The People vs. George Lucas
The People vs. George Lucas is a 2010 documentary comedy film directed by Swiss director Alexandre O. Philippe, it explores the issues of filmmaking and fanaticism pertaining to the Star Wars franchise and its creator, George Lucas. The film combines filmmaker and celebrity interviews with fan films taken from the 2010 online video Star Wars Uncut, which were submitted via the film's site. Interviewees include a variety of figures such as MC Frontalot and Gary Kurtz. Lucas appears in archival footage, but is never interviewed directly; the film discusses the extent to which the Star Wars franchise is an artistic creation of Lucas and subject to his vision versus a social phenomenon that belongs to the general public of fans and their participatory/remix culture. The film is dedicated to interviewee Jason Nicholl, a blogger at nukethefridge.com who died before the film's release. The film was released on DVD on October 25, 2011. In June 2014 it was reported. Director Alexandre Philippe, a lifetime Star Wars fan from his early childhood, has said that the film was not meant to be one-sided against Lucas, although the title has created that interpretation.
He instead aimed at showing both sides evenhandedly to explore to what extent the Star Wars franchise is controlled by Lucas versus something morally held by the public. Philippe feels that Lucas is a talented director and an "ideas man" based on the original Star Wars trilogy, THX 1138 and American Graffiti. However, Philippe disliked the changes made by Lucas in re-releases of the original trilogy as well as the prequel trilogy. Philippe thought that fans deserved a complete re-mastering and re-release of the original series in current formats without any changes. Philippe stated that, to his knowledge, Lucas has never seen the documentary. However, Philippe has said; the film begins with a brief history of Lucas' career leading up to the release of Star Wars in 1977. The rest of the film is structured by inter-cutting interviews with many different fans, film critics, former colleagues of Lucas, well-known writers in the science fiction/fantasy genre and others; the narrative of the film shows the complex relationship between Lucas and his fans, as well as how and why the elements of the Star Wars franchise have appealed to so many people so deeply.
On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes the film has a rating of 72%, based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. On Metacritic, the film has a score of 55 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews"; the New York Post ran a positive review by Kyle Smith in which the film received three out of four stars. AMC critic Josh Bell wrote, "People is a skillfully edited, wide-ranging look at a subject that's close to many movie fans' hearts, part of an ongoing debate that will only gain more attention as Lucas continues to tinker with his creations."Independent critic Christian Toto praised the film and wrote that "the Force is strong with this one". Salt Lake City Weekly ran a negative review by Bryan Young, who commented that the "film comes off as a one-sided attack" and that it's "not hard to talk to people who love Star Wars... the filmmakers should have tried harder to provide that balance."Slant Magazine writer Elise Nakhnikian lauded the film as "one of this year's best" documentaries, calling it "Smart and impassioned."On September 16, 2011, coinciding with the release of Star Wars on Blu-ray, Philippe appeared on a two-part episode of "Half in the Bag", an online movie review comedy show produced by RedLetterMedia.
In the episode, Philippe is interviewed by Mike Stoklasa and Jay Bauman about the film and discusses his personal thoughts on Lucas and the franchise. On February 2, 2017, Mark Hamill stated during an interview that he felt that the documentary is biased against Lucas and the prequels and could not believe the backlash that they received. In June 2014 it was reported that a sequel, The People vs. George Lucas – Episode II, was in development; the film plans to examine what fans think of the Star Wars franchise since George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to The Walt Disney Company, will pose the question "What does the future of Star Wars look like without George Lucas?" Cultural impact of Star Wars RedLetterMedia reviews Trekkies Participatory culture Remix culture Official website The People vs. George Lucas on IMDb The People vs. George Lucas at Rotten Tomatoes The People vs. George Lucas at Metacritic
Dark Resurrection
Dark Resurrection is a 2007 Italian Star Wars fanfilm written and directed by Angelo Licata and produced by Davide Bigazzi and Licata. It was followed by a second episode, titled Dark Resurrection vol. 0 in 2011, a Dark Resurrection vol. 2 is in the make. The story begins a few centuries after Return of the Jedi. Jedi Master Organa has foreseen the destruction of the Jedi, send young Hope and her master, Zui Mar-Lee, to attempt to reach Eron first, before the dark Lord Sorran. In the prequel vol. 0, Lord Sorran, a dark Jedi, searches for Eron, a mythical source of great power and finds the spaceship Resurrection, belonging to the Second Guardian of Eron. His crew gets killed on the ship. Marcella Braga as Hope Riccardo Leto as Leto Giuseppe Licata as Lord Sorran Sergio Múñiz as Muniza Grazia Ogulin as Nemer Fabrizio Rizzolo as Zorol Sara Ronco as His Elisa Werneck as Organa Giorgia Wurth as Meres Maurizio Zuppa as Zui Mar Lee Movie scenes were shot in Italian Riviera in Liguria and further enhanced by special effects.
