Robert Wise Robert " Bob " Earl Wise was the director and acting executive producer of the film . He received his sole Saturn Award nomination as Best Director for this film . Wise was brought in by studio CEOs Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg on the production in early after the television project " " was upgraded to a full blown theatrical movie production . He replaced Director Robert Collins , whom the studio did not trust with handling a big budget production , by that time set at $ 15 million dollars , since Collins had no experience yet with big theatrical productions . On the occasion of his contracting , Wise stipulated that he was to have executive producer powers as well , which the studio eagerly granted by giving him , as it turned out , near - " carte blanche " latitude , in the process curtailing those of Gene Roddenberry . Wise ' s unwillingness to share producer credit with " that kid in jeans " , caused hitherto " Phase II " Producer Robert Goodwin ( who was thirty at the time ) to leave the production in disgust . As it turned out , Wise was only to officially receive a director ' s credit , and not one as producer , which was reserved for Roddenberry only , even though his influence diminished considerably after Wise , essentially taking over as the primary production overseer , came aboard . Most of the , non - script related , production decisions made after March , were Wise ' s and not Roddenberry ' s . ( " " , pp . 75 - 76 ) He has related to James T . Kirk performer William Shatner for his memoirs how he was brought aboard , " I got a call from Mike Eisner about making this " Star Trek " movie , and I said , " Well , I ' m not really a Trekkie , and I never got hooked on the at all , but I will come down and talk about it . " So then I went in and talked with Eisner and with Jeffrey Katzenberg , and I finally said , " Yes , I ' m interested , but before I make the final decision , and before we get started , I ' d think I ' d better see some of the episodes . " I really wasn ' t up on this stuff at all . They ' d said , " Sure " , set me up in a screening room , and over the next couple of weeks , I watched about ten episodes . I liked them , thought they were all pretty good , and a couple of them were really exceptional . So I went back and talked with Michael and Jeffrey one more time , and at that point , things really started falling into place . I ' d made " The Andromeda Strain " , I ' d made " The Day the Earth Stood Still " , what better way was there to continue forward than with the crew of the " Enterprise " ? And when I first came into the film , I was told by Michael and Jeffrey that they were out to make a " top - notch picture " , and that our budget stood at somewhere between fifteen and eighteen million dollars . They didn ' t exactly expect we ' d be able to actually spend that much , but before they locked down a number , they wanted to leave us some freedom in term of creative ideas . The look of the film , the feel , the costumes , the sets , they wanted us to start thinking about all of those things . " As serendipity would have it , Wise ' s decision to do the film , was very much expedited by his wife Millicent and her father who " were " Trekkies and who were thrilled that their husband and son - in - law would be actively involved with " Star Trek " . They played even a more important role as far as " Star Trek " lore was concerned , since they were instrumental in a momentous production decision , as Wise further explained , " At the same time , while I didn ' t know much about " Star Trek " , my wife , Millicent , and her father were absolutely devoted to the show , so when I brought the script , and they saw that Spock wasn ' t in it at all , they both practically yelled , " Hey , what ' s this ? You can ' t POSSIBLY do " Star Trek " without Spock ! It just won ' t work , because he and Captain Kirk have such a thing going . " The next time I went into the studio , I said to Michael and Jeffrey , " I ' m ready to commit to this picture , BUT you just can ' t do it without Spock . He ' s so identified with the series that I think there would be a real hole in the film without him . " They agreed with me almost immediately , and they told me they ' d been thinking the same way . So , we sort of all decided to take a shot at bringing Leonard on board . " ( " Star Trek Movie Memories " , 1995 , pp . 87 - 88 ) Leonard Nimoy had up to that point in time refused to reprise his role as Spock , officially for the reason that he did not wanted to commit to the rigors of a weekly show , as " Phase II " was originally intended to be . However , there was an unofficial reason as well ; Nimoy had since the end of the " Original Series " been involved in a conflict with the studio over residual amenities of the use of his likeness on merchandise , for which neither he , nor his co - stars , ever received any financial compensation . Up to that point the studio had steadfastly refused to give in , but now , on Wise ' s insistence , the studio caved and the conflict which had dragged for a decade was resolved within a week . ( " " , p . 