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Star Trek and the Honor movie

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Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by npadln   » Fri Jul 10, 2015 1:03 pm

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So I've been watching this "crowd funding" effort to get the Star Trek movie, "Axanar, The Four Year War", made. So far it has been quite impressive, both the effort and the results so far. What is most amazing though is the miniscule cost compared to what the product so far looks like; amazing high quality. I hope DW is aware and taking notes...

AXANAR "Vulcan Scene" w/Introduction
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K723TV7GZFQ

Star Trek: Axanar - Prelude to Axanar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W1_8IV8uhA
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by HB of CJ   » Fri Jul 10, 2015 5:38 pm

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Wow.
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by Dauntless   » Sat Jul 11, 2015 7:06 am

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yep axanar is an incredible bit of star trek down amazingly cheaply compared to what it could cost.

partly that is due to almost everyone working for nothing but the quality for a non-profit work is incredible
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by SWM   » Sat Jul 11, 2015 8:39 am

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Dauntless wrote:yep axanar is an incredible bit of star trek down amazingly cheaply compared to what it could cost.

partly that is due to almost everyone working for nothing but the quality for a non-profit work is incredible

That is the key--they are doing everything for free.

There are millions of star trek fans in the world, and tens of millions are familiar with the canon. There are thousands of Honor fans, tens of thousands at best. Axanar gets to avoid many of the other costs of a commercial film, too, because they can avoid SAG rules, distribution costs, advertising costs, etc. You would have difficulty getting enough professionals doing an Honorverse movie for free.

In addition, Axanar is not licensed. No licensing fees, no interference from production companies, no income for the author. And no profit, no merchandise, no eventual royalties for the people doing the movie.

Even with all those advantages, they expect Axanar to cost over a million dollars.

Axanar is a great project, and I fully endorse it, but you can't fairly compare the Honorverse movie to Axanar.
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by vernonlvincent   » Sat Jul 11, 2015 1:30 pm

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Dauntless wrote:yep axanar is an incredible bit of star trek down amazingly cheaply compared to what it could cost.

partly that is due to almost everyone working for nothing but the quality for a non-profit work is incredible



I'm not sure everyone is working for free. According to the recent Annual Report of the project (posted on startrekaxanar.com) they spent the following from the second Kickstarter on salaries

$ 59,000 Production Team salaries
$ 54,000 Construction Team salaries

That said, it's still a sizeable amount less than what you might get paid on a full studio project. And while I can't compare it to an Honorverse movie (since it hasn't been made yet) - as a 3-time backer for Axanar who has a background in theater and film, I can say that I would put the quality up against anything I've seen in the movies today. If the Vulcan scene is any indication - they have the talent and technical capabilities to put this off.
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by saber964   » Sat Jul 11, 2015 8:05 pm

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Even main line movies can be made on the cheap. Remember the movie Halloween with Jamie Lee Curtis. They did that movie for around $1 million and it grossed over $30 million in the U.S. alone has made a small fortune since. You have to wonder how many indie movies are made on the cheap and rake in millions.
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by kzt   » Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:38 pm

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Even if people are working for free there are overhead costs like insurance that have to be paid per person you have doing stuff.
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by WmLambert   » Sat Jul 11, 2015 11:01 pm

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Lucas made computer imaging very complex and shot models on A and B-roll film. I shot animation on painted acetate cels with an Oxberry Materstand (the same multiplane camera that Disney used.) That machine cost about $75,000 and animation film was considered to be cheap. Live shooting left most takes on the cutting-room floor, so one often shot a mile of film for a few usable feet. The main cost was creating the art to be shot.

In the 80's, animation software cost over a million dollars, for what now is basically freeware. The paradigm changed from mostly model work to computer graphics, (except for efforts like Fury Road). The new way uses multiple artists using cheap computer programs that can be layered infinitely. Since it is the labor now, more than the machine time, I can see how donated efforts from many people can make a movie on the cheap. Even the live stuff is digital now.
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by cthia   » Sun Jul 12, 2015 1:37 pm

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WmLambert wrote:Lucas made computer imaging very complex and shot models on A and B-roll film. I shot animation on painted acetate cels with an Oxberry Materstand (the same multiplane camera that Disney used.) That machine cost about $75,000 and animation film was considered to be cheap. Live shooting left most takes on the cutting-room floor, so one often shot a mile of film for a few usable feet. The main cost was creating the art to be shot.

In the 80's, animation software cost over a million dollars, for what now is basically freeware. The paradigm changed from mostly model work to computer graphics, (except for efforts like Fury Road). The new way uses multiple artists using cheap computer programs that can be layered infinitely. Since it is the labor now, more than the machine time, I can see how donated efforts from many people can make a movie on the cheap. Even the live stuff is digital now.

What I get out of it other than the wow factor is that the original animosity and state of war between the Federation and the Klingons is being revisited. Of course, change through progress happens. Long ago in my life as a diehard trekkie and in another post on this forum I stated how sad I had been when the Kingons became allies with the Federation. As a reader, it was more fun without. IMO. Confrontation makes good storyline - grist for the mill. The Klingons were always better adversaries. IMO.

And it can't be argued that the Havenites, in comparison to the League, were worthy opponents, whereas I voiced that same concern when the Havenites became allies to the Manticorans. Sure, it is good for the naval officers but I feared it as a reader. Of course, the Honorverse series nears its end and it is good for it to culminate on a positive high. But, like in the Startrek world, if the Honorverse series were to continue, would the GA dissolve at some point in the future, for lack of good storyline?

After all, from the viewpoint of the reader, what good is all the tech that comes out of Bolthole if after the defeat of the MAlign there's no one to aim it at?

Will it mirror what happened with the development of the Federation ship that teased me, Voyager, that was supposed to be so badass - yet, the only way there could be found someone for it to fight was to lose it in a faraway quadrant?

Well, I like epic space battles. I have been harping on another League-GA battle that many of you said wouldn't happen. Well, with Hutch's spoiler post, seems I may get it anyways. "Oh ye of little faith."

Son, your mother says I have to hang you. Personally I don't think this is a capital offense. But if I don't hang you, she's gonna hang me and frankly, I'm not the one in trouble. —cthia's father. Incident in ? Axiom of Common Sense
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Re: Star Trek and the Honor movie
Post by SWM   » Sun Jul 12, 2015 5:38 pm

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vernonlvincent wrote:
Dauntless wrote:yep axanar is an incredible bit of star trek down amazingly cheaply compared to what it could cost.

partly that is due to almost everyone working for nothing but the quality for a non-profit work is incredible



I'm not sure everyone is working for free. According to the recent Annual Report of the project (posted on startrekaxanar.com) they spent the following from the second Kickstarter on salaries

$ 59,000 Production Team salaries
$ 54,000 Construction Team salaries

That said, it's still a sizeable amount less than what you might get paid on a full studio project. And while I can't compare it to an Honorverse movie (since it hasn't been made yet) - as a 3-time backer for Axanar who has a background in theater and film, I can say that I would put the quality up against anything I've seen in the movies today. If the Vulcan scene is any indication - they have the talent and technical capabilities to put this off.

I believe that's about two people's worth of salary, for professional jobs (and their professional equipment) they didn't get any volunteers for.
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