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The legendary "Starkiller Ranch" Thread — Page 28

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Sounds good, MTH. We'll give it a try.

Good to hear from you.



--ID

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Well, I have no way of knowing if this is in the race or not-- but I wanted to recut the race so that Qui Gonn's assessment of Anakin's powers grows as the race goes on -- this means adding close ups of him to make one or more of Anakin's incredible feats register on Qui Gonn (with the Force theme rising proudly along with his realization: this is the CHOSEN ONE!).

I really like this idea. Decrease the emphasis on the ridiculous antics of the CG drivers and crashes, and instead cut it around Qui-Gon's reactions to the powers of the chosen one. It will still be a brilliant action piece, of course, but including Qui-Gon more makes it relevant to the rest of the story. I like the idea to extend the ending as well.

I'll comment on this new chunk of script when I get time...

Episode II: Shroud of the Dark Side

Emperor Jar-Jar
“Back when we made Star Wars, we just couldn’t make Palpatine as evil as we intended. Now, thanks to the miracles of technology, it is finally possible. Finally, I’ve created the movies that I originally imagined.” -George Lucas on the 2007 Extra Extra Special HD-DVD Edition

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Funny to be in the position of heckler now-- but such has become my pitiful life.

So two quick questions about the latest chunk of script--

1. Why have so much time before Darth Maul arrives? There is no tension until he shows up-- no threat from any direction until we see him arrive. With a color change, his arrival can be made to look like it's daylight and during or just following the storm.

2. Why have Qui Gonn announce that he wants to take the boy from Watto? He's not here to rescue slaves and telegraphing that he thinks Anakin's the chosen one undermines a lot of suspense that we've got going in this cut after the talk with Boss Nass during this time of prophecy. If he wants the boy before the race, then the race is just a lot of pretty cgi without any meaning-- he already thinks the boy's special and we don't really think the Jedi will be stranded here -- so the race has no dramatic value unless we make it have one.

Just two things I know we've discussed, but got vetoed "behind the scenes" so I thought I'd ask. Like the heckler I've become

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Originally posted by: MTHaslett
Just two things I know we've discussed, but got vetoed "behind the scenes" so I thought I'd ask. Like the heckler I've become


Actually, nothing was vetoed, MTH. It's more like you dropped the ball and left us without a clear blueprint for what you intended to happen after the arrival at Tatooine. So, we had to make our own, and we went with what felt right.

In regard to Maul arriving during daylight or during a storm... Why? It all happens a lot quicker now. They land, go to Watto's shop, meet Anakin, they have a quick incident with Sebulba, go to Anakin's house, and then Maul arrives. And when you see it put together, it's an excellent transition. From Qui-Gon's "Either way we're running out of time..." To Maul's ship blasting toward Tatooine.

And I'm not sure what you mean about Qui-Gon announcing that he wants to free Anakin. If you're referring to the deal with Watto before the race, that HAS to happen, otherwise you wouldn't know what's going on/how he was freed/etc.

Anyway, it is what it is. It's a little late to be chiming in now. But, feel free to "heckle" at will.

--InfoDroid

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The timing of the Maul arrival is pretty good to me, on second viewing. I thought to eliminate all the "cutting back" to Amidala's ship, because the threats seem so hollow-- but your changes there seem good too.

You see what I'm referring to about Qui Gonn announcing his intentions of freeing Anakin. I disagree that saying he wants to free Anakin is necessary to understanding what's going on or how Qui Gonn frees the boy. If you play the scene where Qui Gonn collects the boy, it plays as a fine "catch-up" scene-- it's clear what happened without the set up. It even plays better because it tells you something you don't already know-- as opposed to the way it plays in TPM where it could actually be cut without affecting the story.

I hadn't known the time for chiming in was over-- I apologize.

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So, you're saying to cut the bet with Watto scene before the race, then after the race leave the scene with Watto as is? And leave the scene in the house with his mother before they leave?

I still think the audience would be going, "Huh? What just happened?"

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Just to give everyone an update: Work is progressing rather quickly again! We'll have our first cut finished by the weekend.

We're also considering adding a prologue to the beginning outlining the history of the Jedi's war with the Sith. Lots of quick battle scenes, talk of the Force, the history of the Jedi, the formation of the Republic, the history of the Sith and their tyrannical nature and the reason they want revenge.

Let us know if you have any input on this.

Thanks,

InfoDroid

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"Prologue" Discussion Points:

-Too "Lord of the Rings"?

