Location - Osnabruck, Germany

Lee Andrew, an Englishman who has lived most of his life in Germany, has been instrumental in almost single-handedly recruiting every major German fan film group to the Trek United Fan Film Campaign. Star Trek: Andromeda is "in production" and expects to release their first episode in the first quarter of 2006. However, they already have four clips and an interview available for free download which will be joined soon with another interview.

The origin of ST: Andromeda goes way back to 1997 when a group of friends produced an audio drama series called "Star Trek: The Undiscovered Series". The desire was always there though to produce a Star Trek fanfilm and over time the crew gained the experience resources to finally make their dream come true.

In June of 2004, they officially launched their website, and on July 24 they shot their first scenes, although they only released their first teaser in October of that year. The pace of work has always been slow for Andromeda, mainly because of two factors, lack of manpower - it is basically a three man operation - and a dedication to high quality work.

The cast of ST: Andromeda is also the production crew. Friedrich Bensch plays Commander Bensch, previously assigned to the USS Lakota before a stint on a research station, who is now assigned to the USS Andromeda. Arbian Shabaj, who wrote the storyline behind Star trek: Andromeda, plays an admiral who was kicked out of Starfleet during the Dominion war, only to be reinstated and continue a distinguished career. Lee Andrews is not only the captain of the USS Andromeda, but the scriptwriter, 3D animator, sound and video editor, special effects guru as well as webmaster of the forum and website. Lee has even found the time to lend his voice to one of the characters in the Trek Audio drama "Star Trek: Pioneers".

One member of their team, who you won't be seeing on camera, is Clifford Hoeft, who joined them as lead graphics designer in September, releasing their first film poster in October of last year.

2005 has mainly been a year of improvements to their online presence, a Forum, a new version of the first scene, their first wallpaper, an RSS News Feed Service, a podcast and in June this year a short video Interview, showing current production status, information and commentary on the pilot episode from the cast and crew.

In keeping with the amateur status of the production crew, they are after all learning their trade as they go along, details of the finished product are at the moment sketchy. They see their pilot episode as a "Technology and Ability Demonstrator", with episodes of between 45 to 60 minutes in German with English subtitles. In common with many Trek fan films, ST: Andromeda will be live action shot mostly against Green Screen backgrounds with stunning CGI ship scenes.

Current estimate is for a first quarter 2006 release of their first episode. | Discuss this in the Forum
Technorati:
Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by Kirok at 05:09 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

The nominations for the 2005 "Mackies" have been announced. From their website" ...

On Saturday, November 12, 2005, the Academy of Machinima Arts and Sciences will present the 2005 Machinima Film Festival - a full-day of Machinima (animated filmmaking using 3D video game technologies), taking place at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens (NY).

The one-day event will include screenings of Machinima films, special presentations, talks with award-winning independent filmmakers and seminars about Machinima production techniques.

Congratulations to Geoffrey James' Borg Wars for his two nominations in "Best Technical Achievement" and "Best Series." Wadidayetellya? They're good, man! Look at the competition in best series though - "Red Vs. Blue"! Everyone's heard of that!

Geoff, reports that Part Five is coming along nicely and will almost certainly be released by year's end. | Discuss your opinions of the Mackies and the nominations in the Forum
Technorati:
Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by Kirok at 11:07 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Week three of the campaign moves on to the largest hotbed of Trek fandom outside of the USA - Europe, where we are exceptionally lucky to have the pick of European Trek fan films supporting our campaign ...
Starship Highlander - The genesis of Trek satire comes from Europe
Star Trek: The Legacy - The fan film featured on Trekies 2
Star Trek: Andromeda - Trailers & podcast available
Star Trek: Mystery Area - Great effort from a young team

This is your opportunity to show that you still support Paramount made professional productions. At the same time you can find out more about the work of the fans who are the best litmus paper in the world regarding the direction that Trek should go - the fan films. Fans who out of their own pockets are trying to rekindle the flame that they grew to love. Fans who can see new and innovative stories in the Star Trek universe. Fans who still think that the Roddenberry dream has a message for this generation ... and the next!

