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Khara Clarifies Fanart Guidelines Are Not for Censoring or Prohibiting Fans

Khara's official Twitter account posted a statement on Wednesday clarifying that its fanart guidelines were not intended to "censor" or "prohibit" fan activities. The statement is translated roughly into English below:

Regarding the guidelines for Evangelion fan creations that were announced the other day, we feel the need to add some clarification because a part of it was taken out of context, distorting the intent.

Firstly, the guidelines were not created to "censor" or "prohibit" the the contents encompassed by fan activities. We believe that fan activities sprout from positive feelings and a desire to support the work, and we have been supported by fans for a long time. In the past, we have never once asked an existing fan activity to censor or desist. Our stance and way of thinking will not change.

We released the guidelines because we thought that it was necessary to create basic principles so that all fans can enjoy their activities with peace of mind. We left vague wording in some parts to give fans as much leeway as possible to freely pursue their activities. It might be a little difficult, but we ask that each person reads the original document for themselves, and after thinking about the contents carefully, to take responsibility for themselves and continue their activities.

We have received numerous queries, but as a rule we cannot provide personalized responses regarding the practical application of the guidelines.

It is our utmost wish that fans in the community do not restrict each other's works.

Prominent fanartist Mogudan announced on Tuesday, one day after the guidelines were announced, that they would no longer be drawing the popular Evangelion character Rei Ayanami. They will also stop creating new works involving the character on their fan site. In later tweets, they state that although they have no intent of deleting work they have already posted on their fansite or other services, they recommend fans to download their work in case they are removed by the site owners. Mogudan is known for submitting R-18 drawings behind a paywall to various premium art submission websites.

A rough translation/summary of Khara's guidelines is below:

1. Fan activities should generally be done without monetary compensation or for commercial purposes. This includes using it to promote another work or service. Evangelion rights management company Groundworks must be contacted for permission to use the IP for commercial purposes.
2. Fan works (video, images, novels, etc.) that follow the guidelines can be posted on social media services, illustration uploading services, novel submission services, and video uploading services, as long as these services mainly deal with all-ages content and have rules against profane content/behavior.
3. Please ensure that you and your fan community have respect for the source material.
4. Please refrain from creating works that: are hurtful to the source material or to another person; are created to further a specific religious or political agenda; express hateful points of view; are overly violent, grotesque, pornographic, or otherwise offensive; infringes on another creator's ownership rights; or are works that could be mistaken for an official product.
5. Official images can be used for citation or referencing purposes, but this must be the only purpose for the usage, and you must please refrain from generally using video, music, and audio.
6. Fans can submit works to the following premium services, as long as they follow the guidelines of those sites and agree that their accounts will not be used primarily for Evangelion fan content or for excessive monetization purposes: YouTube Live, Twitch, pixivSketch Live, Nico Nico Doga, Patreon, PixivFanbox, Ko-Fi.
7. Do not release fan creations to announce something with a separate scope. Only release fan creations within the scope of the guidelines or under a similar license.
8. Regardless of the contents of the guideline, the copyright owners reserve the right to halt a fan's activities in order to protect their personhood (honor, reputation, the attribution of their name, the identity of their work, etc.)
9. The guidelines are subject to change at any point, depending on public reception and changes in society.

Khara is still evaluating rules for selling fanart or creating products out of fanart, and asks for the public to wait for further information. For details regarding the guidelines, please refer to the original document. Note that the translation should be used as a guide for understanding, and that the original document takes precedence in the event of a dispute.

Source: Khara's Twitter account