Saturday, October 8, 2011

RoTV

RoTV

He called himself RoTV.  He created several Star Trek animations at GoAnimate! (45:15)  He also created non-Trek animation.  His GoAnimate webpage is: http://goanimate.com/user/0Cvnk3ytdbdQ .  Also: http://goanimate.com/videos/0b1bXkpitaIc   He is from Stanford, Maine.  He worked in the TV field.  Here is his work website: http://rotvdigitalcreations.com/  and his work facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/RoTV/196045780439869

He died June 10, 2015, after a struggle with cancer.  As of 1/4/2015, his You Tube channel is down.  I have contacted his widow seeking viewing information.

His Star Trek offerings include The Derelict, The Distress Call, Maiden Voyage, and The Doomsday Machine, all of which are primarily Golden Age/TOS Fan films.   In addition, he has created The Sirens' Carnage, Star Trek: Vengeance and Star Trek: Reflectons of Evil. which I have links to at the bottom of this page, but which I have not yet reviewed.

His work is now available at You Tube, which is much easier to watch than Go!Animate.  This is his You Tube home page: http://www.youtube.com/user/devro1962#p/u .

Star Trek: The Derelict An 'animated graphic novel' in four parts, by RoTV.  Rating: 3.5  There is music, and sound effects, but the words are in boxes for narration and word balloons.  No voices.  The show is well written, and tightly edited.  It is very reminiscent of real TOS.  The message, that you catch more flies (and other insects) with honey than you do with vinegar.  The limitations of the media are less in your face because of the graphic novel format.  You don't expect acting, so it's not missed.  They make the best use of these resources.   It's also entertaining and well directed.

ALL WERE DOWN AS OF 9/9/2017/
Part 1:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afWVydJJmgk (3:02)
Part 2:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcouBBhEKek (3:36)
Part 3:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veq0bhNJf_0 (2:47)
Part 4:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQdj9pSESqo (5:14)

Another review:

Fan Film Friday: Star Trek: The Go!Animate Generation: ‘The Derelict’


Part 1 (2:58) Maping a sector, they detect strange readings and go to investigate.  They find an object orbiting the 4th planet 15 times as massive as the enterprise with an undecipherable repeating signal and no life signs.  They scan the object and it's energy output increases.  It scans them and Kirk raises the shields.  A second energy beam takes Kirk and Spock off of the bridge and transports them... to two different hallways.

Part 2 (3:35) Scotty's attempts to scan the ship are blocked.  They can't detect them on the ship at all.  Kirk finds his communicator.  He can raise Spock, but not the ship.  Kirk complains of being in a maze, and Spock suggests they are each other's cheese.  Scotty and the crew continue their fruitless scans as Kirk and Spock independently wonder around the ship.  The animation only permits him to walk sideways, even though the halls approach us directly.   Scotty decides to take McCoy and a shuttlecraft to the ship, leaving Sulu in charge of the Enterprise.

Part 3 (2:42)  Scotty finds no doorways, but tries to cut into the engine housing.  Kirk discovers a massive energy field and tells Spock he believes the ship is not what it appears to be.  Spock agrees.  When Scotty attempts to use the phase to cut open the ship, he is initially ineffective.   When he increases power, the ship disables his phasers and grabs the shuttle in a tractor beam.  Spock finds the energy field, too.  Kirk hopes they are getting close, but the floor opens up under him and he loses his communicator.  He is looked at by a giant bug-like creature with eyes like the energy field.

Part 4 (5:08)  Kirk awakens just as Spock reaches the point where Kirk first found the energy field, and screams and gets ready to fight with the alien insects.  But they approach, waving their arms (legs?) and then transport both him and them.  We see that Sulu and Uhura are frustrated in their attempts to transport McCoy and Scotty from the shuttlecraft or communicate with them.  Spock reaches the hold in the floor, and jumps down.  He is immediately transported to where Kirk and the insects went.  The insects now address them, explaining that they are peaceful creatures that live hidden from others to avoid conflict, and had to first test them before showing themselves to ensure their own safety.  They call themselves the Cha'kla.   They had tested others before, but all resorted to violence.  Even their shuttlecraft used phasers only as a tool, not a weapon.  So, they will show the Federation their planet's true form.  The ship transforms into a very non-derelict look, and the planet become earthlike.  The Cha'kla invite them to visit their planet for a cultural exchange.  Kirk and Spock agree to accept.

