TCM Issue 3 by Richard Miles

Welcome to issue 3 of Trekkie Central Magazine. First off I would like to welcome Alex Matthews, who has joined the writing staff of the magazine, Alex will be producing articles that delve deeper in the backgrounds of fan productions and will also be writing reviews for us. This issue is dedicated to Starship Farragut, a series set in the 23rd Century aboard another Constitution class starship, and we have some exciting stuff for you. There are interviews with John Broughton; Paul R. Sieber; Michael Bednar; Holly Bednar; David Sepan; Hetoreyn and a special interview, that was added at the last minute, with Neo-Fxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Michael Struck. He will shed some light on what it is like doing the CGI for a show like Farragut. As well as the interviews, we have all the usual reviews and pictures for you, and in this issue we are launching our first News page, bringing you up to date on all the latest from the fan trek world. Also on page 14 we have a little, but exciting, contest for all you budding writers out there, for more info please turn to page 14. I would also like to take this opportunity to let you know about some major changes happening to the website. Soon Trekkiecentral.piczo.com will cease to exist and it will be replaced by Trekkiecentral.com, I would like to thank Thomas Reynolds, for all his help with this. We all hope you enjoy this issue Live Long and Prosper Richard Miles

News The Briefing Room– Where Fan Trek News Comes To Life

Starship Farragut An Overview, By Alex Matthews

Interview with John Broughton

Captain On Deck

The Captaincy A Review, By Alex Matthews

Competition

Sworn Duty Interview with Paul R. Sieber

For Want Of A Nail A Review, By Alex Matthews

Scientific Talk Interview with Michael Bednar

Special Effects with Neo-Fx Interview with Michael Struck

Engineering Technobabble Interview with Holly Bednar

Navigating Space Interview with David Sepan

Interview with Hetoreyn

By Michael Bednar

What’s Coming In Issue 4

Music Marvels

Captains Log

Next Issue

As always, with some many different types of fan productions going on, the next month is packed with releases from various studios.

Welcome to a new section of the magazine. Here we aim to bring you all the most up to date news from the fan film world.

Over at www.starshipexcelsior.com, episode 1x02: “Turn of Events” has premiered. The crew of the Sovereign-class USS Excelsior are still dealing with problems on Valandria, where the situation is getting more dicey the longer they stay. This is their second “episode”, but the third installment, in their “The Excelsior Returns” story arc, which deals with the back history to the show established by the main site.

Over at www.hiddenfrontier.org, the crew of the stranded Starship Odyssey find themselves caught up in another Archein plot when they stumble across another growing singularity field that threatens to engulf a nearby planet. Ro and T'Lorra come to blows once more over the decision to help the people caught in between the Archein and the anomalies, as their two opposing philosophies differ on the correct path. Filming of “The Lotus Eaters” is nearly completed, and a tentative release date for late February has been penciled in, though this is prone to change.

Work on the premiere episode of “Star Trek: The Expedition” has more or less concluded, and this piece of work promises to deliver some new ideas of where to take a premiere episode. Filming is due to start soon, and blooper reels from the various shorts are available through the website at www.startrektheexpedition.com

The Expedition have announced that they have two shorts in post production that should be released soon, and at the same time they will be re-releasing Time Flies and The Choice as directors cuts. Also they have announced their Commodore, and he will be played by Broadway Star Randal Keith who is currently playing King Arthur in Spamalot.

Speaking of bloopers, you may be surprised just how many you can get out of a premiere episode of a new audio production that has recently launched their own website, forum and a teaser trailer. Star Trek: Diplomatic Relations promises “a new twist on Star Trek”, but so far, no details for a positive release date have been announced. So far, though, the have released 3 sets of blooper reels for the entertainment of their forum members, and more are bound to follow - the voice actors definitely seem to be having fun with their lines and roles. All these are available by signing up through www.startrekdiplomaticrelations.com.

2008 will also see the development and release of several new takes on Trek. On the Hidden Frontier forums, a series of innocent questions have lead to the development of a new machima-based project, “Star Trek: Challenger”. A Galaxy-class starship, heavily modified into a new Mark-VI class, the Starship Challenger may be recognised by some people. She was commanded by Geordi La Forge in the alternate timeline witnessed in “Timeless”, a Season Five episode of “Voyager”, as well as being part of the armada assembled to blockade the transwarp conduit Voyager used to finally get home at the conclusion of “Endgame”. She also made an appearance in an episode of “Hidden Frontier”, as part of the force sent to retrieve a tetrahedron from the Cardassians in the Season 4 episode “Crossroads”. The premise of the series begins with an unprecedented level of cooperation between the Klingon and Romulan Empires, alongside the Federation, as they work together to build a starbase in a remote region of space all 3 powers have a vested interest in. The Challenger is the lead ship assigned, and her modifications reflect the importance of her task. They have already launched their forum at http://z15.invisionfree.com/ Star_Trek_Challenger/index.php?act=idx and are accepting voice auditions for their main cast as work on their pilot script continues. 6

Although “Hidden Frontier” may have ended, it's spirit still lives on, separate from it's two spinoffs. Last year saw the release of “The Orphans of War”, a short that allowed the crews of both the USS Excelsior and the USS Intrepid to team up briefly, and it proved to be a big hit, although the prime complaint was that it was too short! So, to counter that, Areakt Productions and Intrepid Productions have agreed to team up again around the time of the Excelsior Ball 3 to bring the fans what they want - another team up. Early June will see several days of filming in LA when the Intrepid crew pay a visit once again to Areakt Studios, before the Ball itself kicks off on June 6th. The hotel is soon to be announced, and group activities are already being discussed. If you are interested in attending, keep your eyes peeled for the last news and announcements.

“The Lost Frontier”, the latest Star Trek production from Darker Projects is currently on hiatus after finishing its inaugural season, picking up a couple of decades after “The Section 31 Files” left off. Following the crew of the newest and most advanced vessel Starfleet has constructed since the near collapse of the Federation and the splintering of Starfleet via a civil war, this show offers a different, darker take on Gene Roddenberry's Trek, as the Enterprise-F tries to reestablish contact not only with various Federation colonies lost during that dark time, but also the various other alien races that have seemingly faded into the background of space. Shortly after the show went on hiatus (to return in April 2008), the people at www.darkerprojects.com released a competition, in the same spirit the publishers of “Star Trek: Titan” did, allowing the fans the opportunity to design the new Enterprise. They have fallen a little bit behind in their plans though - the announcement as to who has won the privilege of seeing their design made into an actual image for the site was due February 1st, but so far, no announcement has been made. Stay tuned for more information.

EB3 NEWS The hotel for the Excelsior Ball 3 in Los Angeles has been announced, it will be held at The Radisson Hotel at Los Angeles airport. For more information visit www.hiddenfrontier.org and visit the forums

“The Helena Chronicles”, the companion show to “Odyssey”, is also nearing completion of their second outing, titled “Obsessions”. Although no trailer has been released yet, it will be sure to follow up on Corey Aster and his continued belief that Ro Nevin is still alive, somewhere, and his hope to somehow rescue them. This first outing of the USS Helena under command of Captain Theresa Faisal proved a big hit for her and her crew, so this episode will have to be able to grab that glory and ride with it. The Briar Patch was a big place, and now ships can travel at ease to the various planets that were once hidden, there is a lot of material for their writers to latch onto.