-Repetitive? As in, we'll have this prolouge followed by yet another introductory device, the opening crawl.

-Narrator? If so, who? ID and I are thinking Christoper Lee for various reasons. He has a vast filmography for the picking, featuring lots of appropriate dialogue, and he just has a very cool voice which is perfectly suited for such a narration.

-Which films to take various footage from? This will feature both space and land battles, as well as various lightsaber duels. Such footage will be enhanced with special effects and altered so as to not be instantly recognizable from another film. "Braveheart" and "Troy" come to mind for ground battles, "The Last Starfighter" and "Serenity" for space battles, and the "Highlander" films are the first that come to mind in regards to duels.

-And should there be a cohesive character, such as Darth Bane/Darth Plagueis, or short character moments of some kind? Ever since the casting rumors of Christopher Walken in Episode II, I have always envisioned him as the aformentioned Sith Lord. Could clips from "The Prophecy," "Sleepy Hollow," and other Walken films be of use to us?
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Originally posted by: InfoDroid
So, you're saying to cut the bet with Watto scene before the race, then after the race leave the scene with Watto as is? And leave the scene in the house with his mother before they leave?

I still think the audience would be going, "Huh? What just happened?"


In the scene with Watto, he makes it clear that he made a deal to get the boy. What the deal was, he doesn't reiterate-- only that it depended on how the race came out and that Watto has to admit it was a fair deal.

When he sees Shmi, QG explains that he wasn't able to make a deal for the mother.

I think this gets most of the important information across. The Question is, does anyone else see the value in keeping it a secret that QG wants to take the kid away? I see it definitely as a goal to achieve-- it activates the pod race as the event that convinces QG the kid is the chosen one. His secret deal with Watto was a hedged bet-- if the boy won, then he was the chosen one and worthy of special attention.

As it is, QG telegraphs his interest and undermines the tension. Not terminally, I'll admit. But it's not as good as it could be.

If we wanted to change this, we could adjust the dialogue with Watto slipping into alien speak in order to explain the deal a little more fully when he talks to Qui Gonn. Or the dialogue from the cut "bet" scene could be moved to the latter scene.



...As to getting to a rough cut... OH MY GOD!!! FANTASTIC!!!

I've never been interested in an opening seqence before the opening-- but after seeing InfoDroid's "Ben's Hut" scene, I know he can pull it off well. My feeling is that niether ANH nor TPM felt confusing without a Lord of the Rings type opening, so I wouldn't try to fix what I thought was already working. But whenever someone has this kind of idea, I think the best way to go is try it and decide based on what is come up with. At the very least it would be a great thing for the dvd.

Good work and good luck!

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The first Rough Cut is done!!
"You were so preoccupied with whether or not you could...you never stopped to think if you should." - Ian Malcolm, Jurassic Park
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Whoa! Sweet!

Hmm...I don't know about a prologue. IMO, a brief summary of the Jedi/Sith/Force situation could be included in the first paragraph of the crawl, that would probably be the best. The thing about it being two intros is one of the big points I'm thinking of. I agree with MTH, it definitely seems like one of those things that would just be best to try out and see how it works.
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Originally posted by: tjdavis1138
The first Rough Cut is done!!


Well, let's see it!

About a prologue, I thought the concept for Episode I was that it would be the "first" Star Wars, that it would stand alone by itself, like a new Episode IV. Doesn't a prologue go against that?

You know of the rebellion against the Empire?

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Unbelievable! Great work ID, TJ, CC, Preston and Erik! To finish so fast on a rough cut on such a massive project, over the internet, with all eyes upon you -- is incredible. I bet you didn't get to watch much of the Olympics-- but you all deserve medals!

Did you do the prologue yet? Thinking it over, if it's still up for suggestion, I think Lee is a superb choice for narrator-- a great way to work Dukoo into Episode I.

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Well, let's see it!



Oh, I think not. The last time I did that ID almost kicked me out of the group.
"You were so preoccupied with whether or not you could...you never stopped to think if you should." - Ian Malcolm, Jurassic Park
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Originally posted by: tjdavis1138
Well, let's see it!



Oh, I think not. The last time I did that ID almost kicked me out of the group.


Man, that was so long ago. I'm sure nobody remembers that.

You know of the rebellion against the Empire?

