When you hear the term “fan film’, admittedly there is a measure of dubious skepticism that happens.  That is NOT the case with Star Trek: Axanar.  I say this because I was lucky enough to spend a day on set while filming for the Prelude to Axanar was happening, and I cannot begin to adequately sing the stellar praises of the production.

Go to Netflix, look up Star Trek TOS (The Original Series) season 3, and play episode “Whom Gods Destroy”.  You’ll meet Garth of Izar, who is being held prisoner in Elba II Asylum (Garth will be played in the film by executive producer Alec Peters).  It is mentioned he is the great hero of the Battle of Axanar, and that his history remains required reading at Starfleet academy.  Garth is probably my favorite of all TOS villains, with possible exception of Khan and “Mirror Mirror” everybody.  Axanar tells the story of Garth and his crew during the ‘Four Years War’, the war with the Klingon Empire that almost tore the Federation apart.  Garth’s victory at Axanar solidified the Federation and allowed it to become the entity we know in Captain Kirk’s time.  For those of you familair with Trek lore, check out Axanar‘s ‘geek FAQ‘ on their website for further info on the timeline (post Star Trek: Enterprise pre Star Trek: TOS).II

This is the video that went with the kickstarter (now ended, fully funded) for the Prelude:

Just from that, you get the scope of the vision of the project.  Pretty damn ambitious for a non-profit fanfilm.

These guys aren’t messing around in terms of visual effects, music, script, CAST.  I mean where ELSE are you going to see Tony Todd, JG Herztler, Gary Graham, Richard Hatch and Kate Vernon in one place this side of Rigel 4?  Tony Todd will be playing Admiral Ramirez, JG as Captain Sam Travis, Gary will be reprising his role as Ambassador Soval, Richard Hatch will be donning full Klingon makeup to play Commander Kharn, and Kate Vernon will be Captain Sonya Alexander.  (Check out their official blog for some exclusive photos!)

On Friday the 25th the kickstarter for the 90 minute feature length Axanar film went live, and on Tuesday the 29th before midnight, they hit their first goal of $1ook.  They also promised to release the finished 20 minute Prelude To Axanar, which they did and posted on the new campaign page.  Prelude had it’s world premiere during San Diego Comic Con International to critical applause and acclaim.  Photos from their red carpet can be found on their Facebook page.