With the success of their first two fulllength episodes, Starship Farragut is hard at work on their first vignette, “Just Passing Through”, where the crew make a stop-over and enjoy some deserved rest and relaxation. But knowing Trek, you can guarantee that the crew won't be getting too much of that, otherwise where would the fun be for us viewers? Visit the website at www.starshipfarragut.com and check out their forum for production stills of their latest work, as well as the continuing work on a full scale shuttlecraft interior. 7

When the Starship Enterprise first left spacedock under the command of Robert April for her first 5 year mission of exploration, she wasn't on her own in this regard. Alongside the Enterprise, there were another eleven Constitution-class starships working for the interests of the Federation and Starfleet. One of those was the USS Farragut. The fan-film, “Starship Farragut”, chronicles the adventures of a new crew on-board this vessel as they begin a new five year mission. The Farragut is a ship with a history - the first assignment of James Kirk after his graduation from Starfleet Academy with the rank of Lieutenant. It was on board the Farragut that Kirk encountered the DiKironium Cloud Creature for the first time, which killed 200 of the crew, including then-commanding officer Captain Garrovick. This point is documented in Star Trek history, from the TOS episode, “Obsessions”. From that point onwards though, the producers of “Starship Farragut” have free rein. This fan-film's continuity picks up the adventures of the Constitution-class starship in 2266, nine years after the incident in the Tycho star system, when a newly promoted commanding officer takes over the reins from her predecessor. This also places it around the end of the second season of “The Original Series” The main cast and characters of “Starship Farragut” are; Commanding Officer: Captain Jack Thomas Carter: Newly promoted and with a lot to prove (if only to himself), Jack Carter has taken the bull by the horns quite a few times, but this time, he has over 400 lives under his control, so he better be careful. This is why he has made sure he has at least two close friends on-board to watch his back. He was fast-tracked for command due to the desire of Starfleet Command to have more qualified Captains, but like most career officers, this has left him little time for a life away from Starfleet. Portrayed by John Broughton

Executive/Science Officer: Commander Robert Tacket: An old friend of Jack's, brought in especially to fill the dual role of both acting as Carter's right-hand man, as well as the head of the Science Section. Carter has a great respect for Tacket, developed during the time he served under Tacket on various assignments, before his own career took off. Unlike many science officers who only see black and white, Tacket (or RT to his friends), is willing and able to believe in metaphysical matters, feeling that they can coexist with science harmoniously. Portrayed by Michael Bednar Chief Engineer: Lt. Commander Michelle Renata Smithfield: Formerly assigned to the USS Defiant, she was reassigned to the position of Chief Engineer of the Farragut at Carter's insistence, after the two became friends during his previous tour on the USS Potemkin. A natural when it comes to anything mechanical, she puts these talents to good use now she is running her own engine room. Her relationship with Carter can have its ups and downs, but they are firm friends, as long as he does not push her buttons to often, and stays out of Engineering. Portrayed by Holly Bednar Chief Security/Tactical Officer: Lt. Commander Henry Francis Prescott, III: A holdover from Captain Alvarez's crew, Prescott was promoted to the position of Chief of Security, a decision made without Carter's input. Prescott knows the ins

and outs of every rule and regulation Starfleet has made, and is willing to quote them at length when necessary. But he is also built for his role, with training in various martial arts and weapons forms, and has a keen strategic mind. His dedication to regs comes from serving under Alvarez, and he still blames himself for the incident that caused her former CO to retire. Portrayed by Paul R. Sieber Together, these four form the central group that the episodes of “Starship Farragut” revolve around, in the same manner “The Original Series” and “New Voyages” revolve around the relationships between Kirk, Spock and McCoy. They also have a cast of supporting characters that help play key roles in the various episodes, when necessary, but the core of every story is how it affects the four main key players. An interesting side note for fan-film continuity it that the Captain Garrovick who commanded the Farragut during Kirk's tenure was the uncle of the Captain Garrovick depicted in the “Starship Exeter” fan-films. Also, in the “New Voyages” episode, “In Harm's Way”, when Spock visits an alternate timeline created by the destruction of the USS Enterprise in the 2250s by a time-hopping Planet Killer, it is the USS Farragut that James Kirk is in command of, with almost the same senior staff he should have in the 'correct' timeline. It seems that the Farragut has quite a role to play in the Star Trek fan-film universe, one way or the other. Good thing it has it's own show then, huh?~ 8

aptain John Thomas Carter is commanding officer of the USS Farragut, while John Broughton is the creator of the web-based series Starship Farragut. Here he talks to Trekkie Central Magazine about Farragut and what it is like being on the show. TC: When did you discover Star Trek? JB: I discovered Star Trek very early on growing up with it already in syndication. The first episode I recall seeing was “Miri” and I was confused with all the kids beating up Captain Kirk. Later, in 1986 when I was in the 7th grade I considered myself a fan. Star Trek is many things to many people. To me, it is essentially good characters and adventurous stories. It has an uplifting and optimistic theme as well that things will work out for the better and that the human condition is an evolving one. For a show that is over 40 years old now, you can still watch an episode of Star Trek today and be entertained. TC: How did you become involved with Starship Farragut? JB: I came up with the idea in November 2004 after seeing the work of other Star Trek fan film projects. I was inspired to do my own: Starship Farragut is a different ship in the same fleet of ships as the U.S.S. Enterprise with a new captain, new crew and new adventures – all set in the same venue and timeframe as The Original Series of Star Trek. TC: If you could create your own Official Star Trek series what would it be? JB: It would be what we have with Starship Farragut. The characters and stories are original and very true to Gene Roddenberry’s concept. I think that we have our own identity now – whereas Gene referred to his concept as Wagon Train to the Stars, we’re Space Gunsmoke – more action adventure as those were the episodes I enjoyed the most. I think that one strength to our series is that we’re not playing already established characters. There is a quick buy-in from the audience as there is no “baggage” to associate our characters - they’ve never been introduced before, so you have no basis for comparison.

bit overwhelming; a close friend who could certainly relate, James Cawley of Star Trek New Voyages came up to me and told me to get used to it! TC: You obviously enjoy being part of the show, so what are the best and worst bits about being on it? JB: The best parts are enormous. Three that stand out are 1) this great family that has been assembled because of the love of Star Trek and filmmaking, 2) living in the Star Trek universe, and 3) being able to see the finalized product – a tangible film that exists forever for everyone to be entertained. The worst is seeing a video vendor at a convention selling your hard-earned film for profit. We cannot profit from our efforts, but to see someone else making a copy of a film that we’ve given freely to fans is heart wrenching.

