External correspondence
2014–2017 press indexed from the Wikipedia Prelude article — then curated FanFilmFactor coverage by Jonathan Lane (2016–2026), summarized here with full articles linked at source.
Related production stills
161 articles indexed · June 2014 press through June 2026
View full chronology on Production Timeline →
USS Ares bridge set — final studio shoot
Featured · October 5, 2023
It’s been a looooooooooooooooooong road…getting from there to here. “There” was back in 2014 when the first Kickstarter for the full AXANAR project, ignited by the release of PRELUDE TO AXANAR , managed to generate over 638,000 from 8,548 backers. A subsequent Indiegogo campaign the following summer pushed that total o
June 17, 2026
It was during San Diego Comic-Con back in 2014 when Star Trek fans first got to see PRELUDE TO AXANAR . Now in 2026, twelve years later (!!!), the first of the two Axanar sequels, THE GATHERING STORM , will make its debut with a special press screening in San Diego on July 26, the Sunday of this year’s Comic-Con! The v
January 7, 2026
It was nearly twelve years ago when ALEC PETERS, MARK EDWARD LEWIS, and a bunch of members of the production team of PRELUDE TO AXANAR sat together inside a the SOL 7 sound studio in Encino, CA while the sound levels of that groundbreaking fan film were mixed together and equalized. It is now 2026, and the sequel that
March 31, 2024
PRELUDE TO AXANAR debuted in 2014 and awed fans with its production quality, acting, costuming, make-up, sound, music, visual FX…the whole shebang. The 20-minute “mockumentary”-style fan film became iconic, a new level of achievement to strive for. And with a cliffhanger ending, fans eagerly awaited the continuation of
January 28, 2024
Fans are still reeling from the unexpected passing last week of beloved sci-fi actor GARY GRAHAM, who died of a heart attack at the too-young age of 73. In my tribute eulogy on Tuesday , I briefly mentioned my own personal encounter with Gary at the first AXACON gathering in Georgia back in 2018. Unbeknownst to yours t
February 19, 2024
It’s a moment that many Star Trek fans thought would ever happen. This past weekend, AXANAR finally wrapped filming for ALL 19 actors set to appear in the two upcoming Axanar sequel fan films! After a seven-year delay from the originally-scheduled start of principal photography back in February of 2016—interrupted by a
October 5, 2023
It’s been a looooooooooooooooooong road…getting from there to here. “There” was back in 2014 when the first Kickstarter for the full AXANAR project, ignited by the release of PRELUDE TO AXANAR , managed to generate over 638,000 from 8,548 backers. A subsequent Indiegogo campaign the following summer pushed that total o
January 31, 2023
1/27/2023 Axanar Day 1 at Ares Studio Wow, can you believe that it’s been more than 14 MONTHS since my last AXANAR -focused blog ? I remember back when I used to publish blogs about Axanar almost weekly ! Back in November of 2021, I reported on the first new Axanar shoot since 2019…and the first shoot where new directo
November 24, 2021
It’s been more than five months since I’ve published a blog regarding AXANAR , ARES STUDIOS , or ALEC PETERS…and that might be some kind of record for Fan Film Factor ! The previous blog covered the moving of the U.S.S. Ares bridge set to a new, smaller facility (with lower rent) down the road in Lawrenceville, GA. But
June 2, 2021
Back in 2017, ALEC PETERS closed down the massive INDUSTRY STUDIOS in Valencia, CA and moved all of the AXANAR assets—including the massive and still unfinished Ares bridge set—2,500 miles across the country to Lawrenceville, GA. The new and much smaller facility was dubbed ARES STUDIOS , and the bridge set was effecti
May 18, 2020
Okay, so a lot happened over the past few days in Lawrenceville, GA…the home of ARES STUDIOS . If you read yesterday’s blog , you know that the AXANAR project got a jaw-dropping $10,000 donation last Thursday from a very generous and supportive donor…bringing the total for the current private crowd-funding campaign abo
May 17, 2020
I always leave a tab open on my browser to monitor donation totals when I’m promoting crowd-funding campaigns,. For the past couple of months, I’ve kept a tab for the current AXANAR campaign to fund the major “alien” green screen shoot . Earlier this week, the private fundraising total was at $10,795…although the numbe
March 16, 2020
The full trailer for AXANAR is finally here! Four months ago, after the first October shoot at Ares Studios, a brief teaser was released with about 30 seconds of actual footage—a combination of a couple of brief VFX sequences and a bunch of quick-cut live-action shots filmed on the USS Ares bridge set. Since then, ho
June 27, 2020
Hurry, hurry! Get ’em while they’re hot…and available! (Well, at least get them while they’re still only $30 plus shipping.) Last month , ALEC PETERS raised nearly $10K for ARES STUDIOS in a Kickstarter that offered a special Master Systems Display cutaway poster of the USS Ares , the fan-favorite Starfleet assault cru
June 1, 2020
It took just two weeks, but 258 AXANAR fans and supporters just donated $9,690 to fund a series of Master Display Posters and also, of course, ARES STUDIOS in Lawrenceville, GA. The monthly expenses run about $4,200 ($3,750 of that is rent, the rest utilities). A Patreon brings in about $2,600 a month from an average o
July 31, 2020
The following message from actor GARY GRAHAM was posted to Facebook on Wednesday afternoon: An hour or so later, when asked what happened, Gary added this brief explanation: This obviously comes as a blow to AXANAR fans who looked forward to once again seeing Vulcan Ambassador Soval in the two 15-minute sequel fan film
July 31, 2020
Jonathan Lane (July 2020) on Ambassador Soval portrayer Gary Graham departing — bridges Wikipedia cast notes to Production Archive.
