Yes, and the best thing is that with those bigger shared fandoms is that the people with whom you share a genuine connection (as opposed to an interest in a particular work of media) with remain friends with you even after your shared interest in the fandom has passed. I'm still really good friends with a lot of people I met through the His Dark Materials forum — we hang out whenever we're in each other's cities, a bunch of them came to my wedding, and I'm going to the wedding of two people who I first met through the forum in 2010 in July this year. We don't really talk about His Dark Materials at all any more, but just like any other group of friends who met through a hobby, we've been able to maintain that friendship outside its original context.