually exist. Lampman (talk) 02:29, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Redirect this page to WP:GNG?

If the Delete rationales prevail at this, this, this, and this AfD, then this page needs to be redirected to WP:GNG. These films pass multiple points of WP:NOTFILM (they've been awarded at the major awards ceremony covering their genre; they are significant films in the filmographies of notable filmmakers; they were released nationally by a major studio). The Delete votes target the subject matter of the films, and cite only GNG, claiming that the notability criteria at this page is irrelevant. Dekkappai (talk) 16:04, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

I don't think that the outcome of any of those debates confirms or denies the viability of this guideline. When a subject meets GNG, it trumps NF and other specialized guidelines even when those guidelines might not be met but that should not make any specialized guidelines useless. Do you really believe it should be moved/merged or are you just frustrated with the way the above AfDs are progressing? Big Bird (talk • contribs) 16:25, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

If a subject meets WP:NOTFILM multiple times, but is deleted because it doesn't meet WP:GNG, what is the use of this guideline? || Make it easier: Imagine there's a film that won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for 1923 (yes, yes, I know, this is hypothetical). It's a family story about a boy and his dog. It stars a notable actor, was directed by a notable filmmaker and was released by a major studio. The award is confirmed in reliable sources, as are production details. But no "significant coverage" are claimed to be found. Does the film deserve an article or not. And if not, what is the purpose of this guideline? Dekkappai (talk) 16:42, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Hypothetically, yes, I would consider that film notable and I would consider the film worthy of an article. That said, there really is no right and wrong in AfD debates and it's entirely possible that your example article gets deleted but I would consider that to be more of an exception than the rule. This, although an article about an actor, is an example of a debate where I quoted NF and provided proof of it being met; even though the subject lacked significant coverage as required by GNG, it was kept. What are your thoughts, though? Do you believe this guideline to be useless? Big Bird (talk • contribs) 17:21, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Hi Big Bird. Sorry I missed your response here. About my opinion of the guideline, see below. Dekkappai (talk) 03:15, 4 August 2010 (UTC)

I'm too busy to provide a full response, but WP:GNG says on a high level, "Information on Wikipedia must be verifiable; if no reliable third-party sources can be found on a topic, then it should not have a separate article." Only later does it factor in significant coverage as part of the general notability guideline. It still says on that high level, "A topic can also be considered notable if it meets the criteria outlined in any of the subject-specific guidelines listed on the right." WP:GNG applies generally (obviously), but it steps aside for subject-specific guidelines. It may be worth examining the other subject-specific guidelines to see if they have any criteria similar to WP:NF. If there are, then we can justify that significant coverage is not an overarching requirement with multi-subject precedent. Erik (talk | contribs) 17:26, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Thanks for taking the time to reply, Erik. My feeling is that your answer is what these subject-specific notability criteria were meant to do: Prevent bias by pointing out that not all "notable" subjects can easily be shown to have been the subject of "significant" coverage (even when they very well may be the subject of significant coverage in sourcing not easily available). It appears that the argument at these AfDs says, no, passing the criteria in WP:NOTFILM is not enough. The subject must also pass WP:GNG. I don't want to make this discussion about those four particular AfDs, but I believe this question is highly relevant to work on film. Hundreds of films perfectly deserving of articles do not currently meet GNG-- some of which cannot easily be shown to meet it... On a side-note, I came back from a trip out of town ready to do some work on Italian sword&sandal genre. These discussions leave me wondering what the point of that would be though, since anyone wanting to do so could delete them by applying GNG literally... Matter of fact, it might be hard to prove some of them even pass WP:NOTFILM, though I do believe they deserve articles... Dekkappai (talk) 17:47, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

As suggested above-- Would the deletion of the section "Other evidence of notability" as well as the section right above it-- "The following are attributes that generally indicate, when supported with reliable sources, that the required sources are likely to exist:" be OK with this project then? If GNG is the only form of Notability to be considered in an AfD, then a list of indications that sourcing exists is not necessary. Only the actual presence of "significant" coverage in "reliable" sourcing is acceptable. Also, the "other evidence" is completely redundant. If those who put these criteria together believe only GNG proves Notability, then these should go. On the other hand, if this project believes that "Other evidence of notability" shows notability, but are not prepared to recommend its enforcement, then it is useless. The removal of these sections would save a lot of wasted time debating at AfDs, and time wasted creating articles on films beyond the major works, and Hollywood blockbusters. Dekkappai (talk) 00:10, 4 August 2010 (UTC)

Big Bird asks my opinion of this guideline above. If WP:GNG is the only guideline that matters at an AfD, then I think this Notability guideline's claim of "Other evidence of notability" is a false promise. I believe now that, due to this guideline, I have wasted hours starting film stubs and articles, and I would like to see this guideline changed or removed to prevent other editors from doing this. If this guideline truly lists exceptions to WP:GNG, then I think editors interested in a coverage of world cinema need to step in to these AfDs to prevent the deletion of award-winning films by notable filmmakers produced by major studios. A firm statement one way or the other needs to be made: Do we really want to cover world cinema in an unbiased and uncensored manner, or do we want to rely on a literal interpretation of the English-biased WP:GNG. Actually abiding by the "other evidence" listed here would help prevent bias towards the current, the English and the U.S. But since strict adherence to GNG seems to be "consensus" these days, here are a few other film stubs and articles I've started that need to be deleted: I could find no "significant" coverage for most of the Korean film articles I started at:

• Blue Dragon Film Awards
• Chunsa Film Art Awards
• Grand Bell Awards
• Korean Film Awards
• PaekSang Arts Awards
• Pusan Film Critics Awards

and many of the Japanese films listed at:

• Blue Ribbon Awards
• Hochi Film Award
• Japan Academy Prize
• Yokohama Film Festival

(The Japanese films have been covered in English texts more than Korean, making sourcing on them easier to find, so, of course, more of them are Notable according to GNG.) I have these articles saved, so I will be able to transfer them to a project that is interested in an honest coverage of world cinema after they are deleted. Dekkappai (talk) 03:15, 4 August 2010 (UTC)

To answer your above question on whether deletion of sections you mentioned above is acceptable to everyone, I'll raise an objection to that proposition although I suspect that a hypothetical removal of those sections would result in a rapid revert anyways. Big Bird (talk • contribs) 13:47, 4 August 2010 (UTC)

I wouldn't do that, of course. I'm just trying to figure out what it means, if not "Other evidence of notability". Besides the dozens of award-winning Japanese and Korean film articles which do not satisfy a literal interpretation of WP:GNG, probably hundreds of non-award-winning articles should be deleted if this section has no real meaning. And that's just in the area I have done most of my work-- Japanese and Korean cinema. Dekkappai (talk) 16:09, 4 August 2010 (UTC)

OK, the crisis is over, but the question remains: Does this Notability criteria mean anything? If so, what? Is it optional depending on whether one "likes" the film or not? If it is applied or not applied only at the choice of individual editors, it is meaningless for proving notability. Isn't it? Dekkappai (talk) 20:25, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

I think that the question is: "Are people misinterpreting the GNG?" It sounds to me like the GNG clearly says, "specialty notability guidelines come first". If that's true, then people are misrepresenting the GNG when they try and use it to supercede the specialty guidelines. If people are doing that then it doesn't mean there is a problem with this guideline or any other specialty notability guideline. It means there needs to be a clearer statement at the GNG.  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 20:31, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

I think you're right. But I fear (I don't frequent AfDs like I used to) that this may be becoming standard practice, unless someone makes a stink about it. Even when I raised this issue multiple times, and showed evidence that these films passed WP:NOTFILM, not one Delete vote changed... Dekkappai (talk) 20:33, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

Well, some people are going to believe what they want regardless. There have been times when I felt that barely meeting either the GNG or a specialty notability guideline was not grounds for a stand alone article (I'm a believer that meeting those criteria just means the topic is notworthy, not that is needs an article to itself. Many topics are so small in coverage, even when notable, that they can be covered in a parent page) and haven't changed my decision. What we need to do is seek clarification at the GNG where we can say, "This says X guideline supercedes the GNG and this meets X guideline".  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 20:39, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

WP:Requests for comment - Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/X-Men: First Class (film project)‎

Requesting contributions to the above discussion. Rob Sinden (talk) 20:58, 6 September 2010 (UTC)

Wikipedia not news

I've updated WP:NFF here to reflect that Wikipedia articles should not be news reports; there should be a topic of enduring notability. For example, the underlying topic for plans to shoot a film is the film itself, not the plans. Thanks, Erik (talk | contribs) 14:17, 9 September 2010 (UTC)

I'm also considering citing the policy of WP:CRYSTAL to say that it is okay to report discussion about plans for a film. Some editors appear to misconstrue WP:CRYSTAL, which would truly only apply to if someone made an article based on a rumor that a film was going to be made. Most plans for films come from studio-backed announcements, however. But like WP:NOT#NEWS says, we cannot have articles based on news reports. Announcements cannot make articles on their own; the tangibility of a film in production does. Erik (talk | contribs) 14:36, 9 September 2010 (UTC)

Logically and properly done. Nice. As CBALL is occasionally misconstrued, I have added WP:FUTURE to the a "Further information" heading of that section, and added the qualifier word "generally" to indicate that NFF is not an absolute and that in certain rare cases guideline and policy encouraged common sense exceptions might apply. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 20:50, 31 January 2011 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Most Hated Family in America

• Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Most Hated Family in America

Hello, I could use some input about how this page applies, relative to WP:NOTE. Wolfview (talk · contribs) changed his AFD nom comment at the AFD above, to instead refer to Wikipedia:Notability (films). (Disclosure: I had researched and expanded the article, adding secondary source coverage per WP:NOTE standards.) However, perhaps editors familiar with this page, could clarify if/how Wikipedia:Notability (films) is applicable, as well, and whether Wikipedia:Notability (films) versus WP:NOTE exist in a vacuum, independently of each other, or in conjunction with each other, or one preferred over the other? Is this type of question something better posed to a WikiProject Films Coordinator, and/or perhaps to another related talk page like the talk page of WP:FILMS? Thank you for your time, -- Cirt (talk) 21:33, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

If it is a single TV show, WP:NOTFILM does not/should not apply. Jarkeld (talk) 22:20, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

It is a documentary film that was aired on television. -- Cirt (talk) 22:22, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

As I recall it was a television documentary, not a film. I agree with Jarkeld that this is beyond our scope. PC78 (talk) 22:41, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

Ah, okay, thank you for the input! :) -- Cirt (talk) 00:15, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

Serkan Hüseyin Gültekin born march 30/03/1990 Bodrum Turkey (Age 50)Occupation Actor,director Years active 2009 Present Partner Kelly diaz(2011 present) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.8.29.166 (talk) 11:47, 1 October 2010 (UTC)

Hallmark Hall of Fame: Front of the Class

When you click on the link to this movie, it takes you to the article/page of the person, the movie is based on. I'd like to change it link to a movie. All movies following this one are pages on the movies themselves. Front of the Class.

