At Star Wars Celebration, we saw a preview of the ILM documentary series Light & Magic, and it promises to be a must-watch for Star Wars fans.
The upcoming documentary series Light & Magic promises to be a must-watch for die-hard Star Wars fans. When making the original Star Wars film back in the mid-1970s, George Lucas created visual effects house Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) to bring his vision for a galaxy far, far away to life. The ragtag crew were attempting to create things that had never been attempted before, and they ended up completely revolutionizing the industry. For more than 40 years, ILM has been at the forefront of pushing technological boundaries and making the impossible possible.
ILM's incredible work is what inspired longtime Lucasfilm collaborator Lawrence Kasdan to explore the company's history in a new documentary series. Light & Magic explores ILM's origins and how they've continued to evolve over time. The series was the focus of a Star Wars Celebration panel this week (with Kasdan, Ron Howard, VFX titans Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Joe Johnston and Rose Duignan, and Lucasfilm executive vice president and general manager Lynwen Brennan), where attendees were shown clips of what Kasdan has in store. Based on the early looks, Light & Magic is going to be well worth checking out.
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The target audience for the documentary is viewers who love taking a peek behind the curtain to see how their favorite films were made. In one of the clips, director J.J. Abrams made an interesting point. He said ILM is the rare time learning how a magic trick was done is just as good as seeing the end result. Whether it's the stop-motion animation and miniatures used in the original Star Wars trilogy or the innovative Volume conceived for The Mandalorian, it's always fascinating to discover the techniques ILM uses to transport viewers to new worlds. Panelists such as Tippett discussed how learning the secrets of their favorite movies growing up influenced them to get into visual effects, and Kasdan is hoping Light & Magic inspires the next generation.
Light & Magic looks to be equal parts informative and entertaining. As much fun as it is to learn about what it took to make Star Wars a reality, the documentary is full of old stories about the company's DIY attitude (Lucas humorously confessed in a clip ILM needed an "adult in the room" to get things organized, which led to Duignan's hiring) and the process of working with Lucas himself (he was rather infamous for giving minimal direction to his collaborators). Especially for those who have only just gotten into Star Wars recently via Disney's new movies and shows, it will be fascinating to take a look back at the franchise's origins and see how it all came together decades ago. And with the series running six parts, it's sure to provide a comprehensive look at what makes ILM so special. Hopefully, Kasdan is successful in his mission to pave the way for the next generation of VFX pioneers. He mentioned his grandchildren are expressing interest in tricks of the trade, so he's already on his way.
Lucas is often referred to as "The Creator" because Star Wars was his brainchild, but most people are aware making a movie takes a collective effort. Thousands of people work together, and it's not an exaggeration to say there wouldn't be Star Wars without the wizards at ILM. If the visual effects failed, then the movie most likely would not have captured the imagination of audiences, and it probably would have bombed as Lucas feared it would. Thankfully, ILM stopped at nothing to push the envelope and ended up changing Hollywood as a whole. Light & Magic is a well-deserved celebration of all they've accomplished.
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Light & Magic premieres July 27 on Disney+.
Chris Agar is a news editor for Screen Rant, also writing features and movie reviews for the site as one of Screen Rant's Rotten Tomatoes approved critics. He is a graduate of Wesley College's Bachelor of Media Arts and Master of Sport Leadership programs. In 2013, Chris was hired to write weekly box office prediction posts in conjunction with the Screen Rant Underground podcast's Box Office Battle game and his role expanded over the next few years. In addition to covering the latest news and hottest movie topics daily, Chris has attended numerous media events for Screen Rant, including San Diego Comic-Con, delivering content his readers care about. He credits Star Wars and Toy Story with launching a lifelong fascination with movies that led to his career, and now he has a wide range of cinematic tastes, enjoying the latest Hollywood blockbusters, Oscar contenders, and everything in between. Chris' favorite film genres include sci-fi/fantasy, crime, action, and drama.