Star Wars Episode IX: The Eyepainter Fanedit is now online

Here are the technical specs for the 1080p and 720p versions:

Lossless 1080p
Codec: H.264 - MPEG-4 AVC (Part 10)
Resolution: 1920x804
Frame Rate: 23.976fps
Audio: AAC 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo
File Size: 11.5gb
Running Time: 1:42:41

Lossy 720p
Codec: H.264 - MPEG-4 AVC (Part 10)
Resolution: 1280x720
Frame Rate: 23.976fps
Audio: AAC 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo
File Size: 4.37gb
Running Time: 1:42:41

I would also like to give a big thank you to CaptainFaraday, GMatias, Artan42, EddieDean, NeverarGreat, and jadenkorr41 for their advice and support. This edit wouldn’t have been what it is without their support! May the force be with you all! 👍😌

Taking one last look, sir. At my friends…

I’ve been reluctant to work on The Rise of Skywalker, and it’s mainly because I was the only person in the galaxy who unambiguously liked the film.

Yeah, I’m going to hell.

This is the main reason I’ve been hesitant to edit the sequel trilogy as a whole. I just didn’t see eye-to-eye with everyone else like I did with the prequels. So, because I’m not cool, I decided to rip my blu-ray of TROS and see what my ideal version would look like, but only for the fun of it. Besides, I needed something to do when I wasn’t worrying about moving so much (and while my computer remains unpacked). Plus, I figured it wouldn’t be that different from what others saw in the cineplex (That is, before it got shut down due to a certain disease). I probably wouldn’t cut out that much, right?

Well, as of this posting, I’ve reduced the film from 142 minutes to 104 (and that isn’t even the final runtime). I’m not sure if it’s different enough for some people, but it’s different enough that I figured: Sure, why not?

For Episode IX, my approach is simple: put all of the focus on the main plot and remove anything that isn’t essential to it. So, my edit is going to be focused mainly on Rey, Kylo Ren, and Palpatine. I suspect people will hate me for it, but it’s better to have a simple bad movie over a complex bad movie.

One thing that’s caught me by surprise looking back at the film is how many subplots there were. So, I’ve cut a lot of those subplots out of the movie at present. Chewie’s fake death and the ensuing rescue mission? Gone. General Hux secretly being a rebel spy? Gone. Finn’s romance with Jannah? Mostly gone, more implied.

The general changes (Updated 1-2-22)

Below is an overview of the changes I’ve made so far. The final list is not complete, so I’m calling this the general changes like I have with TLJ. I will admit, though, that the list ended up being longer than expected, as a lot of tiny things have been removed. Calling it “General changes” is somewhat deceptive, but I can’t think of a better terminology right now, so it stays. I’m currently sitting at around 104 minutes as of this update, but because I have to watch very carefully for any inconsistencies with the other two, this is all subject to change. Like TFA, there will be no “+” changes. Since I can’t find a release of TROS that has any extra scenes (Then again, I don’t think there is any release that contains deleted scenes. A rarity for a Star Wars movie, and not a good one, IMHO), there are no additions. As for the rest, “/” means changed or altered, while “-” means deleted. I have also removed some lines of dialogue via sound editing. These changes begin with “Audio:” Click on the spoiler tab to see the list so far:

