Preview of Dochterman’s ‘Enhanced’ Doomsday Machine’ [UPDATED]

As reported last week, Daren Dochterman is ‘finishing’ his Trek Enhanced Doomsday Machine project. TrekMovie.com is now proud to show this exclusive premiere of the ‘eye candy’ preview.


click image to play QT movie [or click for WMV]

Just to show you how long Daren has been working on Trek art – check this out.

The Trek Enhanced "Doomsday Machine" will be available for download next week.

NOTE: that Dochtermans ‘Trek Enhanced’ is a personal project of Daren Dochterman and not to be confused with CBS’s Remastered Star Trek program.  

UPDATE: Daren has put up this preview at his site and has also written a bit on the project. On the subject of why he chose to release it now, Daren states

I realized that an arbitrary deadline of “before CBS releases theirs” would be the best way for me to get off my ass and actually get it done. This would give me a specific target… and I also reasoned that releasing it afterwards would just open the can of worms of “Well, he just waited to see what CBS would do so he could make his better, or so he could steal some good ideas…” or what-have-you. I realized that I would get criticism either way… so I decided to have a clean approach… and not be influenced by anything that CBS had done

for more see his posting at betafive.com 

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Wow! That has to be one of the best, or THE best CGI shots of the Enterprise I’ve seen.

Very impressive.

The shuttle moving out of the back of the E looks very cool. I also like the particulate matter floating in the maw of the machine. Very, very nice.

Very Cool!

Yowsa! I’m jazzed! Seeing this clip has convinced me. Once all three seasons are released on HD with these improvements I will be buying the complete set! Who says you can’t go home again? And look, Mom’s put in new carpeting and curtains in my room…

Awesome! I can’t wait for the finished product!

Unmitigated coolness.

Daren, bravo!

The Doomsday Machine looks awesome. CBS-D has their work cut out for them!

Holy hell, that looks great. :D

The warp nacelle dome caps are entirely too saturated in lighting, the rear balls are entirely too big, the lighting is cartoonish and animated in appearance. The impulse engine illumination is too animated, the shuttlecraft landing sequence is entirely too animated appearing. The hull plating is entirely too pronounced, the bulbous protrusion on the rear of the bridge is not off center as per bridge set, the lighting source is too pronounced resulting in lack of contrast and reality to the renders, the preview features Kirk and not Picard which immediately nullifies and negates any significance or coolness since has beens should be kept away from Star Trek, Hitch is nervewracking, I’m a bully, Matt Decker is Willard Deckers father, AP will chastise me about how I am too abrasive with my posts, Daren is still bitter at not having been awarded the task of remastering Star Trek, No TOS actors in Trek XI, George Takei is leans slightly towards the male oriented gender, J.J. Abrams hasn’t revealed a damn thing STILL about the plot for Trek XI, Nemesis still sucks, Paramount is slighting the fans and Star Trek by accelerating the schedule of remastered episodes to be released on DVD/HD.

I’d say that about covers the state of Trek currently.

Well…its a fair guess to say that Mr. Dochtermans version will be vastly superior to anything CBS will do. I can’t help but wonder that IF those who are in charge at CBS were to contact him about a job about taking over the head responsibilities at CBS remastered….would he be able to take it and perhaps more importantly….he is interested in such a job? HIRE these immense talent. Makes me wish I had the $$ that Bill Gates had….I’d send him there myself.

my god! is there a WMP version of this file? I hate QT.

Looks damn good. I had goose bumps watching the preview. Is the download going to be a complete episode? If so, are there legal issues with that?

My computer hates Quick Time too. I hope the download will be available in WMP….please…!!!

I’m in total agreement. My computer also despises QT… please please release this in a more “computer friendly” format.

Thanks :-)

Josh T – you miised all the WMP vs. QT complaints–but lol anyway!

Lovely work Mr. D.
…and that’s from someone who STILL prefers miniture optical work…

Actually…a COMBINATION of miniature model work AND cgi ( I admit it does achieve CERTAIN things that would be impractical otherwise, and gives terrific creative scope for certain sequences), but there’s just something about “lighting”, that filmed models convey, if done well, and at a certain scale, that CGI just still doesn’t match, no matter WHO does it, in my own opinion…personal favourite examples being 2001:A SPACE ODYSSEY (now nearly 40 years old!), Original STAR WARS trilogy, EVENT HORIZON, ST:TMP…

Oh, and come to think of it, the often overlooked Peter Hyams sequel…2010:THE YEAR WE MAKE CONTACT featured some amazingly good miniature work that CGI just wouldn’t have matched in it’s lighting. It’s just an “apples and oranges” situation looks wise I suppose.
I’m just happy that while I might not personally appreciatiate CBS Digital’s every “creative choice” on this project, that it IS being done at all, and that is therefore going to generally enthuse fans of the show, and make it more marketable for future viewers. AND it’s also great to see YOUR version of a favourite episode of mine TOO Daren!

