TREK and stock footage

[RobertScorpio]

Stock footage...you know, reused FX shots. TREK, and the old BSG, heck even the new BSG (do they even have space battles anymore on that show) really made an art out of reshowing stock footage. Or my favorite? Reversing the stock footage, TNG did this a couple times, and you can even see the backward letters on the shipt...oye!!!

The movies did it too, and we either shame them (Generation's reused Klingong ship exploision from from TUC) or we excuse them for budget reasons (ENTERPRISE leaving space dock in TWOK)...in any event, TREK, going back to TOS has made the use of Stock Footage a major component of their shows...

Was there one episode where they used Stock footage where you think they could have splurged a little and made a new effect?

I have two from TNG that really make me cringe.

#1. I can't even remember the title. But its the first episode with Klingons, and those two warriors take over engineering. So we have our first use of a Klingon ship on TNG and what do they do? They use stock footage from TMP, Klingon vs Vgr, the center ship as it approaches at the start of TMP, and just edit out other two, and it even looks like cut and pace. This was from ILM???

#2 The Binards episoded, 00111010, or whatever. They use STAR TREK 3s shot of a very small enterprise approaching one of those Giant mushroom looking space stations, and just slap a still shot of the ENT-D over it....


I know it's all for budget reasons. But at least they could have done the old reverse image on that one...

So, what was a space shot, ship FX, that was a stock where you think they should have gone the extra mile..

Rob
Scorpio

 

[Frodo Lives]

I believe what is considered one of the most criminal uses of stock footage was in the DS9 finale, What You Leave Behind. Quite a few people were miffed at seeing the Jem Hadar ram into that Vorcha-class, the Sitak and the Majestic bite it, and the exact same fleet from Tears of the Prophets, again. As time's gone by I'm not so bothered by it, considering there are still quite a few new shots mixed in, but at the time those shots had pretty much become iconic, showing just how far DS9's effects work had advanced, and to see them slapped in there was pretty grating.

WYLB is about the only DS9 ep that actually needs remastering, and I wish the studio would have done it for the DVD release. Ah well.

 

[EliyahuQeoni]

One of the worst is the reuse of the Bird of Prey explosion from TUC in GEN.

 

[RobertScorpio]

I believe what is considered one of the most criminal uses of stock footage was in the DS9 finale, What You Leave Behind. Quite a few people were miffed at seeing the Jem Hadar ram into that Vorcha-class, the Sitak and the Majestic bite it, and the exact same fleet from Tears of the Prophets, again. As time's gone by I'm not so bothered by it, considering there are still quite a few new shots mixed in, but at the time those shots had pretty much become iconic, showing just how far DS9's effects work had advanced, and to see them slapped in there was pretty grating.

WYLB is about the only DS9 ep that actually needs remastering, and I wish the studio would have done it for the DVD release. Ah well.

Yes, I do remember that. And I also remember BERMAN or BERH saying they were saving up tons of money for that final episode and that there would be a giant space battle...I think they really did plan some kind of battle around Cardassia, but they nixed it and went with Stock footage from past episodes.

At least they didn't reuse the FX from The Way Of The Warrior!!! I love those FX too. Especially when the defiant is chased by that vorcha, under the the exploding cardassian ship...by the way..if you know this..was shot I just mentioned CGI? I didn't even know the footage of the Defiant in the opening titles was CGI..

Rob

 

[Michael]

There's one shot of the Enterprise-D flying over the camera that's used to death throughout the whole of TNG. Hell, they even used it in Generations! I don't have anything against the shot. I just think they overused it.

 

[RobertScorpio]

There's one shot of the Enterprise-D flying over the camera that's used to death throughout the whole of TNG. Hell, they even used it in Generations! I don't have anything against the shot. I just think they overused it.

Well, for me, none of the movies have an excuse for doing it, and that means TWOK too. They not only reuse the launch, they reuse the ship going into warp effect, and a fly by or two from TMP. No excuse for it. Those scenes need a 'remaster' too IMO.

Rob

 

[Dane_Whitman]

I believe what is considered one of the most criminal uses of stock footage was in the DS9 finale, What You Leave Behind. Quite a few people were miffed at seeing the Jem Hadar ram into that Vorcha-class, the Sitak and the Majestic bite it, and the exact same fleet from Tears of the Prophets, again. As time's gone by I'm not so bothered by it, considering there are still quite a few new shots mixed in, but at the time those shots had pretty much become iconic, showing just how far DS9's effects work had advanced, and to see them slapped in there was pretty grating.

WYLB is about the only DS9 ep that actually needs remastering, and I wish the studio would have done it for the DVD release. Ah well.

This was the first thing I thought of. I remember I was very disappointed at the time, fortunately the rest of the episode was really good, but the use of stock footage was preposterous.

 

[EliyahuQeoni]

Well, for me, none of the movies have an excuse for doing it, and that means TWOK too. They not only reuse the launch, they reuse the ship going into warp effect, and a fly by or two from TMP. No excuse for it. Those scenes need a 'remaster' too IMO.

