Star Trek fans: Want another reason to hate Paramount?

[RealSNR]

http://www.ew.com/article/2015/12/30...r-trek-lawsuit

Paramount Pictures and CBS Studios filed a copyright infringement complaint against Axanar, a crowdfunded Star Trek film, Monday, claiming the movie uses “innumerable copyrighted elements of Star Trek, including its settings, characters, species, and themes.” Now, Axanar filmmaker Alec Peters has responded to the lawsuit in a statement on Facebook, in which he calls the movie “a love letter to a beloved franchise.”

“It is the Star Trek fans themselves who are most affected here, for by suing Axanar Productions to stop making our movie and collect so-called damages, CBS and Paramount are suing the very people who have enthusiastically maintained the universe created by Gene Roddenberry so many years ago,” Peters wrote. (In the lawsuit, the studio asks for $150,000 in damages per “each separate Star Trek Copyrighted Work infringed.”)

Axanar has raised over $1 million through crowdfunding, and calls itself the “first fully-professional, independent Star Trek film” on its Indiegogo page. “While some may call it a ‘fan film’ as we are not licensed by CBS, Axanar has professionals working in front and behind the camera, with a fully-professional crew — many of whom have worked on Star Trek itself,” the page reads, “who ensure Axanar will be the quality of Star Trek that all fans want to see.”

Peters’ recent statement also highlights the intersection between fandom and professionalism. “The fact that many of the fans involved with Axanar Productions are also industry professionals speaks volumes to the influence of Star Trek in the entertainment industry,” he said. “Not surprisingly, these fans want to give something back. We’re very proud that the work we’ve done to date looks so good. That is also a reflection of the devotion of Star Trek’s fans.”

He added that Axanar Productions “take this matter very seriously and remain open to discussing solutions with all parties that can be mutually beneficial.”

Read the full statement here, and read more about the lawsuit here.

That is so typical of them. Shit on the fans for money. Why don't these assholes go after the smaller fan films that actually suck? Those films have gone beyond using the universe, terms, franchise, and crews-- those films have used the same ACTORS as well. Other than HG Hertzler, I don't see Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, Ethan Phillips, and so many others in this new Axanar film.

While you're at it, why not lobby Congress to just put an ax to fanfiction and other fan projects that rely on funding from independent sources and don't seek to produce these works as a venture to make a profit?

If I didn't love this franchise so much, I'd end all associations with any new movies and the TV series that I just know I'm going to get stuck paying the monthly fee for.