So what do you call a fan film that’s already raised over a million dollars, turned a warehouse into a studio with those donations, then closed the studio, isn’t finished with the film yet (even many years later), and is now asking supporters for even more money…and getting it?
Yep, it’s MARC SCOTT ZICREE’s SPACE COMMAND…back again for yet another Kickstarter!
And the fans are still showing their support. With a stated goal of $35K, their newest campaign was already well past $45K before it even launched! How did they manage that? Easy…just open it early to previous donors for 36 hours when they can be the first to claim special limited-time perks. It’s now about a week later, and the Kickstarter is well over $60K and climbing steadily. (I should be so lucky with my crowd-funder next month!)
So if Space Command has already taken in over a million dollars and hasn’t even finished their first 2-hour pilot yet, then what are they doing asking for even MORE money? Glad you asked!
Space Command got its start waaaaaaay back in 2012 with an early Kickstarter that brought in a staggering $212,000 from more than 2,000 donors. It then took five years for the project to reach post-production, where a second Kickstarter raised an additional $108,000 that would help complete the first hour of the 2-hour pilot episode “Redemption.”
The first half-hour segment of the pilot premiered last summer at San Diego Comic cons and debuted on YouTube for fans in August. Then a third Kickstarter raised $102,000 more for post-production on the second hour of the pilot. Marc is also selling individual $7,500 shares in the venture for supporters looking for a return on investment if/when the series sells. Those shares have brought in an additional half million dollars.
Space Command will ultimately span six 2-hour episodes for its first season, featuring such notable sci-fi actors as DOUG JONES (yep, that Doug Jones); ROBERT PICARDO (from Voyager) ; MIRA FURLAN, BRUCE BOXLEITNER, and BILL MUMY (from Babylon 5); FARAN TAHIR (the captain of the USS Kelvin from Star Trek 2009); JAMES HONG (from Big Trouble in Little China and Kung Fu Panda); and host of others. This is a true professional sci-fi endeavor, created through public funding for a fraction of the cost the networks are paying for their shows (although hopefully they’ll be buying it).
The first 2-hour (pilot) episode “Redemption” has already been fully funded, completely filmed, and half-completed with 900 visual FX shots, sounds, music, color adjustment, etc. And the first hour has been available for free on YouTube since January 1. Check it out…!
But now it’s time to crowd-fund the second episode, “Forgiveness.” Let’s talk about that one for a little bit…
Believe it or not, about 40 minutes of live action scenes from the second episode have ALREADY been filmed, even though the current Kickstarter is the first time crowd-funding has been raised specifically for “Forgiveness.” How did they manage this? Well, there was money left over from previous campaigns that allowed for shooting to continue beyond just the scenes for “Redemption.” So while the warehouse studio was still filled up with sets, lighting, equipment, and a production team, and while the actors were still available, they piggybacked as much footage as they could for the second episode onto the tail end of filming for the pilot.
Granted, most of that filming happens nearly half a decade ago! But the footage is still “in the can,” leaving just a little more than half the episodee still to shoot. While the stated goal for this Kickstarter is a “measly” $35K, the real goal, according to Marc, is between $100K and $300K if possible. This will allow for converting another warehouse into a new studio and building standing sets for the actors and crew to film on. Shooting is scheduled for August with a target for completing both the first and second two-hour episodes by the end of this year. Free live adult cams where you can meet random strangers with your webcam. This is a free sex chat site where you can meet strangers for cam to cam sex chat! Sex Cams. https://24livesexchat.com It just means you want to do something different. Once I found it i became so addicted!
Now, you might be asking how Marc plans to manage this feat in mere months when it took years to complete post-production on just the pilot episode. Won’t the second 2-hour episode take just as long? Not quite. You see, the two-hour pilot has a a staggering 1,900 visual effects shots in it. That’s more by multiples than you’ll see in two hours of most sci-fi shows, including Discovery or The Expanse. But the second episode uses mainly practical effects, like aliens in make-up, strange relics, that sort of thing…which is much easier and faster to do.
But first things first. Space Command has about three weeks left on their current Kickstarter. Take a look at the following video and then, if you’re feeling excited and/or generous, click on the link below to donate…
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/58936338/space-command-forgiveness
Frankly, I’m confused. With all of the money that’s been given for episode one (including a little of mine), why should I consider giving more for the second 2-hour episode when the first still remains inexplicably (to me) incomplete? Why have others gone ahead and given a substantial sum for part two when this uncertainty pertains?
My funds are limited (which is why, regretfully, I haven’t supported your project, Jonathan), but having already contributed to this there is a temptation to continue supporting it with another small donation, but! ─ would I be putting my tiny contribution toward something that just may never be completed, to something that (I may be wrong) exists at least in part to support Marc’s ego.
In the main, the first hour looks good (except in the music I continually hear echos of well-known classics), but will it ever be finished? I am not young but suspect I may be finished before episode one is finished, let alone episode two!
In my mind, this is almost like a whole new project. Yes, they are both episodes of Space Command, but consider “Forgiveness” to be a completely separate Kickstarter from anything that has come before. And consider “Redemption” a sort of “proof of concept” project to show that it’s worth giving to “Forgiveness.”
Now, is it true that “Redemption” isn’t finished even after seven years? Yes. But it’s close!!! And to prove it, a full hour has been released, and it’s very impressive considering the budget…very impressive, indeed! So rather than asking “will it ever be finished?”–which is looking at the glass as less than half empty–look at everything that HAS been completed, and know that work is progressing on post production for the second hour. It’s not like they’re doing nothing or spending all of our donations on sushi and tires (no one does that). But they are trying to get a head start on their second episode before completing their first. Personally, I don’t have a problem with it…other than they’re crowd-funding two weeks before I’ll be crowd-funding. Way to drain the well, guys! 🙂
Anyway, there’s no requirement for you to donate any more money to Space Command. I just report the news and put it out there for your consideration. And there’s no requirement for you to donate to my crowd-funder either…once I launch it. But I certainly wouldn’t complain it you might at least help me spread the word, Bryan.