TC: What is it like being part of a Star Trek series and, how do you deal with the fandom that now surrounds Farragut?

TC: How much of your time does the show take up?

JB: The fan support for our project has been enormous, and has been one that has grown larger as we have produced more films and gained greater exposure. People really do appreciate what we’re striving for and see the quality of our film projects. I recall the first time we introduced our pilot, “The Captaincy” at a Star Trek convention. People were coming to us for autographs. It was a

JB: It’s a full-time commitment after my regular job. Like some people need coffee, I need Starship Farragut to keep me wired! After work, I start calling people about assignments, discussing project status, and upcoming film projects. Then when I get home, I’m on the computer or working on costumes or props or reviewing scripts or other film-related items. It seems like a

never-ending story, but it’s all worthwhile when you see the film completed and reflect back on great moments with family and friends. One positive point regarding our project is that we’re all very close; I refer to our cast and crew as part of the Farragut Family. TC: Whose idea was it to create Starship Farragut? JB: I came up with the idea in November 2004 after seeing the work of other Star Trek fan film projects. I was inspired to do my own film project: Starship Farragut is a different ship in the same fleet of ships as the U.S.S. Enterprise with a new captain, new crew and new adventures – all set in the same venue and timeframe as The Original Series of Star Trek. TC: Where did the name for the show come from? JB: Initially, the series was going to be called Starship Excalibur, but was later changed. It was early in 2005 and I selected one of the other Constitution Class Starships that was known

to have survived in The Original Series. The Farragut namesake was born, which was also a good tie in to my personal experience serving in the U.S. Navy (the namesake Farragut ties back into ADM David Farragut – the Navy’s first Admiral and who is quoted as saying, “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.”). The Farragut was considered canon as it was Kirk’s first assignment after graduating the academy (refer to the episode, “Obsession”). TC: Being creator of the show, you could have played any or no character on the show, so why did you choose o play the Captain? JB: If you’re going to create a Star Trek series – why not play the Captain! One thing that I wanted to emphasize with Captain Carter is that he is NOT Captain Kirk. I did not want to be compared to him. I idealized the Carter character as part President John Kennedy (hence the reference to Jack), as well as a great manager who delegates work to his subordinates who are specialists in their respective fields. Like 11

any naval ship Captain, he relies on his crew, but ultimately makes the tough decisions â&#x20AC;&#x201C; that was the style of leadership that I wanted from this Captain, which relates to how Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve managed teams and departments throughout my professional career. Although I am a devoted TOS fan, I think that this style of leadership was best demonstrated by Captain Picard of Star Trek: The Next Generation. TC: You use all original music on the show, whose idea was that? JB: I could be mistaken, but I believe that the idea originated from Paul Sieber, one of our three Producers. I actually wanted to re-use music from The Original Series, but because of concerns of copyright infringement and licensing, he suggested that we use original scores for our films. Michael Struck of NEO f/x has since then managed composers for us as part of our post production efforts.~

The Captaincy: Farragut's First Foray. Some could argue that Star Trek fan-films have it slightly easier then most new shows on television - they already have an established fan-base to appeal to, as well as a well developed landscape in which to set their show. But what has to be remembered is that the pilot episode still has to introduce us to the characters, and show enough of them to make us feel for them, so that we will come back to watch subsequent episodes. In my estimation, Starship Farragut does accomplish this with “The Captaincy”, their premiere episode, which details the initial arrival of their new commanding officer, Jack Carter, and the 'baptism-byfire' they are thrown into, instead of a normal shakedown cruise they were expecting. After Starfleet Command looses contact with a survey ship near the Klingon border, the Farragut is detailed to investigate, despite the fact that not all of their crew has reported aboard, and the ship has only just finished a refit. With the knowledge that the Klingons could very well have a new planetary-scale super-weapon in or around the system they have been sent to, Captain Carter takes a landing party to the surface, while Farragut leaves orbit to conduct their own survey of the system, after analysing the wreckage of the destroyed original surveyor. The landing party gets all the proof they need that Klingons are involved when they are ambushed by a large group of warriors, but manage to gain the upper hand and take them down. Carter orders his XO, Commander Tacket to report the situation to the Farragut, while he, Security Chief Prescott and Chief Engineer Smithfield try to determine the location of the super-weapon. They ultimately discover a massive planet-based weapon

emplacement, which they infiltrate, and manage to sabotage, rescuing the sole survivor of the previous survey ship. With the base destroyed, the orbital version that took out the original survey ship is revealed, and is easily destroyed by the Farragut as it begins to deploy. With the mission a success, Farragut heads home, with a brief rendezvous with the Enterprise, allowing the crew some time for R & R, in whatever form they choose. For Smithfield and Tacket, it's a game of poker, but for Carter, it's joining Prescott for a session in the gym. Plus Point: 1: Great CGI, soundtrack and sets. Instead of going the green-screen route, “Farragut” has followed in the footsteps of “New Voyages” and built real physical sets, from the Captain's Quarters to the various Klingon sets for the weapon emplacement. 2: This was an ambitious script for their first episode, which they were able to pull off rather well for their first project. 3: The tip-of-the-hat scene where Carter talks to Kirk help firmly establish “Starship Farragut” as part of the fanfilm community, even more so when you know that Farragut's bridge is also the Enterprise bridge set from “New Voyages”. 4: There was no skimping on costumes or props, be it Starfleet or Klingon, everything had a real TOS feel to it. It was also good to see a women in trousers, instead of the miniskirt - somehow a Chief Engineer in a miniskirt would not be taken as seriously, methinks. It presents the idea that the miniskirt was optional, which would make more sense in the 23rd century. 5: You could tell these people are fans first, and they brought a level of enthusiasm to their roles and lines that helps look past occasional moments where they ver-

bally stumble. Nitpicks: 1: An early scene where Smithfield stumbles, and gets defensive when Tacket offers assistance seems very forced, and the 'stumble' itself does not look at all natural. 2: I never knew Klingons were such lousy shots. Considering the sheer number of Klingons against the Farragut team, about 8 to 3, not one of them shot anywhere near the mark except for the first opening salvo. Same again, when Tacket and a security officer are attacked later on, aside from the first shot, which even then only wounds the security officer, the shots are wild considering they are sitting ducks for a good long while as they wait for help. 3: The 'tension' between Commodore Broughton and Carter seems far to forced - they simply resort to shouting the lines, but not really feeling why they are being that way with each other. 4: Carter orders Tacket to head for the beamdown point to contact Farragut, but later on, he and Prescott are beamed up from a location near the Klingon emplacement. If they could beam up from anywhere, why send Tacket back to the beam-down point, since this ultimately lead him into harm's way? 5: Why allow Smithfield to deal him in for the poker game if Carter knew he had a prior engagement? Was he too distracted thinking about what Kirk had said? 6: I was a little disappointed to see them recycle stock footage from TOS episodes of crew reactions to intercom announcements, and the shockwave hit. Compared to the rest of the footage, it 13 does stand out.~

Author, Author...