/ Opening crawl
– Kylo Ren’s visit to Mustafar (Ren finding the wayfinder is mentioned in my rewritten opening crawl instead, making this scene pointless)
– Epilepsy-inducing close-up shot of Palpatine
– “Everything.”
– “Kill the girl.”
– Falcon lightspeed-skipping scene, as it isn’t needed
– “They’re not with me. Ugh.”
– Part of Rey’s training course to make her less invincible
– “General, the falcon still hasn’t arrived. Commander’s asking for guidance.”
– Rey handing Luke’s lightsaber back to Leia
– First half of Rey’s conversation with Poe and Finn over the falcon
– “We’ve decoded the intel from the First Order spy, and it confirms the worst. Somehow, Palpatine returned.”
– Leia giving Luke’s lightsaber back to Rey
– Stormtrooper’s talk about the Knights of Ren
– Kylo Ren’s meeting with the First Order about the spy
– Shot of laughing Passana child (Too Disney-fied for me)
– “Palpatine wants you dead.”, “Serving another master?”, “No. I have other plans.”
– “…Why didn’t you?”, “You could’ve killed me. Why didn’t you?”, “You can’t hide, Rey. Not from me.”, “I see through the cracks in your mask. You’re haunted. You can’t stop seeing what you did to your father.”
– “I don’t want to have to kill you. I’m going to find you and I’m gonna turn you to the dark side…”
– Finn’s “They fly now?” (Updated 1-2-22)
– Poe’s “They fly now.”
– Leia and Rose’s conversation with the X-Wing pilot about being more optimistic
– Rey and Finn’s conversation about what Finn was gonna tell Rey
– “Bones! I don’t like bones!”, “Bones? Never a good sign.”
– “I’ma blast it.”, “Don’t blast it.”
– Knights of Ren entering Pasaana
– All of Rey and Kylo Ren’s confrontation on Pasaana
– Chewie’s capture and “supposed” death scene
– The First Order’s capture of the Millennium Falcon
– Pryde and Hux’s discussion on Chewie, including the reveal that he’s alive
– All mentions of Chewie’s death during Rey, Finn, Poe, and C-3P0’s conversation on Ochi’s ship
– And yes, all “For Chewie” lines
– Pride and Hux informing Kylo that the scavenger is on Kajimi
– Rey sensing Chewie on the ship
– Zorii giving Poe the imperial medallion (due to the removal of the next scene)
– The entire episode on Kylo Ren’s ship, including the following four subplots:
---- Rey finding out she’s a Palpatine (Luke reveals this instead, and it’s stated that Rey found this out earlier, either in this movie, or possibly even in TLJ)
---- Chewie getting rescued
---- General Hux’s rebel spy reveal (and eventual death by Pryde)
---- The crew getting the Falcon back
– “I don’t know why they’re not following us, but I don’t trust it… Landing gear’s busted? How busted?”
– Scene with Palpatine reminding Kylo to kill Rey
– “Wh-wh-wh-what is that?”, “It’s the death star. It’s a bad place from an old war.”, “It’s gonna take us years to find what we’re looking for.”, “Oh, dear.”
– Scene where BB-8 and D-O play with Endor wildlife
– Scene where Finn and Jannah start getting romantic with each other
– Scene where Finn and Poe argue with each other
– “You can’t go back to her now. Like I can’t.”
– “The Dark Side is in our nature. Surrender to it.”
– “Leia knows what must be done, R2. To reach her son now will take all the strength she has left.”
– “REY!”
– Shot of Rey leaping higher than the wave
– “…Ben’s hand.”
– Palpatine making Pryde general and ordering him to destroy a planet
/ Moved Kylo Ren’s scene with Han Solo to after the destruction of Kajimi instead of before, fixing a flaw in the plot structure. Scene now begins after Lando’s line, “We had each other. That’s how we won.”
– “She’s going to Exegol.” This includes the cutaway to Rey flying over there, too.
– Poe’s big speech intercut to the montage of the resistance preparing for their flight to Exegol. (Doesn’t feel very Star Wars-y. Plus, Finn and Poe’s discussion before the montage gets the same point across just fine.)
– “How do you know?”, “A feeling.”
– “They’ve landed a troop carrier.”, “Jam the speeders.”, “We can’t, sir.”, “Why not?”, “They’re not using speeders.”
– “Not bad for one lesson.”, “You had a good teacher.”
– “You’re doing great, buddy. Tower’s up ahead!”
– “I never wanted you dead. I wanted you here…”
– “You will take the throne.”
– “…Our blood.”, “I haven’t come to lead the Sith. I’ve come to end them.”, “As a jedi?”, “Yes.”, “No. Your hatred, your anger. You want to kill me. That is what I want…”
– Audio: “…As all the Sith live in me…”
– “I’m staying with you.”
– “With your hatred, you will take my life, and you will ascend.”, “All you want is for me to hate, but I won’t. Not even you.”, “Weak. Like your parents.”, “My parents were strong. They saved me from you.”
/ Rearranged all scenes of Kylo Ren’s return to Exegol to just a little later for greater emotional impact (Updated 1-2-22)
– Audio: “The ritual begins! She will strike me down and pledge herself as a Sith.”
– Audio: “She will draw her weapon! She will come to me! She will take her revenge… And with a stroke of her saber, the Sith are reborn!”
– “The Jedi are dead!” (Updated 1-2-22)
/ Replaced shot of Palpatine saying “The Jedi are dead!” with shot of Kylo Ren getting up, aligning it with Rey sensing Kylo at that moment (Updated 1-2-22)
– “…Every one we knock out is a world saved!”
– “Where did they get all these fighter craft? They have no navy.”, “It’s not a navy, sir. It’s just people.”
– “As once I fell, so falls the last Skywalker!”
– “Do not fear that feeble attack my faithful. Nothing will stop the return of the Sith!”
– “Let your death be the final word in the story of rebellion!”
– “You are nothing! A scavenger girl is no match for the power in me! I am all the Sith!”, “And I… Am all the Jedi!”
– General Pryde’s reaction before he dies
– Rey and Kylo kissing
– Shots of Cloud City, Endor, and Jakku as the Final Order is destroyed
– A few shots of rebels hugging
– The lesbian kiss
– Chewie getting his medal
– “Where are you from, General?”, “The Gold system.”, “Well, what about you, kid?”, “Oh, I don’t know.”, “Well, let’s find out.”
– Reaction shot of Rey looking at the Skywalker dinner table
– Rey burying Luke and Leia’s lightsabers
– “Rey Skywalker.”

