We are Renegades!

As our name suggests, we’re Renegades!  We are attempting a bold new concept in television – create a full new Star Trek pilot episode to present to CBS as a possible online or cable series, rather than just pitch an abstract idea to a studio exec and hope we catch him on a good day.

The Renegades team recently completed a successful Kickstarter funding drive, where we raised our minimum goal to produce this pilot.  But, it was only the minimum. 

Since that time, we have completed the script, and it is much more ambitious than we originally envisioned.  We quickly realized the minimum budget amount we raised will not be enough to complete our production – at least not to the standards we want.  We’ve already made a few cuts in the script with regard to characters, locations and visual effects. 

But bottom line, we want to present CBS with the absolute best, highest quality, professional product we can create, and we need more funding to do that.

What is Renegades?

Ten years after Voyager’s return from the Delta Quadrant, the Federation is in crisis. Someone has caused space and time to fold around several planets, all of which are the Federation’s main suppliers of dilithium, essentially cutting off the supply for several millennia.  Starfleet’s methods to stop those responsible have been ineffective. This necessitates more drastic measures, some of which are outside the Federation’s jurisdiction. It now falls to Admiral Pavel Chekov, head of Starfleet Intelligence, and Commander Tuvok, Voyager’s former security officer and new head of the clandestine Section 31, to put together a new covert, renegade crew – primarily comprised of outcasts, rogues and even criminals.  But can they refrain from killing each other to accomplish their task? That may be the bigger question…

Postcard being passed out at sci fi conventions

Renegades will be directed by veteran Trek actor Tim Russ.  It will feature a combination of former Trek stars and other established and up and coming actors, including Walter Koenig, Tim Russ, Adrienne Wilkinson, J.G. Hertzler, Robert Picardo, Gary Graham, Garrett Wang, Corin Nemec, Edward Furlong, Larissa Gomes, Tarah Paige, Grant Imahara. Courtney Peldon, Manu Intiraymi, Richard Herd, Vic Mignona, Chasty Ballesteros and Kevin Fry.

What we need…

First, we need to shoot two more days than we planned.  After breaking down the script and creating the shooting schedule, even with the cuts mentioned above, we won’t be able to complete the shoot in the number of days we originally thought would be required.

Our cast has also grown from our initial concept.  In addition to our Renegades crew, we have to populate Starfleet Headquarters with a few Admirals and other officers, not to mention the inhabitants of two alien planets and inmates and guards at an Orion prison.  And though we are not making any profit on Renegades, Screen Actors Guild rules require we pay each actor who appears in the pilot.  With this expanded cast, we need an expanded budget to cover their salaries.

We are setting our minimum goal at $20,000.  This will fund both extra days of shooting (sound stage rental, actor salaries, and other various daily expenses).

But we’d rather not stop there…

Sets

If we can raise an additional $25,000, we can build physical sets for our alien planet.  With our current budget, we will need to shoot most of these scenes using greenscreen.  And while current greenscreen technology is almost indistinguishable from the real thing, there’s nothing like having actual physical sets for your production.  It’s better for the actors, it’s better for the audience.  Imagine being able to perform inside this massive alien chamber!

Makeup

On the makeup front, an additional $15,000 will allow us to increase the number of creatures and aliens in the film.  We’d hate to populate our strange new worlds with only small bumps on everyone’s forehead.  These extra funds will allow us to design better aliens, improve the appliance materials (such as using silicone for Tuvok’s ear tips instead of foam latex).

We would also be able to create wigs and hair pieces that use real human hair instead of synthetic hair, use higher quality makeup materials and bring in a greater number of talented makeup artists (more artists mean less time in the makeup chair, which gets the shooting started earlier each day).

Props

Props are another concern.  While we already have a good supply of Federation phasers and communicators, not to mention similar items for Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians and other species, there are new and never before seen props we would like to create for this production. 

Sonic spear weapons used by our alien bad guys, heavy phaser rifles, a Breen helmet and CRM 114 hand-held cannon, plus large mysterious alien device with lights and sliding panels. 

With our current budget, we will have to animate the device using CGI, but with additional funding, we will be able to create a complete, moving physical device.  A supplemental amount of $10,000 will go a long way in creating these awesome props.

Costumes

Any science fiction fan knows you can’t just go to a thrift shop and get your costumes.  In Renegades, we will have Starfleet uniforms of course, but our crew, not being Starfleet, will have all new designs. 

Add to this our various Klingons, Cardassians, Orions, Nausicaans, Breen, Romulans, Andorians, Vulcans and two new alien races, and you can see how costumes can get expensive.  An additional $20,000 will go a long way to bring these alien costumes to life.

But wait, there's more...

And since we’re making a wish list, what about the bridge of our Renegades ship?  Our current plans and budget call for modifying some existing spaceship interior sets located on our sound stages.  However, if this Indiegogo funding drive is wildly successful, we’d love to build an all new bridge set.  This one is designed by John Eaves, veteran Trek designer of both the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-B and 1701-E, plus Zefram Cochrane's Phoenix.  We will be able to build this set if our total reaches $200,000.

How we'll spend the money

If we don't raise our minimum goal, we will use all the funds to extend our shooting schedule as much as possible.  We may have to cut bits of scenes, or shoot less coverage (less closeups, reaction shots, etc.), but the pilot will be produced no matter what.

On the other side of the coin, any amount we raise above the minimum $20,000 figure will be divided evenly between the other departments (sets, makeup, props and costumes).  We will NOT, however, spend any of the money raised on the new bridge set unless all other departments have their full extra funding…

More fun stuff

This is not really a cost, but we wanted to show off our brand new Starfleet ship - these three preliminary designs are by another veteran Trek designer, the one and only Rick Sternbach:

And here's a brand new, never-before-seen Klingon Warbird design by another veteran Trek designer, John Eaves.  This design will appear in our pilot...

Legal stuff

All funds raised will go directly to the costs of making this high quality broadcast pilot.

STAR TREK and all related marks, logos and characters are owned by CBS Studios Inc. This Indiegogo fundraiser website, the promotion thereof and/or any exhibition of material created by the operators of this website are not endorsed or sponsored by or affiliated with CBS/Paramount Pictures or the STAR TREK franchise.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT OF OUR RENEGADES PROJECT!

Below is the autographed plaque image/link mentioned in the Commodore Perk: