A little off-topic, but here's the latest Star Watch news:
With Star Wars now part of the Disney fold, most of the known universe was waiting for some Episode VII news to emerge from the Mouse House’s biennial D23 Expo in California. But even as the studio spilled beans on the rest of its upcoming slate, they remained strangely tight-lipped about their lucrative new toy – Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn even told fans, “I wish I could tell you more, but it will come soon.”
Thankfully it’s not been a totally fallow month on the Star Wars gossip front. In arguably the most talked about cinematography news ever, JJ Abrams’ regular director of photography Dan Mindel has confirmed that Episode VII will be lensed on 35mm film. Why’s that a big deal? Well, Attack Of The Clones and Revenge Of The Sith blazed a trail for shooting on digital, so the return to film looks like a declaration of an intent to make the movies feel more “real” – especially coming after Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy had said that they’ll be using proper locations and practical effects where possible. It also suggests that the film’s inevitable 3D will be a conversion from “flat” images – the approach Abrams took on Star Trek Into Darkness.
Less concrete – but no less intriguing – is the rumour running on various websites that Episode VII’s release will be pushed back from summer 2015 to December. It would be a break from Star Wars’ traditional May release slot, but would seem a logical decision. Never has a summer looked more crowded than 2015’s, with new Avengers, Superman/Batman, Pirates Of the Caribbean, Independence Day and Terminator movies all due. And with The Hobbit trilogy done and dusted by then, the end of the year’s looking pretty quiet. Besides, it’ll give JJ more time to make sure the Force really is with this one.