Here's a link to The Futon Critic, which has all the information on the movie:

http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2008/09/10/patricia-heaton-treat-williams-and-jimmy-wolk-star-in-front-of-the-class-a-new-hallmark-hall-of-fame-presentation-that-has-begun-production-for-broadcast-on-the-cbs-television-network--28756/20080910cbs02/

http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2008/10/13/emmy-award-winner-patricia-heaton-treat-williams-and-jimmy-wolk-star-in-front-of-the-class-a-new-hallmark-hall-of-fame-presentation-to-be-broadcast-sunday-dec-7-on-the-cbs-television-network--29153/20081013cbs02/

http://www.thefutoncritic.com/moviewatch/front-of-the-class/ GiantTiger001 (talk) 06:37, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

This is discussed at Wikipedia:Help desk/Archives/2011 February 18#Hallmark Hall of Fame: Front of the Class (which is currently still transcluded at Wikipedia:Help desk). PrimeHunter (talk) 14:04, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

Worth Adding?

Is the screening of an "old" film (such as Poor Jake's Demise from 1913) at a film festival (Cinefest 31) worth adding to that film's entry? If the program has some production information not in the current article, can that be considered as a source for that information? JoeJJC (talk) 15:48, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

Absolutely! At least one of the actors, Lon Chaney, makes it of interest.

Rediscovered sculptures, paintings, and musical scores, some of them notable, appear on occasion. Example: some canons of Johann Sebastian Bach were discovered about 30 years ago, and they drew much attention because they were by Bach. So why not a feature film?

Please -- show something about the film -- its genre, studio of origin, timing, place(s) of filming, and box-office receipts. Show where it was rediscovered. Pbrower2a (talk) 05:06, 10 May 2013 (UTC)

Future "film projects"

There seems to have been a few incidents recently of calling unproduced future films "film projects" and having articles for these, going against the guidelines here. This seems to be increasingly accepted by the community. Notable examples - The Dark Knight Rises and The Avengers (film project). The Hobbit (2012 film) and X-Men: First Class (film) were also once under this heading before filming commenced. Is it time to put provision for these in the guidelines? Superman (film project) is currently at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Superman (film project). --Rob Sinden (talk) 15:02, 28 March 2011 (UTC)

The use of the term "film project" was created only to disambiguate an article title when another article by the same name existed. It should not be used when a disambig is simply not neccessary. What IS being accepted by the community is that in some few rare instances, persistant and in-depth coverage over a many-years period allows that a topic is "worthy of note"... and in those few rare exceptions there was too much contextual sourced content to be merged into another article. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 02:18, 2 April 2011 (UTC)

Some comments on WP:GNG and WP:CRYSTAL and their relation to WP:NFF

A precis on some of my thoughts that I have stated at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Superman (film project)‎:

What's the point of the specific notabilty guidelines such as WP:NFF, if they can be superseded by the general notability guidelines? The guideline at WP:NFF deals specifically with articles like this, and the creation of these pages is in direct contravention of this. Unless there is an exceptional amount of well-sourced material that cannot be housed on subject articles, where common sense dictates that it needs a breakout article, then WP:NFF should be followed.

I would suggest that the reasoning behind WP:NFF is to avoid opening the floodgates for speculative articles on future films that may or may not be made. Unfortunately the recent introduction of this "film project" concept has done just that. Editors seem to think that if they bung "(film project)" on the end of a future film, it is no longer subject to the guidelines lay down in WP:NFF.

Many editors keep waving WP:GNG about, but it also states: "Presumed means that significant coverage in reliable sources establishes a presumption, not a guarantee, that a subject is suitable for inclusion. Editors may reach a consensus that although a topic meets this criterion, it is not appropriate for a stand-alone article. For example, such an article may violate what Wikipedia is not." I would suspect that when WP:NFF was written, editors looked at this carefully, and discussed that films which had not entered production were not suitable for a stand-alone article.

WP:CRYSTAL states that "Individual scheduled or expected future events should only be included if the event is notable and almost certain to take place." As WP:NFF points out, "The assumption should also not be made that because a film is likely to be a high-profile release it will be immune to setbacks—there is no "sure thing" production." WP:CRYSTAL also goes on to give an example of tropical storms: ""Tropical Storm Alberto (2012)" is not [encyclopedic], even though it is virtually certain that a storm of that name will occur in the North Atlantic and will turn counterclockwise." I think the same logic can be applied to future films. --Rob Sinden (talk) 09:07, 29 March 2011 (UTC)

With respects, your storm example was an interesting comparison, but the section from which it comes states "Individual items from a predetermined list or a systematic pattern of names, pre-assigned to future events or discoveries, are not suitable article topics, if only generic information is known about the item." The article mentioned is one on the production of a Superman film and is not from any "predetermined list or pattern of names" nor does the article contain "only generic information". What WP:FUTURE clarifies, is that if enough reliable sources speak specifically and directly over a many years period about an anticipated event, then even the topic of a 2012 storm to be called "Alberto" might', per policy, be worth discussion somewhere. However, a perhaps more cogent example in our discussing notability of "future" events might be the article 2012 phenomenon, where it is found that the subject matter was of sufficiently wide interest that it would merit an article had the event had already occurred, and there was enough coverage of something that has not yet happened to allow it to be "worthy of note" even though the event had not (yet) happened. Further, the guideline described "presumption of notability" means editors may accept the presumption to be true unless someone comes forward to contest it and prove the presumption false. Quite difficult to contest significant coverage in mulriple reliable sources when auch are offered to establish that "presumption".

Those non-film topics aside, we are better off perhaps, discussing what level of coverage a film production might require so as to be seen as notable enough for inclusion somewhere... per policy. And though yes, to some it is seen as a quibble, an independent article discussing a film's production is not the same as an article discussing of an actual film... as an actual "film" is determined to not exist until it is confirmed as having entered principle photography.

As a guideline, NFF is not policy... and each and every guideline includes the advisement "...best treated with common sense, and occasional exceptions may apply." So rather than treating all guidelines as if they were absolute ironclad rules, we should discuss how to best determine those reasonable (and rare) exceptions to NFF for demonstrably notable topics. Simply put, does the topic under discussion have the in-depth and persistant coverage in reliable sources so as to be seen as "worthy of note"? I would love to see the following re-incorporated into WP:NFF in order to address and claify so as to perhaps limit the number of articles on non-notable topics and AFDs of the demomtably notable ones. Givens:

1. Guideline indicates any topic may be determined as being "worthy of notice" by it meeting general notability through it having "received significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject"
2. Policy specifcally allows that it "is appropriate to report discussion and arguments about the prospects for success of future proposals and projects or whether some development will occur, if discussion is properly referenced."
3. RARE exceptions to guideline WP:NFF are allowable ONLY IF the coverage of the topic of a future film is itself enduring and persistant in multiple reliable sources and over an extended period (thus dealing with violations of WP:NOTNEWS), and ONLY IF if there is too much verifiable information in an article whose topic is "discussion about the prospects for success of future proposals and projects or whether some development will occur", to be reasonably placed anywhere else.

And while yes, ANY article could be trimmed to three or four sentences and then stuffed somwhere else, such practice simply to then justify a merge does not serve to increase a reader's understanding of the topic.

That said, and as we have so far argued these on a case-by-case basis in a few recent AFDs, by our adding proper clarification to NFF of those instances where rare exceptions may be considered, we can better serve the project by our offering contributors the qualifying reasons behind each circumstance. Summary: Clarifying will not open the floodgates... clarifying will do the opposite. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 21:44, 31 March 2011 (UTC)

Brief history

Wikipedia changes to meet new needs. Easily seen when looking at the histories of many guideline over the last few years is that editors are continually seeking clarity in how to address notability in different situations. WP:NF itself has gone through many changes since it was first added as an essay bu User:Eluchil404 in July 2006,[6] and proposed as a guideline 2 months later,[7] as editors still sought clarity. Interestingly it was temporarily tagged as "historial" for a few months beginning in September 2007.[8] In February 2007 the entire propsed NF was itself proposed for deletion.[9] It was kept as the consensus generally agreed that it was a work in progress that strived for that clarity, but even this consensus for keep of the essay was argued about and attempts were made to merge it elsewhere or tag it as a failed proposal, and there was a heated edit war about it being rejected.

And quite amazing to read through the histories of that guideline to see how even NFF itself grew and shrank and editors argued over its application. Some its earlier versions are far clearer than today... and some less so. It was in January 2007 that NFF was modified by User:Zadignose to speak about unreleased films being rarely determinable as notable.[10] The most cogent sentence toward notability in that change was "Has the production of the film generated multiple, non-trivial news stories? In other words: Does the film already satisfy the primary criterion?" The version of NFF as of 25 January 2007 was one that most directly considered that unmade films might still have notability through coverage in reliable sources in its stating "...films produced in the past, which were either not completed, or not distributed, are generally not appropriate unless special circumstances render their failure notable. However, if such an unreleased film can meet the criteria in our basic guidelines, then a case can be made for its notability." (underscore mine)[11] Yes, when first added as as a section on the page WP:Notability (films), NFF was intended to properly prevent a flood of speculative articles on topics that did not yet have notability, and quite reasonable understood that most unmade films do not meet the notability crieteria for inclusion. That version lasted until June of 2007, at which time the editor most wishing the proposal to be tagged as "failed" removed consideration of a production meeting the GNG from NFF.[12] Girolamo Savonarola rewrote the section and returned a modified version on 24 July 2007, underscoring that a production is never a sure thing, and in any case discussions of a film's furure production should itself meet notability guidelines,[13] only to have his changes reverted by the same editor who had removed the content earlier.[14] And this above is only through eary 2008. Again, amazing reading. Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 21:44, 31 March 2011 (UTC)

Related discussion

See Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Film/Future films#Proposed ammendment to section on Process#Notability Schmidt, ^{MICHAEL Q.} 23:50, 8 April 2011 (UTC)

Film Threat

For anyone who might be interested, there is a discussion at Wikipedia:Reliable_sources/Noticeboard#FilmThreat.com regarding whether Film Threat is or is not a reliable source for purpose of retention of film articles. Regards, TransporterMan (TALK) 14:33, 11 May 2011 (UTC)

Partial rewrite

I have rewritten the lead section and the "General principles" section. From the latter section, I created a new "Reliable sources" section since it is less related. I grouped the two numbered lists under "Other evidence of notability", but I think we could rewrite this section to combine the criteria better, as I think they all have to do with hints of the topic meeting the general notability guideline, even if the evidence is not fully there.

I would like to have a separate "Future films" section. The current section barely talks about incomplete films and undistributed films, and we can have a section for them and encourage expansion of that section.