I have decided to release workprints for all three of my sequel trilogy edits soon. Two reasons: the first is to try and keep things consistent, specifically with TLJ and TROS. The second is because I feel I could use a second or third opinion to weed out any more inconsistencies that I may have missed or overlooked.

I’m currently rendering the first drafts of the opening crawls as I type this, and just like a lot of other things, they are a work in progress. I will most likely rewrite them before the official release. Other things that aren’t complete yet are the wipes, crossfades, and color grading.

If you want the specifics, keep reading. If not, you’ve got the cliff’s notes version of this post, and you can PM me for the workprints when I successfully release them.

I made some cuts in the middle of a few lines. I erased what remained of those lines for the workprint so that only the lines that I plan to keep will be featured.

I also started work on the color grading for all three edits. TFA and TLJ are both getting a more orange tinted D55 film look LUT, mainly to fix the not-so-Star Wars-y cyan tint that was prevalent in all three movies. I’m currently using a Kodak D55 LUT for TFA, and a Fuji D55 LUT for TLJ. TROS is the bluest of the three, so I decided to apply a more neutral Kodak D60 LUT instead. Since all three LUT’s are overly bright, I have temporarily readjusted them with the primary color wheels until I officially begin work on power grading them. They still look bright (at least, on my computer monitor), but the readjustment I’ve done should keep things from getting overly bright on most screens. Nevertheless, the color grading is incomplete in these workprints.

I haven’t worked on the wipes yet, so don’t expect any Star Wars style transitions. I know, and I will get to those.

Aside from the lines of dialogue I have removed, most of the sound editing is still incomplete. I’ve only added a couple crossfades throughout all three edits so far, and thus I have a long way to go. So, if the audio cutaways sound choppy or abrupt, it’s because I haven’t polished them up. I will take care of them, so ignore them for now.

I think that’s the gist of what to expect from the workprints. If you want to take a look at them (and give your two cents), feel free to PM me and I’ll send the links when they’re released.

Workprints uploaded. PM me if you’re interested.

Just uploaded the general changes. Although I feel calling them “general” is kind of misleading. But it’s the best terminology I can come up with for now. There are no additions this time around, since I can’t find (nor do I believe there is) an official release with deleted scenes. So, instead, we’re left with just “-” for deleted, and “/” for changed or altered. I’ve removed a few lines of dialogue via sound editing, so those will be marked as “Audio:”

Keep in mind that, due to my concerns about consistency with the other two, this list isn’t final and subject to change.

Okay, that’s enough talk. Click on the spoiler tab below to see the changes I’ve made so far:

/ Opening crawl
– Kylo Ren’s visit to Mustafar (Ren finding the wayfinder is mentioned in my rewritten opening crawl instead, making this scene pointless)
– Epilepsy-inducing close-up shot of Palpatine
– “Everything.”
– “Kill the girl.”
– Falcon lightspeed-skipping scene, as it isn’t needed
– “They’re not with me. Ugh.”
– Part of Rey’s training course to make her less invincible
– “General, the falcon still hasn’t arrived. Commander’s asking for guidance.”
– Rey handing Luke’s lightsaber back to Leia
– First half of Rey’s conversation with Poe and Finn over the falcon
– “We’ve decoded the intel from the First Order spy, and it confirms the worst. Somehow, Palpatine returned.”
– Leia giving Luke’s lightsaber back to Rey
– Stormtrooper’s talk about the Knights of Ren
– Kylo Ren’s meeting with the First Order about the spy
– Shot of laughing Passana child (Too Disney-fied for me)
– “Palpatine wants you dead.”, “Serving another master?”, “No. I have other plans.”
– “…Why didn’t you?”, “You could’ve killed me. Why didn’t you?”, “You can’t hide, Rey. Not from me.”, “I see through the cracks in your mask. You’re haunted. You can’t stop seeing what you did to your father.”
– “I don’t want to have to kill you. I’m going to find you and I’m gonna turn you to the dark side…”
– Poe’s “They fly now.”
– Leia and Rose’s conversation with the X-Wing pilot about being more optimistic
– Rey and Finn’s conversation about what Finn was gonna tell Rey
– “Bones! I don’t like bones!”, “Bones? Never a good sign.”
– “I’ma blast it.”, “Don’t blast it.”
– Knights of Ren entering Pasaana
– All of Rey and Kylo Ren’s confrontation on Pasaana
– Chewie’s capture and “supposed” death scene
– The First Order’s capture of the Millennium Falcon
– Pryde and Hux’s discussion on Chewie, including the reveal that he’s alive
– All mentions of Chewie’s death during Rey, Finn, Poe, and C-3P0’s conversation on Ochi’s ship
– And yes, all “For Chewie” lines
– Pride and Hux informing Kylo that the scavenger is on Kajimi
– Rey sensing Chewie on the ship
– Zorii giving Poe the imperial medallion (due to the removal of the next scene)
– The entire episode on Kylo Ren’s ship, including the following four subplots:
---- Rey finding out she’s a Palpatine (Luke reveals this instead, and it’s stated that Rey found this out earlier, either in this movie, or possibly even in TLJ)
---- Chewie getting rescued
---- General Hux’s rebel spy reveal (and eventual death by Pryde)
---- The crew getting the Falcon back
– “I don’t know why they’re not following us, but I don’t trust it… Landing gear’s busted? How busted?”
– Scene with Palpatine reminding Kylo to kill Rey
– “Wh-wh-wh-what is that?”, “It’s the death star. It’s a bad place from an old war.”, “It’s gonna take us years to find what we’re looking for.”, “Oh, dear.”
– Scene where BB-8 and D-O play with Endor wildlife
– Scene where Finn and Jannah start getting romantic with each other
– Scene where Finn and Poe argue with each other
– “You can’t go back to her now. Like I can’t.”
– “The Dark Side is in our nature. Surrender to it.”
– “Leia knows what must be done, R2. To reach her son now will take all the strength she has left.”
– “REY!”
– Shot of Rey leaping higher than the wave
– “…Ben’s hand.”
– Palpatine making Pryde general and ordering him to destroy a planet
/ Moved Kylo Ren’s scene with Han Solo to after the destruction of Kajimi instead of before, fixing a flaw in the plot structure. Scene now begins after Lando’s line, “We had each other. That’s how we won.”
– “She’s going to Exegol.” Thus includes the cutaway to Rey flying over there, too.
– Poe’s big speech intercut to the montage of the resistance preparing for their flight to Exegol. (Doesn’t feel very Star Wars-y. Plus, Finn and Poe’s discussion before the montage gets the same point across just fine.)
– “How do you know?”, “A feeling.”
– “They’ve landed a troop carrier.”, “Jam the speeders.”, “We can’t, sir.”, “Why not?”, “They’re not using speeders.”
– “Not bad for one lesson.”, “You had a good teacher.”
– “You’re doing great, buddy. Tower’s up ahead!”
– “I never wanted you dead. I wanted you here…”
– “You will take the throne.”
– “…Our blood.”, “I haven’t come to lead the Sith. I’ve come to end them.”, “As a jedi?”, “Yes.”, “No. Your hatred, your anger. You want to kill me. That is what I want…”
– Audio: “…As all the Sith live in me…”
– “I’m staying with you.”
– “With your hatred, you will take my life, and you will ascend.”, “All you want is for me to hate, but I won’t. Not even you.”, “Weak. Like your parents.”, “My parents were strong. They saved me from you.”
/ Moved Kylo Ren’s return to just a little later for greater emotional impact
/ Same with Kylo running inside Palpatine’s lair
– Audio: “The ritual begins! She will strike me down and pledge herself as a Sith.”
– Audio: “She will draw her weapon! She will come to me! She will take her revenge… And with a stroke of her saber, the Sith are reborn!”
– “…Every one we knock out is a world saved!”
– “Where did they get all these fighter craft? They have no navy.”, “It’s not a navy, sir. It’s just people.”
– “As once I fell, so falls the last Skywalker!”
– “Do not fear that feeble attack my faithful. Nothing will stop the return of the Sith!”
– “Let your death be the final word in the story of rebellion!”
– “You are nothing! A scavenger girl is no match for the power in me! I am all the Sith!”, “And I… Am all the Jedi!”
– General Pryde’s reaction before he dies
– Rey and Kylo kissing
– Shots of Cloud City, Endor, and Jakku as the Final Order is destroyed
– A few shots of rebels hugging
– The lesbian kiss
– Chewie getting his medal
– “Where are you from, General?”, “The Gold system.”, “Well, what about you, kid?”, “Oh, I don’t know.”, “Well, let’s find out.”
– Reaction shot of Rey looking at the Skywalker dinner table
– Rey burying Luke and Leia’s lightsabers
– “Rey Skywalker.”