That CGI model captures the studio look of the original minature more so than any other, even the CBS remastered version.

CBS is going for a different look though (no bright studio lighting), but then that creates a more “modern” look to the effects.

#10. Josh T

I’m very much a moderate kinda guy… live and let live, ya’ know? But I really take umbrage to your post… “George Takei is leans slightly towards the male oriented gender…”

Slightly?… SLIGHTLY?… I mean for God’s sake! He was inside Peter’s butt… “Helloooo” ;)

Oh and lest I forget… Very, very nice work, Herr Dochter!

Your highlighting is heavenly… Your texture is titillating… Your lighting is luscious… Your raytracing is remarkable… Your specularity is spectacular!

Can’t wait to see the whole shebang! Again, kudos and treat yourself to a Snickers… you’ve earned it, mister!

I prefer Daren’s approach to CBS-D’s. It’s like TOS on steroids. The ships look more like lit miniatures than CG cartoons. CBS-D is clearly doing some good work in a couple episodes, but not like this.

I like all of it except two things. The Doomsday Machine itself looks rather fake to me and the far off shot of the Enterprise moving at a angle away from the camera looks “plastic-like”…just as I used to say about that shot of the “E” by CBS-D when they do a course change (example: I, Mudd). Other than that, very nice…but I sound exactly the same way as I do about CBS-D. So, I call it a toss-up in my book so far. Seeing the entire work of art oughta help me along.

This is FUN.

(Isn’t “Star Trek” supposed to be fun?)

When I was a teenager, around the time ST IV and V came out, I used to make little Trek animations on my Commodore Amiga 1000 using Deluxe Video and Deluxe Paint (would have loved a Video Toaster, but that wasn’t in the parents’ budget… anyone remember this stuff?). If only…

THANK YOU, Darren Dochterman, AND CBS Digital!

# 11- you said “Well…its a fair guess to say that Mr. Dochtermans version will be vastly superior to anything CBS will do.”

…not exactly fair….having well over a year to work on and fine-tune ONE episode, as you please, hardly compares to having to crank out a weekly episode, following studio mandates, in the short time CBS has…even if they do have more people. DD does exceptional work, but to compare the two is anything but fair.

Now that’s a TOS shutle bay! LOL!

There’s some great work in there, Daren. Kudos! Some of the shots of the E are less convincing than others (mostly the reverse angle ones) but that opening shot of the ship — just brilliant. Indistinguishable from hi-res model photography, truly great. Can’t wait to see the finished piece!

Coolness -d

Beautiful work Mr. Daren!
Absolutely beautiful! :-)

That is terrific the Enterprise looks fantastic!

The shuttle taking off looks very bad. It makes this sharp turn which is indicitive of not properly using keyframes in an animation slider.

The first shot of the E looks very good.

As someone who’s been in computer graphics for the last 15 years, I can say that this really needs some polishing. Is it better than CBS-D? That’s a terribly unfair comparison.

The fans definitely win in this scenario. That DDM looks awesome with the jagged edges and the appearance of wind currents on the interior… looks like a giant version of a jet engine intake… very cool interpretation.

The Doc most certainly has the prescription for fixing up DDM. I’m sure CBS-D will pull a few tricks out of their sleeve too… either way.. .we the fans win because I’m certain that this is going to spill over into new found interest in the original characters and setting and perhaps new actors and new episodes.

I think Battlestar G has created the template to bring back TOS… they can incoporate new stories and re-tell old ones at the same time.

Thank god for the QT file. I hate wmv and all the Microsoft wannabe formats.

Kobayashi

I’m assuming the strange horizontal line on Shatner’s forehead is a shadow… not an oddly low edge of the mesh from his hairpiece.

It strikes me that in Sci-Fi in general, and maybe TOS in particular, the interaction of makeup and lighting could dictate the performance: if the actor moves off his mark, the makeup (whether alien makeup or a hairpiece) could become more obvious. I wonder if that’s why, sometimes, Shatner keeps himself so stiff. Just a thought.

