First off, a very happy 56th anniversary of Star Trek to all of you!
And now, I am very excited (and somewhat relieved!) to announce the winners of the inaugural 2022 Star Trek Fan Film SHOWRUNNER AWARDS. I say relieved because 1) it was waaaaay more work than I ever expected it would be, and 2) everything went more smoothly than I could have possibly imagined.
And for the latter, I have to give my sincere thanks to my panel of judges, each a showrunner of at least one fan film or series. These eleven judges (plus me) each watched just about 13 HOURS of Star Trek fan films! Many of them took notes as they watched, and all of them submitted their ballots in 18 categories prior to my deadline for them of August 15—giving me enough time to record and tally the vote totals, check them twice (like Santa Claus does), and get the certificates ready.
I would like to, once again, thank all of the judges and list them here by name…
- SAMUEL COCKINGS (Trek Shorts)
- GARY DAVIS (Dreadnought Dominion)
- JOSHUA IRWIN (Avalon Universe)
- PAUL JACQUES (Raincross)
- MARK LARGENT (Stalled Trek)
- MIKE LONGO (Star Trek Fan Productions International)
- VANCE MAJOR (Constar)
- FRANK PARKER, JR. (Project: Gemini)
- DAN REYNOLDS (The Federation Files)
- GLEN L. WOLFE (The Federation Files)
- RANDY WRENN (Dreadnought Dominion)
Most of these judges unavoidably had fan films of their own entered, and so the rule was this: each judge had to select their top five choices in each category—their choices being worth 10 points for #1, 7 points for #2, 5 points for #3, 3 points for #4, and 1 point for #5. No judge was allowed to rank a fan film that they worked on among their top three choices. This kept them from “playing favorites” while also not penalizing them completely for agreeing to be a judge.
In the end, this process seemed to work out very well, and we had a very nice variety in winners. In other words, the same two or three fan films didn’t sweep all of the categories. In fact, out of 38 total entries, nearly half of them (16 films) won in at least one category. Granted, strong fan films would rack up high scores with lots of 7’s and 10’s, but lower scores of 5’s, 3’s, and even some 1’s often made the difference between coming in first, second, or third place…or just barely missing the cut.
Speaking of which, remember that each category will have THREE winners: Admiral Award, Captain Award, and Commander Award, for the aforementioned first, second, and third places, respectfully. (Note, there is also a special Cadet Award at the bottom of this blog.)
Interestingly, despite 12 judges awarding five different levels of points, we had a total of five tie scores. After consulting with the judges, we decided that all three award levels would be honored in each category, meaning some categories will have four winners instead of just three. And honestly, I think that’s the best solution, as it’ll just mean more happy faces!
The people who submitted the winning entries will be contacted shortly after this blog is posted, and they will be supplied with a special link to download their spiffy digital award certificate(s) as high resolution jpegs…suitable for printing. And yes, as you’ll see below, I used my favorite NewProfilePic.com website to add Star Trek character faces to each certificate.
In the future (since I expect the Showrunner Awards to take place annually), any fan film that wins in a specific category cannot win in that category again. It can be entered in the contest again (as long at it’s still eligible), and try to win in other categories, but only one win per category per fan film.
You can access all of the current fan film submissions from this blog page.
