For the uninitiated, “fancasts” are podcasts created by fans that are dedicated to a film, TV show, book, sports team, celebrity, or anything under the general umbrella of entertainment. These podcasts often expand on the world of a show, imagining expanded storylines within that world or its characters, analyzing the inner workings of these worlds, or theorizing where they think the show’s material (or season) might be going.
Fans create their own content because not only do they not want to wait for new material from the original creators to be released, but they are often looking for a place where fans can connect with a community of like-minded (sometimes lightly obsessed) people.
One of the most popular fancasts dedicated to all things The Lord of The Rings, is Talking Tolkien: An Unexpected Podcast. Hosts and long-time friends Ezra and Lane say they started the podcast out of love for the LOTR universe, but more specifically, “The genesis, or the Ainulindalë to be more topical, came from Ez and I rekindling our friendship.”
Sure, the television shows or stories are why people initially listen to a fancast, but Ezra and Lane really pinpoint why listeners come back for more – these shows create a unique bonding experience for the hosts and the listeners.
“We’ve had SO many interactions with listeners and received so much positive feedback. Hard to even keep track of honestly. We have the most generous listeners. So many of them have gone on to become actual friends – it’s wild. Probably the most surprising ones are when we hear from someone that we were able to keep him/her company during a really dark time in someone’s life… That’s been the most humbling thing to hear,” Lane says.
Dave Humphreys started the podcast What Does Star Wars Mean To You? and he had an incredible (dream-worthy, really) experience, “One of my listeners, a TV showrunner, reached out to me via one of my guests just to be on the show! I couldn’t believe it.”
A quick peek at some of this week’s top fancasts includes a show about superheroes, a show dedicated to the TV show Big Brother, and one about FC Chelsea football (soccer for us un-posh Americans). These shows may seem niche and hyper-specific to the casual observer, but a show dedicated to the band Rush, “Something For Nothing,” has over 544,000 downloads. That’s impressive for any genre of podcast!
Humphreys summarized what is so beautifully unique about fancasts, “Taking the question of, ‘What do you like about Star Wars?’ and twisting it to the more personal, ‘What does it mean to you?’ takes the hate out of the debate and refocuses the conversation on why we all fell in love with it in the first place. And when people talk openly and passionately about what they love, it’s hard not to see it from their perspective.”
It doesn’t matter if the topic is dragons, murder, or being disappointed in the Dodgers for the last time, the root of all fancasts is the universal desire to share our passions. Get out there, grab the mic, and don’t be afraid to let your fan-flag fly!