Star Trek fan productions
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This article deals with fan-made productions using elements of the Star Trek franchise. Paramount Pictures and its licensees are the only organizations legally allowed to create any commercial products with the name and trademark Star Trek. Consequently, these fan productions are unauthorized and subject to legal issues. Even so, this massive body of work exists and continues to grow.
Contents |
[edit] Fan films
With the cancellation of Star Trek: Enterprise in 2005 and the lack of any authorized productions over the next few years, Star Trek fan films flourished, and the number of groups producing fan films trebled. For the purposes of this article, we categorise them by production status and notability. Major produced films are listed first with the most notable productions first. Films that are in post-production (filming or preparing the raw footage for release) come next. Fan Trailers are listed last, not because they are any less notable, but because they are not meant for actual production, as the trailer is the complete project. Some fan trailers, such as Grayson, have eclipsed many produced fan films in popularity.
[edit] Notable projects
A few productions are more notable than others due to fan and media attention from around the world. These films are often larger productions, with larger budgets, and in some cases are produced with the participation of actual Star Trek cast, writers, and crew.
- Starship Exeter
- An online series which focuses on the adventures of the starship Exeter (NCC-1706) in the original series time, with production design matching the era. One complete episode has been released, with the second mid-way through its release in installments. A third episode is planned. This series features extensive use of interior starship sets and many human, Klingon, and Andorian characters.
- Star Trek: Hidden Frontier
- A long-running series with 45 produced episodes, the series focuses on the starship Excelsior and its home base, Deep Space 12, as they mediate disputes between various races, and fend off attacks from a powerful new alien race, The Grey. This series is offshoot of a previous Los Angeles Star Trek fan series, Voyages of the USS Angeles, sharing some settings and characters. Fan Films Quarterly listed Hidden Frontier as one of the 10 most pivotal moments in fan film history in its Summer 2006 issue.
- Star Trek: New Voyages
- One of the most ambitious fan film projects, co-creators James Cawley and Jack Marshall aimed to complete the original series' five-year mission, with fan actors cast as Kirk, Spock and the rest of the Enterprise crew on an exact replica of the original bridge set. The series has received major media coverage, with articles in Variety and Wired.
- Three episodes have been produced - the pilot, "Come What May" and two episodes, "In Harm’s Way” and "To Serve All My Days" (penned by D.C. Fontana, story editor on the original series). The second episode features Walter Koenig guest-starring as an older version of Pavel Chekov, his character from the original series. Several other actors from the original Trek series have also now signed on to appear in future episodes, including George Takei reprising the role of Hikaru Sulu in the third episode, "World Enough and Time", joining the original Yeoman Janice Rand, Grace Lee Whitney. Fan Films Quarterly listed New Voyages as one of the 10 most pivotal moments in fan film history in its Summer 2006 issue.
- Related article NPR - Star Trek Fan Films Live Long and Prosper (mp3
- Star Wreck
- A series of Finnish parody movies created by Samuli Torssonen from 1992 onward. The first release was a simple animated film, but later films grew more complex, moving into 3D animation, then live action. The latest film, Star Wreck: In the Pirkinning, was released in October 2005 and became an internet sensation, having drawn more than four million downloads from the main site alone, making it the most popular film of all time in Finland.
- Stone Trek
- A Flash animated cartoon series that presents episodes of Star Trek as it might have appeared in the universe of The Flintstones, complete with 1960s style laugh tracks. The series takes place aboard the stoneship U.S.S. Magnetize, powered by its magma/antimagma engines. Characters include Captain James T. Kirkstone, the Vulcano first officer Mr. Sprock and ship's doctor Leonard "Fossils" RcKoy. The series also features a running count of redshirts killed in each episode, and fans can write in to nominate themselves to be caricatured as a redshirt in future episodes.
[edit] Produced fan films
- Borg War
- Borg War is a feature-length animated fan film, comprised of nine episodes on the Machinima.com website. The film was produced by a single individual using two Trek-themed computer games, a process known as machinima. Borg War takes place 17 years after the return of the USS Voyager, as the Alpha quadrant is invaded by a group of alien-infected rogue Borg. The film is unusual among fan films in that it repurposes the games' voiceover clips to create an entirely new plot line, starring some of the original series' actors, including Patrick Stewart and Tim Russ. The quality is that of typical computer games, which makes it a unique fan film among the collective community.