The film was acclaimed by critics. In a short time it had an unexpected success, with over 15,000 downloads per day, was broadcast on television; the first episode was released on 2007, June 7. Its production cost about €7,000. A second episode, called Dark Resurrection Vol. 0, was released on September 8, 2011 and is available on YouTube. A third episode will be called Dark Resurrection Vol. 2. On the heels of Dark Resurrection Vol. 0 and Vol. 1, Dark Resurrection Vol. 2 is being launched on Fansflock.com, a new USA fanfunding platform. They are seeking help to fanfund the new epic finale. Angelo Licata, has lined up some unique rewards for the film’s contributors, from the lightsaber props used in the movie to meeting the cast to producer credits. Official website Dark Resurrection on IMDb fansflock.com
Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager
Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager is an American comedy fan web series created by Aaron Yonda and Matt Sloan, who wrote and appeared in the series, which parodies Star Wars. The show's central character is Chad Vader, the day-shift manager at the fictional supermarket Empire Market, who clashes with his customers and employees. Produced for Channel 101, the project was canceled after only two episodes were released; however and Sloan decided to continue the story and the project achieved significant popularity following its airing on YouTube. It is filmed in Madison, Wisconsin at Willy Street Cooperative; the show has received several awards, including an Official Star Wars Fan Film Award. Following the end of Season 4, Aaron Yonda has confirmed no further seasons are planned, due to the expense of the production and his and Matt Sloan's frustration about not being able to pay their actors for their time. Characters from the series continue to make appearances in Blame Society Film productions Chad and Hal Thompson.
The "Empire Market" scenes were filmed on location at Willy Street Co-op, Wisconsin. The first season follows his interactions with his co-workers, he admires his boss Randy, acquires Jeremy as an apprentice, hazes Lloyd, dates Clarissa. After troubles with Clint, Chad is moved to the night shift, where he meets Weird Jimmy, before quitting his job at Empire Market. After unsuccessfully working at a number of jobs, he returns to Empire Market to re-ally with his coworkers and battle Clint to reclaim the day shift manager position. In the second season, Empire Market is bought out by a large corporation. Maggie McCall arrives as the corporate liaison for the new owners. After failure on the new laser checkout system, Randy is demoted to night shift manager, where he becomes mentally unstable, Maggie becomes the acting general manager; the series introduces another love interest for Chad, Maggie's assistant Libby, a minor antagonist, Sean Banditson. The season focuses on Maggie's attempts to ally with Jeremy.
Afterward and Chad duel, leading to the accidental death of Weird Jimmy. After the battle and Jeremy reconcile; the third season begins with the trial promotion of employees to general manager for a day. After the employees' failures, Maggie trials Clint as manager-for-a-day, where he attempts to turn the store into a "bozo circus" as Chad describes it. New employee Damien Nightshayde joins Chad and Jeremy, whilst Weird Jimmy's ghost tells Jeremy a prophecy. During the day of Chad's management, Randy attempts to blow up the store, though only Damien is killed; as a result, previous store owner Champion J. Pepper buys Empire Market back, promoting Chad the general manager, demoting Maggie to night shift manager. Champion congratulates Chad for his bravery. Jeremy, still depressed over Damien's death, chooses to take a leave of absence to go on a spiritual journey of discovery. Chad wishes Jeremy good luck in his quest; the fourth season opens up with Chad as the general manager of Empire Market. Weird Jimmy's brother Johnny enters the store to pick up his brother's belongings.