77 ) Millicent was rewarded for her input with a cameo as one of the " Enterprise " crewmember s , gathered for the briefing scene on the recreation deck of the refit - , were she appeared alongside a multitude of other " Star Trek " fans . Wise ' s only child , son Rob Wise , also served on his father ' s movie as assistant cameramen , as was his nephew , Doug Wise , as assistant director . ( " " , p . 79 ) Aside from his family members , Wise , when he came aboard , brought in several key staffers with whom he had regularly worked previously , most notably on " The Andromeda Strain " , and whom he trusted implicitly . These staffers included , Director of Photography Richard H . Kline , Costumer Robert Fletcher , Production Designer Harold Michelson and Production Illustrator Maurice Zuberano . He had also closely worked with , and befriended Special Effects Director Douglas Trumbull on " The Andromeda Strain " and was instrumental in somewhat smoothing over the severely strained relationship between Paramount Pictures and Trumbull , which turned out to be of signature importance later on in the production . ( " " , pp . 80 , " et al . " ) While Wise encountered no serious problems with his directing chores for the principal photography with the principal cast , even though Roddenberry ' s incessant script rewrites proved frustrating and contributed considerably to filming running three months over the alloted time schedule – a situation Wise ultimately dealt with , when he deftly arranged for Roddenberry ' s creative script input to end definitively in October 1978 ( " Star Trek Movie Memories " , 1995 , pp . 107 - 110 ) – , he did encounter serious set - backs in post - production when editing the movie into the final feature . This was due to the with visual effects company Robert Abel & Associates ( RA & A ) who had virtually no effects shots completed by the end of February 1979 . Wise recalled , still somewhat in horror , " " We had a huge crush on our special effects " [ note : as visual effects were still called at the time ] " . We had almost finished shooting when I realized that we hadn ' t yet received any footage from our effects house , Abel and Associates , so I said I have to see at LEAST some test footage . When it came in , I knew immediately that we had a big problem . The stuff was not good . They ' d had months to play with this stuff , and the results were of poor quality . They just weren ' t good enough for all the money we ' d poured in . . . close to five million dollars " [ " sic " : Wise was in error in his recollection , referring to a July 1978 Roddenberry memo ; the damage was actually substantially larger ] " . So now we were all panicking that we wouldn ' t be able to make our Christmas release date , but we lucked out . We got Doug Trumbull , and we also got John Dykstra and his outfit , two of the best effects houses helping out , these effects guys had to work around the clock seven days a week to get this stuff done . They really pulled us out of a hole . " " ( " Star Trek Movie Memories " , 1994 , pp . 119 - 120 ) The new effects companies brought in , Future General Corporation and Apogee , Inc . , had to scramble to produce the effects shots in order to meet the fixed release date of . Trumbull was still working on his last effects shot one week before the premiere , whereas Wise himself was therefore only able to complete the editing one day before the premiere . As a consequence , the movie did not quite turn out the way Wise had envisioned and overall he was a little disappointed with the end result , " " I just think that I hadn ' t had a chance to get all of the final work I wanted to do into it – particularly the special effects and even the mix of the music and sound effects . I had to rush so much to get it back to Washington for that premiere that I hadn ' t had a chance to refine all if that . " " A noticeable sequence Wise had to leave out was the in " Star Trek " lore famed " Memory Wall Sequence " ; while principal photography was finished for the sequence , there simply was not enough time left to complete the accompanying visual effects . ( ) Despite his penchant for perfection , Robert Wise was renowned for being an incredibly patient , level - headed and unflappable director , and he exhibited these traits throughout the production of " The Motion Picture " , despite the frustration he felt over the delays caused by Roddenberry ' s incessant rewrites . Cast and crew actually organized a pool with bets placed on the date Wise would loose his temper for the first time . He never did and the pool organizers returned everyone ' s money . ( " Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before " , p . 