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Different approaches for fan productions...

Warped9

Admiral
Admiral
This is meant as a sounding board for ideas inspired by a few examples I have seen myself.

Documentary - When I first saw Prelude To Axanar I was struck by the format/structure of the piece. It presented an event in Trek history in a documentary/docudrama style that I think could have worked quite well if the producers had followed through with it rather than the approach they intended for the finished product. To some extent it reminded me of The Great Martian War (aired on History Television) that used a similar approach to depict a fictional Martian invasion during the time of WW1 (something I thought was exceptionally well done).

Promotional/Propaganda - Some years ago someone filmed an animated Klingon short like some sort of recruiting promotion for Klingon warriors in service of the Empire. A very clever and well executed idea.

Newscast - Babylon 5 did this (at least once) wherein an event was told from the viewpoint of a reporter in the field. Something similar could be done in Trek with perhaps tweaking it as a news report of an event that has already happened (or is happening) in the Trek universe. For example what if word of the Doomsday Machine event got out to the general public somehow just when the Enterprise pulls into Starbase and Starfleet is trying to deal with the media. Something like this o a whole other story or historical event.



Any other thoughts or suggestions?
 
Personal logs. Redshirt Diaries used this to humorous effect, but I think there's room for something much more serious using the format. Something along the lines of a fleshed-out version of Edison's descent into madness in Star Trek Beyond
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...Promotional/Propaganda - Some years ago someone filmed an animated Klingon short like some sort of recruiting promotion for Klingon warriors in service of the Empire. A very clever and well executed idea.
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That someone is Mark 2000 on this board.
 
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Documentary - When I first saw Prelude To Axanar I was struck by the format/structure of the piece. It presented an event in Trek history in a documentary/docudrama style that I think could have worked quite well if the producers had followed through with it rather than the approach they intended for the finished product. To some extent it reminded me of The Great Martian War (aired on History Television) that used a similar approach to depict a fictional Martian invasion during the time of WW1 (something I thought was exceptionally well done).
Don't you mean 'mockumentary'? :shifty:
 
Don't you mean 'mockumentary'? :shifty:
'Mockumentary' usually refers to the fact that it is satirizing something, (or is comedic in nature) not that it is not a real documentary. I'm pretty sure what Warped is describing is known as docufiction.
 
'Mockumentary' usually refers to the fact that it is satirizing something, (or is comedic in nature) not that it is not a real documentary. I'm pretty sure what Warped is describing is known as docufiction.
That was supposed to be a joke ;)

If you did not get the reference Alec Peters lawyers claimed that 'Prelude to Axanar' was a mockumentry.
https://www.trektoday.com/content/2016/11/axanar-lawyers-its-a-mockumentary/

They were trying to use the word 'mock' in the context of 'fake' or 'artificial'.
 
How about a Starfleet recruiting promo similar to those we've seen from the U.S. armed forces? I've seen Canadian versions as well.

Or perhaps something like a "strange but true" special with an X-Files or Unsolved Mysteries feel?
 
This is meant as a sounding board for ideas inspired by a few examples I have seen myself.

Documentary - When I first saw Prelude To Axanar I was struck by the format/structure of the piece. It presented an event in Trek history in a documentary/docudrama style that I think could have worked quite well if the producers had followed through with it rather than the approach they intended for the finished product. To some extent it reminded me of The Great Martian War (aired on History Television) that used a similar approach to depict a fictional Martian invasion during the time of WW1 (something I thought was exceptionally well done).

Promotional/Propaganda - Some years ago someone filmed an animated Klingon short like some sort of recruiting promotion for Klingon warriors in service of the Empire. A very clever and well executed idea.

Newscast - Babylon 5 did this (at least once) wherein an event was told from the viewpoint of a reporter in the field. Something similar could be done in Trek with perhaps tweaking it as a news report of an event that has already happened (or is happening) in the Trek universe. For example what if word of the Doomsday Machine event got out to the general public somehow just when the Enterprise pulls into Starbase and Starfleet is trying to deal with the media. Something like this o a whole other story or historical event.



Any other thoughts or suggestions?
Thinking about other other approaches, I have seen some fan groups use 'personal logs' to tell a story.

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Whilst this approach is normally used for parody's it could be used effectively to tell more serious stories.
How about a Starfleet recruiting promo similar to those we've seen from the U.S. armed forces? I've seen Canadian versions as well.
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