July 3, 2020
AXANAR needs only two more shooting days and the production phase will be complete. Just…two…more…days. Seems so simple, and yet, because of COVID-19, it’s proven to be just out of reach. And it’s not just Axanar that’s been stopped dead in its tracks. Because of concerns from the various Hollywood trade unions, televi
July 29, 2020
ALEC PETERS has logged a lot of “firsts” in the Star Trek fan film community. He was the first to raise more than a million dollars in crowd-funding for a Trek fan film project, he was the first to get sued by the studios, the first to survive such a lawsuit and reach a settlement agreement, and the first to set up an
January 30, 2020
I love PAUL JENKINS. I just do. Over the past few months, he has become one of my favorite people on the planet…and when you listen to my interview with him, I think you’ll understand why (or at least, I hope you will). When it comes to AXANAR , it always seems to be ALEC PETERS this and ALEC PETERS that—here an Alec,
January 28, 2020
The final two AXACON 2019 panels are now available on the AXANAR YouTube channel . One of the panels—“The Crew of the USS Ares ” (the third of the four from December’s event)—actually went live last week along with the Producers panel, and I completely missed announcing it. D’oh! The other is the fourth and final panel
January 22, 2020
I know that ALEC PETERS cannot post anything publicly about AXANAR crowd-funding, but I can! So here’s the BIG NEWS for today… Axanar is now just $4,133 away from reaching its first crowd-funding goal (which was just lowered from $60K to $50K because $10K was actually bridge set construction, and that’s an Ares Studios
January 15, 2020
Say what you will about AXANAR . But the one inescapable fact is that, perhaps more than any other Star Trek fan film (maybe any fan film period), Axanar is teaching fans a LOT about the process filmmaking. Sure, some cynics will say, “Yeah, it taught us all not to piss off the copyright owners!” But it’s also provided
February 5, 2020
For the fourth week in a row, I’ve got some AXANAR news that’s significant enough to warrant its own blog. And for anyone thinking, “Oh, you talk about Axanar all the time!”—my last Axanar blog prior to mid-January was three months earlier in mid-October. Anyway, today’s new is actually VERY big, as it deals with Axana
February 27, 2020
After raising more than $50,000 to cover the costs for the first two AXANAR shoots back in October and December, ALEC PETERS just reached out to donors on the Axanar mailing list with a request for $3,400 for the third shoot. Initially, Alec had announced that “Phase 2” of the private crowd-funding would try to raise a
August 9, 2020
Well, I certainly had an interesting Saturday morning! Before I get into the news and the statements from PAUL JENKINS and ALEC PETERS on the subject of the termination of their relationship, I’d like to start this blog with something that happened on Friday night… Several weeks ago, just prior to Alec contracting COVI
April 3, 2020
A lot was happening in the world of AXANAR just three short weeks ago. After raising $50K to cover 2/3 of the cost of the first two shoots at Ares Studios (ALEC PETERS covered the rest personally), an additional $5K was raised in a new private crowdfunding campaign in February. That allowed a third one-day shoot to hap
April 22, 2020
Lately, it seems like every morning we wake up with a choice to make: optimism or pessimism? Either the world is collapsing around our ears or else we’re gonna make it through this pandemic and everything will be fine again. Sometimes it feels like we’re faced with this decision multiple times each day! And that brings
September 24, 2019
I’m sure some folks are thinking, “For the love of Spock, Lane! ANOTHER update on AXANAR ??? Just make the damn movie already!” Actually, one of my readers posted a comment last week during the previous Axanar update , asking the following question: “Isn’t the finished product the important thing?” Well, yes and no… Ob
September 20, 2019
It’s a FANtastic time to be an AXANAR supporter…with big news and updates coming fast and furiously now. It’s creating a feeling of excitement and electricity throughout the community. Meanwhile, the detractors are rapidly running out of things to complain about! (Seriously. After perk packets began arriving in mailbox
September 12, 2019
Believe it or not, it’s been nearly three months since my last blog update on the status of the AXANAR sequels. But that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a TON of stuff going on! For those folks who have been watching the regular updates by ALEC PETERS on the (usually) weekly “ Axanar Confidential ” YouTube podcast, you
October 7, 2019
It's nothing to do with what we got today. That's great. It's the next piece...and the piece after that...until we finish the work. And at that point, we can be judged on our finished piece of work. That's how it works. So we had a great time; we did some really great stuff. The trick is to finish it, not to start it.
October 6, 2019
On Friday , I was able to post video updates and features throughout the day from the first day of shooting for the long-awaited AXANAR sequel fan films. But on Saturday, I had to drive down to (and back from) San Diego to appear on a fan film panel at a Dr. Who convention there. I wish I could have been down in Lawren
October 4, 2019
WARNING!!! If you are an AXANAR detractor, do NOT read this blog! If you have spent any or all of the past four years confidently predicting that ALEC PETERS would never get his act together enough to start making his ambitious fan film a reality, look away now. If you think that nobody will work with Alec anymore beca
October 20, 2019
It’s been less than two weeks since the first shoot for AXANAR wrapped, and ALEC PETERS just released the first teaser-trailer for what will be called THE GATHERING STORM . PRELUDE TO AXANAR was episode III of “The “Four Year War” multi-part documentary series from the 23rd century. The first two episodes will need to
May 30, 2019
Among the more annoying and often-ignored fan film guidelines is number 6e: “No unlicensed Star Trek -related or fan production-related merchandise or services can be offered for sale or given away as premiums, perks or rewards or in connection with the fan production fundraising.” Boo. Hiss. Expletive. And as I’ve sa
May 3, 2019
What…you didn’t see that coming? I thought about keeping this little nugget of information secret for a few weeks longer, doing a “big reveal” just before launching my crowd-funding campaign next month. But I just can’t help myself! I want you all to know about INTERLUDE : A Star Trek Fan Film set in the AXANAR Univers
