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Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Jeff Otto on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
By Jeff Otto
movieset.com
Five Reasons Star Trek is Now Cooler Than Star Wars
Remember back in early 1999 when Star Wars was still cool and you couldn’t wait for the prequels? After decades of teasing, new Star Wars movies were about to hit the big screen and anticipation was palpable. Pictures from set in Vanity Fair revealed Ewan McGregor in the trademark brown robes, the menacing red and black face paint of Darth Maul and those iconic green and red lightsabers glowing for the first time in decades. Fanboys hearts went aflutter, some going so far as to camp outside the theater for weeks beforehand. Finally, Star Wars was about to make its triumphant return!
Princess Leia?
And then the bubble burst. Phantom Menace hit screens in May of 1999 and something just wasn’t quite right. It was long and slow-moving; it had a racially questionable, highly annoying CG character named Jar-Jar Binks; and even the kid who was to become Darth Vader wasn’t too likable. There was no denying the fact that it just wasn’t a very good movie, plain and simple.
Still, fan loyalty held strong, dismissing the misstep as an origin story that would allow Lucas to knock the dust off his director’s cap and really dig into the action when he got to the long-awaited Clone War story-line of part two. The end result of the lamely titled Attack of the Clones was similar, a movie arguably worse that Phantom Menace featuring a love story so excruciating we were all practically begging for more Jar-Jar.
Finally, in 2005, Revenge of the Sith wrapped things up with a final thud. It was better than the first two, but still far short of the original trilogy. Most impressively (and devastatingly), it succeeded in systematically destroying the ultimate baddie Darth Vader once and for all, leaving the horrible imagery of Hayden Christensen’s whiny interpretation and, worst yet, that unforgettably horrible, “Nooooooooooooo!” forever burned into our brain.
Or Seven of Nine?
When news of a similar reboot approach to the Star Trek movie franchise surfaced a few years back, skeptics worried that Kirk, Spock and the Enterprise might suffer the very same fate. Then J.J. Abrams was announced as director and hope sprang alive. As the creator of Lost, Alias and director of the entertainingly disposable Mission Impossible III and producer of the creative low budget monster pic Cloverfield, Abrams represented a fresh approach from a filmmaker in his prime as opposed to Lucas’ desperate attempt to reclaim the glory days and cash in on past achievements.
Star Trek hit screens in May of 2009 and and the reaction was overwhelmingly positive. Praised by Trekkies and critics alike, Abrams had accomplished the rare genre feet of a crossover blockbuster even laymen could enjoy. Not only was Star Trek back, but for arguably the first time in the franchise’s existence, it was actually cool.
It’s been ten years since Lucas first tainted the Star Wars legend with Phantom Menace. In contrast, Star Trek is going strong, raking in almost $400 million worldwide box office in the summer of 2009 and a highly anticipated string of sequels are heading into production. The sudden turn of events begs the question, is Star Trek now cooler than Star Wars?
The List
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Quinn Bender on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
By Quinn Bender
If the last three Star Wars prequels left a sour taste in your mouth, you’ll want to head over to David Berry’s blog for some authentic Star Wars nostalgia. Last Tuesday the optical cameraman posted 8mm home movies of his special effects team in action at the Van Nuys studio in 1976. Berry describes it as “crude home movies from the 1970s depicting activities at a certain location in the San Fernando Valley.” Set to John Williams’ gorgeous trade mark scores, the 10-minute reel introduces us to those responsible for flipping the visual effects universe on its head, and of course shows the crew manipulating some of the models used in actual filming.
A lot of the names in this movie are now legendary. As for David Berry himself, he hasn’t got a lot of film credits to his name — the Star Wars trilogy, Indiana Jones trilogy, E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Battlestar Galactica among them — but every one certainly counts.
In related news, George Lucas is rumored to be speaking through video conference at this year’s Comic-Con Star Wars pavilion. There’s no mention on whether he has news on the possibility of a Star Wars live-action television series, but if there’s any time and place to talk, Comic-Con is it.
