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Star Trek: Of Gods and Men

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Star Trek: Of Gods and Men
A promotional poster for Of Gods and Men
Directed byTim Russ
Screenplay by
  • Ethan H. Calk
  • Sky Conway
  • Jack Treviño
Story by
  • Sky Conway
  • Tim Russ
  • Jack Treviño
  • Ethan H. Calk
Produced bySky Conway
Starring
CinematographyDouglas Knapp
Music byJustin R. Durban
Release date
  • June 15, 2008 (2008-06-15) (part 3)
Running time
89 minutes
LanguageEnglish

Star Trek: Of Gods and Men is a noncanonical and unofficial Star Trek fan film, which contains many cast members from the Star Trek TV series and movies. [1] Its backstory is Charlie X, the second episode of Star Trek: The Original Series. Described by the producers as a "40th-anniversary gift" from Star Trek actors to their fans, it was filmed in 2006, but its release was delayed until 2007–08. It was not endorsed by the rights-holders of Star Trek, but has been covered on the official Star Trek website.

Plot

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In 2305, a mysterious man (William Wellman Jr.) appears at a run-down outpost demanding the location of Captain James T. Kirk, only to find out that he was presumed dead saving the USS Enterprise-B 12 years earlier. Angrily declaring he "didn't wait 40 years to be cheated", the man overloads the outpost's systems, destroying it.

Meanwhile, Captain Nyota Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) attends the dedication of a new U.S.S. Enterprise (NCC-1701-M), a replica of the original 1701 commanded by Captain Kirk's nephew Peter (James Cawley). There she meets with Captains Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig), head of Starfleet Security, and John Harriman (Alan Ruck), captain of the USS Enterprise-B.

After receiving a distress call they set a course to M-622, the planet housing the Guardian of Forever. Uhura, Chekov, and Harriman beam down to the planet's surface where they meet the mysterious man from the outpost, revealed to be Charlie Evans. Imprisoned for four decades and embittered by Kirk's decision to turn him over to the Thasians, he decides to use the Guardian to erase Kirk from history, by killing his mother before he was born.

His action changes the timeline beyond measure. The galaxy is governed by the Galactic Order. Ruled by a mysterious being known only as "Curate Prime" it's a militaristic state including Klingons, Romulans, and Orions in their ranks. Harriman is a brutal mass murderer commanding this timeline's analog to the Enterprise, the G.S.S. Conqueror. He captures Chekov (under the nom de guerre "Kittrick") and his shape-shifting companion Ragnar (Gary Graham), who lead a movement of freedom fighters against the Galactic Order. Harriman orders them taken to the brig, and sets a course for Vulcan, which has declared neutrality.

On Vulcan, Uhura is married to Stonn (Lawrence Montaigne) and has several children. Upon learning of the Conqueror's arrival, the Vulcans begin to evacuate. Harriman unleashes an "Omega device" and destroys the entire planet.

Uhura and her friend Tuvok (Tim Russ) are captured by the Conqueror and put in the brig with Kittrick and Ragnar. With Tuvok's help, Uhura recovers memories of the old timeline, and convinces Kittrick and Ragnar to help them take the ship back to the Guardian to restore the timeline. Harriman is taken prisoner and transported to the surface with Kittrick and Uhura, where they encounter Charlie Evans who realized it was a mistake to remove Kirk from the timeline. He restores the three's memories while keeping the memories of the altered timeline as well.

Back on the ship Koval (J. G. Hertzler), the Conqueror's Klingon first officer, orders their executions, believing Harriman to have turned traitor. As Commander Garan (Garrett Wang) and his security officers take them to Curate Prime (Daamen Krall) one of them shoots his comrade, revealing himself to be Ragnar.

Uhura recognizes Curate Prime as Gary Mitchell who believes himself to be a living god. With Kirk not there to stop him in this timeline, Mitchell was able to kill the captain of the Enterprise – in this case, Christopher Pike – and take control of the United Federation of Planets, refounding it as the Galactic Order.