May 20, 2019
It’s the announcement fans have been waiting more than three years to hear! Production on AXANAR (the sequel to PRELUDE TO AXANAR ) had originally been scheduled to begin in early 2016. I had even cleared my schedule to drive to Valencia, CA to visit the set on the morning of February 2 and then drive a contest winner
May 16, 2019
If you haven’t signed up to be a backer of the ARES STUDIOS Patreon campaign yet, to quote Chekov: “Now vould be a good time!” Patrons at all levels (even as low as $2/month) get access to a monthly PRIVATE livestream YouTube Question & Answer session with ALEC PETERS. The link isn’t posted publicly but rather is email
March 6, 2019
Some folks ask why I give so much coverage to ALEC PETERS and AXANAR . The answer is simple: because there’s so much to cover! And trust me, if there were any news out of other major “in development” fan projects like Pacific 201 or Starship Farragut , I’d be covering them, too! In fact, last week I had a FANtastic int
June 20, 2019
Yes, my friends, AXANAR is really (finally!) happening. And before some of you say, “Ha! I’ll believe it when I see it!” ALEC PETERS has now put out a call for volunteers the weekend of October 4-6, 2019. J.G. HERTZLER is confirmed to be in Lawrenceville, GA for that weekend, the bridge set is 99% complete, costumes ar
June 2, 2019
In the TOS episode “Whom Gods Destroy,” Kirk mentions that Garth’s exploits were required reading at Starfleet Academy. Well, if you’re a fan of AXANAR and ALEC PETERS, then the video below should be considered “required viewing.” AXACON took place last November in Atlanta, and about 30 people attended. However, knowin
January 6, 2019
Earlier today, the AXANAR YouTube Channel was temporarily “terminated” (according to messaging displayed when users visited the web page). Numerous recent video updates with tens of thousands of views each were suddenly gone and inaccessible…along with Prelude to Axanar , the Vulcan scene, and numerous behind-the-scene
January 6, 2019
Earlier today, I reported that an attempt had been made to hack into the AXANAR YouTube channel…pointing out that the prime suspect(s) was/were most likely one or more detractors. Very quickly, one of my readers, JOE DIAZ, forwarded me the following tweet from one of the people managing the channel… Other comments on m
January 24, 2019
Yesterday , I began speaking to ALEC PETERS about his new PATREON campaign for ARES STUDIOS. Officially launched last Friday evening, in less than a week, with 95 patrons as of this evening, it’s already nearly 25% of the way to its goal of generating $4,000/month in donations to help pay rent and utilities for the stu
January 22, 2019
It’s been hinted about for the past few weeks, but on Friday night, it became official. ARES STUDIOS (formerly OWC Studios) in Lawrenceville, GA—home to the amazing USS Ares bridge set—has launched a new PATREON campaign to help cover the monthly costs of rent and utilities (about $4000/month). For those of you unfamil
April 29, 2019
Last time , I began chatting with PASHA SOUVORIN, the Video Pathway Lead Teacher for Gwinnett County Public Schools . Pasha is one of the teachers whose students have been coming to ARES STUDIOS in Lawrenceville, GA to film on the amazing bridge set that was built using funds raised from fan donations. The bridge is no
April 29, 2019
In my previous two blogs , I featured an interview with PASHA SOUVORIN, the Video Pathway Lead Teacher for Gwinnett County Public Schools and a teacher at Phoenix High School in Lawrenceville, GA. Over the past 18 months, his video students have filmed multiple productions on the amazing 36-degree bridge set at ARES ST
April 29, 2019
Last time , I began chatting with PASHA SOUVORIN, the Video Pathway Lead Teacher for Gwinnett County Public Schools . Pasha is one of the teachers whose students have been coming to ARES STUDIOS in Lawrenceville, GA to film on the amazing bridge set that was built using funds raised from fan donations. The bridge is no
April 17, 2019
When ALEC PETERS reluctantly shut down Industry Studios in Valencia, CA and moved to the current ARES STUDIOS location in Lawrenceville, GA, he took with him as much as he could fit into the trucks. This included the various pieces of the amazing USS Ares bridge set, costumes, props, equipment, patches, and a second se
September 24, 2018
This past Friday, ALEC PETERS published a blog providing the latest “ AXANAR Financial Update. ” ( You can read it here. ) In the blog, Alec explains that Axanar Productions is now serviced by one of Atlanta’s largest and most prestigious accounting firms, Frazier and Deeter, and that Axanar Productions owes no taxes c
September 24, 2018
Yesterday , I published part 1 of an interview with ALEC PETERS, executive producer of AXANAR , discussing, among other things, the financial update he just posted last week ( you can read it here. ) Axanar had a net loss of $150K overall, funds covered personally by Alec, as they exceeded the $1.2 million raised from
October 22, 2018
Last week, when I posted my blog editorial about Carlos Pedraza getting banned from Axacon , there were a LOT of comments posted. One of them was a an impassioned post from ALEC PETERS himself, discussing Carlos’ obsession with both Alec and the Axanar Productions finances. Alec’s post began with this… I seriously cons
October 18, 2018
Wow, quite a shat-storm started a’blowin’ after my blog post yesterday about CARLOS PEDRZA being banned from AXACON and then asking ALEC PETERS to refund the $413.50 Carlos lost buying a non-refundable plane ticket! So much came out yesterday that, unfortunately, I need to do a follow-up to clarify, explain, and respon
October 16, 2018
There’s chutzpah and then there’s CARLOS PEDRAZA chutzpah . I’m talking cajones-the-size-of-monster-truck-tires chutzpah !! It all began this past Sunday night at 5:54pm Eastern Time when a Paypal order came into SphinxCon for a ticket with an Axacon add-on for one Carlos Pedraza. This immediately led to a discussion b
October 1, 2018
AXACON is now exactly one month away, and ticket prices for the weekend convention have just been lowered from $85 (not counting online processing fees) to $50. This price reduction is based on a different scope to the ticket being purchased. Initially, attendees would be required to first buy a $60 ticket to SphinxCon
November 9, 2018
Here’s a summary of Day One , and here’s a summary of Day Two . My head hit the pillow on Saturday night, I blinked, and it was suddenly 7 hours later (thank you, daylight savings!)—I was that exhausted after two days of Axacon . But now I was recharged with only one day to go…and this day was much less hectic. I was o
