FF:WA The Star Wars Democracy, Part 1

Hi folks,

Your Supreme Chancellor, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary and Public Relations Director joined forces with the core members of the OR team last Saturday evening and laid the groundwork for this Fan-created organization.

However, the true power that will shape the direction and future of Outer Rim rests in your hands! Thus, we present this bold experiment, the success of which can only be assured by your input! We need your thoughts, your ideas, your heart and spirit more than ever before!

So, without further adieu, we introduce The Star Wars Democracy! In Part 1, we begin by putting some simple, but very important questions to you who visit these boards every day, and contribute your time, energy and passion to the saga in all its forms. Some of you have already joined the group, some of you may be strongly considering it; it's our hope that these questions will help you clarify the matter in your own minds, subsequently clarifying and intensifying the vision that will make OR grow and develop. Good luck, think hard, and remember: there are no wrong answers, and the only stupid question is the one you never ask!

Would you like to be a decision maker?

How much time and effort would you be willing to contribute?

If asked to pay a minimal annual membership fee, what do you expect in return for that investment?

How do you feel OR should present itself to the larger Fandom community and the general public?

What subjects and activities interest you, and how would you like to integrate them into OR?

Good questions; now, let's hear some answers! Have a go!

 

Well there is no answers here, but I do have a question.

Recently I have been finishing up the Outer Rim name and logo designs. However, I need some brainstorming on logo's, if we really need one that is. I will post my creations shortly but if ANYONE as ANY ideas of a logo then please say so.

Just so people don't say things that I have already tried, here is my:

Used sandcrawler's, jawas (I was thinking WA's deserts here) galaxies, stars, rings (they didnt work at all, the rings), and a variety of exsiting Star Wars craft and creatures.

So the bottomline is, I need ideas of a logo, or we could just use the text and whenever we need a logo we can incorporate that into our Outer Rim Animation.

What do you think?

 

Oddly enough, I was on ICQ with Sonei last night, and suggested Jawas as honorary members/public mascots; my reason being that the Jawas are scrappy little sandgropers, toiling in anonymity to build something great for themselves using whatever's at hand! Picture a Jawa with an Akubra, or replace his bandolier pouch with one of those stubby holder belts from the Edna Beverage Co. in Freo (free plug)!

 

I like the jawa and sandcrawler ideas. Maybe have a logo that somehow incorporates a jawa with a sandcrawler in the distance. I can kinda picture it as a fancy version and a line-art version so I think that could work. Don't ask me to draw it though.

 

Oh good, I'm glad you think that coz they did look pretty good in there. I had the sandcrawler on top of the words, I DID have some sandcrawler tracks through the words (may or may not put it back yet), I also had a few jawas peeping over letters and looking behind them, and one was sitting down up aganist one.

Wait to see if any more ideas come through and then I should beable to post them after the weekend, see how we go!

I'm still taking ideas, ok?

 

to tie this thread and soneils about the email from steve sansweet, the logo will have to be careful in use of SW critters vehicles etc, and from what i understand of the fan.sw.com sites any images we might come up with could be copyrighted by and to Lucasfilm

 

Grizzly's right; the genesis of this mascot/honorary member discussion started at last weekend's meet, where poor Soneil suggested the... controversial Ahmed (You Know Who) Best as an honorary member of Outer Rim.

As you can probably imagine, Soneil very nearly lost his own "honorary member" in the ensuing debate! Okay, I'm exaggerating, it wasn't a heated discussion, just a point raised by SithMagician and yours truly that membership was likely to be negatively affected by public association with a character who so galvanizes the SW Fandom community into polar opposites of admirers and detractors.

So, other actors were suggested, but there was no resolution that night. Then, the other night on ICQ, I just spit out the Jawa idea, since any surviving actors who portrayed them would be relatively inexpensive to attract to large-scale events in the future, or that it might be unnecessary to even approach said actors, and merely hire on our own actors to portray Jawas at public events as a sort of public character mascot akin to Ronald McDonald, The San Diego Chicken or Dancin' Homer.