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Dave on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Here’s a round-up of articles about filmmaking, screenwriting, film promotion which caught my eye over the past few days, … enjoy this buffet of useful behind the scenes anecdotes from throughout the phases of a film’s life.
Distribution
Sure lots of actors have blogs and Twitter account but it’s nice to see an actor really laying it out with Zachary Quinto does. He’s laid down a stream of consciousness style rundown of the release and promotion tour of Star Trek.
In S. N. Love it…, ZQ talks about the whirlwind of appearing on Saturday Night Live, rocking the after-party and heading to an early morning flight to Tokyo for another premiere.
“tokyo premiere…
all is settled…
it has been a while. travels have brought me home. took a few days of relative solitude to let things breathe. the last leg of the trip was absolutely raucous and exhausting. mostly because all of us realized the imminent conclusion of such an epic adventure and wanted to make the most of it. went back and forth between la and new york a few times. then touched down in tokyo for a blink before coming home and seeking some desert revelation. highlight of the trips to nyc? unsurprisingly… SNL. such a mindblowing convergence of childhood dreams and creative freedom. i mean - come on. gilda radner?! kevin nealon! jan hooks & phil hartman!!! the history of genius and hilarity and instinct. the possibility of it all the cast and writers could not have been more generous or welcoming. justin timberlake slaughtered it. and all i can say is: SNL knows how to throw an after party. and after after party. suffice it to say i boarded my 8:30 sunday morning flight to tokyo with literally no sleep. not being hyperbolic. but it all evened out. in the end - and i welcome all of your support in this matter - the simple fact remains: i must host saturday night live imminently. we’re working on it. to be sure. tokyo was a brief delight. whet my appetite more than anything. there was karaoke until the wee hours after the premiere. to be sure. john cho definitely gave the most rousing rendition of lionel ritchie’s hello that i have ever heard. to be sure. that boy can sing. go see his band in la sometime. all told… we all went for it. all around. and now the movie’s out. official travel has concluded. for the most part i have switched into life mode again. i will likely be laying low the next couple weeks to solidify next steps and gather momentum before the door. a sincere and direct thank you to all of my fans who have followed my exploits and supported our travels and adventures. glad to have been able to share some of it with you since you are ultimately the reason that it’s possible. thanks for seeing the film in such impressive numbers and please keep spreading the word. we’ll keep information and ideas flowing through. and i will most certainly check in again soon. in the meantime. some photos. and please don’t miss the merkin interview. seriously. my favorite interview from the entire press tour. to be sure. be well all. see you soon. zq.
one late night at a bar in the lower east side. blue light glasses anyone?”
The no-paragraph-break-style and real-time narrative hearkens to beat generation writer Jack Kerouac, … Hmmm Zack Quinto as Kerouac’s alter-ego Ray Smith in On the Road? That sounds pretty solid to me.
While you’re there, check out his video interview with co-star, The Quinto & Pine “Bromance” Interview.
Production
The Substreams’ Film Lab is, “where we will show you how to do your thing, on the cheap, without sucking.” Yup videos served up with equal does of practical info and dry humor. Here are a few segments to get the acerbic/dramatic flavor.
Pre-Production Paperwork 1 - Paperwork is a hoot!
Pre-Production
Here’s an interview at the super useful site Filmmaking Stuff - a trove of information. They interviewed Vancouver-based filmmaking veteran Peter D. Marshall. Here’s a great segment about organizing your proejcts by tasks, managing extras budgets and seeing a shot come together.
Filmmaking Stuff
Making a movie is tough. And it’s common for filmmakers to get overwhelmed with details. Could you tell us a little about The Reductionism Theory.
Peter D. Marshall
Reductionism, as described by Wikipedia, is “an approach to understanding the nature of complex things by reducing them to the interactions of their parts, or to simpler or more fundamental thing.”
In other words, the Reductionism Theory states that “most anything can be understood by taking its pieces apart, studying them and then putting them back together so you can see the larger picture.” For our purposes as filmmakers, we use the Reductionism Breakdown Theory as the process of “reducing a script down to its smallest elements by going from large to small, from general to specific.”