November 8, 2018
Click here for a summary of Day One of Axacon . As for Day Two, I can sum it up in just one word: WOW! It was unquestionably one of the craziest but most fun times I’ve ever had at any Trek convention (big or small). As I did yesterday, this will be a “deep dive” into what Axacon was like for me… It began with breakfas
November 7, 2018
I love a small, intimate convention…especially one with guest celebrities. While the huge Creation Cons and Dragon*Cons and San Diego ComiCons can be mind-blowing, the quiet, intimate setting of a small convention is a unique and treasured experience for me. In my youth, it was at small cons where I once had breakfast
November 2, 2018
Hey, guys. Not a lot of time to blog. I flew out on a red-eye from Los Angeles with minimal sleep last night, arrived in Atlanta at 6:30 am, and got to ALEC PETERS’ house about 8am. Thank goodness he didn’t ignore the doorbell (he’d been pulling consecutive all-nighters with the team to get the USS Ares bridge complete
May 26, 2018
MICHAEL ILASI, a dedicated AXANAR detractor, announced last month that he was planning to create a “parody” of Prelude to Axanar using actual footage from the fan film…re-edited to be “funny.” But what Michael released wasn’t a parody so much as a mockery . It belittled ALEC PETERS and the other cast members of Prelude
June 23, 2018
After a lull in AXANAR news out of Georgia for several months, it seems that there’s suddenly a LOT to talk about! This past week, in addition to the announcement of a director for the two Axanar fan films, PAUL JENKINS, as well as editor MARK EDWARD LEWIS and DIT/colorist BING BAILEY, ALEC PETERS just announced the lo
June 19, 2018
Click here to read Part 1. ALEC PETERS is pretty much a man who needs no introduction…at least in the fan community. But if you’ve only just landed on this planet, here’s a quick run-down. Alec has been the driving force behind the fan production AXANAR for half a decade, writing, producing, and appearing in the widely
June 18, 2018
“What’s happening with AXANAR ?” “When is it coming out?” “Has the entire project just fallen apart?” “Who’s the director?” “Do they even have a production team?” These questions and so many like them pour into comments, IMs, and emails to me almost weekly. (In fact, the “fallen apart” one came in just last week.) I’ve
February 11, 2018
Some call them “haters.” I call them “detractors.” Any way you slice it, though, they are the Captain Ahabs and Khans of the fan film community. They will chase ALEC PETERS ’round the moons of Nibia and ’round the Antares Maelstrom and ’round perdition’s flames before they ever let go of their anger and resentment for
December 9, 2018
These days, I don’t typically engage directly with the AXANAR detractors. There’s no point. I’m not gonna change their minds, and they’re certainly not gonna change mine. Any “discussion” we get into quickly breaks down into all the old beating-dead-horse accusations and rumors and criticisms—often with a generous h
December 4, 2018
Remember that bridge set that the AXANAR detractors said would never be finished? Well, I’m sorry to disappoint the detractors (no, I’m not), but it’s almost finished, folks! I’d estimate we’re more than 95% of the way there at this point, but that’s just a subjective opinion. The important point is that things have no
December 28, 2018
During our marathon 3-hour “ Blogger Battle of Axanar ,” Australian Trekzone.org blogger MATTHEW MILLER and I discussed many things, including telling the truth about Axanar …something that I noted the detractors seldom do. It’s one of the reasons I spend so much time correcting the record here on Fan Film Factor , bec
December 19, 2018
Congratulations, folks, you’ve made it to Part 3! I’m assuming you’ve already sat through Part 1 and Part 2 of the debate about all things AXANAR between myself and Australian blogger MATTHEW MILLER of Trekzone.org. The first two parts have received a few hundred views each, with lots of comments made on both sides o
December 17, 2018
Last Wednesday, we debuted Part 1 of a three-hour discussion and debate about all things AXANAR between myself and Australia-based Star Trek blogger MATTHEW MILLER. We both have very strong feelings about the Axanar project and its show-runner ALEC PETERS, and we’ve never been particularly shy about sharing those feeli
December 12, 2018
Okay, folks, it’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for! (Well, maybe not ALL of you…but at least a few hundred, I’m sure.) Earlier this week, I revealed the “ origin story ” of this two-way interview where blogger MATTHEW MILLER from Trekzone.org and I discuss and debate all things AXANAR . Now it’s time to put our m
August 21, 2018
In June of 2017, when I saw the headline that a former Star Trek actor was planning to run for the U.S. Congress, I wasn’t at all surprised to find out that it was J.G. HERTZER. Even though his character of General Martok from Deep Space Nine (who eventually became Chancellor Martok , leader of the Klingon Empire) loat
August 19, 2018
Things are beginning to get very exciting when it comes to AXACON , the “con-within-a-con” that is happening during the first weekend of November in Atlanta, GA. In the last few weeks, some major new guests were added, and last week, tickets finally went on sale. The guest list now includes GARY GRAHAM (who plays Ambas
June 29, 2017
This morning I face a bit of a dilemma. There’s an 800-pound mugato in the cave (a more appropriate metaphor than “elephant in the living room”), and I needed to decide how to deal with it. On the one hand, it’s fan film news…major fan film news, in fact. A version of the 90-minute AXANAR script that was “locked” prior
June 20, 2017
Earlier today, ALEC PETERS posted the following blog on the AxanarProductions.com website. As it’s very relevant to my editorial blog entry from yesterday—and it makes some excellent points—I asked for and received Alec’s permission to re-post the blog in its entirety here on FAN FILM FACTOR. (Please note that the opin
June 13, 2017
Last November, a crowd-funded Star Trek project got sued for copyright and trademark infringement by a major rights holder. No, not Axanar ! That was the previous year, silly (although the Axanar lawsuit was still going on when this other lawsuit was filed). In this new case, however, the defendant was none other that
January 9, 2017
