What happened to Sylvanian Drama on TikTok? The legal fight over controversial viral clips explained
Sylvanian Drama, launched by Irish content creator Thea Von Engelbrechten, is being sued by Japanese company Epoch.
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The social media account, which has frequently gone viral for its darkly comedic skits featuring the small toys, mysteriously went quiet this year after it landed in legal hot water with the toys' maker.
It is now being reported that Sylvanian Drama, which has 2.5 million followers on TikTok and 1 million on Instagram, is being sued for copyright infringement, trademark infringement and unfair competition.
Why is the lawsuit only being reported now?
Epoch's lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on April 7, initially went unnoticed but drew attention last week when some outlets reported on the situation.
It came after reporters noticed months of silence from the account.
The lawsuit, first reported by The Irish Independent, added that the site also uses a copyrighted image as Sylvanian Drama's social media profile picture.
CCTV captures moment toy-loving boy crawls into claw machine
The company claims that Thea Von Engelbrechten has been 'doubling her efforts to exploit Epoch's copyrights and trademarks for her own commercial gain' despite the company's attempts to work the issue out amicably.
Sylvanian Families, also known as Calico Critters in the United States and Canada, are felt dolls in the shape of cute, anthropomorphized animals.
They were first released in Japan in 1985.
How did Sylvanian Drama become so popular?
The creatures range from bunnies and kittens to squirrels and more, all with wide, black eyes and tiny clothing.
The videos on Sylvanian Drama, all of which feature Calico Critters, often rack up millions of views each.
Von Engelbrechten began posting Sylvanian Drama videos in 2021, when she was a 19-year-old multimedia student at Dublin City University.
She told The Tab in a 2023 interview that her videos were meant to parody shows like 'Gossip Girl' and 'Pretty Little Liars.'
'I'm always surprised that I'm not already canceled for the stuff that I do,' she said. 'I don't mean any harm and also … a lot of the issues that I joke about are problems in my own life.
'There's a lot of stuff about weight and dieting and people struggling with that, and that's all just me joking about myself. So I'm not making fun of anyone.'
Inspiration for content
As reported by the BBC, the court document states that in an interview with influencer marketing company Fohr, Von Engelbrechten said her inspiration for the storylines came from "cringey TV shows and early 2000s comedy".
She added: "I'm also really inspired by my cats because they are extremely sassy and self-obsessed and can be so cute, but they also have no morals when it comes to killing other animals.
'I try to embody that with the Sylvanians."
Asked why she thought her videos were so popular she told Fohr: "Maybe it's because it's coming from the voice of a 22-year-old who struggles with the same things as [they do].
'I have a lot of storylines about insecure people, diet culture, toxic men, and sustainability, which I think other girls my age are also thinking a lot about."
Do you have a Sylvanian Families toy worth up to £500 in your house?
Anyone who grew up in the 80s will remember the cute Sylvanian Families toys - and some could now fetch you a pretty penny on eBay.
The furry animals come in neat family sets (mum and dad, son and daughter), all with old-fashioned outfits, jobs and homes.
The cute characters were first introduced in the UK back in 1985, after being designed by Japanese firm Epoch.
And it seems like the older and rarer your models, the more they might now be worth online.
Last year, a collector sold a rare Japanese doll from 2003 for a whopping £500 - almost five times its auction start price of £99.
Another vintage Sylvanian teddy bear from the 1980s sold for £456.
A date has been set for August 14 for a pre-trial conference.
This is when legal teams from both sides will meet to explore settlement options or prepare the case for trial.
Von Engelbrechten and Epoch have yet to respond to press requests for comment.
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