Please let me know your thoughts. Erik (talk | contribs) 15:11, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

I may be wrong but it seems your rewrite is retroactively fitting WP:GNG into this guideline. From past discussions and AFDs, GNG has been established as the commanding guideline for any article, the new wording suggests the opposite. I think this should be rewritten again or include a exemption section stating that a film article maybe deemed notable if by already meeting GNG.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 15:25, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

The general notability guideline will still apply in the majority of the cases, but WP:N says, "A topic is presumed to merit an article if it meets the general notability guideline below, and is not excluded under What Wikipedia is not. A topic is also presumed notable if it meets the criteria outlined in a subject-specific guideline listed in the box on the right." So there is some deference there. For example, a planned film technically meets the general notability guideline by satisfying all the criteria, but if it's not a sure thing, we shouldn't assume a stand-alone film article so quickly. In addition, the "Other evidence of notability" section has always existed and has pointed out ways to determine if a film is notable even if significant coverage is not immediately found in a search engine test. I tried to make that clearer in the summary. Do you think that's inaccurate? Erik (talk | contribs) 15:29, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

I revised the lead section; I think I see what you meant and hope I've fixed it. Erik (talk | contribs) 15:33, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

I also rewrote the "Reliable sources" section (and will stop there for today). The previous revision is here, and the new revision is here. I tried to be more detailed but still commonsensical. Feedback is welcome. Erik (talk | contribs) 16:21, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

Ridiculous guideline on upcoming films

So the article on Catching Fire was removed per this guideline - even though it's a film that's been confirmed by the studio. I know that I came to Wikipedia shortly after seeing The Hunger Games to look for information on Catching Fire, yet the article doesn't exist, merely because it hasn't entered the Principal Photography stage. Why does this ridiculous guideline exist so much that future films will likely (of course, I know, there's a chance it couldn't be) a big hit.

I really think that this guideline should be rolled back to at least the pre-production stage. --Connorsmac (talk) 16:52, 16 April 2012 (UTC)

• The issue with a movie like Catching Fire is less that it could be cancelled than that there just really isn't anything to say at this point. The actors from the first movie are under contract and presumably returning but there is no news on additional cast nor has a new director stepped in. So we've got once sentence on casting, one on the director, and one covering the release date that can be verified. Those three sentences can fit in a section in the book article or other merge target. Many similar properties have a "film series" article, but one hasn't been written for the Hunger Games yet. Until there is enough sourced information to expand the film section, rather than book plot and unconfirmed casting rumours, there isn't need for a separate article and that won't be until we get to principle photography or at least much closer to it.

• Compared to the total number of films that are ultimately notable upon release, the number that have significant coverage during production is small. And those that have sources before even principle photography starts are fewer still. But this is a guideline with potential exceptions and we don't have to be mechanically rigid in its interpretation. The Hobbit (2012 film) for instance had its own article kept at AfD before shooting started. Still, as I explained above, I don't think we are at that point with Catching Fire, yet. Eluchil404 (talk) 17:21, 16 April 2012 (UTC)

Notability of Indian language films

While reviewing new articles, I have tagged some Indian Marathi films, such as Nirop and Gandha, for notability. The author, AnimeshKulkarni (talk), is asking me why I tagged these films. He plans to write articles on many Indian films, including all category National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Marathi films. Since I am not at all an expert on foreign language films, but I did have doubts about notability of these films, I am posting here to ask for comments.

Are all the films awarded the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Marathi, and beyond those, all the films in the Indian category:National Film Awards notable for inclusion in Wikipedia?--DThomsen8 (talk) 12:36, 5 April 2012 (UTC)

Ummm! Anyone? §§AnimeshKulkarni (talk) 18:58, 16 April 2012 (UTC)

Guideline adjustment

I feel we need to discuss this. The part in the guideline that states "Films that haven't begun filming should not have an article" is frustrating. What if there is a perfectly well-covered film that is notable before filming begins? Why should Wikipedia be forced to go on standby until filming begins? It's a very rare circumstance when a film is cancelled. Opinions? RAP (talk) 14:22 6 December 2011 (UTC)

Whilst you find it frustrating, WP:NFF is a good guideline. As it states, anything can happen during pre-production stages. Cancellation at this point is not as you say "very rare" - look at all the non-starters on the Batman in film article, for example. If you look at WP:CRYSTAL it directs the editor here for specific guidelines relating to films, and we should respect that. A film cannot be notable before filming begins, because the film does not physically exist. At this point, only the notion or idea of a film exists. Whilst this notion of a film can sometimes be notable, provision is made in this guideline suggesting that the information is included elsewhere, for example on a page about the film's subject (useful for adaptations, etc), or one of the proponents of the film (writer, director, etc.) Of course, sometimes so much is written about a film before filming starts, that it would not be practical to house elsewhere, and at that point we can use common sense and split out to a separate article on these rare occasions. The Hobbit (2013 film) is a good example of when this was the case. If we were to change this guideline, I fear we'd open the floodgates and film articles would be created for every single rumour of a film by "fanboys" wanting to be first. Remember WP:CRYSTAL! --Rob Sinden (talk) 14:36, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

Remember WP:GNG is the overriding guideline as it states here "For the majority of topics related to film, the criteria established at the general notability guideline is sufficient to follow". Most future films do not meet GNG, use your best judgement to determine which ones do.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 14:48, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

Don't forget, WP:GNG also states: "Wikipedia is not a news source: it takes more than just routine news reports about a single event or topic to constitute significant coverage. For example, routine news coverage such as press releases, public announcements, sports coverage, and tabloid journalism is not significant coverage. Even a large number of news reports that provide no critical analysis of the event is not considered significant coverage." --Rob Sinden (talk) 14:54, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

Very true. For example if a studio releases a press statement announcing a film that is picked up by lots of news outlets, that is not sufficient coverage because they are all essentially reporting the same thing. But as more and more news reports are published about different aspects of the film, then it adds to the overall significant coverage required by notability.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 15:06, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

So if all we have is a list of actors, studios, and crew, then the we fail WP:GNG, whether filming has begun or not. Which is one of the points covered in this guideline. --Rob Sinden (talk) 15:13, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

I'd say it depends on the level of coverage. If the comings and goings of actors, studios and crew are well documented it might pass. Its best to review these things on a case by case basis.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 15:29, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

Agreed, but for the most part, I still think this guideline holds up - i.e. including the information "in articles about its subject material" until filming commences. --Rob Sinden (talk) 15:45, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

Payment of significant filming fees to cast and crew or payment for film rights indicates some commitment. But even so there might be significant changes in the story line, and a notable actor or production leader might walk off or die, or the set or the completed film stock to some point may be destroyed in some calamity during filming. A high-cost cinematic project is notable in its own right because failure to complete such a film is a notable story in itself. Any discussion of a film before money changes hands is just a rumor. Promises and publicity reports are not enough unless money changes hands. Wikipedia is not a rumor mill. Pbrower2a (talk) 05:18, 10 May 2013 (UTC)

IMDB

Hi,
The "Resources" section of the guideline recommends using IMDB. However, IMDB tends to get short shrift over at the reliable sources noticeboard, since it has lots of user-generated content &c. I'm not going to suggest removing IMDB completely from this guideline, but perhaps it would be a good idea to include a caveat or two about accuracy/verifiability...? bobrayner (talk) 17:09, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

I think it needs to be made clear that when we say "resource" it is not meant as "reference". We mean it as you can look at the film's listing and get an idea of what unreferenced information is out there and then start using that as keyword searches. For example, if in the "trivia" or "production notes" section someone puts in that a director stated that he/she was influenced by subject Y, then I can start doing searches specific to that statement. So, maybe we just need to clarify what is meant by "resource".  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 17:21, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

Good point. OK; how about something like this? "A film's entry in the The Internet Movie Database can be a valuable starting point for research, although some IMDB content is not reliable"...? bobrayner (talk) 17:31, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

I like it. I would tweak it a little: "A film's entry in the The Internet Movie Database, or any other similar databases, can be a valuable starting point for research, including links to reviews, articles, and media references. However, content generated by IMDb is not considered reliable, and a page in the database does not by itself establish the film's notability." - Just a combination of the previous write-up and your change. Obviously, any changes need to be seen by more editors and approved, but I like the addition you came up with.  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 17:42, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

Nice work. bobrayner (talk) 18:15, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

Sounds like an excellent addition. Eluchil404 (talk) 04:51, 10 July 2012 (UTC)

Couldn't have said it better myself,  BIGNOLE  . Just FYI, I have found IMDB's casting lists to be remarkably unreliable, even for new movies where presumably IMDb gets a copy of the official credits. I don't know if IMDb has changed it yet, but its cast of the 2012 movie Sparkle is sooooo way off the official credits it's hard to believe. (See Talk:Sparkle (2012 film)#Here are the official credits) And countless times people add erroneous upcoming films for actors, based on no published source but just inaccurate gossip and rumor. As for checking by "staffers," a TV Guide editor once famously inserted a false credit for "turtle wrangler," just to make a point to his staff not to trust IMDb and to do their own research and reporting. As far as I know, it's there to this day. --Tenebrae (talk) 17:49, 11 August 2012 (UTC)

The funnything is that Wikipedia actually fails that same credibilty as IMDB, wonder if TV guide editor has thought about editing wikipedia with similar false information. DoctorHver (talk) 01:14, 2 October 2012 (UTC)

IMDB isn't perfect. Much of its material is effectively contributions from consumers and certainly not from reliable authorities in the movie business. Example: I have made contributions as user comments, reviewing films or discussing aspects of them. As I recall I once wrote of the cinematic bomb Howard the Duck that it is 'best appreciated while drunk or on drugs or by someone with a low IQ' in a review... and in one of the chat areas I suggested music that might fit a third Fantasia. If I were the late Roger Ebert, I might have had some authority. I obviously am not he, so the sort of material that I could contribute to IMDB does not fit Wikipedia.

Obviously I take any description of a film in pre-production even in IMDB with a boulder of salt. Talk is cheap, and until some significant outlays of capital are made there is no meaningful film. Even I could think up a cinematic project which would be non-notable because I could never get someone to put money or talent behind it. Pbrower2a (talk) 05:30, 10 May 2013 (UTC)

Film series

I propose having a brief section reflecting notability guidelines based on the WT:FILM discussion here. It seems to me that a film series can be notable if the films themselves are notable. It is more a question of if readers can benefit from content aggregated across individual films. In my experience, three films is the usual threshold for having a film series article, though a two-part film like Kill Bill may be an exception. I go more in depth at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Journey (film series). Erik (talk | contribs) 14:23, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

I concur, a minimum of three films seems to be the convention although an argument can be made for two-film series under special circumstances.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 14:45, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

I don't think we should be setting hard and fast rules on the number of films. Otherwise editors may assume automatic notability once a series reaches three films, rather than judging notability on each series' own merits. --Rob Sinden (talk) 14:54, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

This is would be a WP:SNG, WP:GNG would still apply in addition. Similarly, we have WP:NFF which states "Films that have not been confirmed by reliable sources to have commenced principal photography should not have their own articles", obviously this does not automatically make all films that begun filming notable. They still must meet WP:GNG.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 15:06, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

You try telling that to some editors :) --Rob Sinden (talk) 15:19, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

Notability of Verax

At Edward_Snowden#Legacy I started a section about "Verax", a Hong Kong-produced short five minute film that got extensive coverage in reliable sources. I believe I can write more content about this film, but I would need a separate article. Based on the sources I have, should I start a separate article now?

