Axanar Makes Big Splash in Vegas

Axanar producer Alec Peters was invited to organize and appear in a fan film track scheduled for Creation Entertainment’s “55-Year Mission” convention — once known as Star Trek Las Vegas before Creation lost its license with CBS.

The fan film track features a panel each day Thursday through Sunday at the con. Today’s panel focuses on Vance Major Owen’s “Minard Chronicles” fan series. Friday’s panel examines the Avalon Universe series, with producer Josh Irwin, an Axanar supporter who produced Interlude, the Axanar fan film written and executive produced by Axanar’s chief apologist Jonathan Lane.

On Saturday, the track features headliner Axanar, Peters’ beleaguered production, which after seven years and nearly $2 million has yet to complete the film. According to the convention program, Access Hollywood film critic Scott Mantz is moderating the panel — maybe (see below).

Finally, Sunday’s panel features the creator of Stalled Trek, the award-winning puppet-like animated film by producer Mark Largent.

Access Hollywood’s Scott Mantz Denies He’s Moderating Axanar Panel

Despite what appears in the printed STLV program, and Axanar producer Alec Peters’ own announcement to fans, Access Hollywood film critic Scott Mantz denied he’s moderating the Axanar panel scheduled Friday afternoon.

Challenged by Twitter users about his involvement with Peters’ controversial, never-produced fan film, Mantz, tweeted back:

I have absolutely nothing to do with the Axanar panel. All the fan panels were booked before I was asked to handle the run-of-show in that [convention] theater, so don’t make any incorrect assumptions about me. I had nothing to do with this.

Axanar Touts 6-year-old Footage as ‘New’

Despite Axanar producer Alec Peters’ description of the “new” vignette he’s planning to show at STLV’s fan film panel, the film was actually made years ago, and may be an another example of Peters recycling and repackaging old footage to aid apparently flagging fundraising efforts.

The short film, Heroes, was shot on the Star Trek New Voyages set in 2015, and has been the center of a dispute between former Axanar director Robert Meyer Burnett, Peters and his surrogate, blogger Jonathan Lane.

Burnett had already released the film on his own Burnettwork channel on YouTube nearly two years ago during his legal dispute with Peters, who accused Burnett of stealing footage, money and equipment from the Axanar production.

Upon hearing of Peters’ plan to recycle Heroes as “new,” Burnett lashed out on Facebook on Wednesday:

So…if he actually has the Heroes footage, how did I “steal” anything from him? And why did it take him six years to release it?!? I’d be very curious if he’s just going to show what I uploaded … passing it off as his own work.

Trekzone: Amid Continuing Controversy, Game Developer Disavows Axanar

Over at Trekzone, Matthew Miller continues his examination of the talent that has parted ways with Axanar producer Alec Peters as the beleaguered fan production has stretched to seven years without completion.

Miller’s series, “No Longer In Alec's Orbit,” sits down with game company head Ken Burnside to talk about his former product, “Squadron Strike: Axanar.” Here’s the description from Trekzone:

It’s the game that developed over several years and eventually shipped, providing more Axanar content than Alec Peters could maanage. But when Ad Astra Games’ Ken Burnside discovered the real truth about Axanar, he cancelled the game and moved on with his life. In typical Alec Peters style, he didn’t like that and branded Ken a traitor.