The latest AXANAR NEWS!

Last October, it was announced that Marvel Comics writer PAUL JENKINS would be joining ALEC PETERS as co-writer of the 2-part Axanar fan film allowed by the settlement with CBS and Paramount.  I interviewed Paul shortly thereafter, and you’re welcome to read what he had to say here.

But then Axanar went pretty quiet over the holiday season and through the entire month of January.  But last week, Alec posted a flurry of updates, and suddenly I’ve got LOTS to report on!

If you regularly visit the AxanarProductions.com website, chances are you already know most of what I’m about to tell you.  In fact, I’ll be taking a lot of the updates verbatim from there.  But since not all my readers go there, I’ll be providing all of the updates here in one convenient blog post.

So let’s jump right in…

THE AXANAR SCRIPT IS LOCKED

Here’s what Alec had to say:

Paul Jenkins

Well, I can finally report that the Axanar script was locked last month!  Paul Jenkins, legendary comic and game producer (he wrote the origin of Wolverine!) made his revisions to the script, and we consider the script “locked.”  Now what does that mean?  Well, in Hollywood terms, that means there will be no additional scenes, cast or sets added to the script.  Dialogue can and always does change, but the script is basically set.

Now it goes to budgeting, and then we will ask you, our loyal fans, for help making the two 15 minute episodes.  And let me tell you, they will be better than Prelude!

I pointed out to Alec that the script was locked previously in late 2015, just before Axanar Productions got sued. That script was never filmed and went through several additional iterations even after being locked. So I asked Alec: “What’s different this time? How do donors and fans know that THIS locked script will actually be made into a fan film?”

Here was Alec’s answer:

When we had a locked script for the Axanar feature, we were in the middle of pre-production and we were getting everything ready to actually shoot at the end of January 2016. Then, 30 days before we were ready to start shooting, we got sued! And of course, that meant we couldn’t move forward. Now, with a settlement with CBS that allows us to make two 15 minute episodes, we won’t have any such roadblock.


AXANAR GETS A NEW DIRECTOR OF FULFILLMENT

Back in the days when Axanar Productions was still based in southern California (and I would drive up to Valencia to volunteer, roll posters, sort patches, and stuff envelopes), I nicknamed the lovely DIANA KINGSBURY the “Goddess of Fulfillment.”

But when Alec moved the Axanar sets and resources (including items still needing to be fulfilled) to Georgia, Diana stayed in California and could no longer carry out her duties of actually fulfilling merchandise.  So Diana has stayed on to handle donor relations, which can be done remotely via e-mail, but someone was needed to keep track of all the unfulfilled merchandise and get it out to donors when the time comes.

(And why haven’t items already been fulfilled if the crowd-funding campaigns took place back in 2014 and 2015?  Because those donors were promised DVDs/Blu-rays of the finished Axanar production.  Until it’s completed, the discs won’t actually exist.  And it’s not cost-effective to double the postage cost by sending out some perks early and then mailing the discs separately once the final fan films are completed.)

Last week, Alec announced that Axanar has found a new Director of Fulfillment to work with Diana: NATALIE ARMSTRONG…

Natalie Armstrong

Since moving to Atlanta, we really need someone who can work with Diana, fulfilling everything that is owed from the Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns.  Since the perks we do have are now in Atlanta, and everything new we produce will be housed and shipped from OWC Studios here, it makes sense to have someone local who can drive this process and organize volunteers to help.  Natalie has a lot of experience in this area, and we are excited to have her on board.  Plus she is a crazy Star Trek fan and amazing cosplayer!

In a mini-interview on the Axanar website, Natalie described her real-world job, which is not too different than what Axanar needs her to do:

I am the business manager for a Sci-fi/Geek/Comic e-commerce store called Starbase Atlanta.  My daily job runs the gamut from Accounting and Statistics to HR and Customer Service.  We are a small company, so I have to wear many hats!  I get to assist in the buying process, handle all fulfillment, be the business accountant, the product photographer, just to name a few.  I stay busy, but I love it.  There’s also the perks….I get all my props, Star Trek, and Harry Potter stuff at cost!

The mini-interview also asked the somewhat obvious question: “What made you want to volunteer for such an enormous job as fulfilling all the perks?”  After all, Axanar has over 10,000 donors who will need to get their stuff once the production is completed!  Here’s what Natalie had to say…

After seeing the love that was put into Axanar, I knew I wanted to be a part of it.  I wanted to work with people like Alec who have the same passion for Trek that I do.  Alec had told me that it was time to start fulfilling all of the perks for the supporters of Axanar.  Since fulfillment is part of my grown up job, I know the process inside and out!  It’s a perfect place for me to work with Axanar.


BUILDING A BRIDGE

In recent updates, various people, including Alec Peters himself, have commented that the bridge set for the USS Ares looks to be about 80%-90% complete.  But what exactly does that mean?  What specifically is left to do?  Alec provided this update:

Well, we have three jobs that we are doing to finish the bridge.

  •  Install all the electronics and view screens.
  •  Install carpeting.
  •  Create and install control panels.