(Work is slow today, so I’ve now commented TWICE).

I can only say – WOW!

Great, great work Daren. Can’t wait to see the final product.

Anyone else notice that the “lips” of the DM’s maw are translucent? Is it just me? Daren, were you intentionally codifying the probably unintentional translucency of the original effects? Am I seeing things?

Scott B. out.

Looking great! I can’t wait to see both versions. Not to pit one against the other, that’s not fair (two visions, two timeframes, etc.) but jut to enjoy all the Trek goodness.

I have really liked all of the Enterprise ship work that Mr. Dochterman has done. My personal favorite is the CGI version of the last scene from TMP of the Enterprise (refit) as it slides over and past the camera. He tells the story of how he did this on a laptop and showed it to Douglas Trumbull years later. It is every bit as good and maybe somewhat better than the original TMP shot and it is unfortunate that it wasn’t included in the Director’s Edition of TMP.
Watching this preview of Dochterman’s Doomsday Machine comes with mixed feelings. His TOS Enterprise is absolutely magnificent…but not without problems. It is gorgeously sharp and detailed and moves smoothly. But I feel that Dochterman’s lighting style is too bright, much like the original series model. Over the years, fan’s have clung to the whole story about the TOS Enterprise was coated in a “therma-coat” paint or some nonsense like that and thus the white appearance. But now we have 40 years of Star Trek to contend with and ships prior to and following the TOS era have a much more metallic look. What CBS- Digital has done is strike a peaceful in-between so that the TOS era actually fits in with the rest of the Trek Universe while remaining almost slavishly faithful to the original series. Granted, the CBS-Digital stuff still has many possibilities for improvement, but I get out of my seat for the slow panning beauty shots of the Enterprise like we saw last week in “For The World Is Hollow.” Fans like myself who were there in the sixties really love shots like that that really show off how big and majestic our first love (the TOS Enterprise) can be.
But what really bothers me when seeing this preview is seeing Dochterman’s shuttlebay on the same week that CBS-Digital released their reworked shuttlebay. CBS-Digital’s is simply better. More important, it solves 40 years of the problem of disproportion AND is beautifully reminds one of the shuttlebay scene from Star Trek V. Dochterman’s looks…hardly different from the original episode and restores the proportion problems.
The main thing for everyone to remember is that whichever version you prefer, this is a very good time for STAR TREK, and for that we should all rejoice!!!

Daren,

You need to let it go, man. Seriously.

Let. It. Go.

You didn’t get the job. That sucks, but it’s just the way it is. Putting out your own version of Remastered (of Enhanced or whatever you want to call it) is now just about ego. It’s sad. It’s just a petty way of saying, “See? CBS made a BIG mistake by not hiring me because my version is better.”

And that’s unprofessional.

It DOESN’T MATTER if your version is better (which is simply a matter of taste anyway) or if CBS made a mistake (which is pointless to debate). I understand your disappointment and bitterness. I do. I’ve been there myself. But continuing on only reflects poorly on you as an artist and a professional. Some fans might give you props (and your talent is not in doubt) but it’s doing a disservice to the very thing you claim to love: Star Trek. Like it or not, CBS-D is doing the official versions. While it’s fine to debate their efforts and critique their work, releasing alternative versions is insulting to the artists who DID get the gig. Imagine some actor who was passed over for the role of Kirk editing himself into all the Trek footage to replace Shatner. Like you, he could simply claim he’s offering a “what if?” version just for fun. But the reality is that the motivation is bitterness and disappointment. The underlying message is, “See? It would’ve been soooo much better if I was the Captain!” That would be sad. And that’s exactly what I thought when I saw your clip. It’s one thing to show people your pitch reel and say, “This is what I showed them and this is what they rejected.” That’s fine. That’s just presenting history.

But continuing on is something else entirely.

Now you’re attempting to steal CBS-D’s thunder. Now you’re attempting to prove them wrong. And what it does is establish a split between the fans, with people debating the merits of “official version” vs. “Daren’s version”. How does that sort of animosity help Star Trek, the thing you claim to love and want to honor?

It doesn’t.

It’s not about fun. It’s not about the fans. It’s not about your love of Trek. It’s about you and your ego.

