Axanar’s Claim Facts & Questions Source

Axanar Productions is not a for-profit studio. In this case, the word “studio” means a business venture focused on the development and production of TV, film and web content. As we explained above, that’s not the case. 1. Three sets of facts argue otherwise: Axanar’s crowdfunding campaigns, its Annual Report and its official podcasts. First, while it now declares its future intention to be a non-profit, Axanar pitched its plans to develop and produce TV, film and web content in its podcasts while it was a for-profit corporation: “We might have our own … internet satellite streaming channel that will come all over the world and it’ll all come back here to Ares Studios and we can custom design entertainment. … I could see us having ten channels in the future of not just Star Trek programming but all kinds of programming that we’re going to create. … And it would be going directly to Ares Studios subscribers or Axanar subscribers. We might have a fan base worldwide of 50 million people that are all donating, you know, five bucks or $9.95 a month to get what we’re producing. … We want to produce programming and entertainment whether it’s movies or shows or podcasts like this one that are specifically targeted to the fan.”4)

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Official Axanar Podcast #20, "Under Construction"

2. Axanar’s crowdfunding campaign pitches the creation of additional works beyond Star Trek, with no indication that this was to be a non-profit endeavor;5) The non-profit characterization started being emphasized after the lawsuit was filed. Axanar Kickstarter campaign page.

Axanar Productions is entirely focused on making Star Trek fan films. Not according to what was told to backers of the Axanar Kickstarter campaign: “This [studio] will be the permanent home of Axanar Productions and allow us to do more than just Axanar, from other adventures in the Star Trek universe and beyond. David Gerrold (author of ‘The Trouble with Tribbles’) is already lined up to shoot his sci-fi series, Running Dark, here.”6)

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If the Axanar team wants to make other films, those will be done through a separate production company, as is standard business practice in Hollywood. This is true. Many production companies develop films, preparing them for production, and then creating a separate Limited Liability Company in which investors put in money solely for the production of a specific film. The development company often becomes one of the equity partners in that new company. It retains a financial, income-generating interest in each film. So while the two companies are legally separate, they are not completely unrelated. Raindance: Development Finance for Films