As they escape into the ship, a fleet of Kittrick's allies, led by Captain Galt (Herbert Jefferson Jr.) of the free ship Liberty, engages the Conqueror, with Curate Prime leading a fleet of his own to destroy Kittrick and his rebellion. While Chekov and Harriman take control of the Conqueror, Uhura transports to the surface. Mitchell follows her, believing her to be Chekov/Kittrick, and tortures her, demanding his location. Charlie Evans steps in to protect her, using his Thasian-granted powers to battle the god-like Mitchell. Beaten, Mitchell transports Janice Rand (Grace Lee Whitney) – the first woman Evans had ever met, when he was taken aboard the Enterprise – to distract him, letting off one last burst of energy before escaping to his flagship. Angered and weakened, Mitchell orders the firing of his ship's Omega device, which will destroy both the captured Conqueror and the planet.

On the surface, Uhura convinces Evans to set things right, while in orbit, the Conqueror is severely damaged and about to be destroyed by a warp-core breach. Harriman sets the ship on a collision course, but helm control fails, and the Conqueror begins to drift off course; Chekov separates the saucer, which would allow the warp-core explosion, to ram it into Mitchell's flagship. Reaching out to try to divert it, Mitchell finds his powers have disappeared, and as the Conqueror's engineering section explodes, the shockwave sends the saucer right into the flagship; Mitchell screams Kittrick's name as his ship is destroyed. At the same moment, Evans goes through the Guardian and returns to the point where he visited the outpost and demanded to know where Kirk was. Waiting for Evans this time, instead of the data clerk, was his future self, who shoots him with a phaser. The timeline reverts to normal, and the landing party returns to the museum ship.

One year later, Uhura – motivated by her memories of the alternate timeline – marries Stonn on Vulcan. Chekov is at last promoted to admiral, while Harriman announces his intention to run for the Federation Council. Among the guests at the wedding is Janice Rand, who presents Chekov with a gift for his promotion – a tribble, which Rand assures him has been neutered. Uhura toasts the last 40 years of adventure, while Chekov toasts to the next 40, remarking that Spock always said there were possibilities.

Cast

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Production

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The series was directed by Tim Russ and conceived and produced by Sky Conway. Best known for playing Tuvok on Star Trek: Voyager, Russ had directed one episode of that series. The series was shot on the Star Trek: New Voyages sets in Port Henry, New York.[4] Scenes were also shot around the Los Angeles area, including at Vasquez Rocks, a popular site for Star Trek location footage.[5] Scenes set at the Vulcan Science Academy were filmed in the San Fernando Valley.[6] Principal photography began July 12, 2006,[7] and finished in October 2006.[5][8]

The series was produced with a budget of $150,000. Actors were paid according to SAG guidelines, but others involved in the making of the miniseries helped to produce it with little or no pay as "a labor of love".[9]

Returning Star Trek cast and crew

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The miniseries starred Nichelle Nichols as Nyota Uhura, Walter Koenig as Pavel Chekov, Grace Lee Whitney as Janice Rand, and Celeste Yarnall as Yeoman Martha Landon, (here, as special wedding guest) from the original series.[8] Alan Ruck also reprised his role as Captain Harriman from Star Trek Generations, and Tim Russ appeared as Tuvok. Other regular Star Trek actors appeared in new roles, including Garrett Wang and Ethan Phillips (who respectively played Harry Kim and Neelix from Voyager), J. G. Hertzler, Cirroc Lofton, and Chase Masterson (Martok, Jake Sisko, and Leeta from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), and Gary Graham (Ambassador Soval from Enterprise). The series was written by DS9 writers Jack Treviño and Ethan H. Calk. Douglas Knapp, the director of photography, had worked on Voyager.[8]

Co-writer Jack Treviño explained how so many actors from the series had been willing to participate:

Trek actors have a special relationship with their fans ... they regarded the project, not only as the ultimate thank you to Gene Roddenberry and the original stars of Trek, but [also] as a thank-you to [the fans] who supported the series over the last 40 years.

