Deep Space Nine Doc “What We Left Behind” Surpasses Fundraising Goal, Moves Into Stretch Goals

Terry Farrell and Ira Steven Behr - DS9 doc

Ira Steven Behr’s documentary about Star Trek: Deep Space Nine has already been extended to 90 minutes, and just keeps getting better.

The Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign for What We Left Behind launched the night of February 8, and reached its initial goal of $150,000 within 24 hours, covering post-production costs plus the hefty licensing fees for clips from the show. A few days later, with donations still pouring in, they reached their first stretch goal of $250,000, upping the length of the doc from 60 to a more feature-length-friendly 90 minutes.

Once they hit $350,000, they’ll be able to add an original score by a live orchestra as well as an extended writers’ room feature. (As a reminder, five of the writers gathered to talk about what they’d do with an eighth season of DS9.) If they get to $425,000, they’ll be able to do more interviews with DS9 crew members and fans, and from they’re they’ll try to reach $500,000, with specific goals tbd for the moment.

As they add new stretch goals, they’re also adding new perks, from a Garak lapel pin to a batch of cookies made by Terry Farrell. Farrell took to Twitter a few days ago to walk around the Deep Space Nine stages on the Paramount lot where they used to film, and where she answered fan questions and talked up the documentary. (She also celebrated Valentine’s Day with boyfriend and What We Left Behind director Adam Nimoy.)

She also stopped by the “What We Left Behind” offices:

She and Behr made a point of thanking the fans as well:

And most recently, she demonstrated that yes, she is actually making those cookies herself:

There are still a few weeks left to donate, and while some of the big perks are already sold out–lunch with Ira Behr, special photo of Terry Farrell with tribbles, NYC screening party premiere tickets, dinner with the DS9 team & stars in Vegas at STLV, a dinner party at Nana Vistor’s, and more–there are still opportunities for everything from a set of lapel pins to an invitation to the L.A. premiere.

You can get more details  on the doc here, as well as watch the teaser for it.

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“She also celebrated Valentine’s Day with boyfriend and What We Left Behind director Adam Nimoy.”

Wait…she’s dating Adam Nimoy?! Don’t you mean she celebrated with HER boyfriend and Adam Nimoy?

They’ve been dating for a while :-)

So, is anybody here contributing to this?

I contributed on the first day. I love the passion and excitement demonstrated by Ira and the cast and especially Terry Farrell. I think it’s sweet that she and Adam are a couple.

I’ve given my $80.

I’ll gladly watch it. . . In fact, I’d be all over a “Sisko Returns” DS9 movie! That is, if Brooks would reprise the role.

If I had the sense that Brooks were more actively involved with this, I might be more interested

Whether Brooks appears or not is not much of a game changer for me, I love DS9 and will be watching this regardless. Brooks appearance on Shatners’ Captains documentary was a tad… bizarre…

I haven’t seen the Shat’s doc, but I’ve heard the same about Brooks appearance in it. With him not being in the feeder for this project, it does make me wonder about his reality.

Ya think?

For Avery Brookes’ dignity I say don’t include him. He is clearly suffering some form of illness and his inclusion would be unsavoury, in my opinion. It would further damage his own image and that of the documentary. I’m sorry but this is not discrimination, it is common sense. He looked very uncomfortable in the Shatner doc, not at all making any sense at all.

She looks great.I’m in for anything DS9.

Indeed she does…..

She does look great.

I’m actually watching DS9 now for the first time. I had seen a few episodes but didn’t think I would like it. In my opinion it has lost too much of Roddenberry’s vision, which is why I didn’t really get into it. But it is better than I thought, with good characters and writing.

I hope you stick with it, GarySeven. I’m assuming you’re watching the episodes in order from Season 1, Episode 1. The first season is always difficult as the show tries to find its legs. Season 2 is pretty amazing, much improved. Season 3 is a “transitioning” period from Bajor/Cardassia-specific stories to the beginning of trouble with the Dominion. Season 4 is when all hell breaks loose. The show becomes something new then. There’s more of a Klingon presence (including Worf). Things start heating up with the Dominion.

I think the brilliant Ira Steven Behr took over the day-to-day reigns in S3 in order to bring the show to its new heading with the Dominion in S4. And from there, it’s rip-roaring fun. DS9 boasts a HUGE extended family of recurring characters. It is certainly in its own class as far as Star Trek is concerned, but its uniqueness is what makes it such fun. The characters are great. The writing is great.

Hope you give it a shot.

