Axanar and the Future of Star Trek Fan Films

This issue is a tough one. Star Trek Fan Films have been around for a long time and have even included cast members from the original show. George Takai, for example, starred in the 1985 fan film “Yorktown: A Time to Heal.” There have been several other examples of high profile actors agreeing to star in fan-produced Trek movies. As technology made it easier and easier for fans to make films of increasingly better quality, the fans did just that. “Star Trek: Hidden Frontier” shot seven episodes in front of a green screen with special chromakey effects. By 2004 fan film production budgets were hitting a hundred and fifty thousand bucks and more.

Along came the fan film “Star Trek: Prelude to Axanar.” This short was masterfully done and perceived as competition by Paramount Studios. Take a look for yourself:

Prelude was a smashing success and later the team behind it managed to raise over a million dollars to flesh out “Prelude” into a full-length feature film. That’s when the hammer came down, and CBS and Paramount Studios filed a lawsuit against Axanar claiming copyright infringement and forced an immediate stop to production. Shortly after that, Paramount released a set of Guidelines would-be fan film producers must follow to make a Trek fan film and avoid being sued. The guidelines can be found here: fan-films.

A few of the notable new restrictions:

The fan production must be less than 15 minutes for a single self-contained story, or no more than two segments, episodes or parts, not to exceed 30 minutes total, with no additional seasons, episodes, parts, sequels or remakes.

The fan production must be a real “fan” production, i.e., creators, actors and all other participants must be amateurs, cannot be compensated for their services, and cannot be currently or previously employed on any Star Trek series, films, production of DVDs or with any of CBS or Paramount Pictures’ licensees

CBS and Paramount Pictures do not object to limited fundraising for the creation of a fan production, whether 1 or 2 segments and consistent with these guidelines, so long as the total amount does not exceed $50,000, including all platform fees, and when the $50,000 goal is reached, all fundraising must cease.

Major Buzz Kill – am I right?

Personally, this is a tough issue for me, and I find myself conflicted as to where I stand on the issue. The sticky wicket here I believe is the very nature of technology and the growing ease at which films can be produced. Trek fan films have grown from what truly looked like acts of undying fandom, to Hollywood-style productions. For those with the appropriate skill set and talent, technology has made possible the impossible. Take for example the sci-fi short “Underland, The Last Surfacer” by Gonzalo Gutierrez who shot the film in only three days, and crafted the output with some polished film editing skills:

Amazing film. I can see why film studios want to put a lid on these type productions when they take aim at an established franchise. At what point will fan films eclipse the commercially produced product?  Is that what should happen? Don’t get me wrong, on the one hand, my fanboy geekdom wants the fan films to be produced; yet the studios do have some legitimate concerns here. Copyright infringement is copyright infringement. As the first video points out, the fans have been a major force propelling Star Trek forward. I hope I am wrong, but I think the studios will win the day here and put a lid on big budget fan films. Technology has made it just too easy for those who know how to use it to produce films of such a great quality that the sheer nature of the competitive beast will ensure much gnashing of teeth and clashing of lawyers.
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