So first up is the view screens. Curtis Short who has been our Studio Manager since California, is in charge of the overall finishing of the bridge. Back in 2015, Curtis was able to buy all the screens needed for the bridge.  Now the lower screens were out-of-production monitors, as they are the old 4×9 aspect ratio screens no longer used.  Curtis was able to find a dealer who bought old government computers and equipment and got a great deal on them.  While we need 48 for the lower monitors, Curtis bought extras.  He also bought 13 current model HD TVs for the upper monitors.

So now Curtis is working on installing the lower monitors and getting an electrician to help make sure everything is up to spec!

We have a couple of electricians who have volunteered to help with the breaker panel and making sure everything is set up correctly.

Here are some photos…

Each monitor is held in place individually.
Each section is run by a PC
Sections waiting to have PCs attached.
There are 4 different screens that will need to be translights as monitors won’t fit.

As for the console graphics and control panels, we’ve got an update on that, too…

While Curtis Short is in charge of the electronics, Alexander Richardson (who we interviewed on our blog here) is in charge of the control panels.  He is designing every single station so that they actually look real if you sit and look at them!

Here is one of his first test stations:

Alexander also did the bridge schematic next to the Turbo-lift!

Now THAT’S a Star Trek!

Alexander is our chief graphic artist for the bridge and does everything screen-related.  Thanks to Alexander for all is hard work!

I asked Alexander how far along he is in getting everything designed, and he said he was about 90% of the way done.  And then he added, “Pending revisions by the boss.” 🙂

Assuming all goes well, those designs will be e-mailed from Alexander in the U.K. to Alec in Georgia where they will be specially printed onto clear mylar and placed under plexiglass.  When lit from below, the console controls will look amazing


AN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE

One of the things that Alec Peters had always imagined for Industry Studios when it was still located in Southern California was that it could be used as a place of teaching and learning for aspiring film students.  (L.A. is loaded with film schools, of course!)  But even though everything has been moved to Georgia and the facility renamed as OWC Studios, the dream of making the sets available to teachers and students has remained very prominent in Alec’s heart and mind.  And that leads us to the next update…

OWC Studios, the home base of Axanar, has begun to work with the heads of the Gwinnett County Video Production program.  28 secondary schools in Gwinnett County (the county just northeast of downtown Atlanta) have programs for students to learn film and TV production.  Allison Falch, one of Axanar’s amazing volunteers, is a teacher at South Gwinnett High School and invited me in to talk to her video production class.

Allison then introduced me to Pasha Souvorin, who loved the idea of using the studio for the betterment of the students.  One idea floated was what about getting students to make their own Star Trek fan films!  We already have one group of students coming to see the facility, and we hope to have more.  We are a little late for this semester, but we hope to be able to create a regular program for the students for the fall.

Other World Computing, our amazing sponsor, also loved the idea, and we hope to make this studio a dynamic asset for the Gwinnett County schools.   I also had a meeting with a high profile businessman in Atlanta, and we are hoping we can eventually make this available to students all over the city.  As Spock would say, “There are always possibilities!”

Glenn Ballard and Kolinda Scialabba from Gwinnett County Public Schools TV; Chris Gegen, video teacher at Gwinnett County School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology; and Pasha Souvorin, Video Pathway Lead Teacher for Gwinnett County Public Schools

AXANAR ILLUSTRATED

As I announced last week, this Thursday will feature the debut of the first-ever Axanar short story,  “Why We Fight”…written by yours truly and illustrated by Mark McCary.

But things don’t stop there!

Trey McElwain and Daniel Fu, who released the first-ever Axanar fan comic book story,  the 4-page “Trial By Fire,” will be continuing their efforts with more comic book stories beginning in another month or so…with one new page of the story coming out each month thereafter.


There’s no question that the past two years have been challenging for Axanar and its fans.  But things are beginning to really come together now, and once again it’s a very exciting time to be an Axanerd!

29 thoughts on “The latest AXANAR NEWS!”

  1. I think it was your poet H Longfellow who said that “Everything comes in this life for the one who knows how to spread” …
    After the absolute disappointment that the end of Discovery has been for me, this is the best news I could read today. “I hope you have tailwind” and see soon something worthy of Star Trek.
    Thank you for all your efforts.

  2. Thanks Jonathan! Yes, things are moving along at Axanar, just a bit more slowly than in the past. But we are intent on finishing our project and showing off how the Klingon war we first put on film really ends. There are a lot of fans jonesing for it after their disappointment with Discovery.

  3. /goodBehaviorMode//

    I liked the part where the guy who is on legal record for not knowing what a “locked script” is explains what a “locked script” is.

    1. This is good behavior mode???

      So I guess that once somebody doesn’t know something, then that “not knowing” is locked in permanently, huh? Good to know!

      (When are you scheduled to start saying smart things again, Gabe? I’m really looking forward to that.) 🙂

  4. “When we had a locked script for the Axanar feature, we were in the middle of pre-production and we were getting everything ready to actually shoot at the end of January 2016. Then, 30 days before we were ready to start shooting, we got sued! And of course, that meant we couldn’t move forward. Now, with a settlement with CBS that allows us to make two 15 minute episodes, we won’t have any such roadblock.”