Sources (five English sources in number, with the AFP source being widely distributed and being used as one source by the Voice of Russia source, plus two not in English):

• Tam, Aaron. "Hong Kong filmmakers first to make Snowden movie." Agence France Presse at Fox News. June 29, 2013.
  • ""Hong Kong amateur filmmakers produce world's first Edward Snowden film". South China Morning Post (Hong Kong). Agence France-Presse. June 30, 2013. (seems to be copy)
  • "Four expatriates in Hong Kong make first film on leaker Edward Snowden." Agence France-Presse at Taipei Times Monday July 1, 2013. p. 5 (seems to be derived from AFP sources)
  • "‘Verax’ frenzy." Agence France-Presse at Global Times. June 30, 2013. (seems to be copy)
  • "Hong Kong filmmakers make Snowden movie." Agence France-Presse at Arab News. Saturday 29 June 2013.
  • "Hong Kong filmmakers first to make Snowden movie." Agence France-Presse at Geo TV. June 30, 2013. (seems to be copy)
  • "Hong Kong filmmakers to make Snowden movie." Agence France Presse at The Nation. June 30, 2013.
  • "Hong Kong filmmakers first to make Snowden movie." Agence France Presse at the Economic Times. June 29, 2013.
  • "Hong Kong filmmakers first to make Snowden movie." Agence France Presse at NDTV. June 29, 2013.
  • "Edward Snowden: The Movie." Agence France Presse at The Australian. June 30, 2013. (seems to be copy)
  • "HK filmmakers first to make Edward Snowden movie." Agence France Presse at The Straits Times. June 29, 2013. (seems to be copy)
  • "Hong Kong filmmakers first to make Snowden movie." Agence France Presse at France 24. June 29, 2013. (seems to be copy)
• "Hong Kong filmmakers publish online first movie about Edward Snowden." The Voice of Russia. Credited to: Voice of Russia, RIA Novosti, Agence France Presse -- It has multiple sources with AFP being one.
• Keegan, Rebecca (June 28, 2013). "Edward Snowden insta-movie hits YouTube". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
• Napolitano, Dean (June 28, 2013).Lights, Camera, Leaks! Watch Edward Snowden: The Movie." The Wall Street Journal blog. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
• FlorCruz, Michelle. "Watch 'Verax,' The Edward Snowden Movie By Hong Kong Filmmakers [VIDEO]." International Business Times. June 26, 2013.
• (in Romanian) A.M.P. ""Verax" - Primul film despre Snowden, realizat de patru cineaşti din Hong Kong." Antena3. Intact Media Group. 29 June 2013.
• "Datagate, il primo film su Snowden è cinese: ecco "Verax"." La Repubblica.

WhisperToMe (talk) 20:13, 30 June 2013 (UTC)

After finding more sources, I'm sure it's notable:

• "Kurz-Thriller aus Hongkong: Edward Snowden, der Film." [[Der Spiegel]. Sunday June 30, 2013.
• "Amateurfilmer drehten in Hongkong ersten Film über Snowden." Der Standard. 30 June 2013.

WhisperToMe (talk) 07:37, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

According to WP:NFF, an article can't be produced until filming has begun. There are probably many more plans to make films than actual films that get made. Even once financing has been secured, a screenplay written and a cast put together, that still isn't far along enough to warrant a separate article. 69.125.134.86 (talk) 19:09, 16 July 2013 (UTC)

Untitled projects

Regarding WP:NFF, I'm running into articles like "Untitled So-and-so's Project" with a proposed 2014 release. Usually there is scant information about plots or casting but because So-and-so is a well-known director, their future movie projects have a Wikipedia page.

Is that warranted or should editors wait until more information has been released to the public before a page is created? I've never proposed an article to be deleted but after reading WP:NFF, I can see several film projects that are just in the planning or preproduction stages. 69.125.134.86 (talk) 18:59, 16 July 2013 (UTC)

Personally, if it's an untitled project by "so and so", I'd have thought it most likely more appropriate to put the information on "so and so"'s article, in the spirit of this guideline: "information on the film might be included in articles about its subject material". Do you have any examples? --Rob Sinden (talk) 21:33, 16 July 2013 (UTC)

Comment

Anybody cares to comment on Wikipedia_talk:What_Wikipedia_is_not#An_article_on_a_movie_before_release.? AnupMehra ^✈ 15:16, 3 February 2014 (UTC)

Multiple DVD releases?

I'm involved with an AfD that I launched and one of the arguments that someone brought up was that the film had multiple DVD releases over the years. Now while this isn't currently anything that would count towards notability, part of me does have to argue that this should be a criteria towards notability. If a film continues to get re-released over the years, then that must attest to its notability in some shape or fashion, right? I wouldn't argue for it to be something that would give absolute notability ala a film getting shown at a film festival or a commercial theatrical re-release five years after its initial showing, but I do think that it should count at least towards partial notability. I'm aware that many films will eventually hit public domain and get released by no-name film distribution companies or get self-published, but we also get a lot of films that get released by rather mainstream film distributors such as Viacom/Paramount and the like. Shouldn't that at least count towards partial notability and get included in our official film GNG as well? It'd take some tweaking to ensure that self-published films and ones published through Darryl's DVD Dungeon (ie, very no-name, fly-by-night distribution companies) wouldn't really count, but I think that there is some merit in this person's argument. (The film in question is Nightmare Circus, if anyone's interested in helping to dig for sources, and while it is getting republished by some indie publishes, it also got a DVD release through Media Blasters, which is considered to be a fairly well-known known distributer.) Tokyogirl79 (｡◕‿◕｡) 11:24, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

• I mean basically, that someone in a relatively mainstream distribution company would consider a movie to be worth re-releasing on DVD years after its initial release should count for something. We can argue that the article would still require other sourcing and it wouldn't keep on that alone, but this would really help give some articles a much needed boost, as we have a lot of films that are very underground cult classics that are known but either didn't get an overly large amount of coverage or had coverage that never made it onto the internet. It's just that I've had multiple instances where I've come across movies, books, etc that are incredibly well known but fall just shy of actually passing film notability guidelines - yet are continually re-released onto the various home film media formats because there is obviously a market out there that values the film. This isn't WP:POPULAR really, just saying that repeated releases onto home media does and should show some notability for the film akin to how a review through a RS would help count towards notability. Tokyogirl79 (｡◕‿◕｡) 11:30, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

Do DVD releases not count under point 2: The film was given a commercial re-release [...] at least five years after initial release? --Rob Sinden (talk) 12:28, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

• I've always been under the impression that commercial re-release was intended to mean a theatrical re-release, but I'd love it if this meant that this could also count a DVD (or respective current media format) re-release for a film released earlier in time. Of course we'd have to word this carefully. If say, a film released today and continued to get distributed for the next 6 years through one distribution company, that might not necessarily count towards notability. I think that the time period should be lengthened a little to say, 10 years after its initial theatrical release and the distribution must be done through a relatively mainstream company. That would help whittle down the criteria some. Tokyogirl79 (｡◕‿◕｡) 01:15, 13 February 2014 (UTC)
• Multiple "commercial releases" indicates releases that a film generates "commercial profit" for the filmmakers or distributors. In this modern world where more and more folks choose to rent DVDs or download films rather than spend their money at theaters, this means that restricting notability to "theatrical release" only does not serve the encyclopedia. In the case of the film discussed at that AFD, we might better consider repeated successful releases as an acknowledgement of a cult following. Our issue become one of how to define a cult following, as reviews in multiple "cult" or "genre" sources do not meet the strict definitions of RS, but "might be" considered as non-rs support of otherwise verifiable existence of the film. Reviews are opinion, and as opinion we may consider use-by-others and expertise of reviewers as long as we are not dealing with a WP:BLP. And while WP:GNG is the easiest tool for determining notability, it is not the only tool. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 07:08, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Notability (television shows)

Don't we have a guidelines for television shows (episodes, seasons, etc.)? --_{Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| reply here} 10:34, 17 June 2014 (UTC)

That's a question to ask WT:TV. :) Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 11:43, 17 June 2014 (UTC)

RfC: Can reviews through Film Threat's paid "Submission for Review system" be considered an independent source for determining notability?

There is consensus that Film Threat is considered a reliable source, but should reviews of films submitted through their paid "Submission for Review system", in which the creator/distributor of the film pays Film Threat to review the film, be considered an independent source for determining notability? --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 15:33, 9 September 2014 (UTC)

• I have no issues at all with Film Threat reviews being cited in articles, per consensus that their reviewers are well respected in their field and that they hold that the reviews themselves maintain editorial independence. I also have no issues with reviews that they consider "solicited", in that the editorial staff chooses and seeks out the films, being used to determine notability.

However, I do have an issue with the reviews that have a disclaimer that the films were submitted through their paid "Submission for Review system", in which the creator/distributor of the film pays Film Threat to review the film, being used to determine notability. Film Threat maintains that even the paid reviews are unbiased, and that paying for a review doesn't guarantee a positive review, and I have no reason to doubt that (and I have no problem using even paid reviews as reliable sources for facts within the article). However, the fact that the film was included because of payment by those involved with the film indicates to me that the existence of the review can NOT be used as evidence of notability. The only thing the existence of the review indicates is that a) the movie really exists and isn't a hoax and b) that the creators of the film paid Film Threat. It does not indicate an independent assessment on the notability of the film. Yes, Film Threat has the right to refuse submissions (usually if there are legal issues involved), but per their own FAQ such refusals are "very rare". It doesn't matter that they don't guarantee good reviews, as the notability standard requires "full-length reviews", not good reviews.