The cards and envelopes this week should be sent to Paramount Germany. They are available for free download along with a poster for Week 3 on the Fan Film Mailer Web pages featured on the Trek United Front page! Show your support for Star Trek, post one today! | Discuss this in the Forum
Technorati:
Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by Kirok at 04:40 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Starship Exeter who, at the start of July released the first instalment, the Teaser/Trailer of their second episode "The Tressaurian Intersection", have finally put Act 1 up on the web for free download!

Originally scheduled for release on July 8th, but was delayed by work on "several effects shots". Although it was not anticipated to be delayed by much, the delays were to drag on for three months! Amidst rumblings of discontent, the consensus amongst their fans was always that they were prepared to wait for what they were assured would be a better quality episode.

Was it worth the wait? You bet your sweet bippy it was! After downloading it and watching it this morning I would say that it is arguably the best all round fan production I have seen to date! The acting was consistently good, the plot sufficently convoluted to hold your interest and the sets, spfx and CGI that we waited so long for? They were absolutely stunning!

The oldest Trek Fan Film production company, Exeter's first episode "Savage Empire" was started way back in 1995 and released in 2002 and they have been generally regarded as trying to stay closest to the ideals of the Original Series. In this they have succeeded, so much so that you could be forgiven for thinking that this is a lost original series episode! | Discuss this in the Forum
Technorati:
Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by Kirok at 11:26 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Some creative googling today has yielded the discovery of yet a new Stargate fanfilm: Stargate SG-Delta.

"The premise of this project is this: A situation arises which the SGC is unable to handle. One of General Hammond's assistants gets authorization to form a new SG team composed of an Army Delta Force team. Their initial mission is a rescue operation which also uncovers a new threat to Earth. SG-Delta is born."

Be sure to visit the downloads to catch a couple preview glimpses, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at the project and the all-important blooper reel.

Technorati: Stargate, Planet Fandom, Fandom, Fanfilms, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 12:04 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Week 2 of the Trek United fan film campaign to raise public visibility of the Star Trek fan film community and show that Trek fandom is still interested in professionally produced shows is now in full swing.

Postcards, envelopes and a poster are available for download focussing on Paramount UK (remember we are PRO-fan films, NOT anti-Paramount!) and feature another four fan film groups: ST: Excalibur, ST: Farragut, ST: Impact 25 and ST: Intrepid. For more information about these production groups, download the week's campaign leaflet. | Discuss this in the Forum
Technorati:
Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by Kirok at 12:31 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Geek in the City has a great interview with Eric Busby of Darker Projects (Star Trek Pioneers, Star Trek Section 31 Files, etc).

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 11:10 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

The first week of the Trek United fan film campaign is now behind us and the campaign has hit the road with a vengeance. With the slogan "Franchise Fatigue? Fans worldwide still support Star Trek!" its purpose is two-fold: to give Star Trek fans an opportunity to remind the powers that be that they are still there and to raise public visibility of the Star Trek fan film community.

six postcards and matching envelopes can be downloaded for free from the internet to be sent to the focus of attention for this week, Paramount Australia and feature four fan film groups: ST: Dark Armada, ST: Lexington, ST: Unity and Tales of the Seventh Fleet.

For more information about these production groups, download the week's campaign leaflet, checkout this week's custom-made teaser trailer and stay tuned to Planet Fandom for feature articles over the next four weeks. | Discuss this in the Forum
Technorati:
Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by Kirok at 06:31 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

During this episode we will discuss and review the three Star Wars Infinities Comics (ANH, ESB, ROTJ).

Star Wars Infinities is a group of four-part comic book series published by Dark Horse Comics. The comics tell the stories of alternate histories to Star Wars Episodes IV-VI, therefore making them non-canonical, unlike most comics, which are considered canon. The individual Infinities stories are unrelated to one another.

What are your comments or reviews about the SW Infinities comics? Send them (or phone number for us to call) to studio@swendirect.com or in this thread in our new SWD message board which we encourage you to register.

The live broadcast begins this Tuesday October 18th, 2005 at 7PM Eastern

Listen live to experience the true nature of our show!

Remember to vote for us on Podcastalley.com each month.

Posted by Dany Pepin at 06:03 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

The 7th episode of Star Wars Action News, the only podcast dedicated only to Star Wars collecting, has been posted. You can get it by going to your regular Podcast RSS aggregator or by direct download at reviewstarwars.com

This week we "stay on Target" with a look at the Target exclusives this year, with special focus on the recent rash of Target exclusive figures and vehicles. How many is too many? How rare is too rare?