Formula: Things You Don’t Know + Research = Things You Do Know
{snip}
Filmmaking Stuff - One area you really brought to my attention is the extras budget. It’s funny, but in my experience this has been an area where filmmakers drop the ball. Can you tell us a little about the extras budget and why it is so essential?
Peter D. Marshall - The Extras budget is usually the only budget the AD department has to manage. You start by getting the Extras budget from the Production Manager which is usually listed in “man hours” for the show.
After you have a preliminary schedule, you begin your first pass on the extras count by deciding how many background performers you feel you need to have for each scene. Since you do this budget very early in prep, this number probably won’t be based on a real location, but will come from your own experience and from reading the script. (re: How many people will it take to fill a nightclub when the script says “the club is busy and jammed with patrons and dancers.”)
You should budget high for all extras because every director will want as many extras as they can for a scene. As all film budgets do, the extras budget will eventually be cut down, but at least you have a good starting point.
This meeting is very important for many departments because of the overlap that occurs with extras (Hair, Makeup, Costumes etc.) This is also the meeting where the Assistant Directors can have some creative input with the Director on the number and the look of the extras as well. Of course, your creative involvement here will always depend on your relationship with the Director at this point in prep.
Let me give you an example of the logistics involved when working with a large group of extras.
I was the First Assistant Director on the Second Unit Battle Sequence for the movie “Legends of the Fall.” I was also tasked with the job (along with the Military Advisor) to set up and train the 1000 extras who would be in the WW1 battle scenes. We had less than 2 weeks to do all this.
We spent the first week working out all of the logistics; confirming these with Director Ed Zwick and his storyboards; planning the event down to the smallest detail with the Props and Costume departments who had to dress and arm all of the extras; and had many conversations with Special Effects who had 25 special effects people who were responsible for setting off all the explosions on the battlefield as the troops charged over it - at night!
We then had the second week to set up and train the main battle group of about 200 extras who played the officers and NCOs (non-commissioned officers) of the 9 sections it would take to fill the battlefield.
On the day of the scene, (it was actually shot at night) we were only budgeted for 4 hours of rehearsal in the daylight with the entire 1000 extras! From the time the first extra got off the bus at base camp, to the last extra marching into their place in the trenches, it was 1 1/2 hours later.
When actor Adin Quinn blew his whistle and the camera pulled back on the crane to see 1000 Canadian “soldiers” climb out of the trenches and charge across a battlefield as hundreds of explosions rocked our insides and flares screamed over our heads, we knew we had helped to create a very memorable scene in this movie.
Filmmaking Stuff
Your course reads a lot like a living document. On almost every page, you’ve expanded on the content by providing a link to other, similar information. I’ve read a lot of filmmaking stuff, and I can’t remember the last time an author has been so generous.
Peter D. Marshall
I feel it is very important to “pass the baton” to the younger generation and that is why I hold nothing back when it comes to sharing my knowledge with other filmmakers. I also love teaching!
About 15 years ago, I created a 2-day workshop called “How to Design an Accurate Film Shooting Schedule.” As the film and television industry changed and grew over the years, I modified the content of that workshop to keep up to date with all the new filmmaking techniques I was learning. That 2-day workshop has now become the model for this Online course.
Development
Finally, the Mystery Man on Film who offers up, “Screenwriting news and in-depth analysis from a devoted, yet mysterious, student of the craft.” I enjoyed his posting of the Raiders of the Lost Ark development meetings and recommend this chronicling of Lucas’ Star Wars project from a screenwriting, story-arc perspective.
Here’s a snippet from A Long Time Ago..
I tried my very best to read all six drafts - May 1974,July 1974, January 1975, August 1975, January 1976, and February 1977. Yeah, that was a bit much. Each one of those suckers is filled with about 30,000 words.So I’d like to concentrate on the very first draft, which was titled simply The Star Wars. (Lucas would go on to title later drafts Star Wars: Adventures of the Starkiller, God help us all, but thankfully, he came to his senses and in the end stuck with Star Wars: A New Hope.)
Let it be said, my friends, that the early drafts of Star Wars should be a rich source of encouragement to every aspiring screenwriter the world over - because they royally sucked.