Yesterday I began taking you on a journey through 250 years of fair use in copyright law. My information came primarily from this excellent 70-page article by University of South Carolina School of Law Professor Ned Snow : “Judges Playing Jury: Constitutional Conflicts in Deciding Fair Use on Summary Judgment.” For mor
January 8, 2017
Imagine it’s about three or four years from now, and you’re watching the news. Suddenly, you start hearing William Shatner’s voice, “Space, the Final Frontier…” as the news anchor says, “ Star Trek fans are about to go where they’ve never gone before. The Supreme Court has just agreed to hear a case involving a 2014 St
January 7, 2017
When I was preparing my previous 2-part blog– THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY! –the first thing I did was to reach out to my legal eagles and ask them what from Judge Klausner’s Order on Motion for Partial Summary Judgment that they thought should go into each of the three categories. I was surprised when one of my bir
January 5, 2017
Okay, we now know one very important thing that we’d only suspected up until now: Judge R. Gary Klausner is a closet Trekkie (or possibly, it’s one of his law clerks)! Before I start a deeper dive into the judge’s 15-page Order on Motion for Partial Summary Judgment issued on Wednesday morning, I’d just like to share a
January 5, 2017
In Part 1 , we began looking at the hard-hitting, 15-page Order on Motion for Partial Summary Judgment issued by Judge R. Gary Klausner in the AXANAR lawsuit early on Wednesday morning. It was mostly bad news for the defense, although not fatal. The judge didn’t grant either side’s motions for summary judgment, leaving
January 4, 2017
Judge R. Gary Klausner has just issued his Order on Motion for Partial Summary Judgment in the AXANAR lawsuit. I’m reading it over right now, and I’ll have a more comprehensive analysis in the next few days. But on first glance, it seems to be much more of a blow to Axanar than to the studios. However, it is not a knoc
January 4, 2017
This morning, Judge Klausner made a ruling that the case will go to Jury Trial to determine if Axanar is “substantially similar” to the CBS copyrighted works. If it is, then the jury will have to find if the infringement is “willful” or “non-willful”, and Judge Klausner already stated that “Peters’ actions demonstrate
January 31, 2017
Last Saturday, your sometimes-humble blogger, Jonathan Lane , appeared live on the SHANE PLAYS geek talk radio show to discuss the AXANAR lawsuit and surprising last-minute legal settlement. Since then, folks who weren’t able to listen when it first aired have asked me when and how they can listen to the entire broadca
January 25, 2017
While we wait for my interview with Alec Peters for be reviewed and approved by the AXANAR legal team (yes, they’re taking the confidentiality aspects of the settlement agreement quite seriously…as they should), there was a posting made yesterday morning addressing some of the questions many Axanar fans (and detractors
January 22, 2017
The puppets just learned their options were picked up for Ax’d-No-More! Dave Heagney, Jr. is a fellow blogger and Facebook friend of mine. Actually, I should correct that to say that Dave WAS just a Facebook friend and has since become an actual friend whom I speak with on the phone and look forward to meeting in perso
January 20, 2017
The following press release was just sent out by Axanar Productions. I am told there will be more details coming in an e-mail to be sent out to donors later on today. As soon as I receive that e-mail, I will publish it here. Feel free to submit comments, but please understand that there is still a LOT we all do not kno
January 20, 2017
And so it ends…not in fire, not with a warp core breach and a huge explosion that rocks the very foundation of the world of copyright law, but with a quiet settlement between the parties with sparse details revealed to anyone not directly involved in the AXANAR lawsuit. Press releases were issued separately by both CBS
January 2, 2017
With things heating up in the AXANAR Lawsuit and trial set to begin in just 30 more days(!), there’s a LOT to keep track of. In fact, I expect to be typing pretty feverishly over the next few weeks as summary judgments are announced and oppositions filed to motions to exclude evidence and witnesses. So secure all stati
January 15, 2017
Moses Avalon works as a leading proponent of artists’ legal rights with 30 years experience and four books under his belt. Two of his books, Million Dollar Mistakes and Confessions of a Record Producer continue to be required reading in over 50 music business courses around the world including the music business progra
January 13, 2017
Readers of the FAN FILM FACTOR comments sections know that I’ve spent months begging ALEC PETERS, executive producer for AXANAR , to discuss his production’s financials with me on an interview. A few weeks ago, he finally agreed! This is NOT that interview. That interview is still coming. Before I conduct it, I want to
January 12, 2017
Yesterday in Part 1 , we began looking through Judge R. Gary Klausner’s TENTATIVE (important word!) rulings in the AXANAR lawsuit regarding the exclusion of evidence and witnesses from the jury trial. The rulings were issued to the attorneys early Monday morning (before oral arguments, which is standard practice) and r
January 11, 2017
Okay, nobody cheer, nobody panic! These are all TENTATIVE rulings in the AXANAR lawsuit. Judge Klausner himself even made sure to put the word TENTATIVE in ALL CAPS in his ruling yesterday: The Court makes the following TENTATIVE rulings on the Motions In Limine : Plaintiff’s Motions In Limine No. 1 – Denied Plaintiff’
February 3, 2017
In Part 1 of my interview with AXANAR executive producer ALEC PETERS, we covered the past and the present. We discussed what led up to the copyright infringement lawsuit from CBS and Paramount, what happened during the 13 months the lawsuit was progressing toward trial, and what led to the unexpected (to most of us , a
February 2, 2017
ALEC PETERS, the executive producer of AXANAR PRODUCTIONS ) has arguably become one of the most controversial and polarizing figures in the world of fan films. Having worked on the fan series Star Trek: New Voyages/Phase II , Alec ultimately set his sights on producing a Star Trek fan film of his own: Axanar . Using th
February 17, 2017
NOTICE: THERE IS AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF INCORRECT INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS EDITORIAL. SOUND STAGE RENTAL IS NOT $15K-$30K/DAY BUT RATHER PER MONTH . A FOLLOW-UP BLOG CORRECTING THIS ERROR APPEARS HERE . One of the most controversial decisions made during the three-year saga (so far) of AXANAR was the choice to buil
