If there were ever a game of “Where’s Waldo” using the credits of Star Trek fan films, Glen L. Wolfe would surely be Waldo. If you visit Glen’s IMDb page, you’ll see him having participated in a dozen different fan films and series stretching back to 2013: Star Trek: Renegades, Horizon, Deception, Secret Voyage, Ambush, Equinox, Temporal Anomaly, and multiple episodes of New Voyages and Continues. He’s worked on fan films as an actor, producer, cameraman, electrician, and art designer.
And now Glen can add writer and director to that list, having finally been the show-runner on a fan film of his own. “His Name Is Mudd” serves as the debut release of the new THE FEDERATION FILES, which is produced in conjunction with Starfleet Studios in Iowa. Their Facebook page talks about the new series:
The Federation Files is an opened look at the Memory Alpha database. The concept is to allow filmmakers a location to make their films available to the fans. Scripts will span the entire Star Trek Universe. Each episode can be free standing, therefore a new cast could be featured every time.
Following the Outer Limits and Twilight Zone format, the fan can view any episode in any order as they do not build on each other.
In this way, the new series will conform to the guidelines in not featuring continuing stories about the same characters.
This debut episode features a veritable “who’s who” of Star Trek fan film actors and crew. Michael L. King of Starship Valiant makes a cameo appearance as Commander Bishop (his character from that series). Cat Roberts, who appeared in Star Trek Continues‘ “Fairest of Them All” and later played Janice Rand in multiple episodes of The Red Shirt Diaries, plays Rand again, this time on the USS Constitution. Robert Withrow reprises his character of Admiral Witrow from multiple episodes of New Voyages. David Whitney of Starfleet Studios in Iowa, the show-runner of the nearly-completed Trek fan film Raven, plays a perfectly unscrupulous Harry Mudd. And even more actors and production crew from these series and others appear throughout the credits.
This 47-minute fan production was filmed at various locations, including at Starfleet Studios in Iowa; down at Starbase Studios in Oklahoma on their bridge, transporter, and sickbays sets; and even up in Ticonderoga, New York at James Cawley’s Retro Studios using the briefing room set. If there is such a thing as a “family” of fan filmmakers (and I truly believe there is) this production was indeed a family affair.
You can watch “His Name Is Mudd” by clicking here.
Great example of a fun fan film. Looks like they had a lot of fun making it too. I assume it is “grandfathered in” as far as the guidelines are concerned. It’s also a great example of why the new guidelines suck. (grin) It’s length alone would kill it. Hmmm, I guess all those alumni of other fan films don’t count as “professionals”. Is that what fan films will have to do in the future, borrow actors from each other, since no “professionals” will be allowed to participate?
I thought you couldn’t participate in a Trek fan film if you have participated in any other Trek endeavor. Which has me wondering, if I do my own fan film following the guidelines, could I do a second fan film since I had participated in the first fan film?
Anyway, it was a fun film and good to see what you can accomplish on a budget.
Guideline #5 is somewhat ambiguous on that point, Al. It specifies only that participants “..cannot be currently or previously employed on any Star Trek series, films, production of DVDs or with any of CBS or Paramount Pictures’ licensees.” However, I think it reasonable to read into that the Star Trek series, films, etc. would be considered to be the studio-released ones like Star Trek Beyond and Discovery. Other fan films wouldn’t count, I don’t think.
Thanks for the nice write-up Jonathan Lane. You’re a good writer by the way.
Thank you, David. Right back atcha. Good luck with the Kickstarter. I’ll leave you at as the top story until Friday morning…then I’ve got another blog ready to post.