But It’s Harmless, Right? CBS and Paramount Pictures are suing a Star Trek Spin Off movie “Prelude to Axanar“. The makers of the movie managed to raise about million dollars. While Paramount Pictures are not generally after indie movies, they say Prelude to Axanar have crossed a line and both firms have decided to sue makers. Both studios belive that they should receive profits as well since it’s there material. The film is presented as an episode of a Federation documentary pertaining to the Four Years War with the Klingon Empire, narrated by noted historian John Gill (who appeared in “Patterns of Force”) and featuring interviews of actual participants on both sides. It begins on Stardate 2241.03, two decades before the original series, with the war’s opening battle at Arcanis IV, a prosperous Federation colony along the Klingon border. The Klingons, who did not consider the Federation to be a worthy adversary, maintained the initiative for the first six months of the war, with a number of victories under the leadership of their supreme commander, Kharn. The Vulcan diplomatic delegation under Ambassador Soval (who appeared in Enterprise), overseeing negotiations with the Klingons, are left with little room to maneuver. “This is an action for copyright infringement arising out of Defendants’ unauthorized exploitation of Star Trek, one of the most successful entertainment franchises of all time. Since its inception, Star Trek has become a cultural phenomenon that is eagerly followed by millions of fans throughout the world,” the complaint reads. “The Axanar Works infringe Plaintiffs’ works by using innumerable copyrighted elements of Star Trek, including its settings, characters, species, and themes,” Anaxar’s Alec Peters says they are not trying to exploit there series, and that the movie is harmless. “Axanar is a fan film. Fan films – whether related to Star Trek, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Power Rangers, Batman or any other franchise – are labors of love that keep fans engaged, entertained, and keep favorite characters alive in the hearts of fans. Like other current fan films, AXANAR entered production based on a very long history and relationship between fandom and studios. We’re not doing anything new here.” … 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...