Part of what makes the fanfilm community such a marvel is the fact that 'ordinary' people are able to pursue their little dreams and write their own 'Star Trek' script, even if it for an unofficial version of the show they love. The people who write scripts for 'Odyssey', 'Helena Chronicles', 'Intrepid' and 'Lost Frontier' get to play in the sandbox that Gene Roddenberry created all those years ago, but also get the thrill of adding in their own little twist to make the story unique. So now, readers, its your turn...

Every month, we are going to try and set a fan-fic challenge for you, by choosing a character from an established fan-film or fan-audio series, and ask you to write a small piece about them. A set idea will be given, and you have to write a story or a script for it. If you are writing a story in prose, it must be between 500 to 1000 words. Either way, it must be a single scene, or several scenes that run together with a coherent point. It must stick with established canon on the character, and not embellish overmuch. Our first challenge is this. Before he was assigned to the Excelsior and DS12, Admiral Knapp commanded a small Intrepid-class starship, the USS Devonshire, during the Dominion War. It was during his time on the Devonshire that his twin brother was killed by the Founders. Write a scene/set of scenes that deals with this situation. Your interpretation is up to you, and can include any other relevant HF characters you feel appropriate, but it must stick to the point set out. To sum up: Era: Mid-Dominion war (2376-77) Setting: USS Devonshire. Must-Include Character: Captain Knapp

Submissions to be sent in by Saturday 1st March 2008 and emailed to trekkie-central@hotmail.co.uk Winner will be announced Thursday 6th March 2008 and the winning fanfic will be posted on both the HF Fanfic forum, the Trekkie Central website and the Trekkie Central Magazine We will also post other entries in the magazine for people to read. Good Luck! PLEASE NOTE THE EDITORS DECISION IS FINAL AND NO CORESPONDANCE WILL BE ENTERED IN TO. THE CHARACTER OF CAPTAIN KNAPP REMAINS THE PROPERTY OF AREAKT PICTURES. THANK YOU TO ROB CAVES FOR ALLOWING HIS USE, IN THIS CONTEST.

rekkie Central Magazine here talks to Paul Sieber, who plays Commander Prescott on Starship Farragut. TC: When did you discover Star Trek? PS: I first discovered Star Trek as a child. I remember first watching the original series when I was 5 or 6 years old, and remember playing “trek” with my friends. Back then there weren’t all the props and toys to buy, so we frequently made our own! My first communicator was a TicTac box with a folded piece of cardboard taped on. I remember building a shuttlecraft for my GI Joe out of cardboard, and played with it for weeks, until I accidentally left it outside and my neighbor’s dog decided to relieve himself on it. I was devastated! TC: How did you become involved with Farragut? PS: I had gone onto the Star Trek New Voyages board, and was interested in getting involved with them as a set builder, as I have a few carpentry skills. I saw a posting by Captain JTK (John Broughton) saying he lived in the DC area, and was interested in starting a Trek production in this area, so I thought I’d send him a message. We got together to discuss me building him some sets. After gabbing for a couple hours, we had not only brainstormed the entire first episode, but invented a new prop (the assault Phaser “3”) and created a character for me to play in it.

TC: If you could create your own Official Series what would it be? PS: Starship Farragut has the potential with characters and stories to be an official series! TC: What is it like being part of a Star Trek series, and how do you deal with the fandom that now surrounds Farragut? PS: It is great to be part of a series like Farragut. In addition to being a profession team, we are also a family, and I have to tell you, that working with your family on something you love is very rewarding. For the fandom, it is a difficult and fun task to try to come up with new stories and ideas to expound on the characters we’ve created. The audience has really responded well to Carter, Tacket, Smithfield and Prescott, and we want to keep them developing over time. For myself, my appearance has changed a lot since the first camera started rolling 2 years ago, and I am not normally wearing Prescott’s ,military hairstyle, so I actually have some anonymity at the conventions and public appearances, that my costars do not have… really gives me the opportunity to go on out there and talk to them without them always knowing who I am! TC: You obviously enjoy being part of the show, so what are the best and worst bits about being on it? PS: Best bits, having fun. Really. We have a lot of fun on our shoots, we joke around, but get serious when the cam-

era starts rolling, You can see a lot of this in the blooper reels from episode 2. Worst bits? In filming episode 2, we did a lot of the filming outdoors in the winter, and it was REALLY COLD! Those costumes don’t hold in the heat… unless you are under the studio lights, then they don’t breathe! Very unforgiving material! TC: How much of your time does the show take up? PS: Before I started on Farragut, I had free time… Now I have Farragut time. TC: In the first episode your character and the character played by John Broughton seemed to be at odds with each other, is this something that we will see more of in coming episodes or will the two characters find a way of working together? PS: This was intentional. We wanted to create a character dynamic unlike anything done on Trek before, and I think it has worked. What we were going for is two characters who are polar opposites in their approaches to things… Carter an impulsive man of action, and Prescott a methodical Bythe-book military man, and have them both realize, over time, that their two philosophies can work well together. Look to see the two of them begin to develop an understanding, and eventually a friendship as time passes, and they realize that each of their ways of 16

thinking compliments the other. There is a lot in store for them in the future! TC: Your character has a long history of serving on the Farragut, is this something that could possibly come back and haunt him in later episodes? PS: Good question! Without giving away any plots for future Farragut episodes, let’s just say that his history on the ship, and his personal background WILL come into play, affecting not only himself, but others around him. TC: Where would you like to see your character develop, what storylines would you like to see him have? PS: I’d like for the audience to see the “other side” of Prescott… his humanity, his loyalty, and his depth… that he is more than just a walking rule book, and shooting machine. You can see a bit more of his personality in Episode 2, and episodes 3 and 4 have a lot in store for him as well! TC: How long does it take to film an episode? PS: Wow… that depends… we filmed episode 1 in a record couple months (considering that we generally only work weekends on filming)… episode 2 took a bit longer, and episode 3 may take a year (it is a complex, and LONGER story). Post production takes quite some time after filming is done. We finished principal photography on episode 2 more than 6 months ago… the rest is post production time. TC: You helped to develop the show, what input do you have with the show? PS: I am the Script Accessor. In essence, that makes me the “head writer” for the show. I do NOT write everything, but all story ideas and scripts pass to me first, I then evaluate how they fit into the Farragut universe, and if they are viable as episodes for our show. I then work with the writers and editors in crafting the scripts into something that we can produce. Also, as a producer, I am part of a TEAM that decides how Farragut will look, sound, and feel, and that we can create a new audience for Trek, while keeping the old audience interested. Final say always goes to our Exec, John, but in general we are a TEAM, and we all work together to not only make good Trek, but to make good films.~