Also there is a new entry to the Star Wars Christmas Ornaments which have long been dominated by Hallmark. What are these new ornaments, and are they worth buying? We evaluate the merits of both these new ornaments and the long-running Hallmark collection.

Finally we answer some listener mail, with such topics such as how do we display our collection, do we collect vintage, and have we ever been called "neurotic". Listen to find out.

Also we want to thank all of you for listening, for writing in, and for voting for us on Podcast alley. We are still collecting entries for the favorite items in your collection, which will be our next week's topic, so you have a few more days to write in and get your favorite item read on our 'cast.

To thank our listeners we have teamed up with Andrew's Toyz to bring you a chance to win a scaled Obi-Wan Kenobi or Anakin Skywalker Master Replicas lightsaber. Listen to our podcast for all the details.

Thanks once again for listening to our podcast, and keep the feedback coming. You are giving us great topics for upcoming shows!

Technorati: Star Wars, Planet Fandom, Fandom, Fanfilms, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 10:04 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

In show 23 I discuss giving the new sci-fi shows a chance, two book reviews and my thoughts from the observation lounge. Download it at SciFiDig.

Posted by SciFiDig at 06:34 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

(Cool) Shite on the Tube turns up the heat at this year's top pop-culture expo, Supanova, in Sydney! Supanova has invited Joffre St. Productions to interview both national and international guests as well as provide audio recording and podcast-delivery services for the convention.

"We're very excited to have this opportunity to work with Daniel Zachariou, Supanova Event Director and the rest of the Supanova team," said Joffre St. Productions Director, Bruce Moyle, "This partnership proves that audio-ondemand is a viable alternative to traditional media and distribution methods. It also provides subcultures and niche interests a way to represent themselves on a global platform. Pop-culture is cool, podcasting is cool, and the combination of the two is not only compelling but a lot of fun!"

Some of the featured guests at Supanova include John Rhys-Davies (Lord of the Rings), Richard Hatch (Battlestar Galactica), and Sam J. Jones (Flash Gordon). The Supanova convention takes place October 14 - 16, Wharf 8, Sydney. For more information on Supanova, please visit www.supanova.com.au.

Some extra info:

1. We are recording all the panels which will be produced into a podcast for Supanova
2. Anything we record we are allowed to put into our podcast
3. We get dibs on interviewing guests
4. We have been asked to host majority of the panels (still confirming which ones)
5. We have some "pre-Supanova" interviews coming up for our podcast with some of the guests.

More info as it comes in!

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 05:22 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

The October 2005 issue of the SF Site is now online at sfsite.com.

SF Site Discussion Forums are now open. Drop
by for a visit and browse the topics.

In our current issue, some of the reviews you'll find are:
The Overnight by Ramsey Campbell
The Complete Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Every Which Way But Dead by Kim Harrison
Wasps At the Speed of Sound by Derryl Murphy
All the Rage This Year edited by Keith Olexa
The Hounds of Avalon by Mark Chadbourn
Best Short Novels 2005 edited by Jonathan Strahan
Guilty Pleasures, The Laughing Corpse and Circus of the Damned by Laurell K. Hamilton
The Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch by Terry Pratchett, Ian

Stewart & Jack Cohen
Mr. Fox and Other Feral Tales by Norman Partridge

SF Site columns and features:
SF Site News compiled by Steven H Silver
Babylon 5.1: TV reviews by Rick Norwood
A Conversation With Glen Cook
Enter the Dark Age: an interview with Mark Chadbourn
Serenity -- movie reviews by Steven H Silver and Rick Norwood

Plus a whole lot more including hundreds of links, archived reviews, interviews, articles, reading lists, awards listings...

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 05:04 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Hello loyal listeners! I wanted to start by thanking all of you for your e-mails and your votes at Podcast Alley. For only being on line for five weeks the response is much higher than I could have ever hoped for. Your wonderful feedback is helping to shape the show and giving us great fodder for many more episodes to come.

