Fan Audio Productions

[Jbarney]

Hi Folks,

I was just curious if I could be pointed in the direction of a few good audio adventures. I have not watched ANY of the fan films or shows that have been produced, although I think I might be moving in that direction.

I am a bit of a continuity nerd so I think I would enjoy productions that don't walk too far from the beaten path.

Just looking to down load missions for a good walk or working in the garden.

Any help is appreciated....

Thanks....
Jason

 

[Karzak]

Darker Projects has a mostly well done series from about ten years ago called The Section 31 Files that may seem like it starts off weirdly, but if you put in the effort to listen to it through to the end (3 seasons of ~12 or so episodes each), it finishes off quite nicely.

The dialogue can be somewhat clumsy and repetitive, as the episodes were mostly written by the same person, and therefore characterization at times feels like it flatlines on "dour" but the plotting of this series is superb. Every single thing set up at the beginning of the series pays off by the end, and in very satisfying and clever ways.

Fun facts:
This series features among its cast Nick Cook from Star Trek Intrepid (though playing a different character); the characters of Dalonna, Mak, and Judah can be seen (sort of) at the end of Intrepid's pilot, "Heavy Lies The Crown." Bishop appears infrequently as well on the various Hidden Frontier series also.

This series is also where the character of Korg, played by Karl Puder originated before he began appearing as the same character in the Hidden Frontier fan films.

A second series, Lost Frontier, picks up about 25 years later, and includes a follow-up to many of the characters from The Section 31 Files as well.

If I recall correctly, the entirety of these series, as well as the rest of Darker Projects' fantasy, suspense, and science fiction catalog are still available on iTunes.

 

[Jbarney]

Thanks for the reply.....I have never delved into any of the fan related productions at all....and am just looking to dabble with something worthwhile. I think I have heard of the Section 31 stuff....will probably give it a try.

Thanks man,
JB

 

[Karzak]

Glad to share the info! The episodes are also in ~15 to 20 minutes in length, so they are easily digestible during a morning commute or on the train or while traveling. Hope you enjoy!

 

[Barbreader]

Er... I don't see the reply.

Anyway, I strongly recommend Outpost and Starship Excelsior.

You can find links to these, and over four dozen other audio productions (listed in alphabetical order by name) here: http://startrekreviewed.blogspot.com/2009/06/247.html

 

[ozzfloyd]

I would also recommend Excelsior and Outpost. Got all caught up with Excelsior recently and now I'm about 3/4 of the way through Outpost's episodes. Really good stuff.

 

[MikeH92467]

I also recommend Starship Excelsior (the others mentioned here are excellent as well), but of course since I've been involved with Excelsior from the beginning, I might be slightly biased. If you got to Starshipexcelsior dot com you will find all the episodes along with some bonus stuff and a "New Listener's Guide". This can be valuable because it will give you some idea of where to pick up the complex story arc(s). Also there's a caution about trying to start from the first season which is well warranted. The fact is that in the early episodes our skill level did not quite match our enthusiasm, although we have constantly improved to the point where we are now a Parsec Award nominated show.
Hope you enjoy the audio adventures. It's a lot of fun!

 

[dmac]

I also recommend Starship Excelsior (the others mentioned here are excellent as well), but of course since I've been involved with Excelsior from the beginning, I might be slightly biased. If you got to Starshipexcelsior dot com you will find all the episodes along with some bonus stuff and a "New Listener's Guide". This can be valuable because it will give you some idea of where to pick up the complex story arc(s). Also there's a caution about trying to start from the first season which is well warranted. The fact is that in the early episodes our skill level did not quite match our enthusiasm, although we have constantly improved to the point where we are now a Parsec Award nominated show.
Hope you enjoy the audio adventures. It's a lot of fun!

Update Mike, I see Excelsior on the finalist list, good luck in September.