70 ) What the betters were not privy to however , was the one occasion Wise " did " lose his temper , in a big way . When he inspected the effects shots , or rather lack thereof , at RA & A on 20 February 1979 , the otherwise levelheaded Wise reportedly lost it on that fateful day and erupted in a full - blown rage , having afterwards tersely stated in the January 1980 issue of " Playboy " magazine , " " We have not been in touch . The air might be a little blue if we had . " " ( p . 144 ) , though he himself had downplayed it a bit a short time later , " " It ' s true that I finally exploded when I saw Abel ' s showcase . I was annoyed . I didn ' t scream or yell at him , but I was obviously quite upset . I stalked out of the projection room . After over a year on the film , to come to that point and see us going no place , it became very apparent that we were never going to get anyplace " " . Then studio liaison Richard Yuricich has added , " " I was present in the screening room , but you know , I honestly don ' t remember exactly what was screened . I just of tuned out and forgot about the whole thing . I can tell you that it was a screening with Robert Wise , Gene Roddenberry and Robert Abel . Wise told you that he blew his cool ? Well , he ' s not lying to you . I can ' t remember what he said , but I do know that Mr . Wise shouldn ' t take all the credit for blowing his cool , Mr . Roddenberry was also there . " " RA & A ' s dismayed founder , Abel , subsequently threatened to sue Paramount over the perceived injuries sustained by Wise . Jeffrey Katzenberg , further confirming the incident , was hardly perturbed , " " That much is true , Abel has said he ' s going to sue us because of [ Wise ' s ] statements . And I say , let him . Problems with special effects have caused various scenes to be reshot , driving up the cost considerably higher . " " Without much further ado however , the litigation was settled out of court a few months later , amicably according to Katzenberg . ( " Reader " magazine , 23 November 1979 , p . 7 ; " " , pp . 348 - 350 ) . In , over twenty years after directing " Star Trek : The Motion Picture " , Wise oversaw the production of the DVD release of . He was enticed to do so when David C . Fein and Michael Matessino , when they were working on the 1994 commemorative documentary " The Sound of Music : From Fact to Phenomenon " for Wise ' s own production company Robert Wise Productions , approached Wise with the suggestion to do a director ' s edition of " The Motion picture " . Wise was at first unwilling to do so , but " " In 1997 , he finally said , " STAR TREK really was an unfinished film . " Shortly after making some initial inquiries , he asked us to go into the studio to work out the deal to make the project happen , and also to work with him to finally complete the movie . " " , as Matesinno elaborated . ( ) Wise was one of the former production staff ers who provided the audio commentary for the release and for which they received a Video Premiere Award nomination . Career outside " Star Trek " . Born as the son of a meat packer and the youngest of three brothers , Robert Wise became a movie buff visiting the Saturday dime matinées throughout his youth . Yet , he developed a professional interest in journalism and started studies in this field after graduating from high school in 1929 , when he enrolled at Indiana ' s Franklin College to study journalism . However , the business of his father Earl suffered severely in the Depression Era , and young Robert had to cease his studies due to lack of funds . His accountant brother David ( who will later handle Robert ' s business affairs as such ) , arranged for his sibling a job at in 1933 as messenger and " gofer " ( industry contraction idiom for " go fer this and go fer that " ) . These humble beginnings notwithstanding , it allowed Wise to learn the movie business from the bottom up . Wise has never left the motion picture industry . Years later , Robert returned the favor by giving his brother ' s son , Doug Wise , his first break in the motion picture industry on " The Motion Picture " . ( " " , pp . 77 , 79 ) Wise began his career in earnest as an uncredited sound effects editor at , working on the musicals " The Gay Divorcee " ( 1934 ) and " Top Hat " ( 1935 , with Leonard Mudie and Lucille Ball ) and the dramas " Of Human Bondage " ( 1934 ) and " The Informer " ( 1935 ) . He moved on to become an editor for RKO , earning his first Academy Award nomination for his editing work on the classic 1941 RKO picture " Citizen Kane " for director / producer Orson Welles . The following year , he edited Welles ' " The Magnificent Andersons " ( with Gil Perkins ) , on which he also served as an assistant director , shooting additional scenes for the film . Other films edited by Wise include the 1939 adaptation of " The Hunchback of Notre Dame " , the 1940 romantic comedy " My Favorite Wife " , and 1941 ' s " All That Money Can Buy " ( with Jeff Corey ) . Wise ' s first film as director was the RKO was the 1944 