Such situations (paid independent reviews) are somewhat rare in the film world, but are much more common in the biographical world, and WP:BIO specifically calls out similar situations: The barometer of notability is whether people independent of the subject itself have actually considered the subject notable enough that they have written and published non-trivial works that focus upon it. Thus, entries in biographical dictionaries that accept self-nominations (such as the Marquis Who's Who) do not prove notability. Film Threat accepts self-nominations, so it should not prove notability. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 15:38, 9 September 2014 (UTC)

• Obviously we cannot use it as an indicator of notability, as the site's FAQ says the review essentially every film submitted and paid for, though they do place an appropriate notice at the bottom of each review if it is a paid review. My own felling is that a policy such as that casts considerable doubt on the reliability of the site as a while, or on all their reviews. There's a similar case with books: Midwestern Book Review, which I consequently no longer consider reliable for any purpose, even though they apparently only charge for ebooks and for pre-publication reviews. DGG ( talk ) 23:55, 10 September 2014 (UTC)

Director's cuts

What's our policy regarding films that are recut and then rereleased as their own films? I notice that both Apocalypse Now Redux and Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut have their own articles, and there are articles on the different versions of Blade Runner and Star Wars. When is it appropriate for a director's cut to have its own article? Is there a specific inclusion criteria for this, or is it simply WP:GNG? Thanks. A Thousand Doors (talk | contribs) 00:57, 4 December 2014 (UTC)

A Thousand Doors, we do not have any guidelines about director's cuts. I think it should depend on the amount of related content. Some director's cuts are easily covered in the primary film article, but if there is a great deal of commentary from reliable sources about the cut, the content can be split into a kind of sub-article (with a section at the primary film article providing a high-level summary of the content). Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 17:36, 7 December 2014 (UTC)

Notability Should be Expanded to Allow More Room for Niche Independent Films

I understand that we don't want every youtube video to be eligible for inclusion as a Wikipedia page. But I think any independent film which meets a minimum length requirement (say 30 minutes) and involves a minimum number of actors and production people (say, for example, 20), should be allowed into this "encyclopedia of all human knowledge," and has had at least one or more public showings to a minimum number of people (say, one hundred) should be eligible for an article if someone (excluding the actors, producers, financiers or others having some form of ownership of the film) cares enough to write up a description of the film.

One of the key valued of Wikipedia is that it is not limited by printed pages and the need to be brief.

Related to this is that it allows the creation of articles about minor topics that would never be notable enough for Encyclopedia Britannica but might be notable enough for a small niche of a few thousand people interested in a topic.

So, while I understand the desire to have guidelines that seeks to prevent self-promoters from turning Wikipedia into a free advertising vehicle (and also recognize that to some extent, that remains inevitable), I don't think the "notability" issue should become an obstacle to the fan(s) of a low budget independent film creating and maintaining an article about it.

If it is "notable" enough to a fan who saw the film at one of it's few public showings, or even it's only public airing, then it is likely notable enough to at least a few thousand potential readers out there that they may a appreciate that Wikipedia has a reference to it. This is especially true if the film is directed toward a niche audience that supports it's own niche, topic oriented news media. Just because the film is not notable to mainstream media doesn't mean it's not notable to thousands, perhaps millions, of readers/viewers in that topic niche.

As indicated above, absent the criteria that are already identified as making a film notable, I think one public showing to at least 100 people, and a production crew of over 20, and length over 30 minutes (or similar criteria) indicates that the effort to produce the film was at least serious enough to be notable enough in Wikipedia. At least it's not just a funny cat video.

I like the idea of Wikipedia being the equivalent of Captain Kirk's computer which held the entirety of human knowledge. Even very small, independent films which fail to get coverage in the "mainstream press" are part of our human knowledge and human creative effort. GodBlessYou2 (talk) 16:02, 7 December 2014 (UTC)

GodBlessYou2, Wikipedia articles are supposed to be based on secondary sources, which generally means if there is not independent commentary about the film, we would not have an article for it. Wikipedia is not intended to be trailblazing in writing about films that no one else has. We are summarizing existing content about these films. The policy at WP:INDISCRIMINATE says, "Wikipedia treats fiction in an encyclopedic manner, discussing the reception and significance of notable works in addition to a concise summary." What can we write about a film if no reliable sources are covering it? Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 17:36, 7 December 2014 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the OP is referring to "films" like 22 Weeks. — ArtifexMayhem (talk) 06:10, 8 December 2014 (UTC)

I agree that an editor must be able to cite other sources. The question regards avoiding a limitation of sources to "main stream media" -- especially when there are so many other sources of information and third party reviews and reporting, often in niches, as I indicated, which clearly indicate that a film was "notable" enough to niche media sources.

I didn't have a particular example, but ArtifexMayhem has suggested 22 Weeks as an example of a disputed entry. A quick glance shows he/she "combined refs" in a December edit on that article so I assume he/she has an opinion on this subject. What are your recommendations, Artifex? (May I call you Artifex?) GodBlessYou2 (talk) 20:41, 8 December 2014 (UTC)

AfD for Leatherface

Leatherface (film) has been nominated for deletion on the grounds that it fails the notability criteria, contains unreliable sources, and it is not clear if the name of the article will actually be the name of the film. See discussion at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Leatherface (film).  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 17:47, 1 June 2015 (UTC)

The name and topic of the film being considered, crewed up, cast and filming has been confirmed in multiple reliable sources, thank you. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 13:41, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

Seems inappropriate to reply to a notification with an argument… suggest moving this comment to Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Leatherface (film). —174.141.182.82 (talk) 20:43, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

Not an "argument" but a neutral statement of facts, as both sides of the viewpoint have been written of there. As the notification contained some erroneous comments toward film name and reliability of accepted RS, it is appropriate to address them here. Making incorrect statements and then inviting folks to go to the AFD with a set of mistaken preconceptions could possibly be construed as canvassing. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 08:27, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

Pre/Production

Questions have arisen in this discussion about what exactly WP:NFF means, whether notable pre-production means notable production. I figured it was worth cross-posting here. If elements of a film’s pre-production (such as who’s been casted and what parts they’ll be playing) are notable, does that make its production notable? There’s no indication that “production” is being used here to encompass pre- and post-, but was it intended? —174.141.182.82 (talk) 03:07, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

In my experience, I have not seen this particular sentence referenced in an AfD before. It looks like it dates back to the very first version of this page. It mentions "factors to consider" (that no longer exist here) that I think Leatherface would meet. It seems to be a vestige that could be re-worded. Maybe just change "production" to "film"? Pre-filming coverage counts toward notability because it reflects sources showing attention toward a topic before it has even started filming, which usually has to do with some aspect of the film being previously notable (the source material, the director, the actors). One may say that "obviously" Leatherface is notable on the face of it, being the latest in a franchise, but that by itself would not suffice as an argument on Wikipedia. However, the pre-filming coverage is what establishes that for us outside our personal opinions. It's reasonable to surmise that the reporting was done because of the nature of the franchise. If it was an indie film starring Stephen Dorff, it would not get this kind of coverage. But that is beside the point; the point is that independent sources found the topic worthy of note to report on, and Wikipedia can summarize that coverage, especially now that we have verified that filming has begun. Erik II (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 13:03, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

Agree fully. Under MOS:FILM#Production, "production" is an inclusive term not an exclusive one. Per Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Film, the term "production" does not restrict article content to or mean "only stuff dealing directly with the actual filming"... which is why many film articles in Wikipedia contain sections dealing with the creation, planning, writing, casting, and the eventual making of those films... information included under MOS:FILM to increase our reader's understanding-in-depth of the overall film topic. All the many aspects of the topic of the creation, planning, writing, casting, and eventual making of a film fall under the "production" processes. Since the topic of the plans for production of a potential film Texas Chainsaw 4 (now confirmed as Leatherface), had been discussed directly and in detail for many years, its coverage meant it could (and was) spoken about somewhere per policy... IE: it was "mentioned" (although very poorly and very briefly) in a suggested redirect target. As no film is 100% until the box office opens and folks actually watch it, what is restricted by WP:NFF is that we should probably (not a hard rule) not have a separate article until we have confirmation of filming, and we now have such confirmation. But since the topic meets WP:GNG and filming has commenced a separate article is now merited under WP:NFF (paragraph 3)... an article which informs readers of all the aspects surrounding the topic of the creation, planning, writing, casting, and eventual making of this film. It's what we are here to do. And yes, in this unfinished encyclopedia which admits it is imperfect, the article is far from complete... but being incomplete is not a deletion criteria. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 13:41, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

Any objections to changing WP:NFF to read: “should generally not have their own articles unless the film is notable per the notability guidelines”? —174.141.182.82 (talk) 20:39, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

• As an established editor in good standing and a coordinator of WikiProject Film I object, specially as the topic of preparation for a film can easily meet inclusion criteria before or even if never made. Indeed, we he had a long debate several years ago about perhaps titling pre-filming projects with the dab "(film project)". WP:NFF's current wording resulted after many years of discussion, and the community consensus for its current wording reflects our acknowledgement of the GNG being the primary inclusion criteria. Per Policy and guideline, the topic of this project being discussed in detail in reliable sources from 2012 to 2015 (even before it began filming last May) means it is notable per our primary inclusion criteria. You'd have to modify WP:GNG and WP:V to say that even if enduring and ongoing, coverage of project's preparation and pre-production can be completely ignored... and then you'd have to greatly narrow MOS:FILM's definition of the term "production", specially as a problem with your end-run here is that 1) MOS:FILM considers a film's prep-work worth including, 2) this one has begun filming, and 3) per WP:GNG and WP:V its prep-work coverage counts toward notability. However, anon IPs are always welcome to begin WP:RFCs in order to gain wider input, as one voice here asking to change existing guideline contrary to existing community standards is not consensus. Erik?? Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 22:18, 5 June 2015 (UTC)

  Then can we clarify NFF’s use of “production”? Perhaps, “unless the production itself (including pre-production) is notable”? If this needs to go to an RFC, I’d prefer to have a specific wording to propose, and I can’t do that without knowing the intended meaning of the existing wording. Would this convey it? —174.141.182.82 (talk) 00:13, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

  • The word and its application in film articles is already well defined by community consensus at MOS:FILM as pointed out above, so go and read it and ask for education there. I need not cut and paste that entire guideline page for you here. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 00:49, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

    Again I direct your attention to Filmmaking#Production. Either that needs to be rewritten a bit, or it’s not quite as clear-cut as you believe. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 01:05, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

    • You're welcome to go edit that user article to have it say anything you wish... I'd rather stick with understanding and use of applicable guideline. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 08:28, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

  Wait, no, I’ve got it. RFC to follow. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 00:21, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

RFC: Link the word “production” in NFF

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

---

According to WP:NFF, films that haven’t yet been released “should generally not have their own articles unless the production itself is notable per the notability guidelines.” The word “production” is ambiguous here; it’s not clear whether it refers to the phase of production as distinct from pre-production and post-production, as per Filmmaking#Production, or to all aspects of the film’s creation, as per MOS:FILM#Production. So I propose that the word be linked to whichever of these two is more appropriate; that should remove any ambiguity without any rewriting. (Note: User:MichaelQSchmidt has added a link to MOS:FILM#Production.) —174.141.182.82 (talk) 00:27, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

Pardon 174.141.182.82, but did you read Filmmaking#Stages of Production before coming here? Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 01:29, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

Only enough to see that it uses multiple senses of the word. In the subsection I linked, though, the word refers to a particular phase of production, “production,” which occurs after the pre-production phase of production. MOS:FILM#Production also refers to the production phase of production. So I stand by my claim of ambiguity. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 01:48, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

Comment: Actually it is not ambiguous as both suggested links give us usage. The "word" and its application and usage in film topics is already well-described at guideline MOS:FILM, and refers to the many aspects of a film's production ... addressing conception, planning, scripting, crewing-up, casting, actual filming, and post-production. And yes, at Filmmaking#Stages of Production we have also have an expanded "definition" of the word and its various aspects relating to a film's production... but it is NOT a guideline. It is in the guide MOS:FILM where we have a detailed and well-considered explanation of how editors are to consider and deal with production information, as how we edit these pages is determined by following its long-existing policies and guides. I do agree that it would be helpful to add a wiki-link to the misunderstood NFF sentence. IE: "...films that have already begun shooting, but have not yet been publicly released (theatres or video), should generally not have their own articles unless the production itself is notable per the notability guidelines." The "underscoring" is simply my way to show share the link should be put. As NFF "knows" that coverage of the background of the planning of a film could meet the primary inclusion guideline even before filming has begun, that sentence was set to let us know that we need to wait until a film's principle photography is confirmed before consider the creation of a separate article about the film. Adding the link to MOS:FILM would lead worrisome or unknowing editors to the guide for handling such information and so improve the project. So as this RFC essentially breaks down to the question of which link best supports article creation and editing.