More by RoTV:

Star Trek: Maiden Voyage  3 parts. Rating 4.
Part 1:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-McuMIvLX8E (4:49)
Part 2:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HjCQ9d3KTI (8:34)
Part 3:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vdHV6nsLsU (5:58)

This is a great show.  I enjoyed it a lot.  This was tightly written, and the animation came alive.  The backgrounds borrowed from other shows placed us right where the writer wanted us.  To the extent a cartoon is directed... this is well directed.  And it makes a great point... that even if you have the plans for future technology, you may not have the components to build according to those plans.  Animation limits the acting, but the use of balloons instead of voices minimized the impact and maximized the enjoyment.

Part 1 (4:39) (Star Trek: The Go!Animate Generation) Again, this appears to be an animated comic book with sound effects but balloons rather than voices.  The TOS enterprise is called to Starfleet's Advanced Technologies Research Center by Admiral Ramirez.  They are given no special orders on how to approach Starbase 32.  They approach what looks like Unity Station from TNG era games, and some TNG era fan films, and are told to park outside the station.  Messers Kirk, Spock, Sulu and Scotty all are ordered to beam to the Station.  Chekov has the Bridge.   Ramirez tells of highly classified work based on the discovery by the USS Farragut on planetoid DeMac7.  They discovered a wreaked Starfleet vessel from the late 24th Century.  They found plans for the Enterprise D, and built it.  We hear TNG music.

Part 2 (8:23) (Star Trek: The Go!Animate Generation) So Kirk, Scotty, Spock, and Sulu go aboard the Enterprise D.  They discuss the dangers of attempting to build such a ship with their more limited technology, and how she can go at Warp 9.5, and use beaming technology in subspace to go at speeds Scotty can't describe.  She's the fastest known ship in the galaxy, if she works.  Ramirez calls Kirk and Scotty to the bridge, where Spock and Sulu are already in their places, ready to try her out in a test run.  The insides of the Enterprise D looks like live action green screen work rather than 2D animation.   Kirk offers to let the Admiral run her, but he steps aside and give Kirk the Com.  Scotty reports and computer lag and discomfort, but they take the Enterprise D out of space dock anyway.  Kirk is concerned that the computer lag threatens the test, but the Admiral, looking uneasy, urges them on.  The Enterprise TOS left two hours ago, but they expect to be able to catch up in 22 minutes.   They start at Warp 2, ease up to Warp 7, and get ready for Trans-Warp drive.  When they engage the Trans-Warp drive the ship heaves and Scotty is knocked out, and the ship is out of control.  Kirk calls for Scotty to shut it down to no avail, so the calls on Spock.  When they have it stopped, Kirk sends Spock to look in on Scotty, but also asks where they are.  They are surrounded by Romulan Warbirds.

Part 3. (5:47)  Chekov's log notes that the experimental ship has not arrived.    Kirk tries to get the Admiral to take the weapons, but he refuses, and Kirk grabs that station himself.  The Romulans fire.  Kirk demands Warp, but all Scotty and Spock can offer is impulse under manual.  Shields up, they don't have phasers, so they have to use photon torpedoes... which he has to aim manually, their targeting system is out.  However, they knock out one Warbird.  Spock can't give Kirk warp, but he can explain what happened. The 24th Century ship is being run by a 23rd Century computer system... too slow.  Scotty can give him trans-Warp but not regular warp, as the Warbirds attack again.  Kirk takes it.  But once in Transwarp, they can't disengage the engines and stop the ship.  They are headed for a sun when the helm freezes.  The Enterprise under Chekov beams them off just before the Enterprise D plunges into the Sun.  Kirk puts Chekov in for commendation, and looks forward to an inquiry about the Admiral's project.
And another review:

Fan Film Friday: Star Trek: The Go!Animate Generation: Maiden Voyage

The Sirens' Carnage (21:29) was released in February of 2010, and has not yet been reviewed.  RoTV calls this an animated graphic novel, and refers to the four parts as "Issues" rather than parts or acts.  Here are the links to watch it:

At You Tube:
Issue 1:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptuh7MJq3dg (4:43)
Issue 2:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UySKv2qyzq8 (5:28)
Issue 3:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTIiBysF2AI (5:24)
Issue 4:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yt31R8Qj0Vg (6:34)

