On June 3 2015, Adam Nimoy launched a Kickstarter campaign for a documentary that explores the birth and evolution of Star Trek’s Spock, titled “For the Love of Spock”.
Since Leonard Nimoy’s passing on February 27, this project has evolved to include a tribute to the actor who brought Spock to life. I recently had the opportunity to ask Adam a few questions about this Kickstarter project and the enthusiastic support he has received from fans over the course of this campaign:
1. First, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and this project?
My Father and I worked on a documentary together a few years ago titled Leonard Nimoy’s Boston. We had a wonderful time working together. Late last year, around thanksgiving, we began discussing the possibility together of producing a documentary about the life of Mr. Spock.
This documentary was to be our contribution to the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Star Trek: The Original Series which is coming up next year. After my father’s passing in February, there was a huge outpouring of emotion, sympathy and support from fans all over the world.
They were feeling the loss not only of Mr. Spock but also of Leonard Nimoy the artist. It then became clear to me that the focus of this film I’m making had to also include the incredible life and legacy of Leonard Nimoy as well.
2. What made you choose Kickstarter over other popular crowdfunding platforms, like Indiegogo?
We thought crowdfunding would be a fitting way to help get this film made in time because my Dad was all about his community of fans and we always believed that allowing fans to participate would be great for us, great for them. We went with Kickstarter in particular because they saw my press release and actually flew up from New York and made a pitch about wanting to get involved in the project.
They had believed in the project from the beginning, and offered us a lot of publicity, advice and support. Other crowdfunding platforms came and talked to us as well, but Kickstarter were pretty fervent about their love of Spock, their respect for my dad, and their belief in the project I was putting together.
3. Do you plan on re-launching later on if this first Kickstarter project is unsuccessful?
No, we’re not considering any future re-launches at this time. The fact of the matter is, we’re already in crunch-time to get this documentary made in time for early 2016, so we need the campaign to succeed in order to make the movie we’re trying to make.
The response to the Kickstarter has been slower than expected, but constant, and all signs are that we’re going to meet our goal – with the continued active support of the community.
The fans have been incredibly important to this campaign and to the progression of the project itself. While I’m surprised we haven’t yet reached a larger Trek fanbase, the supporters we have are incredibly active and engaged. Getting a chance to read all of the messages and stories fans have sent in about my dad has been a wonderful surprise and comfort to me.
Conclusion
At the time of this interview there was still a week left to the campaign and about $75K left until the final goal was reached. Thanks to dedicated Star Trek fans who pledged their support and shared this campaign on social media, #SpockDoc made it through the last stretch and is now on its way to becoming a reality!
This project serves as a great example of the sense of community that Kickstarter has worked so hard to cultivate. Adam Nimoy had faith in his father’s fans and promoted his campaign until the very end – appearing on Access Hollywood Live, ABC7, and Fox Studio 11. Nimoy even did a Reddit Q&A, giving fans a chance to get an inside scoop on this project and share their favorite Spock stories.
The fact that crowdfunding platforms jumped at the chance to host this campaign is just another indication of how badly people want to see this Spockumentary happen.
If you’d like to learn how to cultivate a community around your project, be sure to enroll in our free Kickstarter course here.