One comment we have a lot is "The show is too short!" Well, our first week we were told we were too long :) I like to say "leave 'em wanting more" but, that said, there are a couple extra minutes in this week's podcast. I should have known that was coming when we sat down to record and I said to Marjorie "It will probably be a short one this week". Irony in action, folks. Still, we are aiming to stick around 20 minutes per week, with the occasional "special" 30 minute episode when the need arises. We just covered more than our usual three things this week.

In this sixth episode we talk about the new Hasbro finds at Target and Sam's Club, we look at the newly released photos of the Star Wars Transformers, and then discuss exactly what the Star Wars Fan Club has done for us.

We want to remind you all to keep sending us in e-mails on the favorite item in your Star Wars collection. We're looking for the ONE item you cherish above all else and WHY. Every favorite item usually has a great story to go with it, so tell us yours. My wife will whet your appetite this week by telling you her favorite item to get you started.

So be sure to check us out at reviewstarwars.com or check your favorite podcast RSS feed for our sixth episode. Keep the e-mails coming, we love the feedback.

Technorati: Star Wars, Planet Fandom, Fandom, Fanfilms, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 04:30 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Ratings for Hidden Frontier's "Vigil":
Plot:
Acting:
Dialogue:
Special Effects:
Overall: (of 5)

The Hidden Frontier Star Trek fanseries is impressive for it's longevity alone, but it's creators constant effort to push the envelope is what really makes it notable. Vigil is a groundbreaking and ambitious effort among Star Trek fanfilms, and not only because it features a notable crossover with New Voyage's James Cawley (Captain Kirk). In the longest episode ever attempted by the Hidden Frontier group, this episode plays like an actual television production of Star Trek, with cross-crossing A and B plots spanning interstellar politics to personal character struggle.

Vigil sports an intriguing plotline that dovetails nicely into pre-existing Star Trek history, decent acting, and an applaudable performance by James Cawley, though the episode does have a few key drawbacks. In some areas, the dialogue gets a bit muddled, and the characterization of the lead Romulan in the story at one point stretches suspension-of-disbelief.

The episode also delves into a foray which studio Star Trek rarely approached: a homosexual attraction between two male cast members. The way this bit of human drama plays out is sometimes silly, if only for its own cliche self-awareness (women trying in vain to get his attention by showing off their cleavage, etc). But overall, the episode is very watchable, and maintains enough sense of narrative drama to keep you interested through to the conclusion. As a Star Trek fanfilm and as a Hidden Frontier project, Vigil shines most brightly in terms of plot, setting the bar higher for future fan projects to follow. | Discuss

Technorati: Star Trek, Hidden Frontier, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 07:04 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Darker Projects Productions proudly presents a bold new original series....

Generation 1: Episode 1: End at the Beginning

In the year 2115, the Earth went mad. Volcanic eruptions, title waves, massive pockets of radiation erupted on the surface. Many children were placed in ten biodomes to wait out the cataclysm until the day that Humans could reclaim the Earth.

But what awaits them and their guardian guides? Did anyone or anything survive from the old times? How will they live? This is their story. This is the story of Generation 1.

Written by Mark Bruzee.

Featured in the cast are:
Mark Bruzee as Adult 1
Jim Barbour as Adult 2
Eric Busby as Doc (G10)
Chris Snyder as Aaron and Aaron's Mom,
Victoria Sampson as Adult 3
Elie Hirschman as Adult 4
Liam Ervin as Calar
Morgan Jeffery as Garan
Mark Kalita as G3
Kara Dennison as Rayla
Tom Wilinsky as Biodome 3's Minister
Kieran Benton as Boy 2
The Series was Created by Mark Bruzee, Eric Busby
and Chris Snyder.
The series was produced and directed by Mark Bruzee
Post production and Co Produced by Chris Snyder
The Executive Producer for Darker Projects is Eric Busby.

(c) Darker Projects Production 2005

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 06:35 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

News, Commentary and Science Fiction are the orders of the day for The Enterpriser Zone. Interesting news and discission about science fiction, science fact, and the future.

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 06:21 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

On This Week's Show: An All-Serenity Chat Fest!

This week, the studio's full of guests who join Michael, Evo, Summer and Joe to chat Serenity. Be forewarned: HERE THERE BE SPOILERS, so if you haven't seen the movie yet, well, what are you waiting for!?