My response is that while linking to the article on filmmaking#Stages of Production is fine, if needed for clarification by the uninitiated, a linking instead to MOS:FILM as the specific guide for dealing with such information, is far better and more appropriate. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 01:29, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

• Comment: A given unfinished film may only be notable for its pre-production, e.g. for casting announcements and the like. This may be particularly true if the film has just finished pre-production and begun shooting; or perhaps the film is entirely non-notable except for pre-production details like the people involved, and reliable sources will dry up indefinitely. Whatever the case may be, is it appropriate to create an article at this point?

• If so, then we should link to MOS:FILM#Production to indicate that we’re using the term in the sense of making a film, of which pre-production is one aspect.
• If not, then we should link to Filmmaking#Production to indicate that we’re using it in the sense of filming, distinct from pre-production. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 02:11, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

• Response: Yes the topic of a film in development could and sometimes does meet WP:GNG, which is why policy tells it that if spoken of within these pages it must must be well and carefully sourced... which is why we have mentions in sections in related articles. It is because setbacks can occur even with an otherwise demonstrably notable film topic, WP:NFF begins by telling us that setbacks happen and a film should not have a separate article article until after filming is confirmed, and concludes by stressing that even after filming is confirmed and before a film's release, a separate article could be created only if its production efforts are determinable as notable through existence of multiple sources speaking toward the topic directly and in detail. To address any personal sense that there might be ambiguity, we must look beyond the narrow subsections of an "article" to read how a term is dealt with in its entirety by applicable guideline. So, if a link must be made, linking to MOS:FILM#Production is the proper choice, as it is a guideline created through consensus of experienced editors, rather than just an article created by random editors who may or may not understand our policies and guideline. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 05:06, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

  You talk like film production has a unique meaning in a Wikipedia context…my concern is that an editor reading this page may not know which meaning of the word is intended (especially in proximity to “pre-production”), because in the real world it is used to mean both. Saying “production efforts” instead would also be a solution, I think. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 15:50, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

  • Response You are beginning to argue over minutiae. If you are so very worried about what might happen in the future, go ahead BE BOLD and make a linked change and refer to this RFC in your summary... but remember the advice of WP:KUDZU and that Wikipedia is not a grammar lexicon. Certainly linking to Filmmaking#Stages of Production could explain to the ignorant that the term "production" involves many related stages when creating a film but... if to be done, a link to the existing applicable guideline (built over time and reflecting community consensus) is far better in this case.... far far better than sending readers to an unsourced and rambling article section which being unsourced and edited by random users may contain WP:OR. If a link is required , it's Best if an ignorant and curious editor reading that term in WP:NFF could then find himself sent to the applicable guideline which educates that the term "film's production" speaks toward the entire process and not just one small part of it. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 20:44, 7 June 2015 (UTC) Opinion Erik II ? Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 00:38, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

    Project space (including MOS) isn’t any more immune to the negative effects of open collaborative editing than article space. But you’re missing my point, I think… I’m saying the term “production” also means the stage in between pre-production and post-production. MOS:FILM corroborates this. I don’t care which meaning is intended by NFF; I simply want it to be made clear, so that we don’t have disagreements caused by the ambiguity as in the Leatherface AFD. Wikilinking the term seemed like the least intrusive way to do that. Or we could rewrite the sentence to avoid the term or to explicitly clarify. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 05:34, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

    Sorry, I did not join Wikipedia 7-1/2 years ago to teach those who so not listen about WP:CREEP. I have wasted a lot of time explaining to you that the term is just as wide as guideline shares, and you have exhausted me. Someone else can help you re-write the project's guidelines to meet your preferences for extremes clarity in a project that is a Work in progress and admittedly imperfect. Bye. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 06:59, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

    How in the world is it WP:CREEP to clarify a word with multiple meanings? Just add a link, or just replace the word with another. No creep. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 07:31, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

    WP:CREEP is WP:CREEP. and a link to the applicable guideline has been added at WP:NFF. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 07:40, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

    WP:NOTCREEP. And I don’t see careful diction (word choice) discouraged there or anywhere in project space. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 07:51, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

    • WP:CREEP is a padding of the existing guidelines so well accepted and understood and created through consensus of the Wikipedia community with unnecessary verbiage to make some point. WP:NOTCREEP cold apply if the extra verbiage has been shown as accepted through consensus. But I do not expect you to accept that, and fully expect another defensive response. Give yourself a user name and go edit the rules. Bye. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 08:54, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

      Again, changing one word to another or adding a link to existing text is not extra verbiage or CREEP in any sense. Please stop misrepresenting my request… which, if you hold to your “bye” this time, you will. Also: “WP:NOTCREEP could apply if the extra verbiage has been shown as accepted through consensus”… isn’t that precisely why we’re here? Assuming it’s deemed a better solution than linking, that is. And it would have been more accurate to say: “NOTCREEP could apply if the extra verbiage reflects consensus more clearly and accurately.” Which it would. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 09:20, 8 June 2015 (UTC) edited 03:22, 9 June 2015 (UTC)

      As the link has been made, it really does not matter any longer that you personally do not believe adding unnecessarily verbiage without a clear consensus is CREEP. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 09:50, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

      If that were the case, I would have added unnecessary verbiage without consensus. I haven’t; I’m seeking consensus, and my primary proposal avoids changing let alone adding any words. So, again, please stop blatantly misrepresenting my position. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 09:55, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

This is a non-discussion, as the IP editor can't create new articles. And in any case, I'd rather hammer nails into my balls than go round in circles with this guy. Lugnuts ^{Dick Laurent is dead} 07:09, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

• Not having a username was a choice this anon IP made March May 16, 2014 when he began editing like a pro. I have no idea just who this very experienced IP from Florida really is, but I definitely agree... WP:IDHT is not how we create consensus. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 07:40, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  May, actually, not March. I appreciate the compliment to my editing ability, but I’m not clear on what I supposedly haven’t been hearing. You keep telling me what you think the sentence means. Fine; let’s make that clear, because it wasn’t. And (if you’re right) you’ve done so by adding a link, so, thanks. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 07:51, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  Not what I "think", but an application of knowledge acquired through years of experience on Wikipedia since early 2008, being a coordinator of project film, and an understanding of industry knowledge. Your start date as a very experienced anon IP is corrected. So whoever you are, fine. Bye. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 08:56, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  No, you still have it listed as March… doesn’t matter, though. But fine, you’ve told me your expert opinion of what it means. IDHT doesn’t apply there, because I’ve long past accepted your opinion or I wouldn’t have started this RFC. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 09:30, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  Folks seeing your incessant WP:BLUDing hints that you might not get much response. No matter as the matter has been dealt with. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 09:50, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  I really don’t think that’s what I’m doing by responding to direct attacks on my argument or person, and with only two of us here in good faith so far. In fact there’s more of your text here than mine by half. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 10:00, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  Yes... I'm sure there is... as my (repeated) explanations require a longer response than a short question. And my noting WP:BLUD is not an attack on you personally, but a reminder that you have been responding and asking the same questions over and over even after after explanations, and that others might see that tenacity and decide not to engage. You've read Lugnuts response, yes? Sometimes patient silence after a question will brings answers. Schmidt, ^{Michael Q.} 21:59, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

  I welcome reasonable disagreement, but not denials of fact; I’ve responded to your explanations with my own because yours have seemed to deny the very existence of multiple valid meanings to a word. That reasoning was what I had a problem with, not your position itself. Maybe that’s not what you meant, maybe I misinterpreted you, I don’t know, you haven’t said. (I’ll feel really silly if all of this has been over a simple misunderstanding.) But hopefully, what you saw as bludgeoning makes a little more sense now. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 03:01, 9 June 2015 (UTC)

When was I asking about creating new articles? If you’re saying I’m barred from suggesting improvements to guidance simply because that guidance doesn’t directly apply to me, I respectfully disagree. Comment on content, not on the contributor. This is an issue of confusing use of language that you can see evidenced in the AFD linked in the above section. You have just as much of a right to suggest improvements, if you like. —174.141.182.82 (talk) 07:12, 8 June 2015 (UTC)

• Support. It might seem like minutiae, but you'd be surprised at the amount of submissions we get at AfC where submittors quibble about the exact wording of policies and guidelines, demanding their drafts be accepted into mainspace. A simple link might solve such trivial discussions, whereafter we might unequivocally state to said submittors exactly why their current production is non-notable. A simple link that describes what precisely constitutes a notable Production might go a long way. Anyway, let this veer the discussion back on track. Regards, FoCuSandLeArN (talk) 03:32, 18 June 2015 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Box office results

Unsure where to ask such a question but why in film infoboxes is only the US Box office take in listed. Seems odd not to have the worldwide gross listed so i'm assuming there must be a reason for this? Subtlemammoth (talk) 11:53, 30 December 2015 (UTC)

Subtlemammoth, the documentation at Template:Infobox film says, "Insert the worldwide gross revenue accrued by the film in its theatrical run." If you see that only the US box office take is included, it may be because an editor added that incorrectly, or it may be because that is the only information available (which can be the case for older films). Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 17:29, 30 December 2015 (UTC)

NFF doesn't make sense

In my opinion the current wording at WP:NFF is contrary to fundamental notability principles and arguably a violation of NPOV. The bottom line is that if a topic has sufficient coverage in reliable sources, then there is sufficient notability for an article on that topic. I see no reason to apply different rules just because that topic happens to be a film in pre-production, even if it never gets produced. If it's a topic covered by reliable sources, it's sufficiently notable to have an article, period.

Comments?