Just changed the arrangement of Kylo Ren’s return to

Exegol at the end of the film again. Mainly because I wanted to remove ol’ Palpy’s line, “The Jedi are dead!” after removing all of his other lines during Rey’s Sith ritual.

I may have to update the changes list, because I think all of Kylo Ren’s scenes have been moved to just a little later in the sequence.

I also managed to make a “happy accident” while re-arranging, as replacing Palpatine’s

“The Jedi are dead!” with the shot of Kylo getting up while facing the Knights really adds an emotional “oomph” to the moment when Rey senses Kylo is nearby.

Changes updated!

Blueffalump said:

A more radical edit of Rise of Skywalker? Yes, please!

I just rewatched Hal’s Ascedant cut (V1) and while I feel that it’s a huge improvement and possibly close to the best a conservative edit could do, there were still way to many moments of me not caring at all or just rolling my eyes heavily. At the very least a third of the movie felt like dead weight to me, if not more. Getting rid of a lot of the jokes and sidequests and keeping the focus on the Kylo/Rey dynamic seems like a great idea, as the latter was the only part I found interesting. So I’m very curious about your version.

I hope it lives up to your expectations! 😃 I’ll be happy to send you a PM when it’s released.

sade1212 said:

I’d love links to your edits as well (and/or workprints) when they’re available, please. The changelist has a lot of cuts I’d enjoy seeing how you’ve executed.

The workprints are available. They’re incomplete, unpolished, and I’m still making changes even now, but they do give you a general idea on where I’m going with the sequels. I’ll send you a PM shortly. If you catch anything in the plot that needs improvement, feel free to let me know. 😃

Just removed a few minor things from the first 20 minutes. The last two lines during Kylo Ren’s first meeting with Palpatine, “She is not who you think she is.” and “Who is she?” have been taken out in continuity with my Episode VIII edit. The way I edited the Kylo/Rey dynamic in the previous film implies that Kylo already knew who Rey’s family was, so he doesn’t need ol’ Palpy to confirm this. This means that the final line in the opening Palpatine scene is now “End the jedi, and become what your grandfather, Vader, could not.”, placing a lot more emphasis on Kylo’s motivation by the end of the scene.

I’ve taken out Rey’s parroting of Leia’s line, “Nothing’s impossible…” So now, the conversation begins with Leia saying, “Nothing’s impossible.”, followed by Rey adding on, “But around the training course.” Same point, but with less repetition.

I also decided to remove Rey’s “Never underestimate a droid.” line during the Pasaana chase, along with Rey’s “Not now, BB-8!” So now, the whole “never underestimate a droid” bit is out of my edit. I still have BB-8 being useful during the chase, though.

Cut out two more Palpatine lines. “You will be empress. We will be one.” The word “empress” got repetitive in my edit, so I cut it out.