For Want Of A Nail: Farragut's Second Sojourn. Fan-films early in production could be excused for sticking with scripts that involve story-lines that would make things easy for both the cast and crew, sticking with shipbased plots and standard CGI shots. Since “Starship Farragut” is in a partnership with the “New Voyages” people, they appear to have access to the various sets that they created for their own series, so using those sets and keeping it simple would be relatively easy. But John Broughton, the executive producer, decided against that, and went with something a bit more demanding. Capitalising on both the experiences of and the comments received regarding “The Captaincy”, “Starship Farragut” pushes themselves once again to deliver another wellthought-out episode that makes use of the great outdoors, and hits the viewer with surprise twists. The “Starship Farragut” group make use of the various connections they have by bringing in a group of actors who portray historical conflicts, in order to fill out the cast of extras that the episode requires. The actors who portray the main cast bring stronger performances this time around, and are a lot more comfortable in the skins of the characters they play. All of them were pretty dedicated to making the episode, since the extreme cold they had to put up is evident with their breath misting as they speak! The Farragut is assigned to follow up on an alien cultures desire to conduct cultural exchange with the Federation, which includes witnessing a test of a device they claim will revolutionise the study of history. But during the transport, the landing party under Captain Carter vanishes without trace, leaving Tacket in command of the ship while he attempts to figure just what happened and retrieve the party. Meanwhile, Carter, Prescott and the others find themselves apparently stranded in War of Independence era Amer-

ica, where the suddenness of their arrival may very well have caused damage to the time-line. Carter must preserve the timeline he knows as they await rescue, as well the effects a misplaced alien observer might have as well. Some viewers might roll their eyes at the fact that a time-travel episode was done so soon after their pilot, but a time-travel story, if well written and well made, can be a big attraction - “New Voyages” second pilot, “In Harm's Way” had time-travel as a big integral part, and “Hidden Frontier” did their own, “Two Hours” as a mark of the anniversary of the sinking of the HMS Titanic, which proved one of their popular earlier episodes. What does make FWOAN different is the surprise twist right at the end, a visual shot that can make you do a double take. It isn't necessarily completely out of left field, if you pay attention to earlier dialogue, which the end scene further cements. Plus Points: 1: Great costumes, be it for the advanced aliens, the Americans, or the new jackets issued to the Starfleet landing party. Also, the CGI that brings Solon Prime to life is another example of how far fanfilms today can go in matching studio quality. 2: An overall fantastic script that allows each central character a piece of the action, allowing both Tacket and Smithfield to occupy the centre seat, as well as introduce some more of the supporting cast, such as

Dr. Christine Holley. 3: The actor brought in to play George Washington brought a wonderful realism to the character, and believability. Nitpicks: 1: Disappointed that the majority of the advanced aliens were so human in appearance, which although is in the spirit of TOS, I would have preferred something to differentiate them a little. 2: I'm a fan of technobabble, but there were moments I did get lost in the static scenes where Tacket is investigating the alien mechanism that is responsible for the accident. 3: As someone who isn’t that familiar with American history, I would have appreciated some clarification as to who the 'General' was before part 11.~ 18

Michael Bednar talks here to Trekkie Central Magazine about his character, Commander Tacket, and how he was actually originally not going to be one of the main cast. TC: When did you discover Star Trek? MB: Well, let’s just say that I was a little boy when Star Trek first aired on TV. I did manage to catch a few shows here and there, but didn’t really consider myself a big fan at the time. It simply was on too late and the eyelids were heavier when I was kid. Now I did have a passion for science fiction and loved the works of Irwin Allen and Gerry Anderson. However, when Star Trek went into syndication, I became an avid fan. TC: How did you become involved with Starship Farragut? MB: How does anyone become involved with a project like this? Someone has a vision with lots of friends who say yes to helping make it a reality. Really, John Broughton simply told me one day that he was going to do an independent film based on Star Trek and he wanted me involved. TC: If you could create your own Official Series what would it be? MB: I’d like to do something that I could make some money from. Don’t get me wrong, what we are doing is fun and exciting, but is a huge financial drain on most of the parties involved. There are costumes, props, sets, locations, camera equipment, and sound equipment. If it wasn’t for the volunteer status of each and every one of us, it simply would not come to fruition. TC: What is it like being part of a Star Trek series, and how do you deal with the fandom that now surrounds Farragut?

MB: • Well, it’s a blast. From the moment you see the script for the first time to donning a uniform and walking onto one of the sets. The experience is one that would never be forgotten. • As for the fandom that now surrounds Farragut, well, I look at it this way. The fans are supporting what we do. We really are no different than they are and in fact this is a “fan-film project”. It’s made by fans- for fans. We are doing this for everyone that comes to a sci-fi convention, downloads our episode or watches the shows on the Internet. The episodes are there for them. TC: You obviously enjoy being part of the show, so what are the best and worst bits about being on it? MB: • The best parts about being on the show are seeing old friends come together. Laughing at skipped lines or trying to keep your composure while someone off set is making weird faces at you. Yes we are all big kids. • The worst parts about being on the show are the 14 hour days, some extremely cold shooting locations or the hot sweaty ones. No matter how you try to cover every contingency, something unexpected trips you up.

TC: How much of your time does the show take up? MB: Besides being on set for the acting portion, I also run the camera, audio, lighting and even fetch water. No job too small. Off the set I spend a lot of time either working on props or costumes with John Broughton. His father, John Broughton Sr. who plays Commodore Broughton built the shuttlecraft console and transported it from Kentucky to the Washington DC area. I now have it in my possession and I am responsible for outfitting all the panels for the shuttlecraft with the switches and gizmos so that when filming time comes everything will work. I would encourage everyone to log onto the forum and take a look at our progress. As for how much time does the show take up. Lots. John and I can tell you that most of our waking hours outside our day jobs are consumed by the pre and post production of the episodes and vignettes. TC: How did you end up with the role of the first officer? MB: The role I was first given was that of 20

the Engineer. Mike Smithfield. At the time I really wanted to be behind the scenes and operate the camera or just build the props. I recommended to John, that my wife Holly would be a better person to cast for the role of Smithfield. Yes I checked with her first before making the suggestion. She loved the idea and so did John. I let John know that I would be interested in being a red shirt that could possibly die in every episode. I even found myself wearing a redshirt and for those that are lucky enough can find me in the initial teaser trailer we did. As time move forward for our first episode to start filming, the person that was slated to be CDR Tacket was unable to commit the time needed. I told John that I’d play the role if he approved. Well, John said yes and here I am. TC: You all filmed on location for the first episode, how difficult was that? MB: Filming on location was a lot easier than I would have thought. There are so many people that helped to arrange for us to have areas away from the general public. I think the only problem that we had and continually plagues us are the aircraft that fly overhead or boaters that speed down the Potomac River or the occasional Harley Davidson or Train. Those sounds provide pauses in our production where security pulls there phaser to shoot the next offender. (smiles)