When he reminisces about Jimmy, the latter possesses him, becomes the janitor for the store again. Chad manipulates Jeremy to return with the hope of making the store "fully operational". Distressed over the lack of faith his employees have in him, Chad becomes convinced that he must locate his "dark soul half" to become the manager that they deserve, he forces a tyrannical martial law on the store. Soon, a generator malfunction threatens its existence. Chad sacrifices himself to save Empire Market; the generator shorts out his life support suit, sending him into a near-death experience, until the suit is unexpectedly rebooted by Hal Thompson. Chad apologizes to everyone, gives them promotions before demoting himself back to day shift manager, Jeremy assumes the general manager position in his stead. Chad Vader is the show's central character, he is the day shift manager of Empire Market. Sometimes using lines lifted from the Star Wars films, Chad's main goal is to crush Empire Market's competition and help make the store dominate the food retailing industry.
However, as Season 2 progresses along, Chad follows Randy's orders to "ditch" the Star Wars attitude and become more normal. The new leader announces, his main goal morphs into a great ambition to become General Manager. While he has inappropriate and rocky relationships with most of his co-workers, most notably Clint Shermer, he has better ones with others, such as Jeremy, whom he adopts as his apprentice. Chad implies in the second episode that he is Darth Vader's younger, less successful brother, that Darth gave Chad a life support suit and helmet similar to his own after Chad accidentally rode his bicycle into a volcano; this fact is mentioned explicitly on the Blame Society website. Though he uses a red Sith lightsaber as a weapon to threaten opponents and shoplifters, he may not be a Sith, he is, referred to as "Lord Vader" by some characters. Chad had lost touch with his family. LucasArts was impressed by Sloan, this led to him becoming the new voice actor for Darth Vader, his voice appears in the games Empire at War: Forces of Corruption, Soulcalibur IV, Star Wars
The Force
The Force is a metaphysical and ubiquitous power in the Star Wars fictional universe. It is wielded by characters throughout the franchise: heroes like the Jedi use the "light side" of the Force, while the Sith and other villains exploit the "dark side"; the Force has been compared to aspects of several world religions, the phrase "May the Force be with you" has become part of the popular culture vernacular. George Lucas created the concept of the Force to address character and plot developments in Star Wars, he wanted to "awaken a certain kind of spirituality" in young audiences, suggesting a belief in God without endorsing any specific religion. He developed the Force as a nondenominational religious concept, "distill the essence of all religions", premised on the existence of God and distinct ideas of good and evil. Lucas said that there is a conscious choice between good and bad, "the world works better if you're on the good side". In 1970s San Francisco, where Lucas lived when he wrote the drafts that became Star Wars, New Age ideas that incorporated the concept of qi and other notions of a mystical life-force were "in the air" and embraced.
Lucas used the term the Force to "echo" its use by cinematographer Roman Kroitor in 21-87, in which Kroitor says, "Many people feel that in the contemplation of nature and in communication with other living things, they become aware of some kind of force, or something, behind this apparent mask which we see in front of us, they call it God". Although Lucas had Kroitor's line in mind Lucas said the underlying sentiment is universal and that "similar phrases have been used extensively by many different people for the last 13,000 years"; the first draft of Star Wars makes two references to "the Force of Others" and does not explain the concept: King Kayos utters the blessing "May the Force of Others be with you all", he says "I feel the Force also". The power of the Force of Others is kept secret by the Jedi Bendu of the Ashla, an "aristocratic cult" in the second draft; the second draft offers a lengthy explanation of the Force of Others and introduces its Ashla light side and Bogan dark side.
The Ashla and Bogan are mentioned 10 and 31 times and the Force of Others plays a more prominent role in the story. In this draft, Luke Starkiller's mission is to retrieve the Kiber Crystal, which can intensify either the Ashla or Bogan powers; the film's shorter third draft has no references to the Ashla, but it mentions the Bogan eight times and Luke is still driven to recover the Kiber Crystal. Lucas finished the fourth and near-final draft on January 1, 1976; this version trims "the Force of Others" to "the Force", makes a single reference to the Force's seductive "dark side", distills an explanation of the Force to 28 words, eliminates the Kiber Crystal. Producer Gary Kurtz, who studied comparative religion in college, had long discussions with Lucas about religion and philosophy throughout the writing process. Kurtz told Lucas he was unhappy with drafts in which the Force was connected with the Kiber Crystal, he was dissatisfied with the early Ashla and Bogan concepts. Lucas and screenwriter Leigh Brackett decided that the Force and the Emperor would be the main concerns in The Empire Strikes Back.
