Behind the Scenes of Star Trek: Natures Hunger
Star Trek: Natures Hunger is filmed in Metro Atlanta, Georgia. These playful and inventive fan films bring a new perspective to the Star Trek universe through the use of clever crossovers including Planet of the Apes, Wizard of Oz, and Silence of the Lambs. Our videos cover a variety of genre, including musical, drama, romance, horror, fantasy, and comedy.
“Star Trek: Natures Hunger is really all about creating imaginative worlds through filmmaking magic,” says Jose “Joe” E. Cepeda, who runs the non-profit, fan-based organization in Atlanta, Georgia (USA). All the actors and crew are volunteers, dedicated to producing films to share, enjoy, improve their filmmaking skills , and showcase their talents. The volunteers com form all walks of life. Most of them are based in Georgia, but people come from as far as New Jersey and Missouri.
The release of J.J. Abram’s version of Star Trek motivated us to make our own Star Trek film. Initially, we only intended to make one Star Trek video for our family, friends, personal amusement. However, after urging and encouragement from friends, we made more videos and posted them online. Since we started we’ve met lots of Star Trek lovers who enjoy our videos, and want to be a part of the magic; some make suggestions and requests, while others volunteer their time and skills.
Our first attempt had an amateurish, “home movie,” sort of look. But, that just gave us the insight and drive to try harder. Since then, we have upgraded our equipment and our costumes, which has helped greatly to improve the quality of our work. All of our costumes are now tailor made.
Star Trek: Natures Hunger is self-financed and currently don’t ask for fan contributions. One way we keep the budget in line is by using green screens. There is a far more innovative, and we feel interesting, way we make filming economical – miniature sets. For instance, we build a small version of the transporter room, then use green screen technology to insert our actors into the scene. It is our dream to do productions on actual full sized Star Trek sets.
Star Trek just wouldn’t be right without footage of starships. Our footage of the USS Enterprise evolved from the use of still photos, to CGI renderings, to an actual studio-scale model, three foot, with lighting and moving Bussard collectors on the nacelles.
The props used on-screen in Natures Hunger are hand-built by either ourselves, or by other dedicated Star Trek fans who sold to us. Whether it’s Sulu’s targeting scope, McCoy’s hypospray, or Scotty’s trident scanner, or Mr. Spock’s famous direct sensor, the attention to detail is always impressive. We even have a boxful of tribbles.
We welcome new cast and crew members. If you are interested in volunteering, feel free to contact us.
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The Star Trek: Natures Hunger web site is published by Star Trek Channel.
Star Trek: Natures Hunger is based on Star Trek, created by Gene Roddenberry.