At Go!Animate:
Issue 1:   http://goanimate.com/movie/0su3dFX3A9LU/1 (4:33)
Issue 2:   http://goanimate.com/movie/0XpQyC8NHUXw/1 (5:18)
Issue 3:   http://goanimate.com/movie/0Ty0hg6EZM1U/1 (5:14)
Issue 4(Finale):   http://goanimate.com/movie/0CiRwhe_Uqy0/1  (6:24)

It uses the music from STXI.  It includes photos of the new cast, and starts in Klingon Space, near the Federation Border.  We see a Klingon bird of prey, then we are on board, with a navigator reporting siting and approaching an unknown vessel to the captain.  They are TOS Klingons.  They attempt to hail the unknown vessel warning it that is it trespassing in Klingon space, and will be destroyed if they do not answer.  A green, crying woman asks that they not be destroyed, that they didn't mean to trespass.  The Klingons demand they state their intentions, and the green woman explains that there was an explosion and their captain is dead, and they'll do anything for help.  The Captain beams on board, and is attacked upon arrival and take n prisioner.  A male Orion states that Klingons are predictable.  The Klingon vessel receives a message that the Captain was injured and they are beaming back immediately.  But the Orion arrives with the Klingon, and Phasers down the rest of the limited crew, taking the ship.  We find out in the next exchange that it is the women who are in charge, and the female is beaming over to take the ship.  The Green women arrive, and we hear the Orion slave girl music as they make eyes at the male Orion, but not the submissive attitude.  The green women beam the Klingon crew off, because they are 'stinking up' her new vessel.  The Klingon commander hails her, and tells her she will die for her treachery.    She points out she could have beamed him into space, and didn't.  When the Empire finds you,  he responds, they will hunt you down and grind you into Targ Butter.  She acknowledges he has a point.  So, she has them arm the torpedoes and shoot the ship she beamed them to, killing them all.  Now, all they will find is debree from an Orion freighter, and she can plunder the Federation and the Federation will blame the Klingons.  She has a curiously male laugh as this segment ends.

A Review:

Fan Film Friday: Star Trek: The Go!Animate Generation: ‘The Sirens’ Carnage’



Star Trek: The Distress Call (1:58). 1 part. http://goanimate.com/movie/0DhIZGj-hubI No rating, too short.  A Halloween video.  The Star Trek TOS crew are mapping the far end of the Alpha Quadrant when they get a very faint Federation distress signal.  Spock locates it half a parsec away, and they head there at Warp 2.  They evade a large ship that they can see, but doesn't show up on sensor readings.  The markings on the ship identify it as the USS Caithlin which had disappeared 80 years before.  The Caithlin disappears as they try to draw up alongside her.  They find her wreakage on the planet's circuit, which will enable them to find out what happened to her, and get a faint audio that sounds like "Thank you."

Star Trek: The Doomsday Machine  (10:05) Rating: 1. Recreation with weaker medium. It would be hard to follow if you didn't already know the story.  http://goanimate.com/movie/0BKcS8LtiOpA  or   http://goanimate.com/movie/0BKcS8LtiOpA?utm_source=linkshare  This is a recreation of a TOS episode done with Go!Animate.  However, it is shortened to 10 minutes.  Unlike other RoTV, this uses live voices, and those are taken from the TOS episode with the original sound track.

The story of the Doomsday Machine is weakly told.  The mouth movements don't mesh with the speech. The use of the TOS voices underlines how slight the cartoon figures are compared to the people they represent.

Star Trek: Vengeance  http://goanimate.com/movie/0O7wD6K21Om4/1 (7:15)
A Review: Fan Film Friday: Star Trek: The Go!Animate Adventures: ‘Vengeance’

Set three years after the TOS episode, Mirror, Mirror, this animation uses new formulations of the TOS crew and a voice cast.