The focus on the Emperor was shifted to the third film, Return of the Jedi, the dark side of the Force was treated as The Empire Strikes Back's main villain. The Phantom Menace introduces "midi-chlorians", microscopic creatures that connect characters to the Force, although Lucas had conceived the idea as early as August 1977. Lucas based the concept on symbiogenesis, calling midi-chlorians a "loose depiction" of mitochondria, he further said: had something... to do with the beginnings of life and how one cell decided to become two cells with a little help from this other little creature who came in, without whom life couldn't exist. And it's a way of saying we have hundreds of little creatures who live on us, without them, we all would die. There wouldn't be any life, they are necessary for us. Using them in the metaphor, saying society is the same way, says we all must get along with each other. In Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine tells Anakin about Darth Plagueis the Wise, "a Dark Lord of the Sith so powerful and so wise, he could use the Force to influence the midi-chlorians to create life."
In the rough draft of Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine says to Anakin, "I arranged for your conception. I used the power of the Force to will the midichlorians to start the cell divisions that created you." This subplot was further explored in the final issue of the comic book series Darth Vader by Charles Soule. Lucas' story treatments for a potential sequel trilogy involved "a microbiotic world" and creatures known as the Whills, beings that "control the universe" and "feed off the Force." He elaborated that individuals function as "vehicles for the Whills to travel around in", that midi-chlorians "communicate with the Whills in a general sense... are the Force." After selling Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012, Lucas said his biggest concern about the franchise's future was the Force being "muddled into a bunch of gobbledegook". When writing The Force Awakens with Lawrence Kasdan, J. J. Abrams respected that Lucas had established midi-chlorians' effect on some characters' ability to use the Force.
However, as a child, he interpreted Obi-Wan Kenobi's explanation of the Force in Star Wars to mean that any character could use its power, that the Force was more grounded in spirituality than science. Abrams retained the idea of the Force having a light and a dark side, some characters' seduction by the dark side helps create conflict for the story. Pablo Hidalgo
George Lucas in Love
George Lucas in Love is a 1999 American parodical short film directed by Joe Nussbaum. A parody of Shakespeare in Love, it depicts a young George Lucas and his real-life inspirations behind the characters and plot of Star Wars. Upon its release, the film was passed around Hollywood offices and served as Nussbaum’s break into the film industry. Lucas himself reacted to the film positively. In the film, George Lucas is a 1967 USC college student, suffering from writer's block as he attempts to write a movie about a young space farmer with a bad crop of "space wheat". Taking a break from his work, George goes on to encounter classmates and teachers who resemble and will influence the eventual creation of, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Darth Vader, Han Solo, Jabba the Hutt, R2-D2, C-3PO. Lucas is surrounded by inspiration, his wise advisor, who suspiciously looks and speaks like Yoda, is unable to help him. Young Lucas meets his muse, a young woman named Marion, "kind of leading a student rebellion". After they meet, everything falls into place for Lucas, as she urges him to "write what you know".
His writer's block dissipates and he finishes his masterpiece. However, his shot at romance with the girl is blown. In a post-credits scene, Lucas gets a new idea when his neighbor introduces Lucas to his new pet, a duck named Howard; the film received great attention as it circulated around Hollywood in the summer of 1999 and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 19 that year. It debuted online at MediaTrip.com on October 12, 1999. The film won several awards, including the Canal+ Short Film Award at the 2000 Deauville American Film Festival, the Audience Award at both the Florida Film Festival and the San Sebastián Horror and Fantasy Film Festival and Best Short Film at the 2000 U. S. Comedy Arts Festival; when the film was released on VHS in 2000, The New York Times reported that the film made it to #1 on Amazon.com's Top 10 sales chart, beating out sales of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace for at least a day. A DVD with audio commentary by the director and producer, a behind-the-scenes featurette and several other MediaTrip short films, including Evil Hill, Film Club and Swing Blade, was released in 2001.
