Fan Film Features – Page 79

STARSHIP FARRAGUT, Part 1 (2004 to 2007)

Farragut-1 — Admiral David Glasgow Farragut.

“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!”

Rear Admiral David G. Farragut issued that order in 1864 at the Battle of Mobile Bay during the American Civil War. A century and a half later, a group of dedicated Star Trek fans has followed that order with enthusiasm to make a film series that bears his name.

If you think about it, there are a lot of things that can torpedo a fan film production. From inception to completion, the fan(s) behind it have to have the five Ds: the Dream, Desire, Design, and Determination to get it all Delivered.

Starship Farragut had its fair share of torpedoes to get past, but speed on it did. And through a full decade of filming and production, Farragut has continued to grow, improve, and evolve into one of Star Trek fandom’s MUST-SEE fan-based series. Along the way, Farragut boldly went where no fan film had gone before, blazing a successful trail for other fan series to follow.

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PROJECT POTEMKIN (interview with Randy Landers), Part 2

Last time, we posted the first half of our really FANtastic interview with Randall “Randy” Landers, the creator and driving force behind of Project: Potemkin. Unlike the more dazzling fan films out there with six-figure budgets, Potemkin has essentially no budget. And yet they’ve still managed to produce 28 separate episodes in four years… and they’re still going strong.

We’ve already learned some of Randy’s secrets (well, they’re not really secrets!), but he’s got a lot more to talk about. So let’s pick up where we left off…

Continue reading “PROJECT POTEMKIN (interview with Randy Landers), Part 2”

PROJECT POTEMKIN (interview with Randy Landers), Part 1

Without a doubt, we live in a veritable renaissance of Star Trek fan films… one after the other they come, dazzling us with intricate and expansive sets, elaborate green screen backgrounds, meticulously crafted costumes, breathtaking special effects, professional level make-up and lighting, and rich music and sound effects. Production teams in the hundreds often include veteran Star Trek actors and professional screenwriters who have worked in Hollywood. Heck, some of these fan films are even being shot in Los Angeles with crowd-sourced budgets well into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

But what if your budget is missing four or five zeros at the end? What if you’ve got virtually nothing to spend on your fan film? With all the blazing supernovae of independent Star Trek cinematic achievements out there, is it even worth it to make just a simple “fan film” anymore?

Apparently, the answer is wholeheartedly yes, and Project: Potemkin has more than two dozen episodes online to prove it! Continue reading “PROJECT POTEMKIN (interview with Randy Landers), Part 1”

STARSHIP EXETER, part 2 – “The Tressaurian Intersection”

Last time: we followed the history of Starship Exeter’s first episode, “The Savage Empire,” from its humble beginnings in 1995 to its release onto the Internet in 2002. Starship Exeter was a game-changer, helping to usher in the modern age of Star Trek fan films.

Although the producers, Jimm and Josh Johnson, hadn’t initially planned to make another episode, fans weren’t taking “no” for an answer and actually offered to help make it. And so Starship Exeter would get a second episode after all… and this time, they were taking aim at a much higher level of quality.

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STARSHIP EXETER (feature), Part 1 – “The Savage Empire”

What a long, strange trip it’s been for Starship Exeter!

In December of 2002 when Starship Exeter released its first episode, “The Savage Empire,” it was a total game-changer. Exeter rewrote the rules of what a Star Trek fan film could be and helped to usher in what many call the modern age of fan films. Twelve years later, Starship Exeter released the final act of its second episode, “The Tressaurian Intersection,” considered by many to be one of the few MUST SEE Star Trek fan films out there.

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“MIND-SIFTER” – Fulfilling a 30-Year Promise to the “Grandmother of Trek”

If you’re a true Star Trek fan, you should watch “Mind-Sifter,” the latest episode released from Star Trek: New Voyages.

(NOTE: Two weeks after this blog was posted, New Voyages released another episode, “The Holiest Thing,” but this entry is about its predecessor, “Mind-Sifter,” which was released in December of 2014.)

You shouldn’t watch “Mind-Sifter” simply because it’s a well-constructed, well-acted, and well-produced story. And you shouldn’t watch it simply because it feels like good Star Trek.

Mind-Sifter 1 - Shirley Maieski — Shirley S. Maiewski a.k.a. “Grandma Trek”.

No, you should watch it to honor the memory of an amazing woman who almost single-handedly helped to define, grow, and nurture Star Trek fandom while it was still in its infancy. I dare say that we all wouldn’t be here today celebrating Star Trek as passionately as we do if it weren’t for Shirley S. Maiewski, also known as “Grandma Trek.” Continue reading ““MIND-SIFTER” – Fulfilling a 30-Year Promise to the “Grandmother of Trek””

The VERY FIRST major Star Trek Fan Film: Paragon’s Paragon (1974)!

Estimates from the Vulcan Academy of Sciences place the number of Star Trek fan films currently on YouTube and Vimeo at approximately 16,489,247. Personally, I think they’re a little low. But let’s face it: there’s a LOT of Star Trek fan films out there!

And unless you have waaaaaaay too much free time on your hands, you probably can’t watch every Star Trek fan film. And that’s where this blog comes in. I’m planning to spotlight a bunch of my favorites, telling you exactly why I think they’re MUST SEE STAR TREK.

Continue reading “The VERY FIRST major Star Trek Fan Film: Paragon’s Paragon (1974)!”