    This would not at all align with Bill Hunt or Robert Meyer Burnett’s assessment. But as they have moved on and likely do not want to get dragged into further discussion of the matter, it is not my place to speak for them.

    But Mr. Peters’ response is grossly oversimplified at best, willfully lacking in truth at worst.

    1. Slightly more intelligent, Gabe. Going in the right direction.

      That said, why did you feel the need to invoke Bill Hunt and Robert Meyer Burnett and then add that they “…likely do not want to get dragged into further discussion of the matter, it is not my place to speak for them.” Isn’t that just a crappy, arrogant, and obnoxious thing for you to do?

      And if I might ask for the twentieth time (or thereabouts): why don’t YOU move on, too? I mean, seriously. CAN you move on? Is that even something you’re physically, mentally, or emotionally mature enough to do? I used to think so from the multiple times in the past year that you’ve said, “I’m going to move on” (or words to that effect). And then, just like a bad fungus infection, you’re back slinging mud at Alec again. Maybe your proclamations of moving on are what is really “willfully lacking in truth.” What do you think, Gabe? Have you just outright lied to everyone about intending to give up your Alec-bashing? Seems like it from here in the cheap seats.

      Anyway, between the two of you, I MUCH prefer dealing with Alec. He doesn’t take random public potshots at you every chance he gets (and lord knows he has good reason to!) unless he’s provoked with you firing a shot first. You, on the other hand, do it spontaneously. This is a perfect example. Alec didn’t mention you at all in his updates and hasn’t said anything publicly about you in many weeks (maybe longer). So everything you’ve said here today qualifies as “shooting first.”

      In my mind, that makes Alec a significantly better human being. It just does.

      And now my song is done.

    2. Yeah, name dropping like that, then saying you’re not speaking for them is complete bullshat, especially considering I have never seen (and you don’t offer up proof) either man dispute “30 days from production”, and that has been the story since the lawsuit dropped. If you’re not going to speak for them, offer proof that they said that, or shut up.

      Beyond that, what is even the point of bringing it up? I mean, talk about whipping dead horses! I have to echo Jonathan’s assessment, as you’ve mentioned to me in the past about walking away, yet you just can’t seem to actually. It’s like you are addicted to this, and that ain’t a healthy thing (as you likely well know).

    3. Actually Gabe, that is EXACTLY Robert Meyer Burnett’s and Bill Hunt’s assessment. So please no more lies. We are all sick of you lying about what other people say. This is how you operate, tell lies about what other people say in order to stir up trouble. So here are facts:

      According to Mike DeMeriitt, who worked as First Assistant Director for 11 years on both Star Trek Voyager and Star Trek Enterprise, a “Locked Script” means that you cannot add scenes, characters or sets. Dialogue can always change, but a Locked Script is deemed that for budgetary purposes. Mike was our first AD before the lawsuit and had broken down the script for us.

      Now Mike has about 100x more experience than Gabe in Hollywood, and not as some digital artist who sits in a cubical and has no on-set, above the line or producer experience. So what Gabe says is, as always, factually incorrect and his comments about others, a lie.

        1. Interesting that you, of all people Gabe, would choose to use the term “gaslighter.” The irony in that was quite rich.

          As for “we are all,” yeah, it’s not entirely accurate. There are 7 billion people in the world, and at best, only a few thousand read my blog. 🙂

          That said, Alec didn’t define which group or sub-group he was referring to when he said “we.” So his statement could be correct depending on who the “we” that he’s referring to is. Whatever the group, consider me firmly a part of it.

      1. Correction: I have on set experience. It crosses over sometimes. Don’t get on a high horse man. You have no “above the line or producer experience” either. Blowing wads of money on a 3 year lease on a building for a movie that would take 30-60 days to shoot doesn’t count.

        Nor does self promotion at grimey local malls where the ROSS is the flagship store. And the ROSS is closed.

        Get a job, man, or finish your Star Trek web videos. Axanar is moving astonishingly slowly for someone with no job.

        1. I’ll let Alec handle the main response to this (if he chooses to), but I’m just curious: are you bothered by how long it’s taken for other crowd-funded fan films to get made–like Pacific 201, Temporal Anomaly, Farragut’s finale “Homecoming”, Captain Pike, and Space Command? It seems like you only criticize Axanar for taking so long to complete.

  5. Oh wow, I used to live in Gwinnett county! I would have so volunteerd to help with this project! Can’t wait for it, it has been a long time coming!

  6. The obsession with Alec Peters from the Axamonitor crowd is more so than the Axanar fans themselves.

    The Axamonitor folks watch Alec like a stalker watches someone through the window. It’s weird.

    1. It is kinda weird, isn’t it? Gabe once stalked Alec in Las Vegas, live-tweeting photos and videos of him and Crysstal and commenting on things like Alec’s choice of clothing. Creepy.

      1. They talk about him more than you do. And they think you worship him.

        They’ve become the people they claim to “stand” against.

  7. Lol.. all that banter. Like ping pong. Just looking to see the project concluded. Tell Alex I’m willing to send postage for my perks that are available and can wait for the DVD.

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