Personally, I still think Peter Mayhew would make a great honorary member; it's not like that membership would immediately entail a guest appearance by said actor, it's merely our group saying "Hey, we like you; have a free magazine and an iron-on patch." Besides, as we've learned from recent scuttlebutt, it might not actually be that hard to get him to come here for an appearance.

As it is, we can't even see that bridge without a telescope, it'll be some time before we're ready to cross it.

Okay, let's here some chatter out there, people!

 

I think David Prowse is another possibility. The fact that he sometimes comes to Perth anyway is a big plus. Besides, no reason we can't honour more than one actor with an honourary membership.

 

Well the bottomline is that all I need is a logo to be attached to the Ouer Rim text. The other thing I was thinking of is just use the text and when we need to add characters or the like then we can. Copyright is one thing we must be very careful of I think.

I looked into to the southern cross idea and their is a bit of copyright on that, you must be very careful how you use those stars.

We must tread lightly, I think!

 

It would be hard to copyrigh the Southern Cross, seeing as it's visible in the southern hemisphere, it's a bit hard to claim ownership but stylized versions as in the Eureka stockade flag (think building unions - they use it) and the design as on the Au flag (no. of points to stars) would be copyrighted i think, so that should give us some area to work around

 

I'm sure their would be a work around for the stars if we wanted to use it.

 

*Strikes a pose*
Quick!! Sketch this one down before I move!!!
Hey guys
The logo: I like the ideas above and I agree that copyright on the star wars objects could be worth finding some info on the subject...
Also I had a sudden idea that hit me like a bag of soggy potato-chips... the logo attached to the text could contain a Jawa (since u want one in it somewhere) holding an emblem of the Outer Rim as if he just dug it out the sand? Giving the dusty dessert'y feeling to the logo? (Another theme mentioned above) just an idea...

The Original Topic:
1) Decision maker? Me? Hahaha, I can't make up my mind about what film I want to see when I go to the movies...

2) Time and Effort. I'd love to be part of doing something for the cause. But my lack of available time and un-set schedule means that it depends on what/when/how etc.

3) Minimal Membership Fee. Gladly pay (depending on your definition of minimal), as for what I expect. ummm.. good company.. err.. Intellectual chats.. maybe other things? etc..

*puff puff*
this little jawas out of breath... I'll leave it there for now..

 

As far as using jawas etc. in the logo goes, I think the best idea would be for me to email Steve Sansweet and ask him what's allowed. Best to get it straight from Lucasfilms. As soon as I get a response, SK will be the first to know so he can get to work on it and I'll post the details here too.

 

Excellent, your excellency! We'll all look forward to hearing more advice from Mr. Sansweet.

Stinky Jawa - Great to see someone finally address the questions we've put forward. I'll get right to what appears your main concern; the matter of membership dues. Whatever else OR can offer you in exchange for your hard-earned cash, when you slap it down on the table, you automatically get your say in how OR is run, immediate stock in the future of the organization.

Think of it like this: it's just like voting, only you actually get something out of it.

That, we hope, will be the primary factor in your decision to join. At the official meet, we all chucked in $20, mainly to pay for the legally-required newspaper ad announcing intent to form the group. There has been intermittent discussion among us about subtracting certain amounts from membership fees for participants in such actions. The only way those discussions can continue, and have any meaningful effect on OR, is for everyone to get involved, in this topic.

That said, I'm very curious as to your impressions of the last two questions seen above, regarding presenting OR to the public (going beyond a logo, that is) and how you'd like your personal interests/abilities/goals integrated into the group. Please come on back and talk to us about that.

You know people, this thread reminds me of an adage some clever PA inscribed on a wall at a theater I used to work at, it's served me well and I hope it does the same for you:

"The more we know, the more we can do. So find stuff out!"

Anybody out there have any more questions? Don't be shy!

 

Have the goals, mission and details of the proposed club infrastruture been put on line anywhere>? because I wouldnt have a clue whats going on

All the posts I have read bout OR seemed to be skewed towards the movies - is there a place for Lit and/or EU as well?

