A Vulcan salute from a 3D printer: a special award for Nicholas Meyer at Future Gate 2026
“Live long and prosper.” With this wish and a raised hand with parted fingers, the Vulcans of Star Trek have been greeting each other for sixty years. For this year’s 13th edition of the sci-fi film festival Future Gate we turned this gesture into a 3D printed statuette. It became a special award for the festival’s guest of honour, director and screenwriter Nicholas Meyer.
An award for the man behind The Wrath of Khan
Nicholas Meyer is one of the most influential figures in the history of Star Trek. He directed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), which many fans still consider the best film in the entire series. He co-wrote the fourth film, The Voyage Home, and returned to the franchise as director and co-writer of the sixth instalment, The Undiscovered Country. Beyond Star Trek, he wrote the bestselling Sherlock Holmes novel The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, whose film adaptation earned him an Oscar nomination, and directed the sci-fi film Time After Time and the TV film The Day After, among others.
Future Gate screened The Wrath of Khan in its Legends section, and Nicholas Meyer attended the screening in person. He received the award for his contribution to the science fiction genre on 4 October at Prague’s Lucerna cinema, in the year Star Trek celebrates 60 years since its premiere.
A hand that greets the Vulcan way
It took about three weeks from the moment we learned the name of this year’s guest to the finished statuette. We printed the final model of the hand from Prusament PLA on an Original Prusa CORE One. We placed a metal weight inside the base so the statuette stands firmly, and the bottom cover of the base bears the PrusaLab logo. The dedication plaque was laser engraved.
Traditional gate-shaped awards
Alongside the statuette, we once again made the festival’s traditional awards inspired by the festival gate: Best Film, the Audience Award, Best Student Film and the award for Contribution to the Science Fiction Genre, which this year went to Oscar-winning film editor Joe Walker, known for Dune, Arrival and Blade Runner 2049.
We CNC-milled the aluminium parts, 3D printed the gate rings on Original Prusa MK4S printers, then sanded, filled and painted them in gold, copper, glittering black and silver. Inside each gate, an LED strip runs an animation, and a semi-transparent mirror turns it into a tunnel to infinity. The effect is switched on with a button on the base, and the trophy charges via USB-C.
From the entrance gate to Terry Gilliam
Our collaboration with Future Gate began back in 2018, when we built the first version of the space gate that visitors walk through into the cinema. In 2021, we rebuilt it into its current form, almost three metres tall. The gate is programmed with a range of light effects and has become a symbol of the festival. Throughout the year, Future Gate also exhibits it at other film events, and we make sure it always stays in good shape.
Since 2020, we have also been making the festival’s awards for winning films and filmmakers. Their design is based on the gate, and we improve it with every edition. In 2024, the awards got new electronics with a rechargeable battery that keeps them lit for up to 100 hours. That year also saw the first special award for a festival guest: a statue of Sam Lowry from Brazil for Terry Gilliam. The director, screenwriter and animator, the only American member of the Monty Python comedy group, is also known for Time Bandits, 12 Monkeys and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. You can read more about it in our 2024 article.
Where to catch Future Gate next
After Prague and Brno, the festival is touring the regions. In the second half of October, you can find it in Hodonín (Kino Svět, 16–18 Oct), Šumperk (Kino Oko, 17–18 Oct), Olomouc (Telegraph, 19–21 Oct), Boskovice (Panorama, 20–21 Oct) and Hradec Králové (Bio Central, 22–24 Oct). The programme includes Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, Audience Award winner Yesterday Island and the iShorts block of short films. The Wrath of Khan, the film by this year’s guest of honour, will be screened again in Boskovice on 20 October and in Hradec Králové on 23 October. More screenings are planned for November, and you can find the current programme at futuregate.cz.
Sci-fi you can hold in your hand
What we enjoy about working with Future Gate is that every edition brings a different brief. One year it is a gate for hundreds of moviegoers, another a statuette that has to capture an entire film series in just a few weeks. This year, we worked in a similar way on the medals for the Maxa NBL.
Are you planning your own award, trophy or custom object? Get in touch, we will be happy to help.
Photos from the festival and of the finished awards: Future Gate. Production photos: PrusaLab.