You need to go on and do something else. Adults accept their defeats and look to the next thing. When a batter strikes out, he sits his ass down in the dugout and waits for his next at-bat. Arguing with the ump about blowing the call is pointless. And telling the fans that the ump made a mistake ain’t going to change the outcome. It just makes the batter look like a sore loser.

Don’t be a sore loser. Accept your defeat gratuitously and congratulate CBS-D on their efforts.

And then walk away.

The world will go on without your version.

I can’t believe this crap that is being shelled out on us fans. I mean, come on…

Did Daren even watch the show? Yellow phaser beams? Name me one episode where yellow was the color of a phaser beam! And what is up with the nacelle placement? They are too far forward! The pylons are too tall, they join the nacelles too far back… and what is with the nuTrek blue all over the warp engines? And far from the colorless deflector that we have previously had, we now have a red one… red! The primary hull is too thick, there are only three inboard grilles on the pylons – there should be four if this is supposed to be the production model… and just when did the Enterprise ever have the inboard nacelle with a decal? Window placement is all wrong, the planet looks cartoonish, and outer space is unconvincing… I mean, it looks like something a seven year old did!

(Pauses… reviews date… October 1974… reviews signature… Daren Ross Dochterman, age 7…)

Holy crap! That’s great stuff! ;)

All kidding aside, I remember being in the same boat as Daren when I was seven, and my warp nacelles had no taper, my dorsal had a uniform width, and my saucer was too darned flat. But the one thing I remember so much about being seven was just how much I loved Star Trek.

While I may take issue with several parts of Daren’s interpretation, I see the love he put into both TMP:DE and now this redux of TDM. Thanks, Daren, for showing us all what a fan can do… even if you have to give our favorite lady big balls in the process ;)

Rob+

#39 –

I don’t see the first bit of disrespect in what Daren is doing. If Leslie Neilsen or Jack Lord wanted to release their own version of TOS, I will admit that I’d head online to give it a download.

People have been working on ‘remastering’ TDM for years now. It is one of the greatest TOS episodes, and everyone has their own take. I will be very interested to see Daren’s when it is fully avaliable.

If the artists who are working on the ‘authorized’ version want to put Daren to shame, well, then it means they need to step up what they are doing. Otherwise, IMO, it’s all fair game – provided Daren isn’t making a profit.

If I could, i would change countless things about TOS… I would refilm the entire series… but that doesn’t take away my love for what came before.

Rob+

F- YEAH!!!!!!!

#41 –

Rob, this difference comes in the fact that you’re not a professional who attempted to get a job refilming the series and Daren is. I have NO problem with FANS making their own versions and messing around. They’re amateurs. Daren is not. And not only is he not an amateur, he’s not just an ordinary fan. Not anymore. He actually has a Trek resume and pitched THIS VERY CONCEPT. And his version was rejected. The “it’s all in good fun” argument no longer applies in his case because he attempted to do it professionally and failed. And as a professional he should accept his defeat and let the people who DID win do their thing without being an armchair quarterback. That’s why his version IS an insult while yours is not.

I have no problem with Doc doing this at all… and I don’t intend to view it as his version vs. their version… even if they were each armed with the same software and same rendering farms and same deadlines… each team would end up showing two different interpretations of the same sfx shots… I think it’s cool that we live in an age where we can breathe new life into old shows and relive our childhood… wonder and all.

Like Darren… I was constantly drawing the Big E on whatever was in front of me and was scolded by teachers for doing so… I turned one text book into a animated flip-book with the E cruising across the bottom of the page. If I had the talent and the hardware… I’d be submitting alternate sfx shots for the fans to enjoy.

ENJOY THE SHOW(S)!! That’s why they were made in the first place.

Maintaining my hard won reputation as a master of focusing on the obscure…
What the heck is Decker’s insignia supposed to be? Did the Planet killing waffle cone attack during breakfast? Is that a bagle Decker was eating that got stuck on his tunic? Originally, all star ship crews were supposed to have unique designs, but this looks like a clover leaf on the freeway. Whassup?

And now, back to our regularly scheduled reality…

bagel — I’m also the master of crappy spelling

Daren’s timing does seem a lot like sour grapes.

His Enterprise looks pretty good, though. Almost as good as CBS-D’s.

#47 – exactly what i was thinking

I think Daren’s work is only making CBS digital’s work better, and that, IMO is commendable.

Great Job with the trailer, your first shot of the E is amazing! As are the shots of the Constellation. I will enjoy watching your version and CBS’s