February 13, 2017
Right after the settlement in the AXANAR lawsuit was announced, rumors were flying that the reason for this unexpected development was because the Court had lifted the confidentiality designation on Alec Peters’ financials. According to some detractors (well, most of them), Alec suddenly panicked that the jig was up an
April 30, 2017
Well, it’s been a pretty busy couple of weeks for news about AXANAR , as literally every other blog entry I’ve posted over the past 12 days has involved that particular fan production in some way. So heck, let’s keep the momentum going for one more day! But seriously, folks, there’s an interesting bit of news about Axa
April 24, 2017
This past Saturday, my son Jayden and I drove to Industry Studios in Valencia to help pack up the Axanar Productions items for a move east to a new production facility in Atlanta, GA. It was a sad day for me because I really loved Industry Studios. I’d loved watching it evolve from a stark, gutted building with no indi
April 20, 2017
Last month, I published a blog where I provided a copy of the AXANAR financials, along with reporting on the go-forward plans for AXANAR PRODUCTIONS and INDUSTRY STUDIOS. Obviously, those plans have changed quite a bit over the past few weeks—as Tuesday’s blog pointed out—but the financials remain constant because they
April 13, 2017
In Part 1 , I outlined the dire situation that ALEC PETERS and AXANAR PRODUCTIONS were in regarding INDUSTRY STUDIOS . The dream had turned into a nightmare as money was running out. A new Indiegogo campaign had pretty much stalled far short of its goal, and it was looking like all the work and donor money that had gon
April 12, 2017
Reality is not always kind or fair, and sometimes life hands you a Kobayashi Maru . Over the past few days since ALEC PETERS ‘ announced the departure of AXANAR PRODUCTIONS from INDUSTRY STUDIOS , there have been discussions, debates, and some knockdown/drag-out arguments. Was money squandered? Should Alec have just re
September 7, 2016
Last time: well, last time there was just way too much to summarize, so just click here to read it if you haven’t already. Basically, with a trial date set for January 31, 2017 and no settlement announced yet, the case has entered the discovery phase. (So yes, “ Star Trek: Discovery ” now means two totally different th
September 6, 2016
It’s time for Star Trek discovery! No, not the new TV series. I’m talking about the next phase of the Axanar copyright infringement lawsuit: legal discovery . Last week, former Axanar marketing director and tech guru, Terry McIntosh, posted on Facebook that he had just been subpoenaed by CBS and Paramount to be deposed
October 5, 2016
I’m going to save some time and instead of summarizing Part 1, I recommend you read it , if you haven’t already. You can also link to the 60-page Joint Stipulation document that contains both Axanar ‘s Motion to Compel the studios to deliver the remainder of the documentation they initially asked for, and also the stud
October 4, 2016
It’s “High Noon” in the Axanar lawsuit…and we haven’t even gotten to trial yet! But that ominous background music is playing, and the two gunfighters are facing off for a showdown in the middle of a dusty street in a western town. More specifically, the CBS and Paramount lawyers at Loeb & Loeb are facing down the Axana
October 31, 2016
So my best one-sentence summary of Magistrate Judge Charles Eick’s ex parte order in the Axanar lawsuit would be: “Move along folks; nothing to see here.” In other words, nothing really surprising happened (at least if you read my previous blog ). In short, the plaintiffs asked for three main things and got two and a h
October 29, 2016
Remember back in the first half of this year when the initial documents were being filed in the Axanar lawsuit? Remember how each time one side or the other would submit their latest filing, it would suddenly look like it was “game, set, and match?” And then the other side would respond, and it would seem like a knocko
October 28, 2016
Man, just when you thought we’d go at least a few days without a long AXANAR post! But hell hath no fury like a pair of studios compelled by a judge to produce a ton of discovery documentation and new witnesses to depose. So what the heck just happened? Well, long story short, yesterday the plaintiffs attorneys in the
October 26, 2016
And so we come to the fourth and final part of this blog series. (Time sure flies when you’re writing 2,000 words a day!) Here are links to Part 1 , Part 2 , and Part 3 . If you haven’t read them yet, to quote Pavel Chekov, “Now vould be a good time.” It’s probably pretty darn busy right now at CBS and Paramount. What
October 25, 2016
Before we jump back into the legal battle of Axanar , I strongly recommend you read Part 1 and Part 2 of this blog analysis if you haven’t already. There’s a LOT that happened last week involving the Axanar copyright infringement lawsuit, including a 2-hour long court hearing and a ruling by Magistrate Judge Charles Ei
October 24, 2016
If you haven’t read Part 1 yet, go read it now. Then come back. Welcome back. Shall we begin…? When last we left off, the focus was on J.J. Abrams and Justin Lin and their public comments about Axanar . The studios have now been ordered in a ruling by Magistrate Judge Charles Eick to turn over: All Documents and Commun
October 23, 2016
Okay, so everyone is talking about, cheering about, cursing about, and analyzing Friday’s ruling by Magistrate Judge Charles Eick after the hearing to determine Axanar ‘s motion to compel discovery from the studios. Rather than summarize exactly what just happened, I am going to humbly direct you to the blog website of
October 21, 2016
I don’t usually get breaking news as it happens, but Judge Magistrate Charles Eick just ruled on the Axanar defense team’s motion to have the court compel discovery (force the studios to deliver documents they were refusing to produce for the defense to look over before trial). I was in court myself observing this morn
October 13, 2016
Yesterday , we began discussing the two documents filed by the opposing parties in the Axanar copyright infringement lawsuit last Friday. (There’s actually three documents, but more on that later.) Both of the new documents are significantly shorter than the 60-page Joint Stipulation document from the previous week tha
October 12, 2016
Did you hear the fireworks last Friday afternoon? If you were in the Central District Federal Courthouse of the 9th Circuit, you might have! As expected, both the Axanar defense team at Winston & Strawn and the CBS/Paramount legal team at Loeb & Loeb filed their brief supplements to their recent 60-page Joint Stipulati