The News This Week:

• WB casting for Luna Lovegood
• Kill Switch brings horror back to TV
• SciFi Channel has highest summer ratings ever for cable
• Renee Zellwegger tapped for The Eye remake
• The 4400 renewed for 3rd season
• Uncle Sam's SciFi TV Rant
• Lance Henrikson trying for Millenium feature film
• Buffy, The Rock, and Seann William Scott teaming up for Southland Tales

Other Topics:

• Voicemails and emails

If you have any suggestions or comments, please let us know. (Our Voicemail Number: 206-339-TREK) See you in a week with fresh, new content! | Download Slice of Sci-Fi Show #027!

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 11:54 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Monday, Tim Brazeal, founder of Save Enterprise and Trek United, announced to the fan base at Trek Fans United that the campaign for the continuation of STAR TREK will continue with a coordinated worldwide campaign.

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 11:27 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

"Tales of the Seventh Fleet" To Beam Fans Into Space At UberCon
Fan Produced Star Trek Series Aims to Continue to Explore New Words

East Rutherford, NJ-OCT 5: The USS JUSTICE, a "Star Trek" fan club and producer of "Tales of the Seventh Fleet" (TotSF), is proud to announce that they will be attending UberCon (http://www.ubercon.com) this October 15th and 16th. This gaming convention, held at the Meadowlands Sheraton in East Rutherford, NJ, is the premiere convention of its type in the area.

Cast and crew of Tales of the Seventh Fleet will be on hand to answer any and all questions relating to the series, and fandom in general. In addition, patrons can have their picture taken against a "blue screen" and receive a souvenir of themselves on the JUSTICE's Bridge, Transporter Room, Engineering, or on an Alien Planet. The USS JUSTICE will also be sponsoring a free raffle for a walk-on role for one lucky UberCon attendee to appear in an actual TotSF episode.

The highlight of the weekend will be the presentation of both TotSF episodes, "Return to Doomsday" and "Upgrade," along with several other fan produced creations.

For more information about the USS JUSTICE and Tales of the Seventh Fleet, please refer to their web site at http://www.ussjustice.org. | Discuss this topic, visit the Forum

Technorati: Star Trek, USS Justice, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom, scifi, Science Fiction

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 11:07 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Star Wars en Direct #58 - October 4th, 2005
During this episode we will discuss the new dark times ahead. Of course those new Dark Times will not compare to the absence of Star Wars in the late 80's but has Star Wars fans, how will you survive between RotS and the upcoming TV Series? What will you be doing to keep your fandom alive?

What are your opinion and comments about this subject? Send them (or phone number for us to call) to studio@swendirect.com.

The live broadcast begins this Tuesday at 7PM Eastern

Remember to vote for us on Podcastalley.com each month.

Posted by Dany Pepin at 12:53 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

SciFiDig show 22 has been posted. You can find it here SciFiDig. In this installment I talk about the new scifi shows including Supernatural and The Night Stalker. Also music from the BSG Season one soundtrack.

Posted by SciFiDig at 07:00 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

On This Week's Show: Walter Koenig!

This week, Michael and Evo chat with Walter Koenig, who first established himself in the hearts of scifi fans as Chekov, then reinvented himself 30 years later as Psi-Cop Bester in Babylon 5.

The News This Week:

• No More Screams for Neve
• Cast Picked for Hunter's Moon
• Sci-Fact: Face/Off transplant possible
• Chronicles of Narnia World Premiere at Royal Albert Hall
• New "Star Wars Essential Guide to Droids" coming June 2006
• Box Office Notes: Flightplan: success; Just Like Heaven: not so much; St George and the Dragon being written by Pulitzer Prize winner

Other Topics:

• Paul Fischer talks about the Balticon podcast
• More comments on the bleeping, a Trek to the Troops update, and other emails

If you have any suggestions or comments, please let us know. (Our Voicemail Number: 206-339-TREK) See you in a week with fresh, new content!

Download Slice of Sci-Fi Show #026!

Posted by J. Marcus Xavier at 06:35 PM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Admiral Robin told me last night that the new Dark Armada trailer is on line. Downloaded and viewed it - very impressive quality! Obviously done by different artists but it all comes together very neatly ... it's looking better all the time! | Discuss this in the Forum
Technorati: Star Trek, FanFilms, Entertainment, Fandom,

Posted by Kirok at 12:19 AM | Forums | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)