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Maybe this is a dumb idea, but I'd like Watto to have one sympathetic moment. When Anakin says "they seemed nice to me", Watto's "clean the racks" reply could be replaced with the later shot of him saying "that you did, the boy's good etc." with the smile and the approving finger. Then change the subtitle to "You liked that girl, eh? So go talk to her."
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GREAT suggestion, Guy!!!!

This is going in the movie!


This is the kinda stuff I love... moments of clarity. It's one of those, "Why didn't we think of that?" moments.

THANKS SO MUCH!

--ID

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Originally posted by: Erikstormtrooper
Originally posted by: tjdavis1138
The first Rough Cut is done!!


Well, let's see it!

About a prologue, I thought the concept for Episode I was that it would be the "first" Star Wars, that it would stand alone by itself, like a new Episode IV. Doesn't a prologue go against that?



I see what you're saying but even in a standalone movie concept a prologue could work since the foundations of this movie (the SW universe) are based on thousands of years of 'history'. I think it would be cool to have a visual reprensentation in the 'first' movie of this history. Mr. Lee as narrator would just be amazing!

The mind boggles on what sources could be used for this although a few great examples have been suggested. What I am sure about is the all the skill and technical wizardry is already in place in the team involved with this project and I think it would be a huge shame if this 'prologue' concept was abandoned altogether.

I guess what I am saying is that my 'vote' would be in the 'try it and see' category...


BTW, FANTASTIC news that you have a rough cut completed! InfoDroid, you and your team are an inspiration for those of us who struggle to be one quarter as creative and disciplined..

I can't wait to see it!


D.

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Thanks, Dangelus!

This whole thing has certainly been a learning experience for me. I'm priviledged to work with such a great group of guys. We started this thing on a fluke, and now... here we are... What can I say? We're getting there.

I agree with you on the prologue. It's for the "try it and see" pile. It could be genius, and it could be crap. We're often dangling between those two extremes on this project. Time will tell.

So, now that we can watch the rough cut (which WON'T be posted, Erik! ) and get a feeling of the flow from scene to scene, now we can analyze the details, transitions, color palette, etc. We can easily identify the gaps we need to fill, so we'll continue to enhance, rearrange and fabricate entirely new shots. And of course, we haven't even scraped the surface of the new audio mix yet.


In short, "this is where the fun begins."

Until later,


--InfoDroid


P.S. - Watch this thread in the coming weeks and months as we begin to post screen captures, videos, etc. to give you a preview of what we're working on. We're aiming for a summer "completed" date, but no promises.

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Originally posted by: InfoDroid

So, now that we can watch the rough cut (which WON'T be posted, Erik! )


Curses! Foiled again!

Another thought on the prologue: How about using necromonger footage from the Chronicles of Riddick to represent a sith army. IMHO, those guys match up pretty well for what a sith army might look like.

You know of the rebellion against the Empire?

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I put up a link to a fan trailer for Episode II on the Shroud page. It seems like it would be a good thing to review here as well. It has shots of Walken and Lee, clips from Dune and Braveheart and other stuff in it. Maybe some good ideas could be grabbed for a possible prologue as well.

I would like to see a prologue on these Discs, but maybe as an optional intro to the movie. Thats what I love about DVD technology.
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Riddick is a a great idea, Erik! I hadn't thought of that!

And Sluggo, I've always loved that trailer since it was first released. That Braveheart shot was the ultimate.

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We're thinking of opening the narration with a blinding light followed universal/galactic/infinity shot. Think the opening credits of Star Trek: The Next Generation. If anyone has any ideas on a source for that it would be appreciated. Speaking of Star Trek, we have a policy of absolutey NO Star Trek footage. It's far too recognizeable and it just wouldn't be right. Of course there may end up being exceptions in certain cases, but let's really try to shy away from borrowing stuff from the good people of the 23 and 24 centuries.
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laugh out loud. I know a lot of folks would grab the tar and the feathers if you polluted Star Wars with a bit of Trekkie junk.

-ClosetTrekkieSluggo
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That Episode II trailer was fantastic!

There's an idea I've been toying around with in my head and just checked it out. I think we could give Jar Jar a cool moment in the Battle of Naboo. What if when Jar Jar goes to the big booma truck, you cut out the bit of him hiding under it and it rolling away, and just cut to him pulling it open. Are there any shots of Jar Jar looking defiant or determined or anything like that? You could put it just before we see him pulling it open. Then, when we see him chasing after the boomas, then with the dubbing you could make it like he's cheering, basically saying "YEAH!!" and getting excited. I think it could work. Check it out.
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