Bonus
Say hello to MovieSet at the Cannes Film Festival Community.
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by grip on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
By Jeff Otto
Portraying an iconic character in a movie is the dream of most actors. Unfortunately, when they do it too well, they may be condemned by the movie Gods to repeat that role for the rest of their career. While the actors that portrayed these famous characters have done other work (or even switched careers), they’ll always be indelibly linked to those iconic roles, for better or worse. Some have accepted their lot in life and others have spent their careers desperately trying to put their on-screen alter-ego to rest, once and for all. But when the fat paychecks come calling again, they swallow their pride and don the red headband, slip into that tuxedo, head into the makeup trailer and practice their catchphrases.
The following is a look at some of the most famous movie characters of the past three decades and the actors that will never escape them. 
Sly Stallone (a.k.a. Rocky, Rambo)
Point at which there was no turning back:Rocky 3, Rambo 2
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: Rocky Balboa, Rambo (2008)
Actor Weaknesses: Tall Female Blondes, Steroids
Character Weaknesses: Tall Male Blondes, Lack of Ammunition
Actual Quote by Rocky: “I guess what I’m trying to say is, if I can change, and you can change, everybody can change.”
Actual Quote by Stallone: “I’m not a genetically superior person. I built my body.” 
Sean Connery (a.k.a. James Bond)
Point at which there was no turning back: Goldfinger
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: Never Say Never Again
Actor Weaknesses: Not sounding Scottish
Character Weaknesses: Sexy evil women and shaken martinis
Actual Quote by James Bond: “Some men just don’t like being taken for a ride.”
Actual Quote by Sean Connery: “I don’t think there is anything particularly wrong in hitting a woman, though I don’t recommend you do it the same way that you hit a man.”
Robert Englund (a.k.a. Freddy Krueger)
Point at which there was no turning back: A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: The Dream Warriors
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: Freddy Vs. Jason
Actor Weaknesses: Romantic Comedies
Character Weaknesses: Reality, Tough Teen Girls
Actual Quote by Freddy Krueger: “Let’s Suck Face.”
Actual Quote by Robert Englund: “Most of my nightmares involve me forgetting my lines in a stage play.”
Hugh Jackman (a.k.a. Wolverine)
Point at which there was no turning back:X-Men:The Last Stand
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Actor Weaknesses: Showtunes
Character Weaknesses: Magnetism, Social Etiquette
Actual Quote by Wolverine: “What do they call you? Wheels?”
Actual Quote by Hugh Jackman: “I have a wife and a son, but the gay rumors have started. I guess it’s a sign that I’m moving up the ladder.”
Sharon Stone (a.k.a. Catherine Trammell)
Point at which there was no turning back: Floodlights aimed up skirt on set of Basic Instinct
Point at which she accepted her lot in life: Forcing Basic Instinct 2 via lawsuit
Actor Weaknesses: Inflated self-image
Character Weaknesses: Lack of Undergarments, Lung Cancer
Actual Quote by Catherine Trammell: “I’d have to be pretty stupid to write a book about killing and then kill him the way I described in my book.”
Actual Quote by Sharon Stone: “Any man in Hollywood will meet me if I want that. No, make that any man anywhere.”
Mark Hamill (a.k.a. Luke Skywalker)
Point at which there was no turning back: The Star Wars Holiday Special
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Actor Weaknesses: Fanboys, Kevin Smith
Character Weaknesses: Whiny, Bad Parenting, Incest
Actual Quote by Luke Skywalker: “If there’s a bright center to the universe, you’re on the planet that it’s farthest from.”
Actual Quote by Mark Hamill: “I have a sneaking suspicion that if there were a way to make movies without actors, George Lucas would do it.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger (a.k.a. The Terminator)
Point at which there was no turning back: Terminator: Judgement Day
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: Terminator 3
Actor Weaknesses: Clear Speech, Budget Management, Tight Skirts
Character Weaknesses: Biker Leather, T-1000
Actual Quote by The Terminator: “I need your clothes, boots and your motorcycle.”
Actual Quote by Arnold Schwarzenegger: “To those critics who are so pessimistic about our economy, I say, Don’t be economic girlie men!”
Protocol Droid (a.k.a. C-3PO)
Point at which there was no turning back: Droids (animated series)
Point at which he accepted his lot in life: Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
Actor Weaknesses: Superior-sounding and effeminate accent
Character Weaknesses: Spouting useless statistics, Angry Wookies
Actual Quote by C-3PO: “I’m programmed for etiquette, not destruction!”
Actual Quote by Protocol Droid: “Artoo is a hack.”
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by grip on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Welcome to ANOTHER episode of Behind the Scenes!! Our Hosts Eric and Shaun are pumping out the content this week! First we start off talking about the new King of Fighters movie! MovieSet has some Exclusive content you can’t see anywhere else, so if you are a fan of the game, check it out! We also take a look at the Star Wars fan movie “Fanboys” followed by another look at our infamous Death Warrior content. Enjoy!!
First off we take another look at King of Fighters! Its an exciting new movie based on the Video Game. MovieSet has a few exclusive behind the scenes interviews and clips! Check it out! King of Fighters is a stylish, high-octane, live action feature based on the highly successful video game franchise, in which the last surviving descendants of three legendary clans are continuously transported to other dimensions to test their martial arts skills against an evil force that seeks to invade and infect the real world.
It’s 1998 and Star Wars fanboys across the globe eagerly await the release of Episode I. But for Eric, Linus, Hutch and Windows the term “fanboy” is more than just a title, it’s a badge of honor. Spurred by impatience and an undying loyalty to their cause, these former high school friends reunite to undertake the road trip of their fan-tasies. Traveling West across the country to visit their Mecca - George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch - the plan is to break in, steal the film and stake their claim as the first fanboys in history to watch it. But to secure their place in the fanboy hall of fame, they’ll have to contend with bizarre bikers, a crazy pimp, a deranged group of trekkies 
and the quiet intensity of William Shatner.
Death Warrior is about a gritty MMA fighter is forced into a twisted, underground gambling ring in which he must fight to the death with other MMA fighters in order to save his wife from certain death at the hands of a maniacal crime boss. In a desperate race against time, he is forced into a series of increasingly violent life and death matches while simultaneously piecing together the puzzle which leads him to uncover the identity of the promoter and the ultimate showdown, in which there can only be one Death Warrior.
Be sure to check out more Behind the Scenes! We screen 3 episodes a week.
Subscribe to behind the Scenes in iTunes or by Email
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Mike on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
The franchise that never dies gets the animated Maury Povich-esque treatment. Finally we hear the results of Darth Vader’s paternity test in regards to Luke Skywalker. Luke has a secret of his own.
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Mike on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
I found this rather amusing video at realitymag.com:
What an excellent recut of the first three (and in my opinion only three) Star Wars films to create a short just over a minute long that really captures the feel of the whole franchise in a nutshell. Whoever did this deserves a pat on the back. Funny stuff.
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Patrick on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Remember that auction for all those wonderful, one-of-a-kind items from dozens and dozens of Hollywood movies from the past 80 years? It took place yesterday and several of the lots that went up for bid actually went for quite a bit more than what was estimated, like that little doohickey from a galaxy far, far away. How much did the hero prop of Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber from the original 1977 Star Wars movie go for? It wasn’t for $180,000 which is what the high estimate was.
Try $240,000.
Who says that there’s a recession going on?
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Mike on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
I know some of you have seen this before, but it came to our attention today and we thought it was worth another look:
[source geekologie and Dan]
Picard and Vader sharing the screen? Wow!
Fairly well done and funny to boot.
Were these two worlds ever to truly collide there would be an explosive nerd climax of epic proportions. However, I think I’ll listen to Patrick drone on and on about why this would be impossible and would never actually take place.
I really believe some people know far too much about this stuff.
Posts Tagged ‘star wars’
Five Reasons Star Trek is Cooler Than Star Wars
Posted by Mike on Tuesday, August 18, 2009
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the old storyboards from Star Wars IV - A New Hope. Dan here at MovieSet sent me a link to a flickr set of tons of Star Wars content and those 31+ year old gems were among them.
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