TC: And is there anything that when filming for the second episode that was changed due to the experiences that you had whilst filming the first episode? MB: Simply put, yes, absolutely. There were many lessons learned that were applied to the second episode. Unfortunately there were also some lessons that weren’t well learned but overall it is a big jump for us in production quality, which after all is our number one goal. The acting was better, the lighting on sets was much improved and the story has more depth and even a surprise ending that I’m quite sure will turn some heads. TC: Were you surprised by the level of fans that like the fact that Farragut is out there to be viewed, and the fact that they consider you to be helping to keep the Star Trek Torch going? MB: Not really. Eugene Roddenberry once said that if you didn’t like what Paramount was putting out there shut up and do something about it. Take it back. As we all like to say, in a way we have taken back Star Trek and given it back to the fans.~ 21

n a special interview Trekkie Central Magazine looks at the person behind the CGI on Farragut. Here Michael Struck talks to us on what it is like working on the show. TC: When did you first discover Star Trek? MS: Well, I am not of the age to have seen Star Trek when it originally aired, but I can’t remember a time that Star Trek wasn’t part of my life with reruns and the movies. Some kids related more with Kirk, but I related more to the sciences portion and with Spock. Even growing up I continued with the sciences getting a degree in electronics and then IT (Information Technology) management, all the time continuing to watch Star Trek and blindly believing that I might somehow work on creating Trek myself. TC: How did you become involved with Farragut? MS: Well, my company (NEO f/x) had been doing simple logos and such for years and wanted to get into true television/movie visual effects. To promote this idea, we had the idea which was somewhat original in 2003…take an episode of our favorite television show (Star Trek) and replace all of the visual effects with modern CGI. We had seen this done by another group at the time called ‘Digital Stream’, and we heard rumours that they had even had a meeting with Paramount to discuss revisiting all of the episodes with this treatment. However, with nothing apparently coming from that, we ‘re-imagined’ the episode Space Seed with the same goal. And when I say we ‘re-imagined’ it, we attempted to take the 40-year old episode and fit it more into Trek canon with the movies. This meant giving the nacelles a ‘Next Generation’ blue glow, and adding a couple minutes to the beginning and end of the episode showing the Botany Bay launching from Earth, and the destruction of Ceti Alpha 6 at the very end. Anyway, we sent this demo to the visual effects company doing

‘Enterprise’ at the time, along with various other people in the industry. We also happened to send it to the director of ‘New Voyages’. While ‘New Voyages’ already had their CGI person, they did refer us on to the producers of Farragut, and the rest is history.

dry dock is one of my favourites. This was NOT my favourite when we were creating it as it took almost a month to integrate the live footage and coordinate the camera pull-out so the viewer could really see the detail in the surface of the ship and everything that was going on around it.

TC: Do you do all the CGI for Farragut? MS: Yes, but NEO f/x is a post-production facility, so it would actually be more accurate to say we coordinate all of the ‘post’ efforts of the series. This includes editing of the films with the director, compositing any greenscreen that may need to be done, along with adding CGI and visual effects to the scenes. In addition, we maintain a server collaboration area in which the director, producers, musician, and sound engineers can upload and download their respective files. Finally, we master the final videos for DVD and web distribution. TC: Starting from nothing how long does it take (on average) to create a scene for an episode? MS: If you are talking about a CGI scene, it would probably take an average of 2 weeks to stage the CGI, validate with the producers that it meets their vision, and then render it out using our render farm. This may not seem like a long time, but when you have 50-100 shots in an episode it can add up. And, this is based on no new 3D models for the scenes. Creation of a new ship, just in itself, can take upwards of a month of design, texturing and lighting to call it ‘good enough’. Our pride and joy, the 3D wireframe of the Farragut, is constantly being updated and refined and has been ongoing for 3 years +. TC: Out of everything you have created, what is your favourite piece? MS: Well, I have to say the shot in Episode 1 where we leave the captain’s quarters and first see the Farragut in

TC: What things do you keep in mind when working on Farragut? MS: Well, the executive producer is somewhat a purist when it comes to the look and feel of his universe. He does allow us some artistic freedom and I believe that is what makes this series unique…it is a collective set of visions made into one. So, while the description in the script may say ‘ship in warp’, we like to show new sections of the ship and angles that were not seen in other iterations of Trek. As long as the ship isn’t doing barrel rolls they are rather open to originality in the shots we provide. TC: What programs do you use to create the scenes for Farragut? MS: We use a variety of programs. For the CGI we primarily use Lightwave 3D. Some of our artists use 3D Studio Max, but the final renders are in Lightwave. We also use a little know program called Vue for environments such as mountains and sky shots. From there we composite, edit, and master everything using products from Adobe (Photoshop, Premiere, After Effects, etc.) TC: You do a superb job on Farragut, but has there ever been anything that when you have seen the episode you though, oh god, that looks awful and wanted to go back and change it?

MS: Yes…we wouldn’t be a true artist if we were happy with everything we created; we are our worst critics. While a single scene might be fine, we have to make sure we maintain consistency 22

throughout an episode and throughout the series. For example, if you are orbiting a planet and the sun is yellow in one scene, and in the next scene it is red, you have an issue (unless it is part of the story). Another thing that has to be watched out for is shadows. While most people might think we simply create a scene with all the elements rendered at once, that is not typically true. Most of the time we do a background layer, a planet layer, and then multiple passes on the ship (s) to keep our ‘look’ consistent. So, we must watch out for things like that the planet has the same shadow angle of the ship, and the movement is consistent throughout all of the passes we render. However, part of the CGI business is making deadlines, so there is a point where we have to publish what we have. TC: And if so have you been able to? MS: I can honestly say I am happy with everything we have put into Farragut, but with no deadlines we would be tweaking the scenes to death and then nothing would be released. So, yes…if we are able to balance deadlines and happiness with our product then we typically make the changes.~

It’s not the playing of an engineer that has caused problems for Holly Bednar, it’s the writing the lines for her character for the upcoming short, starring herself and husband Michael. Here is talks to Trekkie Central Magazine about her experiences aboard the Starship Farragut. TC: When did you discover Star Trek? HB: I watched the “Arena” episode of TOS at a friend’s house when I was eleven. I thought it was really cool, and looked for the show on TV when I was at home. When my daughter was a little, we would watch TNG every week together. Later I became a fan of Enterprise and watched that one weekly with my son. My interest hadn’t really peaked until I married a Science Fiction Fan and became involved with Farragut. TC: How did you become involved with Farragut? HB: My husband was a founding producer along with John Broughton and Paul Sieber. I couldn’t really avoid getting involved even if I had wanted to. When he asked me to take the role of the ship’s engineer, I was thrilled. It’s a role I thought I could really sink my teeth into. I’ve since taken on other responsibility such as writing, casting, and human resources. It’s a lot of work, but well worth it.