Obviously the more SW fans OR caters for the greater the chance of OR becoming what I think some of u want it to become.....then later u can deal w/ bueraucracy

Has a budget been set yet? Even tho $20 is a fair amount I wouldnt stick to that figure yet until u know what sorta costs will be involved - the last thing the committe wants is to keep dipping into their pockets. will there just one type of membership?-maybe there should be a separate one for kids - OR could run Star Wars theme childs parties to raise funds(Im all for that ;p ) and create awareness

Are you planning a traditional newsletter or an e-zine?

When the clubs infrastructure is up and running properly - it might be a good idea to put some flyers up in the Comic Bookshop (CBS) in Hay Street (I know they do have a notcieboard for that sorta thing or maybe they would be willing to put a OR flyer in the bag of every SW related item sold), that place in Fremantle and anywhere else SW fans might frequent

It might be feasible to approach shops like CBS for sponsorship/support - in general or for specific events - Also if outerrimmers have membership cards, discounts might be organised at relevant shops

Has the committee done a SWAT analysis at all?

Im sure u have prolly discussed this ad nauseam, but from an outsiders POV I can c 2 major threats that will have to be resolved

1. NO BODY KNOWS BOUT fanforce/Outer Rim - how will the word get out?

2. The need to keep members interested - having a core base means OR can survive, but the club can not thrive if people lose interest especially with not all SW Fans being "hardcore" - is the intent of OR to be more a social SW club or a SW social club?

The biggest opportunity will come in the leadup to EPII - that will make or break OR
if OR can capture and retain members then - the clubs future can be assured

 

Thank you, Chiron! We need more of you in OR! As the Director of PR, it falls to me to do the best I can to answer your questions satisfactorily. I'll start with the questions geared toward club dynamics and infrastructure.
From the beginning, we've passionately discussed what we all feel the goals of the group should be. As yet, we have not developed a formal mission statement, but it's a fine idea and you can bet it'll be a hot-button feature of the next official meet. If you have any suggestions, I urge you to join us on that occasion to share them with us!
Here's the club hierarchy as it currently stands:

Soneil - Club President: Serves the final deciding wisdom in coordinating all of our efforts to properly organize and run OR.
SoulKrusher - Vice President: The President's sounding board for questions and ideas, provides able support alternated with pragmatism. Also stands ready to perform the duties of the Club President in the event of his untimely death.
Princess Lego - Secretary: Keeps accurate records of our meets for easy reference as well as posterity.
SithMagician - Treasurer: Responsible for procuring and managing funds for legitimate club puposes.
Grizzly - On-Site Coordinator: Responsible for maintaining an orderly club presence during meets at special locations.
Pinback - Public Relations Director: Charged with presenting a public image of the group, and maintaining its public profile to the Fandom community and general population.

At the first official meet two weeks ago, we all pooled in $20. I can't stress enough that this collection was not for membership funds, but to pay the cost of placing a legally-required advertisement in a local paper, announcing our intention to form OR and allowing the general public 30 days in which to respond (questions, advice, protests, etc.). That's all that money was gathered for, that was its only purpose! However, it was treated as a de facto membership due for those of us in attendance, since we all went to the effort; that's just because we're still in a very informal state at the moment.
We've briefly discussed the feasibility of assigning a certified professional with the task of holding the club's finances, we've talked about opening a special bank account, I happen to think an ANZ Progress Saver account -accessible only at the bank counter- would be ideal for this purpose. You made an excellent suggestion about adult and youth memberships; the official club caters to kids, why shouldn't we? Whatever the final, established dues will be, they'll be annual, and we fully intend to keep them as low as is realistically possible.
Now we get to the issue of what we'll offer our members for their money and time. Traditional newsletter, or e-zine? Why not both? There's no reason we can't offer a free e-zine, with special exclusive features, as a supplement/advertisement for a traditional magazine featuring in-depth (not to mention easier on the eyes than pages of HTML and graphics) coverage of a variety of club-related topics. Membership cards can be another option, discounts are also a current topic of discussion, not only for participating shops but for special events as well. I also agree to your point regarding seeking support and/or sponsorship from specialty shops; it seems perfectly feasible. The worst thing that can happen is they say "no," right? The worst thing we can do is refrain from asking! I, for one, was delighted by your suggestion of theme parties geared toward children, as I've been a proponent of the very same idea from the beginning! We are, in fact, cultivating relationships with certain business establishments (they shall for now remain nameless), which we feel could quite possibly be of great benefit to OR toward those ends. And we don't plan to stop there.
Now I have to admit something embarrassing; nobody around here seems to know exactly what a SWAT analysis is, and if they do, they aren't telling. However, SithMagician did a little emergency research and we think we've got the gist of it. We haven't done any official market r