Thank you LordEdzo for giving a respectful and thoughtful reply. That kind of response is much to rare on this site. The articles are good here though!
I had watched the pilot and a few scattered episodes when DS9 was on and as a general ST fan I had some familiarity with the show and its basic ideas. So I skipped ahead to Season 6 and 7 because I figured if I could pay attention at all to the series, since I wasn’t expecting to like it, I should start with what is often considered the most intense and part of the best of the series.
As I said, I do like it. I flew back from China and on the 12 hour flight DS9 helped me get through the flight relatively painlessly. I actually love Vic Fontaine a lot. And, as we agreed, the characters and the stories are great. They are very engaging and except for the Doctor and perhaps Janeway and 7 of 9, are generally much better drawn and feel more real than Voyager (But I love Voyager).
I’m a Roddenberry philosophy guy, and that is one of the big things that to me makes Star Trek unique, special, and simply wonderful. To me it is a blueprint of some good core values we should aspire to. Most of TV or the media in general is either philosophically or morally irrelevant, or the sci fi shows are dystopian. DS9 is not BSG, etc, as Ronald Moore wanted BSG to be, it is a step down the path toward how other media thinks. I know I’m going to get creamed here (I hope not by you, as I admire your mature respectful attitude, and frankly don’t care about the people that are not respectful and thoughtful here). But I think that DS9 just doesn’t have much to say. Yes, of course I see the moral complexities, ambiguities, etc. But for me all I have to do is walk out the door into real life to have that. I want to watch something that is inspiring and provides guidance towards a better world. TOS, TNG, Voyager, and sometimes Enterprise did that, in my opinion. I leave DS9 often feeling I visited with some wonderful friends and engaged in a thrilling adventure with them. That’s great. But I sometimes feel I’m not watching Star Trek with a message for the future, which boy do we need today.
In sum, I think this aspect of the show, it’s moral ambvialence and lack of a clear message, is a real plus for some people. For me, it’s departure from Roddenberry’s vision goes too far, and is a serious negative. But it is a serious negative among so many other positives that I still like the show a lot. I just have learned not to expect that special thing that I feel Star Trek offers.
Thank you in advance for- whether you concur with parts and disagree with parts of what I wrote- your respectful (IDIC!) appreciation that mature good people can agree and disagree on things without that being a problem, but actually a plus.

much “too” rare, I should write.

GarySeven —> “For me, it’s departure from Roddenberry’s vision goes too far, and is a serious negative.”

I have to disagree with you. Roddenberry’s vision was all nice and really what I want for the human future, but what I think GR forgot is that sometimes, some things are far too important not to fight for. DS9 showed that on so many different fronts: Bajorans fighting for Bajor, the Cardassians finding out the taste of that dish by the Founders, the Federation fighting for it’s existence and Odo fighting his morals because he sees the evil and doesn’t subscribe to it no matter how much he’s schmoozed, not to mention the many others that are there but I didn’t mention.

I think DS9 made Roddenberry’s vision a complete circle. All things have a cost. It’s important, in my opinion, not to forget that aspect. Just my two cents.

“In sum, I think this aspect of the show, it’s moral ambivalence and lack of a clear message, is a real plus for some people. For me, it’s departure from Roddenberry’s vision goes too far, and is a serious negative.”

I don’t think DS9, taken as a whole, is morally ambivalent. In the war years, there were times where characters had to decide whether sacrificing values was warranted if it saved lives. I’d be interested to see if your view would be different if you’d watched the whole show.

Glad to see that the doc is coming along.

And speaking of coming along, Ira’s Van Dyck beard looks as though he’s been a cunning linguist with an Andorian, if you know what I mean.

Ahhh, like what you did there…:)

Maybe with this amount of cash being pledge cbs may reconsidered remastering of ds9!!!

@Fred: From your lips to the wormhole aliens’ ears.

I mean, clearly this the way to go, right? Do it on a season-by-season basis. THAT would get me to donate seven times, and then seven more times for “Voyager.”

Did you read the article explaining why this will probably never happen? Sales for TNG remastered were disappointing, too. The rise of streaming the past 5-6 years has made the purchase of physical media plummet. Unless the remastering can lead to tangible financial gains, or has some historical benefit, it sadly won’t happen.

Well, it might not be a financial success, but unless they remaster it, they won´t stand a chance in reruns on future streaming sites. People nowadays expect HD quality.

I would very much like to see the running time go further than 90. Maybe 120 would be very good. It’ll be interesting what the end product is like. Hopefully it can move CBS to greenlighting a bluray release of the series, however unlikely that may be to pass. Fingers always crossed!

I am a terrible Deep Space Nine fan. I had absolutely no idea that Adam Nimoy was dating Terry Farrell. But what jolly news!