I wish they had used new footage for that as well, but they had good reason for doing so. Reusing the launch footage from TMP meant they had more money to spend on the effects for the rest of the movie. If memory serves, TWOK didn't have a huge budget, so they had to spend very carefully.

 

[RobertScorpio]

Well, for me, none of the movies have an excuse for doing it, and that means TWOK too. They not only reuse the launch, they reuse the ship going into warp effect, and a fly by or two from TMP. No excuse for it. Those scenes need a 'remaster' too IMO.

I wish they had used new footage for that as well, but they had good reason for doing so. Reusing the launch footage from TMP meant they had more money to spend on the effects for the rest of the movie. If memory serves, TWOK didn't have a huge budget, so they had to spend very carefully.

Yes..I understand that. But GENERATIONS had budget woes too. But the TWOK footage was far longer than a simple klingon ship exploding.

Rob

 

[The Wormhole]

Generations probably had the worst stock footage. We had:

-Shot of the Excelsior at warp from TUC fill in for the Enterprise B at warp.
-Generic flyby shot of the Enterprise D from the series was used.
-Of course, the infamous Bird of Prey explosion from TUC.

 

[RobertScorpio]

Generations probably had the worst stock footage. We had:

-Shot of the Excelsior at warp from TUC fill in for the Enterprise B at warp.
-Generic flyby shot of the Enterprise D from the series was used.
-Of course, the infamous Bird of Prey explosion from TUC.

Nope..three for three..

TWOK had..

Launch of ENTERPRISE from space dock
Ship warping MINUS he Trumbal light effect
Two flybys from TMP...
AND...the reuse of the klingon batte vs VGR during the bridge test at the start of the movie..

The only reason why, I think, GENERATIONS gets bashed is because TWOK is like the bible to TREK fans...you can't diss it....

But if you weigh what TWOK did to what Generations did? I think TWOK raped TMP far more than Generations raped whatever it raped..

Rob

 

[captcalhoun]

The initial trailers for GEN and FC have criminal reuse of TNG footage. the GEN trailer includes the Bozeman exiting the time-rift in "Cause and Effect" while the FC trailer used at least 3 clips of the E-D!

 

[Michael]

... the FC trailer used at least 3 clips of the E-D!

... and don't firget the infamous shot of the Voyager firing at a Borg cube.

 

[Crewman47]

Generations probably had the worst stock footage. We had:

-Shot of the Excelsior at warp from TUC fill in for the Enterprise B at warp.
-Generic flyby shot of the Enterprise D from the series was used.
-Of course, the infamous Bird of Prey explosion from TUC.

AND...the reuse of the klingon batte vs VGR during the bridge test at the start of the movie..


Rob

I always wondered why they never went with the novelised version of that scene which iirc was had more than just the three Klingon ships we saw and was more action orientated, I think the ships actually moved instead of the static look we got on screen. Now I think that would've looked brilliant on the big screen and on the small screen, as I was too young to actually experience it at the time.

 

[FalTorPan]

#1. I can't even remember the title. But its the first episode with Klingons, and those two warriors take over engineering. So we have our first use of a Klingon ship on TNG and what do they do? They use stock footage from TMP, Klingon vs Vgr, the center ship as it approaches at the start of TMP, and just edit out other two, and it even looks like cut and pace. This was from ILM???

The episode was "Heart of Glory," and ILM had nothing to do with the VFX of either TMP or TNG after the premiere episode.

 

[RobertScorpio]

#1. I can't even remember the title. But its the first episode with Klingons, and those two warriors take over engineering. So we have our first use of a Klingon ship on TNG and what do they do? They use stock footage from TMP, Klingon vs Vgr, the center ship as it approaches at the start of TMP, and just edit out other two, and it even looks like cut and pace. This was from ILM???

The episode was "Heart of Glory," and ILM had nothing to do with the VFX of either TMP or TNG after the premiere episode.

I know ILM didn't do TMP, Dyskra did. But I thought ILM did the effects for TNG. If not, then who did? Because who ever did, did a pretty lame job. Some of those video overlays, such as Q's gate, were very poor. In fact, compared to some of TOS's best work, it looked like FX quality took a STEP back, not forward, in the 20 year gap between TOS and TNG.

Rob

 

[Hoogle]

ILM did effects for Encounter At Farpoint only but some of the Enterprise D footage was reused throughout the series.

 

[RobertScorpio]

ILM did effects for Encounter At Farpoint only but some of the Enterprise D footage was reused throughout the series.

Thanks, I didn't know that. And I know they had a shoestring budget, so some of the effects suffer for it. (mainly the Gate effect, and that miniutre city they used when it was attacked)...Maybe they will go back and do for TNG what they did for TOS and give it new effects.

Rob

 

[Therin of Andor]

I think TWOK raped TMP far more than Generations raped whatever it raped..

Harve Bennett was told that ST II would only be viable if his script proposal used as much stock footage from TMP as possible. And, it was planned as a telemovie, not as a motion picture.

 

[Therin of Andor]

But I thought ILM did the effects for TNG. If not, then who did?

Image G. (Except "Encounter at Farpoint").