Star Trek: Reflectons of Evil
   preview: http://goanimate.com/user/0Cvnk3ytdbdQ (1:13)
RoTV has also completed his series, Reflections of Evil .  You can watch all 5 parts at Go!Animate, or the first four on You Tube, and the last part on Go!Animate.
Star Trek: Reflectons of Evil
Part 1of 5: (Go!Animate)  http://goanimate.com/videos/0c78WsnV6jCk  (7:54)
Part 1 of 5: (You Tube) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_6_00HzOCk (8:05)
Part 2 of 5: (You Tube) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-WeOrsXDzo (8:55)

Part 2A of 5: (Go!Animate) http://goanimate.com/videos/0hJdQPbn6U94  (5:17)
Part 2B of 5: (Go!Animate) http://goanimate.com/videos/0DEQWiyAX7o8(3:58)
Part 3 of 5: (Go! Animate) http://goanimate.com/movie/0ag_mOFFQ0qk (5:06) (updated Dec. 20, 2011)
Part 3 of 5: (You Tube): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwuXfWvLlW4 (5:16) (not yet updated)
Chapter 4 of 5:  (Go!Animate)   http://goanimate.com/movie/0fdhZwLcu9L0 (6:43)
Chapter 4 of 5: (You Tube):  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjA6alAmpnc (6:44)
Chapter 5 of 5: (Go!Animate)  http://goanimate.com/videos/0e5NdbbZsvlc (10:14)
Chapter 5 of 5: (You Tube) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYODgdQKfyM (10:25)

A Review: Fan Film Friday: Star Trek: ‘Reflections of Evil’




He has also produced an original series, also set in the future, but on earth, called, "Matters Worse."
Chapter 1 (8:32)
Chapter 2 (7:27)
Chapter 3 (9:18)
(Finale Part 1): Chapter 4 Part 1 (5:34)
(Finale Part 2): Chapter 4 Part 2 (7:32)

Another new series, Star Trek: Perseus, was never made. It's date of release was pushed back and pushed back again.   vis: https://www.facebook.com/groups/427109314011506/467671246621979/?notif_t=group_activity
 vis: http://www.trekbbs.com/showthread.php?t=154270
OK, then it was Spring 2013... but

A few bits released:  

Teaser:  Nov. 16, 2012: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HS-1Qwf4T_w  (1:22)
Teaser 2:  Dec. 10, 2012:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5efZbTPw3X4  (0:34)
Opening Titles: (May 12, 2013)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1HU7MyqWEE  (0:46)
Revised opening titles: (Dec. 15, 2014) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAksSVDIKnw (0:56)
Transporter Effect, http://goanimate.com/videos/05I_s8lNM_Mc (0:24)

On April 27, 2014, Roland Doiron formally put Star Trek: Perseus on long term hold.  In June, 2014 he discovered he had Stage 4 Colin Cancer, which will be terminal.  He married on June 21, 2014 anyway.  On October 4, 2014, his chemo was working well on secondary tumors, and a surgical plan was set out to attack his primary tumor.   That did not prove successful.  On February 7, 2015, Roland formally cancelled this project due to his terminal illness.

Star Trek: Boldly Going... http://goanimate.com/videos/0NgMKKpQEoIA (2:52)
And here's his test video for some new 'props' he developed for Go!Animate:   http://goanimate.com/videos/0uB8xM9ZoaKk/  (0:59)

The following are comments from this webpage previous location:

4 COMMENTS:


RoTV said...
Thank you VERY much for watching and reviewing my Trek projects created at GoAnimate.com. I'm flattered that you found them worthy of your site. I am currently working on another animated graphic novel. I hope you will enjoy my latest project as well. Again, thank you for watching. RoTV
RoTV said...
Oh, one more note...although a very flattering thing to read, I am not "the official head of the Go!Animate Star Trek channel". I am just a regular member of GoAnimate. However, using my graphic design and TV production background, I do create a lot of custom props and backgrounds, hence giving my animations a very unique look. And concerning the lack of voice-over work in "The Derelict"; I used speech bubbles in that mini-series because I created that as an "animated graphic novel", so speech bubbles seem to fit the theme. I do have quite a bit of voiced over animations at GoAnimate. I shy away from trying to use them in my Trek animations for fear of sounding silly. LOL I have another animated graphic novel in the early stages and look forward to seeing it reviewed here once it's finished. Great site, Barb. A lot of fun to browse around. RoTV
Coady said...
Great to see Ro's work getting noticed. He has a great style and is especially good with his own scripts.
Harshil 7 said...
Cool! RoTV is amazing!

3 comments:

  1. And just a note about the upcoming series "Perseus". This will NOT be a GoAnimate produced toon. This is an animated project I am creating from scratch. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Frustratingly, the YouTube channel seems to have been wiped out.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you Gal. Emp. Palpatine, D.L.S., Esq. I have contacted RoTV's widow and she is looking into making his work available again.

    ReplyDelete