ABOUT THE VIDEOS & SITE, CONTACT ME

About the Site

Many of the fan videos on this site used to be hosted on our "sister" site, Richard-Armitage.net. But there got to be so many there, that a completely separate site seemed to be the only solution. The transition of videos over to RAfanvids.com was completed in late September of 2009.

It all started out so simple—in 2006, I made a little fan page for actor Richard Armitage. Then I added a page here and there, as needed. Then I added more, and more. Some ladies on the C19 message board made some fantastic fan videos, so I offered to host them for easier access for fellow fans. And it kind of mushroomed from there!

Are We All a Bunch of Crazed Fangirls?

Yes and no. Yes, we're fangirls, but in a good way. No, we're not "crazed," we're just having fun!

This whole fandom started after the airing of BBC"s miniseries North and South in late 2004 in the UK (and then in the USA the year later). Lots of ladies (many so-called "normal" ladies who would not ordinarily be "crazed fangirl" material) were extraordinarily moved by the brooding and emotional performance of Richard Armitage as Mr. Thornton. They needed a place to congregate and discuss their newfound passion. Fan sites and forums like C19 and the Armitage Army were formed to cater to this growing community.

A lot of us often say that we may have joined one of these fan communities because we fell in love Mr. Thornton (or Guy of Gisborne, or Lucas North—other characters that Mr. Armitage has played), but we stayed for the other ladies we met there. In addition, many of us found a nurturing environment for our previously suppressed creativity. We discovered the wonders of making fan art and graphics with Photoshop, tapped into our creative writing skills and started writing fan fiction ("fanfic"), and mastered video software in order to make fan videos.

While we're all connected through our admiration for one actor, we don't really make these videos (and fan art, and fanfic) for him. We do all of this for each other. Because we're having a blast! And because expressing our creativity in such a fun and harmless way is a healthy thing! And what other reason need there be?

About the Videos

Many of your FAQs (frequently asked questions) about the videos are answered on the FAQ page. But I just wanted to add a few additional words about the videos we've got here.

Some of the videos were created in 2006, when the art of fan vidding was less sophisticated than it is today. Every video hosted here was selected because it had appeal to the fandom, but the quality in older videos may not be as good as some of the newer ones, and this is to be expected.

We have vidders who are teenagers, and we have vidders who are grandmothers. Vidding appeals to all age groups. The editing styles in the videos also vary greatly—we have simple elegant videos made in Windows Movie Maker, and we have sophisticated and polished videos edited with pro-level software.

Furthermore, the musical tastes within the fandom can vary wildly, and this is reflected in the videos—we have videos with Classical or quiet instrumental music, with "oldies," with angsty alternative music, Top 40 favorites, and everything in between.

If you find that you don't like a video by a particular vidder, don't assume that you won't enjoy any of their other work—many of our vidders have been around since 2006 (when I started hosting videos) and they have changed styles several times. Additionally, some vidders enjoy several different styles of editing.

Because the types and styles of videos varies so much, that means that there is something for everybody!

A Big Thank You . . .

. . . goes out to all of the vidders who have let me host their videos. I'm grateful to all of you. It's been so much fun, and you've all been so generous in letting your videos be available in one central location on this site! All of you are incredibly talented, and I mean ALL of you! Your videos wouldn't be hosted on this site unless I thought they had something to offer the fandom.

And Another Big Thank You . . .

. . . goes to Heathdances (Heathra) and Angela (spikesbint aka angelfish69) for creating all the banner graphics on this site!

About Me

I'm very boring, really, but in case you are interested, I'm Elvira (aka Elvira Sweeney or elvirasweeney). I loved fan videos before I even learned how to make them. I'm a big ol' fan video fangirl, which is why I find myself in this predicament of hosting a lot of fan videos! But it's a total labor of love.

In addition to this site, I maintain the site richard-armitge.net (general fangirly stuff, but I try not to get too fangirly! LOL), co-author the North and South fan site foolishpassion.com, maintain the fan video tutorial site foolishpassion.org (which also hosts a lot of North and South fan videos), and help run a fan video forum as well.

Lest anyone think that my choosing to host one video over another means anything—please don't assume that. I am not endowed with any special insight. First and foremost, I'm a fangirl. I have opinions, biases, and preferences like anyone else. I'm not the best vidder out there (sort of in the middle, I suppose), so my good opinion only means so much, I'm afraid! LOL.

Contact Me . . .

Email me at: elvirasweeney AT mac.com. Please read the FAQs page before asking me if I can host your videos, however, as that will answer some of your questions.