Lucky bastard.

I have a brilliant idea: Axanar should call itself a documentary about an historic era of the Star Trek universe! Then it could elude all those pesky Paramount rules!

Sounds like a good idea, Anthony!

Sounds like a good idea, Anthony!

Stop shorting the word “documentary”! STOP! Did it really save that much time?

I wonder how many people donated to this who complained about how they’d never sign up for CBS All Access. Quite a few, I bet.

I did not contribute to it, but I will buy the Blu-ray day 1.

LOL thats so true. And I been saying this kind of things for months now. YOu’ll moan you will have to pay $6 a month to rent the show to watch but then you’ll have no problem forking over stuff like a T Shirt for 4 times the price or spend $80 on the DVDS. And I get it you actually own that but as shown here people will devote $100 to just getting something MADE but then offended that you are paying to watch it? And for such a small price at that. I’m not buying the idea that $6 a month is suddenly a hardship for the average Trek fan out there when I see them drop over $50 to get a autograph picture that just going to collect dust on a shelf somewhere.

Everyone has their own priorities but for me my biggest one is simply seeing more Trek content, period. I would pay twice as much for it on TV as long as its good. I only feel ‘ripped off’ if the product is bad.

Well.. I contributed $50.00, AND I’ll be subscribing to all access to watch Discovery. I love all things Star Trek, and DS9 was my favorite!

Well done! DS9 is my favorite show too. But yes I love all things Star Trek too and will be be subscribing to All Access with bells on.

200 bucks from me. Unlike TNG which has seen its popularity wane over the years, DS9 has built up a big underground following since it went off air. No one asked to see “Inner Light” in HD or any other episode of TNG, that’s why it flopped. The show that people are clamouring to see in HD is DS9. CBS and Paramount and most “vocal” fans still go by original ratings to base popularity, but the TV landscape is a helluva lot different now

TNG has not seen its popularity wane at all. If anything it has increased over time. It is a cultural icon… not quite to the level of the original series, but for the 80s/early 90s it comparatively comes close. I see and hear a lot of casual fans in the over 30 crowd talk about it with a lot of reverence.

The reason the tng blu rays struggled is because fewer and fewer people are buying physical media anymore. If it wasn’t available on Netflix already you can bet everyone here would have bought a set.

Tng is the most streamed trek series on Netflix according to some reports.

From Trek Core
http://trekcore.com/blog/2015/08/remastered-star-trek-tng-episodes-hit-netflix-usa/
“While having the high-definition remasters available on Netflix is certainly wonderful for convenience’s sake, the presentation is still below Blu-ray quality. Of course, the biggest drawback from the streaming package is the lack of the dozens-of-hours of bonus features newly produced for the spectacular Blu-releases.”

You make my point for me – you, like many other fans, had the DVDs before blu rays, and now streaming after it despite being inferior in quality. No one asked for it to be in Blu Ray quality, and certainly not many people did buy it in the end because the show wasn’t worthy of such an amazing conversion. I was the exception, loved seeing the old 80’s episode with such clarity

@Aemulius I’m not sure the point you’re trying to make. Whatever it is, you’re wrong.

Had the TNG Blu Ray’s been released 10 years ago, they’d have sold well. I don’t know WTF you you even mean when you say it “wasn’t worthy of conversion.”

And I don’t know what the hell it means to say that “nobody asked for it.” That is a meaningless statement.

You can respond to me all you like, but I won’t even read it. You’ve proven yourself unable to form a coherent thought.

TNG is totally a revered show, it was THE reason why trek continues to this day on TV. But we all know most of the demographics of the average 12-15 million viewers that watched TNG in its run showed up for Maid in Manhatten instead of for Nemesis on its pitiful opening weekend. Insurrection was the same story, and so were the blurays. It’s revered, just not enough for people to fork out their wallets, which is the bottom line and the reason why we got JJ TREK

Nemesis was a BAD film, period. Thats why it did so poorly. Trek fans told other Trek fans to stay away in droves. It would be different it was like Beyond that got an 85% on RT and still flopped. Nemesis was a poorly made product and people stayed away. This isnt rocket science.

Here’s an article explaining why: It has to do with how the shows were shot and the fact that if TNG didn’t sell well, DS9 unfortunately won’t either. I think DS9 is far better, but it’s obvious that TNG is far more popular.

http://www.treknews.net/2017/02/02/why-ds9-voyager-not-on-blu-ray-hd/

Yea, saw that a while ago

If I had a pile of cash, the Nana Vistor dinner party would be nice…

Why did Terry Farrell leave DS9 again?