Tim Russ: Without giving the story away, the theme has to do with security vs. freedom. How much freedom is one willing to give up in the name of security? As consistent with Gene Roddenberry's vision, we play out current themes in our world dressed up in future settings. There is also a good portion of good old action, suspense, and old familiar faces returning from the original series.

Tim Russ: This is not a fan film. This is an independent Trek feature, and we have every intention of selling it to the public as either a download or on DVD. Fan films are usually allowed to be viewed for free. Not to take away from the hard work and dedication of the people who make fan films, the quality of "Gods and Men" is superior than the typical fan film. I was approached by the producer, Sky Douglas Conway, about co-creating the concept for it and directing it. To me at the time, it was more or less another directing job. But it turned out to be something very special.

Tim Russ: We obviously needed to gather name actors from the various series to be in the film if we were going to produce it commercially. It would give the story much more punch and generate much more interest from the fans.

Tim Russ: No, it sort of snowballed. Once we had a few actors signed on to do it, others became interested in joining the cast.

Tim Russ: Yes we did employ two seasoned Trek writers, Jack Trevino, and Ethan Calk. Doug Conway and myself also pitched in on the plot and structure of the story.

Tim Russ: I was not much more of a fan than the average viewer of that series in syndication over so many years. Yes, I liked some of the stories, and enjoyed the character interaction, but I like sci-fi as a genre in general. Obviously becoming part of the franchise as an actor in one of the series offshoots has broadened my career, allowing me to do things I would not have had the opportunity to do. It elevated my status as an actor in this town, and of course was financially beneficial. And, there's almost no place I can go where someone doesn't recognize me.

Tim Russ: That would be a Doug Conway question. You can shoot as much as you like, it's what you do with it that makes all the difference. At present the Star Trek franchise is owned by CBS. We are planning to approach them about distribution for the project be it internet or DVD.

Tim Russ: You learn something from every project you direct or act in. You learn from actors, and sometimes from crewmembers. You take these things with you to the next project, whether they are something you want to keep or something you want to avoid.

Tim Russ: We shot "Gods" on a Panasonic, Mini DV, 24p camera, which I really like the look of.

Tim Russ: The editor was Tristan Barnard and he used Final Cut Pro, I believe.

Tim Russ: We used their sets because it was cost effective and they worked for the story. The people involved in New Voyages were helpful in a few areas, including wardrobe, set crew, and on camera work.

Tim Russ: The post [production] has taken longer than we expected, and there was a two to three month gap between shooting on the sets in New York and finishing here in Los Angeles. The post is time consuming because of the sound editing and CGI effects, of which there are quite a bit.

Tim Russ: Plan very carefully. You have so many people involved in so many areas, you have to plan everything in detail. Also make sure you have enough money to shoot whatever story you have in mind, or tailor the story to suit your budget.

Tim Russ: Not at present no. I am working on several other projects, some sci-fi, others drama and comedy.

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