User blog:Idekmandy/Memory Alpha Interactive Video Premiere

Hey everyone!

Last month, I was here to announce the premiere of our first ever wiki-specific Interactive Video for DC Database, which featured ten odd and unexpected versions of Batman within the DC Omniverse, just in time for The Batman release. If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend you check it out, but if Batman is not your thing, don’t worry, the DC Interactive Video was only the first of more to come!

As promised, I am back once again to reveal our next Interactive Video, and this time it revolves around one of the greatest sci-fi franchises of all time - that’s right, Star Trek! And we’re just in time for the premiere of Star Trek: Picard season two.

The video, which was made in collaboration with our archivers over at Memory Alpha, takes you right into space for a ride through Star Trek memory lane by guiding you through an interactive timeline of all the various ships and captains along with where they fall in Trek history. Each entry is based on a different era, and a simple click through the timeline will introduce you to each major part of Star Trek history with a video overview, as well as help you discover key plot points of each of the series and movies set during that time.

As with all of our Interactive Videos, you also have the option to dive deeper into each subject by bringing up wiki articles served directly in the video. Learning history just got a whole lot more interesting, so click play below to get started on your journey to becoming a Starfleet officer!



The idea behind the video: Attending Starfleet History Training
The Star Trek franchise is growing faster than ever, and Memory Alpha’s impressive article count (over 52K at the moment of writing) is indicative of the vastness of the franchise, spanning several series and movies made over the course of 55+ years. To help navigate that extensive universe, we thought an interactive timeline would serve as the perfect springboard for fans, both young and old, to experience the events of Star Trek history in a new and unique way. As soon as we brought this idea to the Memory Alpha admins, they were intrigued by its potential and eager to get involved in the project.


 * “With more series airing simultaneously than ever before across all eras of Star Trek canon (and more on the way!), this is great for new fans to see how Star Trek history fits together - and longtime fans can make new connections too.”
 * – AJHalliwell, Memory Alpha admin

After the admins were on board and the concept was nailed down, it was time to work on the style. For this video, we knew we wanted to capture the look and feel of being a part of Starfleet. The idea is that you are a cadet studying the extensive history of Starfleet, and the Federation Database within the video will give you access to important records of historical data that will bring you one step closer to becoming a Starfleet officer. Visually, we wanted this to be instantly familiar to Star Trek fans, as well as capture the interest and attention of more casual readers, so we designed the video’s aesthetic to mimic the interface of the Library Computer Access and Retrieval System (LCARS for short) from Star Trek: The Next Generation. This computer is aboard all Starfleet vessels, starbases, and space stations (and now also this Interactive Video)!


 * “This is GREAT! Awesome production quality. The Fandom team did an excellent job recreating the iconic LCARS interface style in a way that links users to more information on Memory Alpha articles. A new way to access a vast wiki of information on the franchise we love.”
 * – AJHalliwell

This also fits in with the idea of Memory Alpha as a wiki. You may not know this, but the name Memory Alpha originated within Star Trek: The Original Series as the name of a planet that housed a Federation library. The name first originated in the 1969 episode “The Lights of Zetar,” and it’s where the wiki got its name. So it seemed fitting for a wiki named after a Federation library to take on the style of a Federation database.

The team who made history come to life
It wasn't easy to boil down over 55 years of Star Trek storytelling into a single experience, but we certainly had a great team to help out. Former Honest Trailer writer Dan Murrell (who spearheaded the Honest Trailer for Star Trek: The Next Generation) and frequent Screen Junkies collaborator Ed Greer both helped to plot out key events on the timeline. Along the way, they worked in tandem with the Memory Alpha admins to verify the timeline’s accuracy, make sure the most important events were being covered, and tweak the language to be as clear and informative as possible for all fans. Being true to the nature of their audience is where Memory Alpha really shines, and the detailed commentary they provided to the video team was essential to shaping the final product.


 * “It's a nice concept and design and will hopefully help people navigate the Trek timeline.”
 * – Sulfur, Memory Alpha admin

With the timeline solidified, graphic designer Mat Baldwin worked his magic to design the video from head to toe, recreating the epic LCARS interface. Finally, the entire video experience was put together in post-production and given its own distinct sound design by our post-production supervisor Emin Bassavand. To ensure that the final result would withstand the gaze of Trek superfans, the Memory Alpha admins provided one last round of feedback, which was crucial to getting every detail in order. This truly was a collaborative effort between so many members of the Fandom team, as well as members of the Memory Alpha community. Massive kudos to everyone that was involved in this video’s creation, and a special thanks to Memory Alpha admins AJHalliwell, Gvsualan, Renegade45, and Sulfur for all of their help throughout this process!


 * “Everyone from a green cadet to a seasoned officer should have something to glean from this video... The production values are top notch, and the content holds one's attention from beginning to end. Well done!”
 * – Renegade45

We hope you enjoyed this journey through space and time with us, and who knows, maybe we’ll even see some new Starfleet officers arise! We’d love to hear your thoughts, so sound off in the comments below, and let me know what your favorite event in Star Trek history is! Live long and prosper 🖖