The other line is “Look what you have made!” after he’s restored to full strength. Looking back, that line doesn’t make any sense. Neither Rey nor Kylo consented to getting their life force sucked out of them, so if anything, Palpatine telling them they made this is dumb (either that, or he’s just being an abusive psychopath. Either way, it doesn’t make much sense to keep it in, especially since it sounds like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon).

jadenkorr41 said:

My understanding for the second line when he says “look what you have made”, my initial thought was he was talking to the sith cultists whom are watching this from the stadium. Since they nursed him and are the laborers that brought about his ressurection, he was referring to that. That was my thought since the next shot is the sith cultists bowing to him while palpatine is standing gloriously to them like hes a super star lol.

Is it wrong that your explanation justifies my decision to remove it even more? 😆

jadenkorr41 said:

lol its your edit, you can do whatever you want to it. I just see fan edits as how far are people going to close the gap between head canon and what is shown to you. Theoretically almost anything can be justified/reasoned. It’s just do you accept it or not? Sounds like you dont accept this line, so since its your edit, be gone with it! haha

Well, it’s a wonderful thing that that’s exactly what I’m doing! 😆

The first stage of my move begins. I will be starting work on the move tomorrow, where I will be moving to a friend’s place. I’ll try to get my computer back up and running as soon as I possibly can (I hope to get it all ready sometime next week). Then I can worry about what to do next for the move (and keep working on my fan edits when I have the time). So yes, I will be absent on this site for a bit, but I hope to return as soon as I possibly can!

Just removed the last three lines from Rey’s conversation with Leia about the Sith Wayfinder. Those lines being:

“Find Exegol. Find the Emperor.”
“No.”
“I don’t want to go without your blessing, but I will. I will. It’s what you would do.”

The main problem I have with it is that it adds an unnecessary subplot to the film that is quickly resolved a scene or two later. I already got rid of the other scene in the past. On top of that, I don’t think there is a need for Rey to have some antagonism with Leia, especially after what happens to Leia in this film. One surprising thing I’ve seen (but have decided to welcome) from the changes I’ve made so far is how much less antagonistic and more supportive and positive the resistance is to each other throughout the trilogy. And I think keeping Rey and Leia’s relationship on a good note before one of them has to leave for Pasaana makes things much more impactful later on.

Time to tackle the color grading for Episode IX.

Now, I’ve said that I like this movie, but one thing I will agree on is this. The color grading for this film is terrible! Terrible! Horrible! It looks like every movie made in the last ten years combined into one, resulting in a film that looks so… Unnatural (Insert Exegol lightning sound effects here). I think I know why too. Here’s the opening shot of Exegol as taken from my blu-ray:

Notice that lightning bolt in the background. On my waveform and parade scopes, this lightning bolt is a teal green color. No, I’m not making that up. The green is slightly more prevalent than the blue. While my main objective in the color grading is to give it a more film-like grade (Just like with VII and VIII), I feel the color scheme needs a makeover. Fortunately, most people should be okay if I go with the blue film look that I mentioned in my Episode VII color grading. Which changes the color scheme from teal green…

…To blue.

I think it works, especially since I attribute it to ESB, the crown jewel of the franchise. I also think it looks more accurate than the original. The only challenge I’ve had is making sure the skintones don’t look too reddish. Otherwise, I think this is an improvement. But as usual, someone could prove me wrong. You may see the rest in the spoiler tag below. Let me know if anything needs improvement.

And on a side note, no, I didn’t go with HAL9000’s idea of changing Exegol to white, and the reason is simple. I don’t like it. I understand the desire to change Exegol to a different color scheme, but it suffers from the same problem that I mentioned with the original. It looks unnatural, and the slight reddish tint only adds to the whole thing looking off. So, my apologies to HAL9000 fans everywhere, but I don’t like it, and I don’t want to do it. You may PM your complaints about Exegol to me, which I will happily ignore. Anyway, on with the screencaps:

Good LORD that’s an improvement. I hadn’t realised that the whole movie has a sickly greenish tinge to it, but now I see them side by side, I realise that it was subconsciously contributing to making the movie an even more unpleasant viewing experience.

As someone currently eyeball-deep in TROS editing (no pun intended), seeing them without that sickly green tint AND not too red is a nice palette cleanser!

Glad to hear! Unless someone finds a flaw or two, it sounds like I’ve knocked the color grading out of the park with this one. I’ll be moving on to the sound editing next, as well as working on the finishing touches for everything else I’ve done with the sequel trilogy.

Yeah, those are universally an improvement. Good job. I especially like the natural scenes looking… natural.