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CBS/Paramount sues to stop Axanar

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"We've made too many compromises already. Too many retreats. They invade our copyrights, and we fall back. They assimilate entire revenue streams and we fall back. Not again. The line must be drawn HERE! THIS FAR, NO FURTHER!"

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Wow, the author of that screed sure used a lot of words to tell the Internet he's never satisfied a woman. You think he'd be using his time to research how to do that instead of whining about a fanfilm/Kickstarter scam that nobody else cares about.

Tehehe!
 
The one thing that's really starting to get sand in my shorts here is every time an Axanar supporter starts talking about "we" and "they" making this thing real.

Excuse me, aside of a donation, you aren't making anything. You're not being creative. You're not seeing something from concept to completion. So please, stop talking like you're actually in the trenches making stuff. You know, like the majority of the Prelude to Axanar team that is no longer on the production were doing. No, more broadly stroked than that, anyone who has ever made a Star Trek Fan Film with minimal to no outside donations. Sweat, blood, and love of what you're doing.

Say what you will about Prelude, lord knows a lot of people have voiced their criticism of it, but at least they did something. That team got actors in make up, and got some performances together, and interlaced that with some well done CGI and music. They told a Trek story in a novel way that hadn't ever been done before. Nothing can ever take that away from those people who put in those hours. Love of their craft, and love of Trek.

I just hope that this case closes up, one way or the other, sooner, rather than later. So that the healing process can begin.
Has anyone else noticed that the people who seem to be the angriest about the new fan film guidelines, the ones who rant about how they're the worst miscarriage of justice since the Dred Scott decision, are NOT actual fan filmmakers, but merely fan film consumers? They'll go on an on about how the guidelines stifle creativity and free expression, but they have not actually done anything creative. They're just angry Pakleds who want what they want.
 
Well, advertisers are experts at that. The song is a really obvious choice, and it's told with a simple guitar and a woman's voice, but not a recognizable one. That gives it a folksier feel. The enunciation is clear; they want you to hear and understand every lyric. Also, it's not the original Karen Carpenter version because (a) that's older so it wouldn't appeal to younger folks, (b) it's kind of overdone (there are strings IIRC. Richard Carpenter would do the arrangements and he was known for overdoing it and kind of drowning out his sister's voice. But this ad was going for a simple vibe), (c ) Carpenter's voice would have seemed too famous for older folks, and (d) anyone knowing the story of Carpenter's life might have gotten a sad vibe regarding her death. This commercial won't risk that.

The looks of both houses are designed to evoke feelings. The windows of course show us something that looks like a face. The curve of the gate is a smile, as is a hammock.

The dialogue is simple but obvious - e. g. when they are saying, "No, you." It's clear they mean - no, you hang up first. If you've ever been in the throes of the start of a relationship, you know exactly what that is.

The abandonment of her old house (why not his? Hmm?) adds an emotional undercurrent. Then of course the fixing up makes it all upbeat again. And it ends with another girl, although this time she is a bit darker-skinned, although just a touch. She might or might not be Latina. But heaven forfend if she was of African or Asian descent. And, quelle horreur! What if that was a little boy and the feelings evoked were the same?

I realize I've taken deconstruction to and past its absurd and extreme ends. But it's to make a point. A commercial message is a lot like a written drabble, which must be precisely 100 words long, no longer, and no shorter. You have to make every single word count.

The creators of this commercial had three minutes in which to create an emotional connection to paint, flower pots, and power tools. They did it beautifully. I don't know what their financial budget looked like, but their time and attention budget was obvious. They didn't waste a millisecond. They filled them ALL.

And that is precisely what I have been trying to get across with reference to the new guidelines. For everyone who is bitching about the money being cut, this forces you to get truly creative. Some of the best television ever - Ernie Kovacs, The Twilight Zone, and TOS - was all done with limited budgets. Imagination and attention to detail stepped in, when money could not.

The guidelines (in particular, the financial and temporal limits) are a gift. Fans and filmmakers will be a much happier bunch of people when they start realizing that, and acting accordingly.
 
The guidelines (in particular, the financial and temporal limits) are a gift. Fans and filmmakers will be a much happier bunch of people when they start realizing that, and acting accordingly.

I think some fans (not all) want a story context/characters they permanently have staked off and can build out, or support in building out. I think this is the biggest problem for them, they have been told they cannot put down roots. They don't *want* to just make isolated stories, they want an identity in the Trek universe that they control and can enjoy. No matter how many ways you describe story opportunities of the guidelines a gift, they won't agree because its not what they actually want.
 
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