--В²C ☎ 20:40, 7 April 2017 (UTC)

Years ago, we had many, many prematurely created film articles on the sole basis that a film was announced in some capacity. But Wikipedia is not news. If there is no tangible topic, the film itself, how can there be a film-structured article about it? It does not mean we cannot have a historical article about people attempting to develop a film, but very few are actually covered in detail postmortem (in the sense that development never happened, and the history of the attempt is recapped). This is an example; Neil Marshall had many projects in development, but his career took a different path. While reliable sources reported this news, these projects did not go anywhere, so should we really have had an article about each one? There is not an issue with summarizing news under a broader topic, such as a well-known director or well-known source material.

The start of filming is the threshold because once filming starts, it is much more likely that we will have a film to write an article about. Before then, there is much more uncertainty. I do not see why it is a violation of WP:NPOV. WP:N states upfront about a topic being notable if "It meets either the general notability guideline below, or the criteria outlined in a subject-specific guideline listed in the box on the right," which recognizes that notability can depend on the subject. Furthermore, WP:GNG says notability is only presumed and says, "Presumed" means that significant coverage in reliable sources creates an assumption, not a guarantee, that a subject should be included. A more in-depth discussion might conclude that the topic actually should not have a stand-alone article—perhaps because it violates what Wikipedia is not, particularly the rule that Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information." Wikipedia is not news, and we should not treat news coverage of film-related announcements as topics of enduring notability. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 20:59, 7 April 2017 (UTC)

Thanks for explaining. I still think the policy is wrong. While WP is not news, once a topic is covered sufficiently in reliable sources (including news sources), it is sufficiently notable to have an article on WP. If it's a pre-production film it's probably not going to be a "film-structured article", but that does not mean there should be no article. And maybe the title of the pre-production film does not immediately have to be an article, it could initially be a redirect to a section of the film creator's page (or whatever). That's standard stuff too. My objection is to having rules for film articles that contradict those for non-film articles, and I think that's what we currently have (which is one of my objections to having specific rules for certain types of articles, where it takes a lot of discipline to avoid contradicting divergence like this) (equivocations like the one slipped into WP:N notwithstanding). Finally, rules aside, what is the harm in having an article about a film that is not yet produced, or may not ever be produced? Again, if it has been covered in reliable sources, then people are likely to want to know whatever has been published about it. That's what WP articles are for. I see no reason for (pre-production) film articles to be treated any differently. --В²C ☎ 23:41, 7 April 2017 (UTC)

Just to ping B2C and Erik about one discussion closed as partially saying that no subject-specific notability guideline may supersede or replace GNG, though possibly GNG is not a hard-and-fast rule. How would the decision affect the film-specific notability guideline? --George Ho (talk) 15:44, 15 June 2017 (UTC)

WP:N says, "A topic is presumed to merit an article if it meets either the general notability guideline below, or the criteria outlined in a subject-specific guideline." WP:CRYSTAL #5 says, "Although Wikipedia includes up-to-date knowledge about newly revealed products, short articles that consist only of product announcement information are not appropriate. Until such time that more encyclopedic knowledge about the product can be verified, product announcements should be merged to a larger topic (such as an article about the creator(s), a series of products, or a previous product) if applicable." The subject-specific guideline uses the start of filming as a threshold because before we had this, we had articles created from the moment a film is announced. For this subject, announcements do not guarantee actual releases unless it is being actively produced. (Even then, there can be outright cancellations, but they're much, much rarer.) To use an example, Shantaram (novel) § Film adaptation has been on-and-off in development since 2003. If we had a film article now or at any point before, it would be misleading because it may very well be that a film will never be made. I don't think it means that we can't ever have articles about films not yet produced, but what should the tone be? Are we reporting coverage historically, or are we forever anticipating a tangible product to be received and reviewed by critics and the masses but will never actually be? To go back in time, Neil Marshall had six films in development, as I summarized here so long ago, but none of them came to be. Same thing with Alex Tse here. Are we really arguing that we should have had articles for each of these films, since these all have significant coverage from reliable sources that technically make them notable? I actually like writing up coverage about films in development, but they don't need to be presented as actual films on Wikipedia until the cameras start rolling. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 16:26, 15 June 2017 (UTC)

Erik, we have countless articles about conceptions of things not yet realized (and may never be). I don't see why pre-production films can't also have articles as long as GNG requirements are met, just like for any other article. For example, as soon as there is information in reliable sources about a Wonder Woman sequel I'ld like to see an article started on that, and I'm sure such information will be available long before filming starts. Also, plans for films that never got off the ground can be of interest, again assuming GNG is met. The key words in the guidance you quote are "either" and "or": "A topic is presumed to merit an article if it meets either the general notability guideline below, or the criteria outlined in a subject-specific guideline." That means as long as either is met an article is merited; it doesn't require both to be met. The bottom line is if someone reads something in one source about a film project they are likely to want to learn more. WP should have an article on it that summarizes all notable information available. --В²C ☎ 19:21, 15 June 2017 (UTC)

WP:CRYSTAL #5 talks about encyclopedic value and keeping announcements about unreleased products merged elsewhere. If anything, it's possible we should not even have articles for films until they are released since they cannot be actually received by the public then, per WP:PLOT, and until then lack such encyclopedic value. It is a matter of structuring the content. If plans for a film widely announced and discussed, that alone surely does not directly lead to an encyclopedic article right away. Do you really think we should have a film article for Shantaram? Do we write it as a planned film even though they may have dropped it without us ever knowing? Or do we split it off and write it historically? Because if we do the latter, it will inescapably get the film-article treatment. It would have an infobox with likely outdated credits and be incorrectly categorized with actual films, unless we constantly monitor it to fix the framing as historical. As for Wonder Woman 2, without considering WP:NFF, surely there is technically enough coverage already to warrant an "article" because Patty Jenkins's contractual negotiations have been widely discussed. To continue using that as an example, is there enough coverage for it now? If not, why not? What needs to happen to create a sequel article? Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 19:47, 15 June 2017 (UTC)

@Born2cycle: There is a already information about a potential Wonder Woman sequel at Wonder Woman (2017 film)#Possible sequel. Are you suggestion that information as it stands now should have its own article just because it is verified by a reliable source? What WP:NFF states is more in-line with what is outlined in WP:CRYSTAL, which is equally WP:POLICY. There are over 500 drafts in Category:Drafts about media and drama, the vast majority of which are merely a sentence or two about film announcements verified by reliable sources. I don't think turning these into articles is particularly beneficial as long as the information is available in some other article.--TriiipleThreat (talk) 19:52, 15 June 2017 (UTC)

Erik and TriiipleThreat, again: are GNG criteria met, or not? If there is only sufficient information for merely a sentence or two about a film announcement then I agree that having articles for that would not be particularly beneficial. More to the point, it wouldn't meet GNG criteria. It's very likely that the vast majority of pre-production films do not meet GNG criteria so whether filming started might look like a reasonable litmus test. But the real test should be GNG criteria; the amount of coverage in RS should be our guide. I really don't think the practical outcome would be all that different, except for a film now and then which has not started filming yet but for which there is sufficient information in RS to meet GNG criteria. Is the Wonder Woman sequel there yet? I don't know, maybe. I haven't looked into it. All I know is IF there is sufficient information to meet GNG criteria, then we should have an article about it. --В²C ☎ 00:26, 16 June 2017 (UTC)

That already happens. WP:NFF is a guideline, not a hard and fast rule.--01:21, 16 June 2017 (UTC)

For many years, WP:NFF, even when it was just a line on a WikiProject page, has proved very useful. There is no conflict with WP:N or the WP:GNG. If you think the WP:GNG is met, but WP:NFF is not, consider the WP:NFF has a history of reliability when speaking you whether the supposedly GNG sources are actually reliable for the facts. Here, the facts should not include things such as "there is anticipation or speculation on a future film". Does В²C have examples? I had a similar concern about it once, but have never found an example to support the concern. I think, basically, the facts about a film are not facts before principle photography has begun. Any source reporting non-fact facts is not a reliable source. --SmokeyJoe (talk) 01:44, 16 June 2017 (UTC)

RfC to amend this and related guidelines

Wikipedia:Village_pump_(proposals)#RfC:_Amending_WP:NMEDIA_and_related_guidelines_to_accord_with_WP:PSCI.2FWP:NFRINGE -- Jytdog (talk) 21:22, 18 September 2017 (UTC)

Films in Principal Photography

I would like to be sure whether I have understood the rule on films that have not yet been released but that are in principal photography, or whether the authors of these articles have understood. We agree that films that have not began principal photography are not notable, and that any significant coverage of the plans for the film may be included in the article on the director or producer, or perhaps on the movie to which the planned film is a sequel or prequel. So far, so good. The issue has to do with films that are in principal photography. It is my understanding that these films are only considered notable if the production itself is notable, that is, if there has been discussion of the production or photography in reliable sources, but that the mere mention that the film has started principal photography is not notable unless something can be said about the photography. On the other hand, various editors think that the mention of principal photography is itself a basis for the film being notable. This isn't a hypothetical question; it has arisen several times. Maybe the guideline needs to be clarified. Does the start of principal photography make the film notable, or does it only clear one bar for notability, with actual coverage of the photography being another? Robert McClenon (talk) 17:13, 11 September 2017 (UTC)

I think a film that just started principal photography should be considered notable if reliable sources have covered events that happened before the start of principal photography, such as purchasing rights, hiring cast and crew, etc. I think it would be rare for a film's start of principal photography to be reported without anything before that ever being reported. So it's hard for me to imagine such a case. Can you share an example for us to evaluate? Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 17:23, 11 September 2017 (UTC)

Well, one current example is Raid (2018 film). This is quite common. The way I read the guideline may be different from how anyone else reads it, but I read it as meaning that the principal photography itself should have coverage that meets general notability. Robert McClenon (talk) 02:07, 12 September 2017 (UTC)

• The commencement of principal photography, which is a good marker for the commencement of spending of significant funds, meaning that the film is unlikely to go on indefinite hold, or get re-cast or re-scripted, and re-titled, is a necessary condition (semi-arbitrarily set) for overcoming WP:CRYSTAL, but it is not a sufficient condition. YouTube movies could make commencement of principal photography claims. --SmokeyJoe (talk) 03:03, 12 September 2017 (UTC)

I agree that my read is that the start of principal photography is a necessary condition for film notability. However, it appears that many editors read it as a sufficient condition for notability. Am I correct, or are they correct? Robert McClenon (talk) 03:46, 14 September 2017 (UTC)

My reading is that a film that is still in principal photography is only notable if the coverage of the production is the subject of coverage. It seems that other editors think that Wikipedia should list all films that are in principal photography. Comments? Robert McClenon (talk) 03:46, 14 September 2017 (UTC)

In my opinion, the many editors who read the start of principal photography as a sufficient condition for notability are definitely wrong. The term "principle photography" (eg http://www.definitions.net/definition/principal%20photography) includes no condition on the film being Wikipedia-notable, and the many editors should also be reminded that all the sub-notability guidelines (with the sole arguable exception of WP:PROF) are no more than presumptive indicators of notability. If in doubt, AfD can decide regardless of the letter of any guideline. --SmokeyJoe (talk) 04:23, 14 September 2017 (UTC)

