Biography

David C. Fein is an innovative and boldly accomplished Director/Producer and is most notably the Producer of Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Director's Edition in 4k (and its original 2001 in SD), which premiered in 2001 to universal acclaim.

David has a track record for his ability and passion for innovating while pushing limitations out of the way to deliver unique and successful productions.

Fein's interest in science fiction and storytelling began in childhood in New York City, with reruns of Star Trek and classics ranging from "Casablanca" to "Godzilla" to "King Kong." The works of Willis O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen notably led him to study the art of visual effects. Armed with his father's 8mm movie camera, Fein made many animated shorts with everything from paper and clay to models and figures. His film studies continued in college, where he produced several innovative student films.

Later working as a journalist, Fein developed an active relationship with the major studios' publicity, marketing, and distribution arms. He assisted with the campaigns for various films, including Fox's "Aliens" and LucasFilm's "Labyrinth."

During this time, he began his quest to create the definitive "making of" film project. After many years of research, he knew that no film had ever been thoroughly examined and documented from beginning to end. Inspired by The Voyager Company's early special edition efforts such as "King Kong," his goal became to uncover the story of a film as told through - and in tribute to the filmmakers' work. (Fein eventually would become a consultant on The Voyager Company's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" supplemental and restoration project.)

After relocating to Los Angeles, James Cameron's "Aliens" was Fein's first project. The resulting studio-sponsored special edition laserdisc-ALIENS Wide-Screen Collector's Edition would be the first to be labeled "film school in a box" by many educators and industry professionals. Released in the early 1990s, the laserdiscs of "Aliens" and Ridley Scott's "Alien" - produced with partner Michael Matessino - became the benchmarks that defined "special editions," with results that are evident in today's best home. The ALIEN & ALIENS laserdisc projects have had remarkable longevity and are included in the ALIEN Anthology Blu-ray collection.

Fein founded Sharpline Arts, an award-winning name in documentary filmmaking for television and video, and soon turned his attention back to his true goal of storytelling. Under the company banner, Fein produced the critically-acclaimed "Crossing the Frontier: Making 'The Last Starfighter,'" "Memories of Navarone," and returned to the ALIEN franchise with "The ALIEN Legacy" (also available worldwide in the ALIEN Anthology Blu-ray collection).

With Matessino, he approached Robert Wise about completing Wise's unfinished "Star Trek: The Motion Picture." The legendary filmmaker respected their vision for the film and fully embraced the project, entrusting Fein as its producer. In 2001 Fein - along with Matessino as restoration supervisor and visual effects supervisor Daren R. Dochterman - received the Video Premiere Award for his profound contributions to the extensively restored, re-envisioned film.

Following the success of Star Trek, Fein continued his personal and professional relationship with Robert Wise until his passing in 2005.

Fein's projects have had a lasting impression with constant re-releases of his work on evolutionary formats, including Blu-ray and streaming. Most recently, he's received acclaim for his work directing and producing the special features for the UK release of the "Phantasm" film series, editing the features for the 80's camp classic, "Chopping Mall," and as Producer, Technical Advisor, and Post-Production Supervisor on the 2018 theatrical documentary "King Cohen: The Wild World of Filmmaker Larry Cohen." He continues to develop several film and television projects.

Fein's expertise with picture and sound restoration continued through his most current work, the completion of Robert Wise's Director's Edition of Star Trek: The Motion Picture as a 4k OCF as a new 2022 film continuing Robert Wise's vision of story first, delivering an engaging HDR color grading and new powerful and encompassing Dolby ATMOS theatrical and near-field sound mix.
- IMDb mini biography by: Sandy Stone