Best Speculative Fiction Audio Drama (Short Form) [ADS]

MFMI: Oh Where, Oh Where Can She Be? MIKE MURPHY
Aaron’s World Mike & Aaron Meraz
The Galaxy Quest Restoration Project FictionShed.com
Story: Balance of Darkness by David A. Mackenzie
Wooden Overcoats Audioscribble and David K. Barnes
The Moonlit Road Craig Dominey
Ray Gunn and Starburst Holly Rose
Best Speculative Fiction Audio Drama (Long Form) [ADL]
ars PARADOXICA Daniel Manning & Mischa Stanton
Starship Excelsior James Heaney
Wolf 359 Kinda Evil Genius Productions
Story: Mayday by Gabriel Urbina
Hadron Gospel Hour Rich Wentworth and Mike McQuilkin
Story: “This Particle, Doomed!” OR “The Incident At Universe 603-X” by Rich Wentworth and Mike McQuilkin
Uncanny County Todd Faulkner and Alison Crane
Return Home Jeff Heimbuch and Andrew Taylor
Story: Home At Last / Whatever Lies Behind The Door / Running Wild by Jeff Heimbuch
The Cleansed Fred Greenhalgh
Story: The Cleansed (Season 3) by Fred Greenhalgh / FinalRune Productions

 

[Kelso]

I also enjoy Outpost.

 

[Jbarney]

Er... I don't see the reply.

Anyway, I strongly recommend Outpost and Starship Excelsior.

You can find links to these, and over four dozen other audio productions (listed in alphabetical order by name) here: http://startrekreviewed.blogspot.com/2009/06/247.html

I started with Starship Excelsior. Listened to the first episode this morning while getting my shopping done. Have to say, pretty impressive....from what I could tell about the setting it is supposed to take place in late 2382....and from what I could tell, it sounded like they had overlapped the story after the events of the Star Trek Gateways and Destiny series of novels? Not sure....I read Gateways awhile ago....but Destiny....saving that one for when I can get through it without many breaks. If anyone else has setting details, would be happy to discuss....without too many spoilers.

Very good production though. Will listen to the 2nd one soon.

 

[Wowbagger]

Glad you enjoyed!

Excelsior does indeed begin in late 2382. December something. I would have to check my files for the date, and I'm on my phone. A lot happens in a short period of time: the end of the third season is set in late January 2383, barely a month after the pilot. Season 4 is a bit more brisk about the passage of time.

There are similarities and references to various other non-canon works, from novels to role playing games to other fan shows. The small hat tips are usually intentional, but the bigger stuff is more often a case of convergent evolution. Iconian Gateways are cool and underused, so we used 'email, with no special attention to Gateways the series. Our basic arc was determined before Destiny was even announced, much less released, so any resemblance between Excelsior and Destiny is coincidental -- though I share David Mack's fondness for the Borg and mass casualty events and especially the combination of the two. I have actually been really annoyed by some of what Star Trek Online has been doing, because some of it is eerily similar to stuff we have done or are planning to do. (Not their fault, of course! On the contrary, good for them for finding a good story in the same place we did!)

So, basically, the setting is:

* All Trek canon is Excelsior canon. Trek non-canon is not Excelsior canon, but sometimes suggests things.

* It's a couple years after Nemesis.

* Shortly after Voyager got home, the Federation discovered a massive Iconian Gateway in orbit of Union III, an outpost near Romulan and Klingon territory (as well as many Ferengi holdings, incidentall).

* Starfleet eventually figured out that ships could pass through this Gateway to one and only one other Gateway, in a new part of the Delta Quadrant. Starfleet believes there are other such "mega-gateways", but has not been able to find any, and attempts to redirect the known Gateways to other, unknown Gateways have failed.

* Starfleet has been poking around that part of the D.Q., on and off, for a few years now, but timidly. The area around the Gateway is still pretty much virgin territory. Starfleet Task Force 38 is responsible for defending and exploring it, and the Excelsior has finally been pulled out of mothballs after two years to lead the effort.

* At least, that's the official story. But the official story is a lie.

* I eventually realized that this was way too much backstory for an audio drama and downplayed it. (We started as an RPG, where those sorts of details are essential.) The opening credits were edited to include a mention of "an ancient Gateway", to fill people in on the essentials, but we stopped trying to push the nitty-gritty of fleet operations in and around Union down everybody's throats.

* Union III has a Starbase, Starbase 911, under the command of Admiral Athos Roark-Parker, which is the Excelsior's home port. Union III also has a thriving colony, orbital shipyards, and a number of excellent bars.