I think that when we wrote this, it was when there were usually coverage of films before they started principal photography, to which people felt meant that they should create an article. Then we get countless articles on films that have some cast, have a basic script, did a little scouting...but then get cancelled. An example of that would be Draft:Friday the 13th (upcoming film), which was pushed back year after year. So, we wrote in the inclusion of principal photog because most films, once they enter that stage, are likely to be finished and released (at least finished). It's rare that they are cancelled, but that's more exceptions to the case than anything. That said, it was also written under the belief that once a film hits that stage, you've already collected most of the other information to justify the article (i.e., show notability), and not simply 1 source that says "this film went into principal photography, but we know nothing else about it.". I would imagine in those cases, it would be simple enough to say "merge it somewhere".  BIGNOLE  (Contact me) 18:30, 15 September 2017 (UTC)

Okay. There is a disconnect between the notability guideline and the way that the notability guideline is applied by Articles for Deletion !voters. It is interpreted by AFD !voters to have a meaning that is entirely different than what it says. What it says is that a film that is still in principal photography is only notable if the principal photography itself passes general notability. It is applied to mean that every film that is in principal photography is notable. We can change the guideline to concede that it is normally ignored, or we can continue to leave it as is so that maybe the subcommunity of editors whose honorable mission is to fight the use of Wikipedia for promotion and advertising will see that films that are not yet released because they are still in principal photography are being advertised in Wikipedia. Maybe we (the editors who oppose the use of Wikipedia for promotion and advertising) are fighting a losing battle for now, but maybe we should keep on fighting. The guideline is not being applied as written. Robert McClenon (talk) 03:06, 1 October 2017 (UTC)

Casting About

Draft:Casting_About Saw this rejected draft and to me it seems notable. What does everyone here think? Egaoblai (talk) 18:10, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

It's absolutely notable. There are many mainstream reviews for the film. Why in the world did Eddie891 decline it? Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 18:18, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

EgaoblaiErik: When I declined this draft it was not because it did not meet NFILM, it was because it did not meet WP:V. Specifically, WP:PROVEIT. I looked and I saw that the awards section was uncited. PROVEIT clearly states that "All content must be verifiable. The burden to demonstrate verifiability lies with the editor who adds or restores material, and is satisfied by providing a citation to a reliable source that directly supports the contribution.Attribute all quotations and any material whose verifiability is challenged or likely to be challenged to a reliable, published source usiT an inline citation. The cited source must clearly support the material as presented in the article."Eddie891 ^Talk _Work 19:54, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

For help citing sources, see WP:Referencing for beginners, and WP:citing sources. Eddie891 ^Talk _Work 19:54, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

as a side note, I am no longer a participant in AfC. I left today as this is the third incident where I have been shown to have messed up. I you want it to be approved, I'm no longer the person to be approving it. Eddie891 ^Talk _Work 20:46, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

Eddie891, the "Critical reception" section was much more than sufficient for a film to be notable enough for its own article on Wikipedia. Notability is about having significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject. "Significant" does not even mean full or direct, but many sources review this film fully and directly. Reviews from such periodicals definitely make the topic a shoo-in. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 22:04, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

Erik Of course. I understand that I made a mistake. One that I will never make again. Eddie891 ^Talk _Work 01:36, 28 December 2017 (UTC)

Notability of Second Glance (film)

Second Glance (film) doesn't seem to pass notability guidelines. I was completely unable to find any reviews. Nothing on Rotten Tomatoes, nothing on any reputable reviewing site. The most I've found is David A. R. White mentioning it in his own book (which makes it WP:PRIMARY), and a review by The Cinema Snob. While the "Hey Scotty... Jesus, man!" scene has become somewhat of a meme, I found absolutely nothing asserting notability toward this movie. "Second Glance + "Rich Christiano" gives me only directory listings such as this, and false positives on both Google and GBooks. I found no reviews, no evidence of historical notability, no proof of a wide release (it appears to have gone straight to VHS), and nobody involved with it is notable except for the director and lead actor (all the other actors are redlinked). Am I correct in my assumption that this fails the notability for films? Ten Pound Hammer • ^{(What did I screw up now?)} 16:02, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

I found a couple of Christian-blog reviews that would not have a place on Wikipedia. There is a review at Patheos as seen here, albeit under the so-called "blog" section. Beyond this potential source, I am not finding anything else in periodicals or books that indicate this film's notability. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 16:14, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

It was kept at AfD in 2011 so perhaps there was more on the web about it then, regards Atlantic306 (talk) 16:18, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

Here is the post-AfD version. The Fresno Bee source could qualify, but considering that it was only used to reference the film and its director, I don't think it had significant coverage. As for the meme, notability isn't inherited. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 17:20, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

@Erik: @Atlantic306: Yeah, I would say this is definitely on the side of non-notable if the Fresno Bee source is the only good one. The meme isn't noteworthy. Ten Pound Hammer • ^{(What did I screw up now?)} 19:39, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

Simmba

Me and another editor have placed notability tags on Simmba. The first one by the other editor was deleted and nothing came of it. I put one on and started a discussion. It was deleted with no discussion (other than a long edit summary). I don't think it meets the notability guidelines but I opened the discussion because I would like to be educated as to where I am wrong. So, can someone here educate me? The person who deleted it this last time said in the edit summary that the film has press coverage. It does but none of it is critical as far as I can see. The film hasn't been released yet. It seems to me, perhaps wrongly, that the page is being used as advertisement based on the number of views it has. Anyhow, I don't want to start an edit war although I did put the tag back up with a note to discuss at talk page. I do want to learn and was hoping someone here could help me. PopularOutcast^talk2me! 14:00, 8 December 2018 (UTC)

This issue has been resolved. An editor came along and added a production section with notable content. PopularOutcast^talk2me! 14:21, 9 December 2018 (UTC)

Netflix?

Is a film notable if it has been released on Netflix?Eschoryii (talk) 01:23, 9 June 2019 (UTC)

• • Only if it has received significant coverage in WP:Reliable sources (at least 2, preferably more) such as independent reviews and /or features in newspapers, magazines, reliable websites, regards Atlantic306 (talk) 14:55, 9 June 2019 (UTC)

More on NFF

I get the major point of NFF is to not to jump on creating film articles based on one or two sources announcing the project. Waiting for production at least assures there's probably more coverage.

However, this advice ignores the GNG. For example, today, WB made the first significant sign that the live-action Akira movie will be going forward after 18-some years of how-many-different-hands the project fell through. (it has set a date for release in 2021) As such between the original manga and anime article, there was a bunch of duplicate discussion of the film with at least 40 sources. EG, even if this current effort completely falls through, the coverage of the project is notable through the GNG. There's already been controversy over it too (whitewashing or de-Japanese-ing if it played out in the US) As such NFF should not be applied to such projects. This is not like 4-5 sources discussing a future film compared to 2-3 , but overwhelming many, so the GNG readily applies. --Masem (t) 21:18, 24 May 2019 (UTC)

@Masem: Are you suggesting that WP:NFF should not be used as a reason for editors to delete or redirect articles about films that are in pre-production? Hitcher vs. Candyman (talk) 23:57, 21 June 2019 (UTC)

It all matters as to how much has been discussed about a film, using some degree of common sense as well.

We do want NFF to step in and demand the redirect when all we know is John Q Smith will be starring in a brand new film that is not due for 3 years, and where that's legitimately all we can say.

We do not want NFF to interfere with films that have had well-documented development hell, ala The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, of which that production hell is clearly of interest.

We do want NFF to come in when we have an Nth film in a well-established series where there a reasonably fair number of sources on casting/directing, but where principle photography hasn't started, and what's on the page is just announcements and casting info, such that the redirect goes to the series page where that information should be fine in terms of SIZE concerns.

I think the idea that is better to think about is that for films not yet in production, the content of the article should be well past a stub or Start-class article in terms of quantity and sourcing, and we should consider as well other factors like planned starts of production, tax breaks applied for, etc. It just should not be a simple yes-no on production start only.

Also, if a redirect under NFF is undo under some claim, and it turns out the film gets cancelled or the like, we can always restore the redirect. --Masem (t) 00:42, 22 June 2019 (UTC)

Other evidence of notability

I'm not sure how it isn't made clear that a film doesn't have to meet WP:NFO to be considered notable, but I have seen three different editors recently say that a film article must pass Other evidence of notability. I thought the word "Other" made it clear that it isn't the case. Maybe I'm missing something. SL93 (talk) 01:34, 17 August 2019 (UTC)

John Wick: Chapter 4 article discussion

 You are invited to join the discussion at Draft talk:John Wick: Chapter 4#AFC reviewer note. This discussion involves the creation of an article that has not yet begun principal photography. -- /Alex/₂₁ 14:08, 28 October 2019 (UTC)

Golden Raspberrys

Hi, user @Tom Danson: has been adding large award boxes for Golden Raspberry awards to a lot of film articles, and actors articles, referenced only to the awardsite, please advise Atlantic306 (talk) 14:58, 8 February 2020 (UTC)

Yes, I don't support these being in the article footers. I would support their deletion. You should raise the matter at WT:FILM. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 21:22, 8 February 2020 (UTC)

A Soldier's Revenge

I am currently trying to determine if the film A Soldier's Revenge meets notability guidelines and a question came up about reprinted sources. The two sources already in the article are from Media Play News, which states the release information, basic credits (Director/starring cast) and synopsis, and then another from Variety, which seems to be the same information except with the addition of international distribution companies. My question is, does this distinction qualify as significant coverage? And in general, should notability guidelines clarify what kind of coverage the film needs (beyond basic credits, as that is information that can come from a primary source). BOVINEBOY2008 20:39, 31 July 2020 (UTC)

I think they can be considered distinct and overall contribute to notability. A few points in favor of that are: 1.) the film is the main topic in both sources where "significant coverage" does not require that, 2.) both sources are sufficiently separated by time per WP:SUSTAINED, and 3.) the details are different enough. While some news articles may be based at their core on press releases, I think Variety and similar sources drill down to the core message (and at the same time provide relevant context based on their audience). For what it's worth, I found this to contribute to its notability. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 20:53, 31 July 2020 (UTC)

The sustained certainly is a good point, Erik, but I don't think a few weeks separating articles would stand the history of time as a sufficient time difference. The additional article certainly is helpful, though. BOVINEBOY2008 21:11, 31 July 2020 (UTC)

I think a few weeks makes a difference. The spirit of WP:SUSTAINED is to not be a brief burst of news coverage about an event. A film isn't directly an event, but there can be spread-out events in the scope of the film. Variety reporting later and with expanded details puts it outside of a brief burst, in my opinion. Erik (talk | contrib) ^{(ping me)} 21:20, 31 July 2020 (UTC)