Nussbaum would direct films such as: Sleepover, American Pie Presents: The Naked Mile and Sydney White starring Amanda Bynes. In 2004, the film won the Pioneer Award in the Lucasfilm-sponsored 2004 Official Star Wars Fan Film Awards. George Lucas is a fan of this movie, having sent a congratulatory letter to the filmmakers, which they show in a hidden easter egg on the DVD. George Lucas in Love on IMDb George Lucas in Love review at Film Threat
The Dark Redemption
The Dark Redemption is a 1999 Australian Star Wars fanfilm featuring Mara Jade, a character featured in Star Wars books and comics. Peter Sumner returns to the role of Imperial Officer Lt. Pol Treidum. An attempt was made to submit the film to an official fan film contest in 2003, sanctioned by George Lucas, however the short was not considered to be eligible as it was set prior to the events of Episode IV: A New Hope, which violated the contest's rules by adding new content to the series, which Lucas considered to be a copyright violation; the film was removed from the Internet at Lucas' request. Set just before the events of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, the film tells of how Mara Jade worked with other Rebels to capture the plans for the first Death Star. While on the mission, Mara hears the Emperor's call to turn to the dark side of the Force. Other crucial moments in Star Wars history are explained in this film, such as how Han Solo got in trouble with Jabba the Hutt. Damian Rice... Zev Senesca Jason Chong...
Klaus Vanderon Michelle Ellard... Hah'Shyyk Baba Martin Grelis... Boba Fett Leah McLeod... Mara Jade Peter Sumner... Lieutenant Pol Treidum David Wheeler... Garrock Drew Sneddon... Darth Sidious William Bowden... Voice of Darth Sidious and Cantina Alien Nathan Harvey... Kyle Katarn Uncredited voice actor... Han Solo Ben Craig... Darth Vader Alan Cinis... General Towa and Voice of Darth Vader John Griffiths... Admiral Melaan Robert McDougal... Captain McDougal and Imperial Officer Andrew Gibson... Rebel Officer Maynard... Lieutenant Arras Jake Downs... Lieutenant Drovas David Lucas... Lieutenant Raltar Will Usic... Lieutenant Valle David Edwards... Lieutenant Tighe Yul Kannan... Zelig, Kessel Slave Miner, voice of Cantina Alien Tabitha... Bitha Tah' Jabba... Ramsa Lenam Daniel Budd... Royal Guard and Imperial Officer Warren Duxbury and Dwight Boniecki worked on a script for The Dark Redemption for eight months before approaching Mether to help them make the film, it was considered an ambitious fanfilm with 72 scenes and 20 CGI sequences.
A team of 20 3D artists worked on the short. At the time of filming, Mether was a director-producer at Foxtel, many Foxtel presenters acted in the film; the film was screened twice at the Noosa Film Festival. The Dark Redemption on IMDb The Dark Redemption at TheForce.net
How the Sith Stole Christmas
How the Sith Stole Christmas is an animated fan film from that made its debut on the internet in December 2002. Written and directed by Ted Bracewell, the film tells the story of the Emperor's plans to invade the North Pole and take Santa Claus prisoner. Melvin the Elf ends up in the thick of things, must help rescue Santa. Darth Vader is sent on a separate mission to destroy Christmas for the Ewok inhabitants of Endor, but when an unexpected chain of events leaves him stranded on the planet, Vader is confronted by a vision from the past and sent on an incredible journey through time and space; the film parodies Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by mixing it with elements of the Star Wars films, as well as parodying elements of The Hobbit, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Citizen Kane. The film has a distinct and lush look, as Bracewell animated the film himself using a combination of painted backgrounds, painted cutout characters, 3D animation; the released film is subtitled "Jingle Far, Far Away", is the first part of a trilogy.
A trailer has been released for Parts Two and Three, but the finished episodes have yet to be released. Now that it has been twelve years since it premiered it is unlikely that the next two episodes will be released. Part One has proven to be a popular download at TheForce. Net, has screened at the DragonCon film festival and the 2004 Microcinema Fest; the film was highlighted as a "post-modern" fanfilm in an article on the genre in The Weekly Standard. The film was featured prominently in the September 2004 issue of Movie Magic Magazine, which called the film a "standout" in the genre. Filmmaker's website How the Sith Stole Christmas at TheForce.net How the Sith Stole Christmas at iFilm How the Sith Stole Christmas review at The Fan Film Menace Ted Bracewell interview at The Fan Film Menace