November 4, 2016
Okay, I just couldn’t wait anymore! I had to know…was a settlement reached in the Axanar copyright infringement lawsuit???? If you read my previous blog on the subject , you know that the two sides–CBS/Paramount and Alec Peters/ Axanar Productions–were ordered by judge R. Gary Klausner to sit down for one last-ditch at
November 30, 2016
Yes, it’s that magical time again! Jonathan is going to play tour guide to take anyone who is interested on a journey through the latest two major filings in the AXANAR lawsuit, each submitted to the Ninth Circuit Federal Court this past Monday. Plaintiffs Opposition Defense Opposition For a better idea of what is goin
November 29, 2016
First, I’d like to apologize if FAN FILM FACTOR seems like it’s turning into the ALL- AXAANR NETWORK. Yes, there are still other Star Trek fan films out there, and I promise to get back to covering them. But the Axanar news these past two weeks (and for the next three weeks) is truly significant and could, very likely,
November 24, 2016
Last time , we began looking at the PLAINTIFFS Motion for Partial Summary Judgment in the AXANAR copyright infringement lawsuit. In Part 1 and Part 2 , we looked at the DEFENSE Motion for Summary Judgment . There’s been a LOT to cover, but we’re finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel (I’m just not sure wheth
November 22, 2016
Last time (and the time before that ), we took a look at the defense’s DEFENSE Motion for Summary Judgment in the AXANAR copyright infringement lawsuit. Now it’s time to take a look at the PLAINTIFFS Motion for Partial Summary Judgment and see what they have to say. And they certainly have a lot to say (as did the defe
November 20, 2016
Last time , we began to analyze the DEFENSE Motion for Summary Judgment that was filed by the AXANAR legal team on Wednesday with Judge R. Gary Klausner of the Ninth Circuit Federal Court. The attorneys for CBS and Paramount also filed a PLAINTIFFS Motion for Partial Summary Judgment , and I look more thoroughly into t
November 18, 2016
It was the best of crimes; it was the worst of crimes…or was it even a crime at all? (Actually, this is a civil trial, not criminal…but I needed a word that rhymes with “times.”) Looking at the two motions for summary judgment filed late Wednesday night by the two parties in the AXANAR copyright infringement lawsuit, o
November 18, 2016
The following message was just sent to all AXANAR donors… I n light of information contained in the Motions for Summary Judgement filed by both sides in our continuing litigation with CBS Studios and Paramount Productions, we think it’s important to provide some information to our fans and backers to help put everythin
November 17, 2016
Yep, we can now safely assume that the two sides in the AXANAR copyright infringement lawsuit have NOT reached a settlement yet. It came quite literally down to the wire! I checked with the court at 11:30 pm Pacific Time and neither side had filed any motion yet. I was wondering if they’d somehow managed to settle the
November 16, 2016
Well, it looks like there isn’t a settlement yet in the AXANAR copyright infringement lawsuit. And how do I know this? Because I now have confirmation that the defense will be filing a motion for summary judgment with Judge Klausner of the Ninth Circuit Federal Court later on today. (I don’t yet know if the plaintiffs
November 15, 2016
Tomorrow (November 16) is the deadline to file motions for summary judgement in the AXANAR copyright infringement lawsuit. And while the two sides are supposedly still in talks to settle (they reportedly had a conference call meeting yesterday), we’ll know tomorrow whether or not a settlement is imminent. How? Well, by
November 1, 2016
Just imagine: going to FAN FILM FACTOR and not seeing the words “AXANAR LAWSUIT’ at the top of the home page… It could happen! Yesterday, the two sides had a court-mandated meeting to discuss ways to settle the case before going to trial. Most lawsuits settle before ever reaching trial (like 90-95%, I’m told) because i
May 9, 2016
Mark your calendars! The judge in the lawsuit between Paramount/CBS and Axanar has now set a trial date of January 31, 2017. This is about three and a half months earlier than the litigating parties had mutually recommended to the court. Judge R. Gary Klausner now has all of the paperwork submitted by the plaintiffs, t
May 24, 2016
Just when we thought it was winding down… Three days after J.J. Abrams announced that the copyright infringement lawsuit against AXANAR and Alec Peters was “going away,” the Axanar attorneys at Winston & Strawn filed a legal Response to the most recent amended complaint and ALSO filed a Counterclaim for Declaratory Rel
May 22, 2016
JJ Abrams and Justin Lin have every reason to think like lawyers. After all, they make a lot of money from Star Trek , and if there’s a chance something will damage that brand and result in Star Trek making less money, that affects at least part of their livelihood. So why did Abrams and Lin put pressure on Paramount a
May 21, 2016
On Friday evening, at a little after 8pm Pacific Time, inside of Stage 31 at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, Star Trek Beyond Producer JJ Abrams shocked the fan film world by announcing that the copyright infringement lawsuit against AXANAR was “going away” and that “fans will be able to work on their projects.” Contin
May 10, 2016
As I said yesterday, folks, mark your calendars for January 31, 2017. Just as CBS gets ready to launch their new Star Trek TV series, the gavel will fall on the judge’s desk to cal to order CBS and Paramount’s lawsuit against Axanar Productions and Alec Peters . Unless there is a settlement or mediation in the next eig
March 28, 2016
On March 28, 2016, the legal team for Axanar Productions and Alec Peters, the firm of Winston & Strawn LLP, filed a response to the AMENDED copyright infringement complaint that was brought by Paramount and CBS on March 11, 2015. The response is Axanar’s second and again seeks a dismissal of the complaint on a number o
March 11, 2016
On March 11, 2016, Paramount and CBS filed an amended complaint against Axanar Productions and Alec Peters for copyright infringement complaint, specifying precisely which elements of the Star Trek intellectual property that the two studios believe was illegally used without consent. The original complaint was brought
June 23, 2016
Josh Rottenberg (June 23, 2016) on new Star Trek fan film guidelines after the Axanar dispute.
