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"Droidmaker" author NYC tour - Oct 24-26

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A new book about the evolution of digital film & Lucasfilm is going on tour to promote the book:
"droidMAKER "george lucas and the digital revolution"

"This book ventures in territory never explored, as Rubin-a former member of the Lucasfilm Computer Division-reconstructs the events in Hollywood, in Silicon Valley, and at Lucas' private realm in Marin County, California, to track the genesis of modern media. With unprecedented access to images and key participants from Lucasfilm, Pixar and Zoetrope-from George Lucas and the executives who ran his company, to the small team of scientists who made the technological leaps, Rubin weaves a tale of friendships, a love of movies, and the incessant forward movement of technology. This is a compelling story that takes the reader into an era of technological innovation almost completely unknown."

If your a member of a film company there's a special thing on the 24th, but for the rest of us Oct 25th there's an instore appearance at the Apple Soho store: Store Info
--Apple. 103 Prince Street. SOHO 212-226-3126.
--Meet the Author: 6:30pm

The author travels to Providence, Boston and LA. In LA he'll be recording an episode of Attack of the Show (Nov.1), so those with the G4 channel can check it out.
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I happen to think the best book on Lucas is skywalking, though it is a bit outdated. For the main reason it is a unauthorized biography, so it is more truthfull than any book under lucas control, like for instance the cinema of george lucas. I will buy and read droidmaker though I don't know if it will be new or just recycled information, like the cinema of george lucas was. The author of that book actually lifted stuff from other books and magazines about lucas, and lines form lucas in televised interviews none of which was new, except some rare photos. But 50.00 was way too much money for a couple so called exclusive "pics", Some of which were already posted on hyperspace.

“Always loved Vader’s wordless self sacrifice. Another shitty, clueless, revision like Greedo and young Anakin’s ghost. What a fucking shame.” -Simon Pegg.

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This book isn't to be compared with Skywalking from my understanding. Droidmaker's about the creation of digital cinema as George has done. There might be one chapter summarising books like Skywalking or Empire Building for some perspective, but i was expecting this book to focus more on the technological achievements. Maybe a whole chapter on the development of the Dykstra camera, the EditDroid, eventually to Knoll and Coleman's digital triumphs. I was hopeing for a more tech book, something more in line with Cinefex. Not sure, but it looks like many of the pictures from Droidmaker are available in this video:
http://1010tv.com/droidmaker/index.html

At this point to release another biography on Lucas would be a mistake, it's too close to RotS for some perspective. But hopefully someone's typing as we speak, the departure of Burtt should be a fun read. and i still want a good explanation of the Banned from the Ranch folks.
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Figured I’d give you all a report on the presentation and the book.

The author, Michael Rubin, was part of Lucasfilm from the 70’s to mid 80’s when the significant work happened which lead to the computer/film revolution. He was a member of the team which would teach to prospective filmmakers the ways in which digital editing and sound processing could help their creative process. The book seems to be an indepth look into the minds and times when these creative steps took place. Like the Jobs/Wozniac early days of Apple, this book focuses on the people who moved filmmaking from celluloid to the digital process we’re all familiar with. Since the author has written other how-to books and the presentation has that old computer manual look to it. I think the book covers from the early Lucas/Coppola days to the creation of Pixar in LFL. There’s some interesting photos, where you see the guys with their computers and in the background on one wall are the storyboards for the OT and on the other wall are math formulas and computer code on how to actually get the computer to create renderings and understand THX audio processing. The presentation illustrated how it was the similar aspirations of Lucas/Coppola, to create a filmmaking process which was streamlined and could eliminate the need for big studio. Coppola pioneered HighDef video (which George would later push/use) as Lucas’s LFL team pioneered the digital editing components which shortly after their creation, everyone used. And as everyone used them, their ubiquity became so commonplace they’re now on your desktop.

Some other bits of interest.

To get help from Lucasfilm with your book or project make sure to not reference Skywalking or Empire of Dreams.

On the OT, he agrees that they are Lucas’ to do with as he wishes, but he’s not in favor of some of the changes.

He didn’t have any opinions on fan preservation projects, it didn’t sound like he knew they existed.

Mr. Rubin is of the opinion that Lucas might actually return to his old days and make works of a more experimental nature, maybe even going as far as releasing them under different monikers.

On Ben Burtt's move to Pixar, Burtt seems to have been stuck with the notion of always being an underling. On SW he was initially a gather of sounds, even though he proceeded to make those sounds magic, in the eyes of maybe Lucas and the whole corporate culture, he wasn't able to grow beyond those initial impressions. Now at Pixar, Burtt will be back with some of the people he started working with, the ones who developed the tech. This book explains who some of them are.

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