horror film " The Curse of the Cat People " . Subsequent films he directed for RKO include " The Body Snatcher " ( 1945 ) and the classic film - noirs " Born to Kill " ( 1947 , with Lawrence Tierney and Elisha Cook , Jr . ) and " The Set - Up " ( 1949 , with Hal Baylor and Phillip Pine ) . He then moved on to direct films for Twentieth Century Fox and later various other studios . As he himself had indicated , Wise was not quite a stranger to science fiction when he came aboard " Star Trek " , having previously directed the classic 1951 film " The Day the Earth Stood Still " and 1971 ' s " The Andromeda Strain " . Both films were referenced on : scenes from the former film were seen in the episodes and , while the latter was mentioned in . " The Day the Earth Stood Still " featured Lawrence Dobkin in the cast , while Kermit Murdock , Bart La Rue , Michael Pataki , Garry Walberg and Walker Edmiston appeared in " The Andromeda Strain " . " The Day the Earth Stood Still " included matte painting s by Matthew Yuricich , who later served as matte artist on " Star Trek : The Motion Picture " , and " The Andromeda Strain " was photographed by Richard H . Kline , who was also director of photography on " Star Trek : The Motion Picture " . At one point , Robert Wise recorded a DVD audio commentary for " The Day the Earth Stood Still " with Nicholas Meyer . Wise won two Academy Awards for his work as director and producer on two classic musicals , one for " West Side Story " ( 1961 , shared with Jerome Robbins ) and another for " The Sound of Music " ( 1965 ) . The first starred DS9 guest actor Richard Beymer . The latter film co - starred actor Christopher Plummer ( ) and DS9 guest star Darleen Carr , who dubbed some of the children in their singing numbers . Wise was nominated for two additional Academy Awards for directing " I Want to Live ! " ( 1958 ) , which featured Theodore Bikel and a screenplay by Don M . Mankiewicz , and for producing " The Sand Pebbles " ( 1966 ) , which he also directed . This film featured Jon Lormer and Gil Perkins in the cast , and ( just as " Star Trek : The Motion Picture " ) a musical score by Jerry Goldsmith . He went on to direct DS9 actor Rene Auberjonois in the 1975 disaster film , " The Hindenburg " . The film also featured Alan Oppenheimer and Vic Perrin . He also directed the films " This Could Be the Night " and " Until They Sail " , both released in 1957 and both starring TNG guest star Jean Simmons . The latter also featured Charles Drake , Tige Andrews and Don Eitner . His many other films include " Executive Suite " ( 1954 , with Hamilton Camp ) , " Helen of Troy " ( 1956 , with Torin Thatcher , Robert Brown and Marc Lawrence ) , the acclaimed " Someone Up There Likes Me " ( 1956 , with Stanley Adams and William Boyett ) , the Clark Gable film " Run Silent Run Deep " ( 1958 , with Ken Lynch ) , " Odds Against Tomorrow " ( 1959 , with Bill Zuckert ) , the 1963 horror classic " The Haunting " , " Star ! " ( 1968 , with Ian Abercrombie and Alan Oppenheimer ) , and " Audrey Rose " ( 1977 , with Norman Lloyd ) . His last project was the TV movie " A Storm in Summer " ( 2000 ) , which also marked his first and only direction in television . In his later years , late 1980s , early 1990s , Wise founded his own production company , " Robert Wise Productions " , with the specific intent to keep creative control over the release of home media formats , specifically DVD ' s , of his body of work . This has resulted in several " special edition " DVD releases of among others " The Sound of Music " ( credited under the name A Robert Wise Production of Rodgers and Hammerstein ' s ) , " The Sand Pebbles " , " Star ! " , and others . It was this company that was primarily responsible for the production and release of the director ' s edition of " The Motion picture " . Robert Wise has been married twice ; On 25 May 1942 , he married Patricia Doyle and the couple had one child , son Robert Allen , who was the one serving with his father on " The Motion Picture " . Patricia passed away on 22 September 1975 from the effects of cancer . Two years later , on 29 January 1977 , Wise married the above - mentioned Millicent Franklin , becoming step - father of a married daughter , with whom Wise remained married until his death . Wise died of heart failure four years after completion of " The Director ' s Edition " , just four days after his 91st birthday and was survived by his wife and son . " Star Trek " award nominations . For his work on the " Star Trek " franchise , Robert Wise received the following award nominations : Saturn Award . Wise was nominated as Director for the following Saturn Award in the category Best Director Hugo Award . Wise was nominated as Director for the following Saturn Award in the category Best Dramatic Presentation DVD Exclusive Award . Wise was nominated for the following DVD Exclusive Award ( at the time called Video Premiere Award ) in the category Best Audio Commentary ,