June 16, 2016
Four weeks ago, I wrote a very impassioned op-ed decrying that Trekkers should be fans and not lawyers. I am now going to turn myself into a complete hypocrite and become an armchair attorney myself…partly because of the shameless reason that it seems to boost readership of one’s blog but also because I think there’s a
July 20, 2016
Wanna see and hear what the guy who types all these blogs looks and sounds like? Last week, I was contacted by a news producer for ReasonTV and asked if I’d be willing to come in for a half hour or so and discuss Star Trek fan films. Well, gee, twist my arm! I’d never heard of ReasonTV, but it turns out it’s the latest
February 23, 2016
On February 22, 2016, the legal team for Axanar Productions and Alec Peters, the firm of Winston & Strawn LLP, filed a response to the copyright infringement complaint that was brought by Paramount and CBS on December 29, 2015. The response seeks a dismissal of the complaint on a number of legal grounds. Here is a link
December 9, 2016
“Did!” “Did not!” “Did too!” We are now at the “Did, too!” point of the summary judgement phase for the AXANAR lawsuit. Motions for summary judgment were filed back in November with each side asking the judge to make certain rulings before the trial even begins…rulings that could actually make the trial (or most of it)
December 6, 2016
If it’s Tuesday, that can only mean one thing: new documents in the AXANAR lawsuit were filed at midnight last night! But seriously, folks, these will likely be the last Axanar filings for the foreseeable future. In two weeks (December 19…a Monday, of course), attorneys for both sides will appear in court in front of J
December 23, 2016
In Part 1 , I explained what a motion in limine is (so if you don’t know, go click on that link). In Part 2 , I took a look at the ten in limine motions that the plaintiffs filed asking the judge in the AXANAR lawsuit to exclude specific evidence from trial and prevent certain key witnesses from testifying in front of
December 22, 2016
In Part 1 , I explained what a motion in limine is, so at least I don’t have to go through that again! And in Part 2 , I took a look at the ten motions that the plaintiffs filed asking the judge in the AXANAR lawsuit to exclude specific evidence from trial and prevent certain key witnesses from testifying in front of t
December 21, 2016
In Part 1 , I explained what a motion in limine is, so I don’t need to explain it again, right? Instead I can just jump into the ten motions the plaintiffs made in the AXANAR lawsuit to try to get certain key witnesses (including me!) and pieces of evidence excluded so that the jury will never see or hear them. Here ar
December 2, 2016
In Part 2 , we started looking more deeply into the fascinating points made in the Defense Opposition to the PLAINTIFFS Motion for Partial Summary Judgment . In Part 1 , we had looked into the Plaintiffs Opposition to the DEFENSE Motion for Summary Judgment . Both documents are 20 pages long and intelligently written.
December 19, 2016
Now that I’ve indulged my little emotional rant last Saturday, it’s time to sit down and take a somewhat less passionate look at the 19 motions in limine that both sides filed last week to exclude evidence and witnesses in the AXANAR lawsuit. The plaintiffs are challenging TEN different items of evidence and potential
December 17, 2016
Just when you thought you were out, I pull you back in! Yes, it’s AXANAR lawsuit time again…and I really didn’t expect this part to be quite so significant. Man, was I wrong! As you may recall, the next major event in the Axanar case was supposed to be oral arguments for the motions for summary judgment in front of Jud
December 14, 2016
The motions for summary judgment had been filed last month by both parties in the AXANAR lawsuit, followed by opposition briefs and reply briefs from both sides. Next Monday, at 9:00 a.m. at the Ninth Circuit Federal Court Building, lawyers from both sides were scheduled to appear before Judge R. Gary Klausner to argue
December 11, 2016
Last time , we took a deep dive into the fascinating world of the Plaintiffs’ Reply to the Defense Opposition to the Plaintiffs’ Motion for Partial Summary Judgment in the AXANAR lawsuit. (Say THAT three times fast!) This time, we look at the equally fascinating Defendants’ reply to the Plaintiffs Opposition to the Def
December 1, 2016
Last time , we took a look at what the plaintiffs had to say in their Plaintiffs Opposition to the DEFENSE Motion for Summary Judgment . Now it’s time to flip over to the Defense Opposition to the PLAINTIFFS Motion for Partial Summary Judgment . As I did yesterday, I’m going to conduct my review by gathering together s
April 28, 2016
And just when you thought we were done with pre-hearing filings in the Paramount and CBS copyright lawsuit against AXANAR, in come the Klingons! In what has to be one of the strangest amicus briefs (a “friend of the court” opinion submitted in a case by a party not directly involved) to ever come across U.S. District J
April 26, 2016
In what is likely the final documentation containing legal arguments to be submitted before the court hearing on May 9, 2016, the attorneys representing Axanar have just filed a Response to Paramount and CBS’s Response to Axanar ‘s latest Motion to Dismiss (itself a response to Paramount and CBS’s Amended complaint for
April 14, 2016
On April 11, the attorneys representing Paramount and CBS in their copyright infringement lawsuit against Axanar Productions and Alec Peters filed a Response to the latest documents that were submitted by Axanar ‘s attorney’s on March 28, 2016. Those documents were themselves a Response to the Amended Complaint filed b
December 31, 2015
Ben Child on Paramount and CBS setting phasers to kill off the crowdfunded Axanar feature after Prelude proved the concept.
December 30, 2015
Joe Otterson (Dec 30, 2015) on the lawsuit that followed Prelude's success and the feature-film campaign.
April 26, 2015
Bill Watters reports Prelude to Axanar among the Independent Star Trek Fan Film Awards winners.
June 11, 2014
Kayla Iacovino reports the three-minute teaser ahead of Comic-Con — tied to Production Timeline and Media Archive.
July 29, 2014
Jana Monji on the Horton Plaza red-carpet screening before San Diego Comic-Con debut — Richard Hatch and fan-verse crossover with Battlestar Galactica.
July 22, 2014
Alan Devenish on the quest to make a studio-quality Star Trek movie on a crowdfunding budget — Prelude's Comic-Con debut context.
August 8, 2014
Phaedra Cook praises cast chops (Richard Hatch, Tony Todd) and stunning VFX — demonstration-of-concept for Trek fans.
August 22, 2014
Tambay A. Obenson on Tony Todd in the indie-financed Axanar extension — watch the 21-minute Prelude.
August 18, 2014
Alison Baumgartner: a Star Trek prequel fans did not know they wanted — studio-quality ambition on a Kickstarter budget.