And now, ladies and gentlemen (and those of expanded gender identities), I proudly present the winners of the 2022 Showrunner Awards for Star Trek Fan Films released between January 2017 and December 2021. Links to the winning fan films in each category are provided under that category’s winners. Have a watch and see if you agree with our judges’ selections…
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
Click here to watch STAR TREK: FIRST FRONTIER
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Click here to watch BEYOND THE SUN
Click here to watch SQUADRON
BEST ACTRESS
Click here to watch CHANCE ENCOUNTER
Click here to watch AGENT OF NEW WORLDS
Click here to watch SQUADRON
BEST ACTOR
Click here to watch STAR TREK: FIRST FRONTIER
Click here to watch CHANCE ENCOUNTER
Click here to watch AVALON LOST
BEST ORIGINAL CHARACTER
Click here to watch A LONG WAY FROM HOME
Click here to watch STAR TREK: FIRST FRONTIER
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
BEST HAR & MAKE-UP
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Click here to watch STAR TREK: FIRST FRONTIER
Click here to watch THE FEDERATION FILES: “EXTRACTION”
BEST COSTUMING
Click here to watch BEYOND THE SUN
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
Click here to watch THE HOLY CORE
BEST SOUND DESIGN
Click here to watch BEYOND THE SUN
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Click here to watch THE HOLY CORE
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
BEST MUSICAL SCORE
Click here to watch AGENT OF NEW WORLDS
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Click here to watch LAST SURVIVOR
BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS (non-CGI)
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Click here to watch THE FEDERATION FILES: “EXTRACTION”
Click here to watch CONSTAR COMPLETED: “UNSTEADY”
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS (CGI)
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
Click here to watch A LONG WAY FROM HOME
BEST EDITING
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Click here to watch THE HOLY CORE
Click here to watch SQUADRON
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
Click here to watch AGENT OF NEW WORLDS
BEST WRITING
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Click here to watch THE HOLY CORE
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
BEST DIRECTION
Click here to watch THE HOLY CORE
Click here to watch AGENT OF NEW WORLDS
Click here to watch CHANCE ENCOUNTER
BEST SCENE
Chick here to watch PACIFIC 201
Click here to watch INTERLUDE
Click here to watch AVALON LOST
BEST MICRO-BUDGET FAN FILM
Click here to watch LAST SURVIVOR
Click here to watch THE FEDERATION FILES: “EXTRACTION”
Click here to watch STARSHIP DEIMOS: “LEVIATHAN”
Click here to watch I AM SPOCK
BEST FAN FILM
Click here to watch THE HOLY CORE
Click here to watch SQUADRON
Click here to watch CHANCE ENCOUNTER
CADET AWARD
Best Actor from the “Next” Generation of Fans
And now I am going to surprise all of the judges, especially Vance Major, with a special award that I added at the last minute. Vance nominated his five-and-a-half-year-old son ROYCE LEONARD MAJOR for Best Actor. Of course, Royce faced some stiff competition from trained, professional actors like ROBERT PRALGO, HAYWARD MORSE, and TYLER DUNIVAN, each of whom has worked in movies, TV, and/or on stage. So for Royce, I’m sure it was an honor just to be nominated.
But Royce has been appearing in Vance’s Star Trek fan films for literally Royce’s whole life. And in Vance’s most recent productions, Royce has been putting in yeoman’s work with some demanding speaking parts for a child his age.
I feel strongly that such dedication and enthusiasm should be acknowledged, celebrated, and encouraged. So in the only decision made where I did not previously consult the panel of judges (and I hope they won’t mind), I have determined that Royce Leonard Major will be the first recipient of the Showrunner CADET Award for Best Actor of the “Next” Generation of Fans. Let’s give a round of applause to Royce…
Click here to watch THE CONSTAR CHRONICLES: “THE SCRIBBLER”
Before I sign off, I’d like to include some final takeaways. As I said, I’m very pleased at the range of fan films that won at least one award—16 of our total 38 entries. And of course, I heartily congratulate all of our many winners!
Now, I realize that still leaves 58% of the entries who won’t get a digital certificate, but as far as I’m concerned, they were winners as soon as they uploaded their project to YouTube. Yeah, I know that sounds kinda cheesy, but simply completing a fan film is a challenge no matter what the length, quality, and complexity. So even if you’re one of the entrants whose fan film(s) didn’t appear above, you should still take a bow and be proud of what you’ve made and accomplished. And I hope you’ll continue providing us fans more opportunities to see your work. Remember: there’s always next year!
If you’re curious and don’t feel like counting, here are the fan films that took home the most awards. Squadron was the big winner with 10 wins, followed closely by Interlude with 9, Pacific 201 with 8, and The Holy Core with 6. Agent of New Worlds, Chance Encounter, and Star Trek: First Frontier each got 4. Beyond the Sun had 3. A Long Way from Home, Avalon Lost, Last Survivor, and The Federation Files: “Extraction” scored 2. And I Am Spock, Leviathan, The Scribbler, and Unsteady each received one award (including the special Cadet Award for Royce Major in The Scribbler).
And that’s it for this year. I plan to host the Showrunner Awards again in 2023, possibly with one or two new categories (shhhhhh!). Hopefully, most-if-not-all of our judging panel will return—and maybe new judges might want to participate. I’ve seen a lot of FANtastic new productions released this year, and I can’t wait to see if they’ll be winners a year from now.
Till then, live long and film…!
What a great way to highlight all the hard work that all these people put in to make Trek Fan Films a reality. Congrats to all the winners, and all those who were nominated. All these films are winners in my book for keeping the ideals of Star Trek alive.
Also if ya need, another judge next year, let me know
I appreciate the offer, Jon, but at least for now, our judges must be fan film showrunners.
Thanks for the kind words.