 

Great comments from everyone and I think a few questions have been answered. I'll post a few more comments.
Firstly, I know what a SWAT analysis is - my degree had a minor in marketing . We haven't done anything quite that formal at this stage but the basic principles have certainly been discussed.
Several of us have already made some good contacts in the community. The main thing we are waiting on is getting the club official which won't take long now. The first steps have been taken but having an official presence has been a priority of mine from the start.
We plan on the club having a broad appeal. Quite some time ago I put forward the idea of having memberships for younger fans and having some activities geared to them since I know an awful lot of families with young starwars fans. Pinback has also raised the idea of kids parties which would be great. You hopefully won't find any canon vs EU debates here either. A lot of people here, like Grizzly and Rogue 11 for example, are very much into EU material so there's room for EU fans (I quite like a lot of it myself). That could present opportunities for activities revolving around EU novels and comics.
There's a few keen SW computer game fans so network games of Jedi Knight and X-Wing vs Tie Fighter are another possibility.
Of course there's also the films. Our group booking for TPM in December was a great success with nearly 50 people attending. That was just from a few of us spreading the word. It's exciting to think of what's possible with a properly organised group in this area.
Currently the core membership is in Perth but that's not a pre-requisite for membership. One of the earliest founders lives in Bunbury and there is already interest from some people outside WA. I'm certain that with input from everyone, we can have something good to offer those who are further away.
As far as promoting the club goes, Several places have already agreed to display posters and distribute flyers once they're available. As Pinback suggested, more will be approached. Chiron_au made some good suggestions there.
All in all, the current plans go far beyond what I'd originally imagined for this club. I had a vision, but it's taken ideas from a lot of people and their visions to make it in to something we can all look forward to and get enthused about. Keep the ideas coming. Several good ideas have already been acted on, others are more long term but it is hapenning.

 

Just a minor point of clarification; SithMagician was my guest last night, and my response to Chiron was drafted and posted on his account. Just for anyone who thought SM was suddenly afflicted with my chronic verbal spasms.

 

Grizzly - On-Site Coordinator: Responsible for maintaining an orderly club presence during meets .... you sure you got the right person?? it's like leaving the fox in charge of the henhouse!!!
And I thought I was the D.R.



Oh yeah... and shouldn't this thread be called The Star Wars Democracy, 'Episode 1' not Part 1???

 

Trust the PR Dept. Grizzly; we're highly-trained professionals; we know how to name topics!

As for your qualifications, we have every confidence that you'll bring the same steadfast reliability to keeping us all in line at special public events that you bring to your D.R. duties. Besides, you work for cheap; you're hired!

 

you mean like a quick belt round the earole with a shinai or saber?

 

I was letting you win, you know, trying to be a good host!

 

so when is round 2 then? or should that be episode 2??

 

As your travel co-ordinator for outer rim , i have no words of advice , let round two commence
Alright no dirty tricks , and keep the saber ignited at all times
Ding Ding and there off
The Dir of PR is looking in fine shape tonight folks , vs the wookie DR who will win
Stayed tuned folks

 

Well, the ad has been dispatched; should be in Saturday's West.

After reading all my stuff again it seems the application will need to be accompanied by a copy of our constitution. I'll endeavour to post the default version for you all to read, some time in the next few days. You can all submit your additions to it by emailing me.

We need to have a committee meeting at least once in each calendar year, so that means making a date for our next one during March. Preferably early in the month so we can get the constituition finalised before the 25th; that's when I plan on sending in the application. I'm always free, so you guys can suggest the date/time as usual.