Here's my 2 cents on this thread topic.
This is not about licensing rights to intellectual properties such as movies of TV. It's about art. Even the tops at Sideshow recognized this forum for its celebration of the art of custom figures and customizing existing figures, even their own. They are fully aware of the customs section and that many of their own outside vender artists such as myself and Trevor participate(d) in it. They appreciated it along with us.
If it were a question of legal rights to likenesses, we wouldn't be having this conversation cause there would be no customs section in the ART FORUMS of the board. What's at stake is that the artists who share their art are being ripped off. Gruff hit the nail on the head when he used the word counterfeit. That's the crux of this thread.
We're all celebrating art here in the customs section. Some sculpt, some paint, some tailor, some render in 3D, etc. Recasting a sculptor's art would be like somehow reprinting my paint job on a head. I would lose out on the income from my work while somebody like Q makes a quick buck off my hard work. That's what he's doing to Trevor, Rainman, and others when he sells recast heads. He's making money off of their art. That's wrong.
Now, is it wrong to make art of a licensed property? No. Is it wrong to make copies of that art for sale? An honest answer has to be -- most likely, yes, but it is up to the license holder to decide whether or not they want to act upon it. And some do. Some don't. The Breaking Bad producers embraced it with both arms.
Is it wrong to want a piece of such fine art? No. But pay the artist first. That's the purpose of this thread. And this forum, really.