TC: If you could create your own Official Star Trek Series, what would it be? HB: Hmmm, how about a spin-off where Smithfield gets to be the Captain of her own ship? But that would be years down the road, of course. TC: What is it like being part of a Star Trek series, and how do you deal with the fandom that now surrounds Farragut? HB: It’s more fun, more challenging, more work, and more thrills, than I ever thought it would be when we began the project. As far as the fandom goes, it’s always been at a level that we can appreciate. It’s not like we go out in public and get mobbed or anything. People who love Trek recognize us when we’re in Trek and Science Fiction environments and we get plenty of people who contact us via our website, email, forums, and MySpace profiles telling us that they like the work we do and that they look forward to more episodes to come. Everyone who has expressed an interest has been extremely polite and friendly. We all enjoy interacting with fans whenever we have the opportunity. TC: You obviously enjoy being part of the show, so what are the best and worst bits about being on it?

among the cast and crew, our partnerships with NEO/fx and other Trek film organizations that help us create quality productions, and the chance to bring new stories to life and share them with other fans. The worst parts are working outdoors in extreme heat and cold, over spending the budget, and lacking the appropriate equipment and resources to do a lot of the things we’d like to be doing. TC: How much of your time does the show take up? HB: I try not to quantify that for fear it will make me think twice about doing this. TC: What is it like playing the Chief Engineer of a Starship? HB: Hopefully it’s apparent in my performing of the role that I’m really getting into being LCDR Smithfield. I didn’t have to go far to define the character; she’s got a lot of me in her. TC: And are there lots of technical lines to learn, and if there are how do you do it? HB: Technical isn’t difficult. I researched engineering lingo before we began filming the first episode; and the way that I learn the lines just the same as I would for any

HB: The best parts are the camaraderie

other character with or without the technical jargon. There is a discussion on string theory, written by me, in an up coming vignette, “Just Passing Through”. So I can vouch for the fact that learning lines is not nearly as challenging as coming up with them. TC: Is it hard to play a character that had, in the past, a relationship with your husbands character and then display that sort of ex-partner feeling on screen? HB: The great thing about all that intensity between Smithfield and Tacket is that I am married to that man and the electricity between us is real. You have to have a good relationship off screen to play a believably complex relationship on screen. Mike and I enjoy the banter that goes on between our characters. It adds substance and creates some good comic relief as well. TC: If you could go back and have the opportunity to do this again is there anything that you would change? HB: No, not really. Everything that’s happened so far has been either wonderful, or something that we chalked up to being a learning experience. There are a lot more episodes to come that will give us opportunities to change what doesn’t work. I couldn’t be more pleased with what has happened in the initial stages of this project and I look forward to the future of Farragut with anticipation of more good things to come.~

DS: The best part is easily the thrill of seeing your own name or face on the big screen at a new release. And it’s Star Trek! But a close second is simply working with people whose passion for Star Trek often exceeds my own, something I’m not used to in everyday life. The worst would have to be the long hours on a shoot, particularly if it’s far from home. But you’d be surprised how little you think of that when you here the director say “Action!” TC: How much of your time does the show take up?

TC: If you could create your own Official Star Trek Series, what would it be? DS: It might seem a little dark, but I would love to make a series showing the hard life lived by people on Earth before Zefram Cochrane flew in the Phoenix. While this show might lack some of the best technology from the Star Trek universe, I believe it could have some of the most dramatic storytelling. And being so rustic, it might even be more practical, as far as production values are concerned. However, it would be a challenge to make it look anything like a Star Trek series and not like a Mad Max rip-off. TC: What is it like being part of a Star Trek series, and how do you deal with the fandom that now surrounds Farragut?

e is the navigator of the Starship Farragut, but we still do not know much about Crewman Baker. Here David Sepan the man behind him talks to Trekkie Central about his hopes for the future. TC: When did you discover Star Trek? DS: Like most others in Farragut, I grew up watching Star Trek. Unlike some of the older folks, I saw it on reruns rather than when it was still in production. I can’t pinpoint the exact age that I started watching Trek, but I remember seeing shows before I was in Kindergarten. TC: How did you become involved with Farragut? DS: Paul Sieber (Henry Prescott) is a long-time friend of my family. He’s known me since I was very little, having been a friend to several of my older brothers. When I moved to Maryland, we got in touch with each other again. He introduced Amy and me to John Broughton and the rest of the gang.

DS: So far, I have little fame compared to the real stars of the show, who are also the hardest workers on this project. To date, no one has recognized me on the street from my work here. That might change someday, but for now, I get to enjoy the shows increasing success without feeling like my private life has been interrupted. TC: You obviously enjoy being part of the show, so what are the best and worst bit about being on it?

DS: At this point, I have not given up a lot of time compared to so many others in Farragut. But I expect that could change if Baker expands his role on the bridge. Mostly, I usually only have to give up a weekend or two for the scenes where I’m on camera. Sometimes I volunteer for crew work when we’re shooting something locally. This suits me well, since my regular job puts a lot of demand on my time. TC: David: You helped develop Farragut, what input did you have during the shows development? DS: I feel my contributions pale in comparison to the writers, producers, and directors. My biggest input has been on the set, usually coming up with ways to pull off difficult shots using only what we have. I left the writing and character development to those who have more talent in those areas. My skills were better suited in production helping to make a theater look like a Klingon interrogation room or making a door blow off its hinges without the benefit of pyrotechnics. TC: Are there any storylines that you would like to see your characters have? DS: from the Naval Academy. While he lacks the education that others may have, he still manages to keep up with them, mostly through sheer determination and hard work. A lot of his technical savvy is self-taught, and he’s proud of his ability to function on the Farragut’s bridge next to junior officers. He considers himself proof that book smarts do not necessarily come from the classroom and that good bridge personnel do not have to come only from Starfleet Academy. I wouldn’t mind seeing more storylines showing him to be somewhat at odds with his surroundings due to his background, and yet still adjusting and occasionally even flourishing.~

etoreyn the person who created the score for Farraguts second episode â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;For Want of A Nailâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; talks to Trekkie Central Magazine about his experiences whilst doing so.

TC: Where did you get the feel of the music from? (did you watch the show first or did the inspiration come from somewhere else)

TC: When did you discover Star Trek? H: When I was about 4 years old .. Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Instantly fell in love with the ship, and artwork and amazing FX, and of course the amazing music which .. to this day .. I still consider the best film score ever made. And the composer Jerry Goldsmith has been my hero ever since. TC: How did you become involved with Farragut? H: I had heard on the TWiT (This Week in Tech) Podcast the name "New Voyages" mentioned by John C. Dvorak .. and thanks to him I went to the site and watched the second episode "To Serve all my Days". I also saw their Vignette (Which was a DVD version and I saw the Trailer for Farragut on that.). Intrigued I decided to go along and check it out. After watching the Pilot of Farragut (The Captaincy) I sent an e-mail to the team offering them my music services in future episodes. I did not expect them to contact me but thought if they had lots of work that I might stand a chance of perhaps doing some additional music. But within a few hours I had an e-mail from John Broughton saying that they were amazed by my demo and would forward my details on to Michael Struck. I was then contacted by him about participating in doing the music for the 30 second trailer to "For Want of a Nail". And then John Seguin (composer of the pilot) said he couldn't do the music for "For want of a Nail" and it was passed on to me. I had no complaints as this was certainly the film scoring break I had been seeking. At first I though I'd just end up doing small things but very quickly I found myself scoring a massive 85 minute feature.

