‘Star Trek’ Crowdfunded Film Sued by CBS, Paramount

A group of Star Trek fans who have raised over $1 million through crowdfunding sites Indiegogo and Kickstarter to make a prequel film to the popular science fiction series are now facing a copyright infringement lawsuit from CBS Studios and Paramount Pictures.

The prequel film, titled Axanar, has the following description on its Indiegogo page:

Axanar is the first fully-professional, independent Star Trek film. 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–who ensure Axanar will be the quality of Star Trek that all fans want to see.

A synopsis is also listed on the film’s website:

Axanar takes place 21 years before the events of “Where no Man Has Gone Before”, the first Kirk episode of the original Star Trek. Axanar is the story of Garth of Izar, the legendary Starfleet captain who is Captain Kirk’s hero. We met Garth in the third season TOS episode Whom Gods Destroy. Kirk called Garth the role model for all future Starfleet Officers. Garth charted more planets than any other Captain and was the hero of the Battle of Axanar, the story of which is required reading at the academy. This is that story. Axanar tells the story of Garth and his crew during the Four Years War, the war with the Klingon Empire that almost tore the Federation apart. Garth’s victory at Axanar solidified the Federation and allowed it to become the entity we know in Kirk’s time. It is the year 2245 and the war with the Klingons ends here.

Axanar Productions also states on its website that “Axanar is an independent project that uses the intellectual property of CBS under the provision that Axanar is totally non-commercial” and “can never charge for anything featuring their marks or intellectual property” including “the movie, DVD/Blu-ray copies, T-shirts, or anything which uses CBS owned marks or intellectual property.”

A short film called Prelude to Axanar was made in 2014 and released through YouTube. Shooting for the full-length film is slated to begin in February.

CBS Studios and Paramount Pictures, who have been tolerant of Star Trek fan films in the past, are suing Axanar Productions and Alec Peters and seeking “statutory damages of up to $150,000 for each separate Star Trek Copyrighted Work infringed,” according to the complaint.

“The Axanar Works infringe Plaintiffs’ works by using innumerable copyrighted elements of Star Trek, including its settings, characters, species, and themes,” the complaint also reads.

Earlier this year, Peters spoke to the Wrap about his film. “CBS has a long history of accepting fan films. I think Axanar has become so popular that CBS realizes that we’re just making their brand that much better.”

At the time, CBS had made a statement in regards to the film, saying, “CBS has not authorized, sanctioned or licensed this project in any way, and this has been communicated to those involved. We continue to object to professional commercial ventures trading off our property rights and are considering further options to protect these rights.”