Some people like fan films and others think they're abominations, but they're definitely part of the fan scene. However, for years those other guys have pretty much had a monopoly on "officially-sanctioned" fan film viewings. (Lucas gets the idea that fan films are free publicity; CBS/Paramount has up until now been pretty clueless.)

Well, that's finally changing. For the first time, Creation Entertainment (those are the guys that hold the big Star Trek bash at the Las Vegas Hilton every year) has convinced CBS/Paramount to let them show a non-parody fan film. The film is the animation feature Borg War, which was selected not so much because it's such a great film (opinions vary), but because it had a simple intellectual property scenario and somebody (meaning me) was persistent in working through the legal issues.

Anyway, here's the announcement on the convention webpage:

http://www.creationent.com/cal/stlv.htm

(It's about halfway down the scroll.) What's cool about this isn't so much the Borg War part (although I'm obviously pleased, personally), but that the approval is a strong indication that the long-suffering Star Trek fan film community is at last beginning to be recognized, in a major venue, for being part of the uber-fan Star Trek culture.

Hehehe....nice

Press Release
Animated Film to Debut at Official Star Trek Convention
BORG WAR is an award-nominated, feature-length movie set in the Star Trek universe.
HOLLIS, N.H., July 16, 2007 -- A new Star Trek-themed animated feature-length film, entitled BORG WAR, will have its theatrical debut at the Official STAR TREK Convention 2007, at the Las Vegas Hilton on Friday August 10th at 6:20 P.M.

Filmmaker Geoffrey James created BORG WAR by reprogramming computer games to generate raw footage, which he then edited to create the finished film. Online clips from BORG WAR have received over a million Internet downloads and were nominated for two awards by the Academy for Machinima Arts and Sciences (AMAS). The theatrical debut will feature the final edition of the film, with never-before-seen scenes and special effects. The theatrical trailer can be viewed at http://www.creationent.com/cal/stlv.htm

Over 12,000 Star Trek fans are expected to beam into The Las Vegas Hilton on August 9-12, 2007 for the event which is billed as the world's largest. William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Avery Brooks, Kate Mulgrew and Brent Spiner headline a guest list that boasts over 75 Star Trek celebrities. Star Trek themed parties, events, contests and auctions also fill the four-day meeting. On the Evening of August 11th a special Star Trek concert will be performed featuring members of the Las Vegas Philharmonic under the direction of Associate Conductor Richard McGee. Further information on the convention can be found at http://www.creationent.com
For information about the Official STAR TREK Convention 2007, contact Monica at monica@creationent.com

For information about BORG WAR or to receive a review copy of the movie, contact Geoffrey James at 603-465-2589 or info@borgwarmovie.org.

I would love to promote BOTF2 at a booth in Vegas. That is if we also could take such a high profile with our unlicensed games. We will need a young good looking booth babe. Applications are now being accepted.

Ahem yes, all booth babe applicants please schedule interviews with me immediately .

I wanted to mention that I will be at the screening to answer questions about how the movie was made and how I got CBS/Paramount to approve the screening. Please feel free to stop by and introduce yourself!

Good luck at the meeting and do let us know how it goes. Thanks for keeping us up to date. I regret that real world wars do not allow me to make the meeting. We would all be interested to know how you managed the screening. It relates to our own long anticipated release dates as you know.

(It would be great to have a booth for BOTF2 games but not unless there was a risk free clearance.)