- Captain's Nightmare
- A Lego fan film directed by Jonathan Markiewitz that was featured on BBC Online in celebration of Star Trek's 40th anniversary in 2006. The film was inspired by the music composed and conducted by Ron Jones and the Star Trek: The Next Generation two part episode, "The Best of Both Worlds."
- Fry's Trek
- Fry's Trek is a short fan film that was shot inside of the Burbank Fry's Electronics store. The cast wore TOS costumes and props, and stayed in character, even as security was escorting them out. It was featured on Digg.com, Fark.com, and Wil Wheaton's blog.
- Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
- Ryan K. Johnson's take on a film the original Mystery Science Theater 3000 never tackled. Ryan, Tom Servo, and Crow T. Robot mercilessly lampoon the fifth Trek feature film and William Shatner's direction.
- Redshirt Blues
- David Rogers' film presents the tale of space weary security officer on the Enterprise who is sick of Kirk, the ship, and the redshirt he must wear everyday. While on patrol, he meets another Redshirt on first assignment, to whom he reveals the truth about Redshirts. This film gained national exposure when screened on the SciFi Channel's Exposure in 2001.
- Star Track: The Next Hesitation
- Star Track is a fan film comedy series, taking a satirical look at the world of Star Trek. 18 episodes have been produced, with a spinoff planned for 2007. Episodes are generally 20 minutes in length and range from Mirror Universe episodes to cloned enemies coming back from the dead. The U.S.S Idomo is their home, a ship based off the NX-01 from Star Trek: Enterprise'.
- Star Trek: The Pepsi Generation
- In this 1989 film, the "Ferrari" have stolen all of the Pepsi from Starbase Seven-Up, and it is up to the crew of the Enterprise to rescue it. Captain Picard, along with Doodah the android, Ya Har, Jordashe, Rigor Mortis, Sexx Toii (the Betamax counselor), Ensign Expendable, and Weasley Crushme all leap into action. Along the way, viewers meet the harried Star Trek writing crew and the Ferrari's fearsome leader. This film has been popular for years, and was featured by the BBC in a series on Star Trek fans.
- Tales of the Seventh Fleet
- A new ongoing multigenerational fandom video project covering all timelines, currently focusing on a small destroyer, the U.S.S. Justice in the late 23rd and early 24th centuries. Most of the cast are members of Star Trek fan clubs located in New Jersey. Three episodes have been completed (along with other special shorts), the third being released in September 2006.
- The Voyages of the USS Angeles
- This series started with a feature length film, The Price of Duty, produced in the mid-1990s by a Los Angeles Star Trek club's "video production committee." This TNG era series takes place around the wild region of space introduced in the film Star Trek: Insurrection. It was the basis of the later fan series Star Trek: Hidden Frontier, and spawned other local fan productions as well. Neither the series or the movie is currently available on the internet due to strict regulations by the production team responsible for the creation of the show. It was only made available to the cast and crew of those production teams. Some episodes titles are "A Little Night music", "Dreamers", "Q In the Dark", and "Price of Duty".
[edit] Fan films in production
Fan film groups which are either filming or have completed filming and are in post production prior to release - does not include trailer or teaser-only projects.
- Star Trek: Andromeda
- Developed from a 1997 audio drama series (Star Trek: The Undiscovered Series), Andromeda was launched in June 2004 by fans in Osnabrück, Germany. Filming began the next month, and the first teaser trailer was released in October 2004. Primarily a three-man operation, Andromeda is shot live action shot against green screen with CGI ship scenes. Episodes are planned to be 45-60 minutes long, with audio in German with English subtitles. The current release estimate is for the end of 2006.
- Star Trek: Dark Armada
- Based out of the Netherlands, the first episode of Dark Armada takes place ten years after the events in Star Trek: Nemesis. Filming began in January 2006. The series takes place on board the U.S.S. Batavia, named after the famous Dutch ship from the 17th century. Captain Richardson and his crew will make a shocking discovery which will determinate the faith of life on Earth and other planets of the Federation. The test episode with a duration of 9:00 minutes is available since 12 September 2006.
- Star Trek: Das Vermächtnis
- Germany's Star Trek: Das Vermächtnis (Star Trek: The Legacy) is planned as one of Europe's more ambitious fan films. After a false start with director Christoph Hees in 1997, the project went into hiatus for two years. In 2000, German fan celebrity Willi Wiegand (aka Vulcan Willi) joined the cast. In May 2003, the production was featured in Trekkies 2, when Denise Crosby visited their new Next Generation-style bridge set. By July 2005, nearly $30,000US had been spent on the sets. The film is planned to be roughly 60-90 minutes long, and is scheduled to be released in 2006 as a free internet download. The filmmakers plan on releasing an English dub as well.
