Posted:
22:40:23 on July 20
By: Anonymous Coward
Dept: Star Trek
TrekWeb received info from a source on the CGI/FX community (who shall remain anonymous) about Foundation Imaging reworking and upgrading the FX for the upcoming 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' DVD. What follows is a summary of the reworked scenes, brought to you in cooperation with MediaTrek.com, who scanned the images for us exclusively. We would like to note that there has been some confusion over whether these shots are actually "new FX shots," which they are not; these photos are of the scenes which are to be reworked and restored by Foundation for inclusion on the DVD.
Among the first scenes to be upgraded will be the 'Memory Wall' scene, in which Kirk and Spock enter the V'Ger chamber together (see below photos - note that the space-suits are different from the ones used in the final version). Kirk gets attacked by a horde of metallic pyramid probes (sort of robotic anti-bodies), which makes his space-suit life support mal-function, but is saved by Spock's phaser. After that, the duo enters the 'Memory Wall' chamber through a small tunnel, where Spock mind-melds with V'Ger's database (the large blue wall) and discover its true origins, an act which almost drives Spock crazy (time to Kirk save his friend and rush him back to the ship). This carefully story-boarded and filmed sequence (see below photos and animatics) was cut because of the sub-par special effects created by Abel and Associates, and so a new sequence was designed by Douglas Trumbull and shot by Robert Wise, in which Spock enters V'Ger alone, using an new emergency evacuation space-suit (it is not clear if this version will be cut from the DVD or incorporated as an extra).
A matte painting will be added to Kirk's exit from the Enterprise airlock, removing the glaring inclusion of a soundstage wall seen in the extended version available on video.
Foundation will also deliver matte paintings to an important early scene: Admiral Kirk's meeting with Admiral Nogura at Starfleet Command Headquarters. In the scene, an angry Kirk forces Nogura (played by an elderly asian actor) to give him the Enterprise back.
The Enterprise's voyage through the V'Ger interior will be trimmed and re-edited by director Robert Wise, and will receive 'more colorful effects' from Foundation.
When the first V'Ger probe invades the Enterprise bridge, some action will be re-introduced in the scene: two security officers fire several phasers shots (again to be redone by Foundation) at the probe under Decker's orders, but they are 'zapped' by the probe, just like Lieutenant Ilia later in the scene.
Here we see Andrew Probert's development sketches for the
officers lounge in the saucer upper dome. The photo shows how the room was
finally - and less expensively - constructed. There is no info whether or not Foundation will rework the warp effect for this and other scenes (thought it seems unlikely right now).
We will be posting more info in the future. The re-cut special edition of 'Star Trek The Motion Picture' will be released on DVD next year.
Thanks to Matthew Klahen of MediaTrek.com for scanning the photos for TrekWeb.