I would be happy to talk your entire ear off about more setting details, because I love it -- I have a multi-page document discussing the discovery and activation of the Gateway, not a detail of which has ever appeared in an episode, and more besides -- but, if I indulged myself fully right now, I'd probably scare you off! So this will suffice for now.

Again, I'm glad you enjoyed the first episode and thank you for giving Excelsior a try!

 

[Jbarney]

I listened to episodes #2 and #3 last night. I don't want to sound insulting, but I do understand why you put the little teaser comment about skipping to later seasons in there. Where episode #1 you had fleshed out nicely with Character moments etc....and if I recall correctly #2 had them starting their mission and going through the gateway.....the delivery of the action scenes in episode #3 was a little clunky. Again, I don't mean this to point a finger at your product and start pointing out all of the flaws....in the grand scheme, please take it as a compliment that you have hooked a fan and I am going to continue listening to them. Although I probably won't get to them today, I hope to get through the first season soon. I have only listened to a few audio books but remember, just like reading a novel, that getting through a "sequence" fairly quickly is important to the enjoyment factor.

Sorry, maybe this is on you website, but do you know how many people have downloaded and or listened to your product? Based on the amount of work you all have put into it....I hope the number is expanding.

Peace,
Jason

 

[Jbarney]

Oh, I should add....by episode #1 I meant the Pilot...

 

[MikeH92467]

There is plenty to criticize about the first season in particular. A great part of the fun for the cast and crew is the feeling of constant improvement in all phases of the project. We hope you enjoy the ride and will continue to share your impressions with us.

 

[Barbreader]

Hang in there until you get into at least the 3rd season.

 

[Wowbagger]

I listened to episodes #2 and #3 last night. I don't want to sound insulting, but I do understand why you put the little teaser comment about skipping to later seasons in there.

I'd only be insulted if it weren't true -- which is indeed exactly why we have that "start with a later season" trailer thing.

On the other hand, this is the first time anyone's ever told me they liked the Pilot more than "Turns of Events," so that's interesting and fresh feedback. I never see positive comments on the pilot... which is why we buried it way down in a subsection of the website! Neat! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Like Mike, we hope you continue to share your impressions with us -- positive and negative. The fan film community is abounding with positive feedback from grateful fans, which is great and I love it, but, if not balanced by negative feedback, it's hard to recognize areas where one's show can improve. Excelsior has always made it a priority to welcome honest, balanced feedback. So we appreciate it.

Sorry, maybe this is on you website, but do you know how many people have downloaded and or listened to your product?

We keep stats, but I don't check them all that often. We started out in season one with a few hundred regular listeners. ("Regular listeners" is defined as "people who download the new episode in the first couple months after release".) As of April of this year, we now have somewhere in the range of 7,000-8,000 regular listeners, mainly through iTunes.

Checking out the database just now, it looks like our all-time total downloads is right around 500,000. So that's nice.

 

[Jbarney]

Some more notes....I don't play music, but have an ear for tunes, especially for back ground music in episodes and movies....for what its worth, I believe I have heard a lot of music from Star Trek V in there, and some of the music from Best of Both Worlds....also, I listened to WildFire today and picked up a little bit of Dr. Who music in there, too.

Ya...WildFire was pretty good....I am looking forward to listening to the end of the season tomorrow or Monday....Thanks for expanding the Trek Universe in such a nice way.

 

[Danlav05]

I*ve heard some of Season 4 before but I have decided to start with Season 3

 

[MikeH92467]

I*ve heard some of Season 4 before but I have decided to start with Season 3

If you haven't already, please feel free to join us on the Starship Excelsior dot com forum. We'd love to have you as a member.

 

[Jbarney]

Listening to the last episode #5 of season two right now. I know you guys play down seasons 1 and 2, but honestly, I wouldn't feel bad about them. If you are confident there is a level of quality above them for seasons 3 and 4, that just says the most recent two seasons are that much better. But your first efforts were at least "good enough" and the entire effort should be praised. At some point I will sign on your web page. I am hooked, and will probably continue on with some of the other fan audio dramas. Good job folks.