TC: If you could create your own Official series what would it be? H: Hmm .. Not sure. Personally I'm a fan of the movie era and would like to see more on the voyages of the Enterprise after the V'Ger incident. I like the TOS era fan films but it's not my favourite period really.

H: The feel is definitely taken from ST:TMP and my own Fantasy/Romantic music ideas. Although I did try to accommodate instruments that one would have found on the Original Series. (Shakers .. half-step flutters on the flutes and horns etc.) Being my first real outing as a film score composer I really wanted to give it my best and put all the years of film scoring knowledge that I've acquired, by listening to film music, to use. And so I really tried to define the Farraguts theme. And everytime you hear it you know that's the ships theme .. and it changes with the mood of the film. And also for the colonials, and the Solonia. And I wanted the music to be beautiful as well as appropriate. My favourite scores are those that sound beautiful away from the film. Film music shouldn't just work for the film .. it should have a life of it's own. In my opinion of course. TC: You seem to have enjoyed doing the second episodes music, would you come back and do another episode again? H: Working on Farragut was very hard work but it was always exciting and I always kept thinking that this is exactly what I wanted to do. Scoring a Sci-fi film. I hope I do many more. Certainly it was a great learning process. This is experience that you just can't get unless you do it and it will be very helpful for the future. It's been a dream of mine to do music for a Star Trek production. And even though this is only a fan film I feel my dream has been, at least in part, fulfilled. I certainly want the chance to do more. Although next time I think would be easier as I better understand the process. Michael Struck has been amazing as a guide to help me through this project. TC: What do you think of the fandom that now surrounds Farragut? H: Farragut is very new and I think a lot of people have welcomed it in nicely to the fan film productions. I personally feel the Farragut has some of the best production values, so I'm really quite honoured to be doing music for this project. I was quite flattered with the reaction that surrounded the second trailer for episode 2. And I hope that the fans

of Farragut are happy with the music that I've done for Episode 2. TC: How did you create the music, I am assuming that you did not have a live orchestra? H: I've listened rather closely for many years the music of science fiction and fantasy and so I had a pretty good idea about how I wanted to make the music. I chose my Instruments based on a full film orchestra. At the time of getting news that the Farragut team wanted me to do the music score I sat down with the opening teaser and just watched it a few times over and imagined what I would like to hear. I had already done the music for the second trailer and so I had a point to work from. I found that the closing brass chords at the end of the trailer seemed to work well in conveying a sense of tension, and as you listen you'll notice these descending chords appear all the way through the episode. It just seemed like this particular shows signature to me. The main theme was reworked from John Seguins version for a couple of reasons. Originally they had told me that they would use Johns version but as I gave them my music cues the difference in production really made it obvious that two different composers had done the work. I tend to use a heavier reverb than John. So they let me do my version of the main theme, asking me to keep the basic elements of the Seguin version. I wanted very much to have a definite signature for the Farragut, in a similar way what you here whenever you see the Enterprise, but different enough to be Farragut. I used the Vienna Symphonic Library to make the music for Farragut. This is a very high quality sample library that allows me to play my own melodies on any instrument in the orchestra with very realistic results. The Actual process of writing is exactly the same as writing a real score on paper .. except that I'm using a computer instead of paper. I have to write all the notes for everything, and then write in the dynamic information and then I have to listen to it back and then of course to mix it. I also used "Voices of the Apocalypse" here and there when I needed a good epic choir, and I used Logic Pro 7 with Altiverb (for the Reverb) to create the pieces. How I worked was that NEO fx would send me the video for the Acts (roughly 17 mins long each) and I would watch them and make some rough ideas and sketches musi-

cally. Then when I had enough to show NEO fx I would send back my sketches, get their opinions and make the changes. After the mood of the scenes had been discussed I then wrote the melodies and began to orchestrate all the other instruments. And I consult the directors notes on specific spots that he wanted me to do. When all was done and the director and NEO fx were happy with the beta audio I then bounced the finished audio to high quality PCM wave audio. And then sent it onto them so they can do the sound dub. TC: How long did it take to create the music? H: This varied. When I first started .. which was on the beginning teaser I hadn't yet really established the themes, and so I was experimenting with everything and testing out what sounded right for this episode. I worked roughly 10 days on each Act, to create the initial audio, but then changes would be asked for and so this increased the production time. Some Acts I went back into after I had finished them because I would finish a theme in another act and find that previous act wasn't as good so I would change things a little. All in all it took around 2 and a half months from inception to recording. And about an extra week to do the album version which required some changes here and there and a different mix-down. TC: And was more created than was needed for the show? H: Actually no. Pretty much everything that is in the show is what I made. Some cues were re-scored if the director thought that the mood had to be adjusted so there are some alternate versions but all the music that I made is in the show. And for the album version I ended up putting back orchestration that had been cut due to the conflicts with vocals or sound design. TC: Is there any of the music that you would change if you were given a second chance? H: Having learned so much in writing this music I now look back at certain parts and think I would perhaps do differently now ..maybe flesh out the orchestration on the smaller instruments. But I'm very happy with the end result. The pieces flow well, and seem very appropriate for the scenes in the film and I think it's also a nice listening experience on it's own.~

First Officers Log: CDR Tacket Starship Farragut Star Trek Now. I truly believe that Star Trek will always be around. Now whether or not we like it, is something yet to be seen. Remember, Paramount and CBS are trying to make money on a product they own. To that end, they must appeal to the audience of the day. Each incarnation of Star Trek has had something to offer for everyone. Star Trek TNG albeit closer to the original series than the others, was intended for the new audience. Star Trek DS9 and even Voyager and Enterprise each tailored the episodes to a different audience. Now it is time to revitalize the franchise again. Star Trek XI in December 2008 will do just that to bring in a new audience and introduce them to the new Capt Kirk and crew. Depending on what I see in the way of previews, I may or may not be standing in line. For now, I will be content producing Starship Farragut they way we, The Farragut Family remembers Trek. 34

Special Thanks: Interviewees: John Broughton; Paul R. Sieber; Michael Bednar; Holly Bednar; David Sepan; Hetoreyn and Michael Struck. Art Work: Neo-Fx; Michael Struck. Special Thanks to the following: Michael Bednar; Dean Rodgers and Bob McDonough. Extra Special Thanks to Michael Struck, who when we were having huge problems came to the rescue. Many Thanks. Writers: Alex Matthews and Richard Miles

The Star Trek name is property of CBS/Paramount, no infringement is intended. Starship Farragut remains the property of Farragut Films, no infringement is intended. All images in the news page are property of their respective shows, no infringement is intended. This magazine has been made for fans for their enjoyment. This magazine has been distributed free of charge and no money has been made from itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s distribution. If the creator of this magazine and the creators of this fan series cannot make any money than neither should you. If you find a copy of this magazine on sale anywhere it is illegal, please do not buy it and benefit those that are ripping off fans and committing an offence. Copyright Trekkie-Central.piczo.com February 2008.