Where, for instance, was ‘Star Trek’ in the lineup? Not only was that film a swift, compelling piece of entertainment in and of itself, but it was maybe the most successful franchise upstart (or in this case, reboot) in the last decade. MTV.com posted an interesting article that highlighted some of the Academy’s most overlooked films in terms of science fiction (’Blade Runner’ and ‘The Matrix’ to name a few).

Tune in to the Academy Awards on March 7 to see for yourself which way the votes will go.

When asked about what it was that makes Star Trek intellectually and commercially relevant after all these years, one word was all that Kurtzman had for us. “Hope”, he said to a resounding auditorium. We all knew what he meant. The term science fiction is almost synonymous with pessimism and doom these days, at least on the big screen, leaving Star Trek as one of the last in a dying breed: Hopeful Sci-Fi. The writers expressed that above all, it was Gene Roddenberry’s vision of an intergalactic-united future, one of exploring and expanding that carried such a dense mythology all this way.

Their idea to explore the genesis of the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise, something that had curiously never been tackled in any of the many incarnations of Trek lore, was an opportunity for the writing duo start with a clean slate, injecting their trademark mix of a big entertainment, brains and heart into the risky undertaking that turned out to be a Trekkie-approved triumph. Quite simply, it’s the beginnings of the most promising franchise in years.

But it was also “a gamble, an act of faith” for them at first. From the script’s very inception, the angle was always to bring Mr. Spock (or Spock Prime as he’s referred to in the script) into the movie. They felt that the one constant in all that is Star Trek, Leonard Nemoy himself, needed to be integral to a reboot of the franchise. So, they spent six months writing a screenplay unbeknownst to Nemoy and handed it over to him as a shot in the dark. If he weren’t on board, they would have had to scrap the whole project. But to their humble surprise, with a tear in his eye, Nemoy granted Kurtzman and Orci his involvement and his blessing.

Perhaps the most interesting bit of the night was Orci’s confession that they’d based the film’s Kirk/Spock-love/hate dynamic on none other that John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The idea of two such ambitious forces coexisting, striving for supremacy but inevitably part of a greater whole, is beautifully underlined in the tone of the film. Similarly, Orci felt this day and age was analogous to that of sixties, when Star Trek first aired, giving the film fertile ground to explore all the same ideologies that Roddenberry so boldly illustrated for TV audiences all those years ago.

All it took was a little pestering to get friend and collaborator J.J. Abrams (the duo wrote some great episodes for Alias and co-created Fox’s Fringe with Abrams) to direct the picture, even though he was “more of a Star Wars guy”. Lost alumn (and hardcore Trekkie) Damon Lindelof and his producer Bryan Burk joined the arsenal, altogether providing the screenwriters with a nice “checks and balances” of what would and wouldn’t fly in the movie. The end result was impressively concise, action-packed, funny and respectful expansion on the Star Trek universe. Thanks in large part of course to a carefully cultivated cast, who take on such iconic roles with lived-in spirit and ease, this film really felt like a spectacular gift from a tight knit family. One can only imagine where the franchise will go from here, though I’m sure the next Trekkie convention will have a fairly large suggestion box.

As for Kurtzman and Orci, when probed about their own futures (which seems blindingly bright the way things are going) the two modestly insisted that they’ll just keep doing what they’ve been doing since they started writing together in high school; write about whatever makes them the happiest (though, unofficially, you can count on some Cowboys and Aliens news to develop soon). One audience member asked what their dream project would be if they had free reign to choose. Kurtzman answered promptly, “I’d like to take a stab at Indiana Jones.” The theater, understandably, applauded in favor of the not-so-crazy idea. Who knows, at the rate these guys are going (and the degree to which Indy 4 sucked), Mr. Star Wars – George Lucas – just might have to give the Star Trek boys a call.

Star Trek is the first script based on a TV show ever to receive a Writers Guild nomination.

If you go here, you can read all about the fan reactions to the lost Shatner scene, as well as watch a video where writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman speak about the scene and why it was not shot.  To read the scene itself, click here.

Source: http://www.scifistream.com/2009/11/the-world-reacts-to-unfilmed-shatner-star-trek-2009-scene-could-it-be-done/

To watch the video, click here.

Source: http://trekmovie.com/2009/11/20/exclusive-video-interview-orci-and-lindelof-talk-star-trek-sequel-fringe-lost/

The interview can be viewed at this link: http://trekmovie.com/2009/11/18/exclusive-video-interview-jj-abrams-talks-star-trek-sequel/

Source: http://www.scifistream.com/2009/11/exclusive-video-interview-jj-abrams-talks-star-trek-sequel/

Link: http://trekmovie.com/2009/11/18/video-jj-abrams-presents-star-trek-sound-designer-ben-burtt-with-hpa-award/

Source: http://www.scifistream.com/2009/11/video-jj-abrams-presents-ben-burtt-with-hpa-award-%E2%80%93-explains-how-sound-designer-%E2%80%98salvaged%E2%80%99-star-trek/

To read the full interview, go here: http://trekmovie.com/2009/11/16/exclusive-interview-jj-abrams-talks-allegories-bud-gineering-and-release-date-for-star-trek-sequel/

Source: http://www.scifistream.com/2009/11/exclusive-interview-jj-abrams-talks-allegories-design-and-release-date-for-star-trek-sequel/

You can check out some of the concept art by clicking this link: http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=26276

Source: http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=26276

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809752801/details

“I guarantee you, whatever the story is, and whatever the final movie ends up being, I know it will be something that will work on its own terms and be something that you don’t need to know and study Star Trek to get.  But, if you are a fan, there will hopefully be gift after gift of connections, references, characters that you hold near and dear. At least, that’s the intent.”

The director also alluded to the possibility of Leonard Nimoy returning as Spock Prime.  ”It is clearly too early, given that we are just now talking story, to conclude whether or not Spock Prime is in the film or not. Do I want to work with him again? Of course, 100 percent. I’d love to.”

And speaking of returning cast members, Abrams hinted at the possibility of bringing in William Shatner.  ”Maybe there’s less of a burden and there’s going to be more opportunity to work with him again. I would love to work with him.”

Lastly, the filmmaker addressed rumors that the film would be in 3D.  ”I’m open to looking at it because now I feel a little bit more comfortable. What I’ve seen of Avatar makes me want to do it, because it’s so crazy cool-looking.”

The script for the Trek sequel is currently in development, with Kurtzman and Orci working with Damon Lindelof, who talked to Sci Fi Crush about it last month.

For more on Abrams’s thoughts on the sequel visit the link below.

Source: http://scifiwire.com/2009/10/the-lowdown-on-star-trek.php