- Star Trek Excalibur
- Excalibur, based out of Las Vegas, Nevada, began production in June 2005 with large scale sets. In the story, the Excalibur is being repaired and refitted in spacedock after the wargames in which the USS Enterprise, under the control of the M-5 computer ("The Ultimate Computer"), nearly destroyed the ship and killed the entire crew. With Excalibur's launch date just days away, Admiral Yoritomo comes aboard to personally deliver Captain Nelson the ship's first assignment. The production has already planned several episodes, and has arranged for a composer to write an original score. Filming of the first episode was scheduled to begin in June 2006.
- Star Trek Horizon
- Horizon, based in Poland, a teaser trailer was released Spring 2006. Principal photography is scheduled for Sept. 2006. Exterior filming will be in the region of Jura Krakowsko-Czêstochowska. Set in 2380, the series will begin with a two part special "War Casts Long Shadows".
- Star Trek: Intrepid
- Intrepid is set in the 24th century, several years after Star Trek: Nemesis, and features Federation and Merchant Service efforts to colonise a sparse region of space far from the Federation core. A trailer and several blooper reels can be found on the Intrepid website. Star Trek: Intrepid was filmed entirely in Scotland - production wrapped in October 2005, though some reshoots took place in May 2006. The film is currently scheduled for a final quarter 2006 release.
- Starship Farragut
- Launched in July 2005, this series takes place during the original series era and tells the story of the crew of the U.S.S. Farragut (NCC-1647), a Constitution class starship under the command of John T. Carter. To date, the production has released a trailer and has nearly finished filming their pilot episode. The production was featured in an June 18, 2006 New York Times article, and has signed a cooperative deal with Star Trek: New Voyages. Production on the second episode is reported to begin in August 2006.
- Star Trek: USS Hathaway
- Star Trek: U.S.S. Hathaway takes place during the same time as events in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. The production crew plans to have the pilot episode, "Genesis", finished and released in four parts during 2006. The group hopes to be able to produce three to four episodes a year. A trailer has been released, and the series has been highlighted by G4TV.
- Star Trek: Aurora
- Aurora is an original animated fan film set in 2270. Part one (of four) was released in July 2006, with a preview of part two released on November 22, 2006. The full release of part two is tenatively anticipated for spring 2007. Aurora follows the story of Captain Kara and her crew on the cargo vessel Aurora.
- Star Trek: Of Gods and Men
- A three-part series directed by Tim Russ and starring several Star Trek stars, including Nichelle Nichols and Walter Koenig.
[edit] Fan trailers
Fan produced trailers for films that are not intended for production.
- Bring Back Kirk
- When Captain Kirk was killed in Star Trek: Generations, fans from around the world started the "Bring Back Kirk" campaign. The campaign's goal was simple—to see Captain Kirk returned to the living, and to see the character have a happy ending. This short film is not so much an endorsement on a particular plot point, but an effort to show the possibilities of Kirk's return. This nine minute trailer, released in 2004, features new CGI footage showing ships from the various Trek shows together on screen.
[edit] Fan audio dramas
Inspired in part by the success of a long-running series of audio adventures produced by Big Finish Productions in the United Kingdom based upon Doctor Who, some similar audio series based upon characters and situations from Star Trek have been launched. Unlike the Doctor Who productions — which are produced under license by the rights holders of the Doctor Who property, the BBC — these Star Trek audio series are not similarly licensed by Paramount. It is worth noting, however, that the Doctor Who audios were not initially licensed by the BBC, although this was when they were produced on an amateur rather than a professional basis, as has been the case since 1999.
- Crossroads
- This series, a spin-off from The Section 31 Files is a crossover venture into the Star Wars universe. The series currently exists in two incarnations - the first, a stand-alone episode in which two characters found themselves in the Star Wars universe, while the second was an official episode of The Section 31 Files, in which the starship Nosferatu travels to the Star Wars universe via a dimensional rift. While more entries in the series are planned, no definite production plans have yet been announced.
- Star Trek: Pioneers
- Debuting in 2003, this series followed the crew of the starship USS Pioneer. During a routine exploration mission, the Federation discovered a gateway to the other side of the galaxy, finding a new frontier waiting to be discovered. The Pioneer led the exploration of this new area of space, and everything it had to offer. In March 2005, it became part of the Darker Projects family, and as of June 2006, six episodes have been produced, and has one still in production, but it is currently on hiatus.
- Star Trek: The Section 31 Files
- The Section 31 Files is an audio series by Darker Projects that visits the darker side of the Federation, set on a starship that defends the Federation against dangers from which it is unable to protect itself from. The series depends on voice talents from across the globe for the production. As of October 2006, 23 episodes have been produced, and it is now in its third season.
- Star Trek: Foundation
- Star Trek: Foundation is a mini-series of four fully-cast audio dramas. Set in the late 24th century shortly after the finale of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, it follows the adventures of the crew of the USS Foundation, a small Nova-class science vessel that is part of the Federation’s newest battlefleet. Foundation was created by Steve Mollmaan and is hosted on the website of Robbie Chastain's Star Wars radio show, Star Wars and Beyond. Four episodes are currently available.
- Star Trek: Defiant
- Star Trek: Defiant is part of the Pendant Productions radio dramas, which include series featuring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, James Bond and other characters. The series shares some of the same voice talents with the Darker Projects productions. The show is set on the USS Defiant with a new crew, after the end of the Deep Space Nine television series. Three episodes have been offered thus far, and are set to be released on a monthly schedule.
- Star Trek: Eras
- Star Trek: Eras is an audio series that follows multiple generations of Starfleet crews with multiple ships over different generational timeframes. The series was created by Jim Caswell, and has aired its premiering two-part episode thus far. They promise to release new episodes on an ongoing basis.
[edit] Legal issues
The attitude of the Star Trek copyright and trademark holders toward fan works has varied over time. In early 1996 for example, Viacom went on the attack, sending out a wave of cease and desist letters to webmasters of Star Trek fan sites which contained copyrighted film clips, sounds, insignia, or other copyrighted material. Under threat of legal action, many Trekkers shut down, leaving behind scanned copies[1] of letters sent by Viacom. Shortly afterwards, Paramount launched a subscription-based website, Star Trek Continuum. In the lead up to the release of the film Star Trek: First Contact, then-president of Paramount Digital Entertainment David Wertheimer stated Viacom was targeting sites that were "selling ads, collecting fees, selling illegal merchandise or posting copyrighted materials."
Faced with the threat of legal prosecution, most of the sites complied with Viacom's demands, deleting the offending data. However, a handful of webmasters resisted Viacom's pressure tactics, demanding specific citations of offending material from Viacom.
Viacom's actions were seen by numerous sources as an example of a wider civil liberties issue and poor public relations. In a Wired article, Jennifer Granick, a San Francisco criminal lawyer who went on to champion cyber rights, felt that the unofficial sites should be covered by the fair use doctrine in U.S. copyright law. In a 1998 article, UCLA associate professor Howard Besser saw it as an example of the content industry "exploiting concerns over digitization and attempting to reshape the law by strengthening protection for copyrights holders and weakening public rights to access and use material."
Fan fiction has been a specific battleground for the legal issues balancing a copyright owner's legal rights against a fan's use of that material, and Star Trek has been at the forefront of the controversy. Many of the precedents set by fan fiction apply to other media, particularly fan films and audio dramas - however, the same dangers apply as well. Incidents where fan have broken the tacit agreement between authors and fans (for example, trying to make money from a derivative work themselves, or accusing an author of appropriating their idea) have caused a backlash from certain authors.
Star Trek fan films currently operate in an informational vacuum, since Paramount has made no official statement regarding their existence, pro or con. Fan filmmakers have generally kept a low profile, hoping not to draw attention to themselves. However, with the demise of official productions[2], the fan film community has been drawing more attention in the media[3] [4], and even a certain amount of recognition from the entertainment industry.
Cow Creek Films, the production company at the time for Star Trek: New Voyages, had contact with Paramount to successfully reverse a cease and desist order which resulted in a set of guidelines being verbally agreed on:
- No profit can come from the film.
- It cannot be shown in festivals or at conventions or any other venue where money is charged for admission either directly for the film or the event itself.
- It can only be a free download and cannot be offered in lieu of a "donation".
- They were NOT giving permission to do the show, but rather turning a blind eye to it as long as the producers stick to the rules.
It should be borne in mind that there has never been any independent corroboration of this - Viacom has been consistently silent on the subject - however the source, Jack Marshall the Executive Producer at the time, is trustworthy. What is more, the subsequent success of "Star Trek: New Voyages" and the prominent collaboration of ex-Paramount cast and crew would suggest that Paramount know about them and are giving their tacit permission.
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