Executive producer Douglas Conway had tried to assemble more of the original series cast, but when George Takei (Hikaru Sulu) was not available, this led to the idea of including Ruck's character as captain.[10]

Three actors from Star Trek: New Voyages, James Cawley, Jeff Quinn, and Bobby Quinn Rice (Kirk, Spock, and Peter Kirk), also featured.

Release dates

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The press releases in July and October 2006 anticipated a Christmas 2006 release.[8] On January 6, 2007, the first part of the series was announced as delayed until April. This was to allow the three parts of the miniseries to be released closer together, with the second part following in May, and the third in June.[11]

On April 15, 2007, the planned release date of part one, the official website announced that the release of the films had been delayed yet again. On October 31, 2007, the official website announced that part one would be released on December 22, 2007.[12] On February 20, 2008, part two was announced to be released on March 15, 2008.[13] On May 22, 2008, part three was announced to be released on June 15, 2008.[14]

In a May 2007 interview with Houston Chronicle blogger J. Kevin Tumlinson, director Tim Russ said the producers were attempting to distribute the project through current Star Trek franchise owner CBS, and if successful, they would sell the production as either a download or a DVD. The producers then clarified on the official forum that while "plans to release the series as a free download remain in place", licensing by CBS would be required for any versions for sale, e.g. DVDs.[15]

In November 2008, Renegade Studios began giving free DVDs of the film as thank-you gifts to their online customers. As of December 2009, a new edition of the DVD with pop-up commentary trivia was being offered.[citation needed]

Reception

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The film won the 2008 Best Web Production award from SyFy Portal.[16]

Follow-up

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Star Trek: Renegades, a series directed by Russ and with many others of the series team, was released on a nonprofit basis in 2015.

References

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  1. ^ TV to talk about, Toronto Star, December 18, 2007
  2. ^ Star Trek: Of Gods And Men. DVD Screener liner notes
  3. ^ Calk, Ethan H. (December 22, 2007). "Topic 402: Post #16". Renegade Studios. Archived from the original on February 2, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  4. ^ Brian Mann (July 22, 2006). "Star Trek Fan Films Live Long and Prosper". NPR.
  5. ^ a b "Roundup: Wrap Parties, Meaney, Watson, etc". startrek.com. October 3, 2006. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved December 12, 2006.
  6. ^ Sean Elliot (October 20, 2006). "Set Report: iF magazine boldly goes to Vulcan for Star Trek: Of Gods and Men". iFMagazine.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007.
  7. ^ "Let There Be Lights: "Of Gods and Men" Shoots". startrek.com. July 12, 2006. Archived from the original on February 2, 2009. Retrieved October 2, 2006.
  8. ^ a b c d "Star Trek: Of Gods and Men Wraps Production" (DOC) (Press release). Star Trek: Of Gods and Men. October 2, 2006.
  9. ^ Biring, Amarpal (November 22, 2012). "Star Trek: Renegades – Exclusive Interview with Trek Writer Jack Trevino". What Culture LTD. Retrieved January 22, 2014.
  10. ^ Michael Sheridan, Former Star Trek stars reunite for independent film, New York Daily News, June 26, 2008
  11. ^ Anthony Pascale (January 6, 2007). "Of Gods and Men Delayed Until April". trekmovie.com.
  12. ^ Part 1 Release Date Announced Archived July 24, 2011, at the Wayback Machine on official site, October 31, 2007.
  13. ^ Newsletter Archived September 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine on official site, February 20, 2008.
  14. ^ Part 3 Release Date Announced Archived June 10, 2008, at the Wayback Machine on official site, May 22, 2008.
  15. ^ Copy of blog, with responses at official forum
  16. ^ STOGAM Wins Best Web Production Award on official website
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