The Trek Files welcomes back visual effects veteran Stuart Ziff for a firsthand trip into the making of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. This time, the documents are original production call sheets from April 1986, detailing the now-legendary "B-Tank" shoot where the Klingon Bird-of-Prey splashed down into San Francisco Bay with George and Gracie the humpback whales.

Stu recalls the practical filmmaking wizardry behind the scenes: giant wave machines, lightning rigs, whale effects, and an enormous outdoor water tank built on the Paramount lot. Along the way, he shares stories about building a mechanical whale eye (for the wrong side of the whale), experimenting with blue dye for the tank water, and watching old Hollywood effects crews create movie magic in real time.

Larry and Stu also circle back to Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Stu's experiences during the turbulent Robert Abel & Associates era, including a revealing memory involving a young Paramount executive named Jeffrey Katzenberg.

It's a fond look back at the kind of filmmaking that required wind machines, carbon-arc lightning effects, scuba divers, towels, and "wetsuits for cast and crew."

Plus: Stu discusses the new documentary being produced about his life and career, and how fans can help support it.

Documents and additional references

Star Trek IV production call sheets, April 18–24, 1986
Stuart Ziff documentary campaign: Indiegogo – The Stuart Ziff Documentary
Reference: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
Reference: Leonard Nimoy

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