SGU Kickstarter?

[Railgun]

I was just speaking generally, but I do think the fact that 3D printers even exist is pretty frakking amazing.

Pretty cool idea.

I'd like to see them Reprap the whole set. A 3D printer that can print itsef, just like the replicators
And use a bank of networked Raspberry Pi's to do the CGI

Give it a few years and even amateurs will be able to film it on a mobile phone.
The future is fantastic..but I want it now!!!

Also; How about sidestepping the set issue completely. Make the story set mostly on location with only small bits of tech. If it gets popular then the budget will come and more sets can be created later.

[Mnikolic]

I was actually thinking about that myself. They should've only built one part of the sets for Destiny for SGU and film mostly on location in S01 and perhaps, even for the first half of S02. The show, although I think it was great, wouldn't suffer the ratings issue, because we would actually see the characters exploring different planets while getting used to the ship and the new surroundings. Then the subsequent seasons would introduce more parts of the ship and each part of the ship would be individually explored.

So I agree with Railgun on the sets thing. I bet the show would easily get a third and perhaps even a fourth and a fifth season if it was done that way.

[auroraclass1]

I doubt Cooper or Wright would or want to pick it up if they did I think that they are done with Stargate they did commit like 15 years to the franchise. Plus they would probably have trouble getting some of the actors like Robert Carlyle cause he is contracted with that fairy tale show he is in.

[myhelix]

I think such a project would work if the fans would unite for a Stargate movie with some of the cast from all three shows put together. I think Stargate has a lot of fans worldwide, you just have to make a major buzz.

But on the other hand, why spend so much money on a show/movie project that a studio could afford on their own if they really want to do it.

Better invest money in some poor people, it´s far more important than a TV show, as much as I love Stargate.

[min min light]

But on the other hand, why spend so much money on a show/movie project that a studio could afford on their own if they really want to do it.

When you go to a movie you're paying the studios for something they already made, and in my case anyway about 99% of the time it's not anything I'm all that excited to watch. If you invested in Vanessa Mars you paid for a movie that will be made, that you actually want to see, and you paid less to see it.

Better invest money in some poor people, it´s far more important than a TV show, as much as I love Stargate.

It's not an investment, it's more like a pre-order. So unless you tell people to also swear off all other forms of entertainment and give that money to the poor instead, this is an unfair criticism.

(Not to mention that it's perfectly possible to buy DVDs, iPods, cable TV, games and movie tickets and still donate to the poor. It's not either/or.)

[Energizer_Vs_ZPM]

But on the other hand, why spend so much money on a show/movie project that a studio could afford on their own if they really want to do it.

How do you know MGM have enough money to do it? They were in deep financial trouble recently so where has all this $Mega come from suddenly? - Seriously tell me, I'm going to write to them and ask why they've not spent it on SGU if they can (as you say) afford it!

[Ausfan]

It's an interesting idea and an avenue worth exploring. The reason it was cancelled was not because of lack of popularity but rather the medium that was being measured via the Neilson system not being a popular choice. Generally speaking this seems to be the case for a lot of shows, eg there was massive downloading of Game of Thrones for example

One issue they had before was that SciFi or SyFy were only measuring the U.S audience and taking that into account in decision making. There seems to be a fair few international fans so if they are playing a part in funding you have quite a wide source and are finally developing a business model that taps into the international popularity in a meaningful way

Plus if a fair bit of cash can be raised, it might be easier to convince a broadcaster to put some money up as well (joint venture) without breaking their bank which would be helpful. It might just be a case of the fans taking the financial edge off the cost of producing it rather than trying to cover the full amount per se

One thing to aim for perhaps could be a mini-series, rather than going for 22 episode seasons which may not be impractical given the way a lot of actors and support staff have moved on, if people go for 6-12 episodes that may be easier to work around in getting around actors' scheduling issues plus be more affordable

If the stories and writing is as solid as the last 4 episodes of season 2 in particular, a mini-series can be quite enjoyable and worthwhile

The cost of 're-building' the sets may not be as expensive if they can lease the ones that David Hewelett (aka McKay) purchased at Auction. This may also mean having to put him in a few episodes to get him onside (guest appearances), but if they expand on the arch of having him leading an effort to dail from the MW Galaxy it can make some sense

All interesting food for thought and an avenue to explore, for my part I'd be willing to put a bit of money in because I love this show so much it is worth it

[Railgun]

Actually, I'd be very interested to find out how the studio funds this type of project. It might be that they are big enough to go to the bank for a loan or lobby government for one, or it might be that they bring financial investors on-board anyway for a share of the profits.

What I'd really like to see would be a niche investment fund run properly with FSA checks, in a financial centre like the city of London or Wall St where it would raise funds from investors with a view to investing in Sci-fi shows that have a good business case of profitability. The same way some funds invest in only environmental companies etc..

It wouldn't even need to tap fans for the cash, but If the fund was to engage with the fans then this would provide a barometer of what shows will be well received and therefore a good pointer to what projects will make money. As the fund makes profit it's size would grow and be able to invest in more and bigger projects giving it greater control over what shows get made.

Given the amount of popular shows that get cancelled I can't see why we don't have something like this already. Give the customer what they want! It's good business to do so.

Maybe the fans should target their pleas at the kingpin's in the investment world rather than the studio to get better results. Any investment bankers hanging round in the forums? lol

[Energizer_Vs_ZPM]

It's an interesting idea and an avenue worth exploring.

Have you read anything beyond the opening post? - It won't happen unfortunately.

[alfredodedarc]

It has no chance at all because MGM owns Stargate and all its incarnations and they won't let anyone do anything with it.

Also, mod hat on, there is no tolerance at all for money making schemes, including kickstarters due to the extreme likelyhood of scams. So don't go posting ANY links here if someone gets a wild idea about starting something.

As I stated in the original post, it is all up to MGM and the powers- that- be/were to initiate something of this sort. Veronica Mars is a nice tiny, tight little project without extraordinary costs, and with actors who are willing to work for very little money just out of the sheer love of the project.

Stargate SG1 and Atlantis are pretty much completed works; SGU is the only one with unresolved issues since they adopted the Lucian Alliance storyline.. Finally, I would state that anyone who attempts any such measure to kickstart Stargate without tacit approval and participation of the owners of the Stargate Franchise is indeed trying to run a scam and needs to be reported immediately.

[Ausfan]

but If the fund was to engage with the fans then this would provide a barometer of what shows will be well received and therefore a good pointer to what projects will make money. As the fund makes profit it's size would grow and be able to invest in more and bigger projects giving it greater control over what shows get made.

This part is a bit tricky, in terms of fans of the other two franchises, they would have said they didn't like much of the difference in approach in SGU. One thing I have picked up is that what makes some fans of the first two franchises hate SGU is what makes some people love SGU more than the other two, and brings new people in

Then there is the fact that writers won't like the idea of having their artistic creativity infringed upon or even beholden to fans

Have you read anything beyond the opening post? - It won't happen unfortunately.

Not at the time of writing, I was simply discussing the notion, as I find it intriguing and it is potentially a circuit breaker for the business model issues facing not only this show but many others in the modern era of 'television'

As I stated in the original post, it is all up to MGM and the powers- that- be/were to initiate something of this sort. Veronica Mars is a nice tiny, tight little project without extraordinary costs, and with actors who are willing to work for very little money just out of the sheer love of the project.

Stargate SG1 and Atlantis are pretty much completed works; SGU is the only one with unresolved issues since they adopted the Lucian Alliance storyline.. Finally, I would state that anyone who attempts any such measure to kickstart Stargate without tacit approval and participation of the owners of the Stargate Franchise is indeed trying to run a scam and needs to be reported immediately.

This would all be very complicated (more complicated than a lot of people who are talking about VM and suggesting it have probably thought), one thing I have noticed about the VM thing is that it is run by the creator in effect with the studio setting the amount. In this case if there ever was one it could never be started by a random fan but would have to be one of the creators (if they are up for it) even if some fans enthusiastically pushed it. Plus it would officially have to have MGM onside before it began which is a whole other battle in itself between the creators and the studio and even then they would have to have some kind of tangible plan in mind, eg movie or mini-series. And that's before we even get to the actors willingness and availability etc

[min min light]

In this case if there ever was one it could never be started by a random fan but would have to be one of the creators (if they are up for it) even if some fans enthusiastically pushed it. Plus it would officially have to have MGM onside before it began which is a whole other battle in itself between

I think that whoever owned the rights would have to agree to it before anyone could do anything else, and I don't think that (in this case) MGM is going to be turning those over to some fan off the street. The VM people were working on this for well over a year prior to this launch, and Warner Brothers rejected them that first time. (That's highly condensed and paraphrased - I'll post a link to the actual interview if anyone wants it.) They didn't just throw this thing together in a few weeks and voila.

I find it intriguing and it is potentially a circuit breaker for the business model issues facing not only this show but many others in the modern era of 'television'

Same here, I love the shifting entertainment business model and I figure that anything that gives fans more control can only be good for the world of sci-fi.

[Xaeden]

How do you know MGM have enough money to do it? They were in deep financial trouble recently so where has all this $Mega come from suddenly? - Seriously tell me, I'm going to write to them and ask why they've not spent it on SGU if they can (as you say) afford it!

MGM is actually now in the black thanks to the success of the latest James Bond and The Hobbit movies. It's not exactly rolling in money, but with the next Hobbit movie coming out at the end of the year and a couple of high profile remakes on the way, its prospects look positive. So, there's no reason they shouldn't soon be able to turn their attention back to Stargate so long as they have an idea that they think they will be profitable. Unfortunately, that precludes a straight to DVD movie for a show without any standing sets.

One of the few hopes for them funding a movie at this point would probably if they decided to put one out to promote the launch of a fourth series. However, I doubt they'd go the SGU route in that instance as Sg-1 is a bigger draw and it would be easier to throw them onto the sets made for the series.

[Mnikolic]

I agree. Making a fourth series would work for the franchise if it started with a movie. Then, perhaps the new series could be set in another universe/dimension or in a very distant future and then have it just address/explain what happened next in SGU and how everything ended.
Maybe a couple of SG-1 and SGA segments/elements/characters could be thrown in there as well.

[Snowman37]

Ya know what would be a good ending for SGU? Say that the ship began to fall apart, forcing the crew to abandon ship and set up a colony on an Earth-like planet. Works for me.