Book 5 update is released! Thanks everyone, hope you enjoy. Post here or DM for the links.
Going to start restructuring and working on Book 6 after the weekend. That one will probably be a couple weeks of production as well since I have a lot to recreate in it.
I’ve seen the draft and it’s already my favourite version of the Boba show yet. Acbagel has selected the absolute right set of scenes, and made the absolute right set of trims to those scenes. I’m REALLY excited to see the final version of this one - I think it’s going to be the best way to watch Book of Boba Fett out there.
Thank you for the kind words and all the help you’ve given in this project over the last couple of years. Eddie has played a huge role in helping structure and review the films, so major props for all that work!
I can’t wait…love this series. That is high praise from Eddie, but I know Acbagel deserves the praise and recognition. SO ready for the updated Book Five to drop!
Thanks! We are getting very close, see the end of this post for a progress report…!
Super excited for this to be finished. Then I can rewatch the Mandalore stuff while a presumably great Bad Batch edit is in the making. 😃
For sure, I’m really excited to work on that soon. Will have the full 3 seasons to see the big picture storyline and then be able to make solid movie edits akin to this Mandalore saga.
I have not watched most of your edits yet, my wife and were doing a chronological series watch through. We only just finished (well like a month ago) Eddie’s TCW:R and are now looking for movie edits for things like Rebels, Bad Batch and Andor. So it might be a minute. But, can I get up to date links to your latest versions?
Links sent!
As for what excites me about your edits… the thing I desired most out of the series was a LOOOONGG time away from Grogu. When Luke took Grogu in the S2 finale… the greatest moment Disney has had with the franchise… I was very excited at the prospect that we would probably not seee Grogu again until maybe the VERY finale of the series or later even, 2 to 4 seasons of content at the very least. I wanted them apart for years. You can imagine how dissapointed I was when only 2 more Din episodes later (his boba episodes), they’re already back together. That is why I haven’t even given Season 3 a chance, I havent even watched it.
(And of course like a mentioned before, how Boba was shafted in his content, I feel the way you’re pacing his content throughout Mandalorian is the best way to salvage his content, thank you for that)
So with that in mind, my biggest request for you going into these later edits, 6, 7, 8 etc, is, please do your best to keep them apart for as long as you can possibly get away with. I think the longer you hold it off, the more powerful it will be.
I definitely agree here. The ending of season 2 was my favorite Disney Star Wars content so far. That’s one of the few times it has felt like OG Star Wars to me. I’d say that, some other parts in Seasons 1/2, Grogu’s training in BoBF, Siege of Mandalore in TCW, half of Rogue One, some episodes of Andor/Tales of the Jedi, and a couple scenes in Ahsoka are my Star Wars film/tv highlights of the decade… That’s a bit sad, but at least we’ve had some moments rather than none! I will do everything I can to make this Grogu separation as long as possible as I believe their reuniting was absolutely disastrous for the story and future of the characters.
With that said, here is our (new) first installment of Grogu-less Mandalorian… a Book 5 progress report!
Wrapped up draft #2 yesterday and currently getting a final review of it. Will probably need one more pass for bug fixes and maybe a new scene placement or two and then it’s ready. So I’m looking at a Friday-Monday release depending on when I can get time to do one more review. In the meantime, I want to point out some of the highlights of this update and release the teasers.
Book 5: The Apostate update changelog:
As this is a revamped version of my 2022 Book 5, pretty much the whole scene structure is different. Back then I was just trying to break ground by combining these shows by any means necessary. It wasn’t exactly in a theatrical film format with the best storytelling, it was an obvious fan edit. With my last round of updates, I’ve really focused on thematic storytelling, character arcs, scene order, and pacing, making it feel like a seamless movie release. So I’ve put that sort of polish on this film as a whole.
We open on Din this time. It’s his series, and although I’ve made Boba a major character throughout this saga, Din is still the protagonist. After Din’s bounty hunting, we see what Boba is up to with a new opener for his character in a custom-created dream sequence that explains his inner turmoil. Using footage from the Tusken lizard vision, his bacta healings, etc, we now have a proper thematic intro for what he is doing and dealing with these days.
In regard to the overall Pyke/crime lord story for Boba, from a DM conversation with Eddie:
- The Pykes onscreen aren’t a very interesting threat. They have no main characters, only working through agents. They’re literally a faceless army in this show, and in the end, they’re taken out quite easily by Fennec.
- They’re only a threat in the sense of being a nebulous presence of unknown size who intend to cause grief at a time when Boba doesn’t need extra grief. It’s not their story- they’re only relevant for what they implicitly represent to Boba- a challenge to his control.
- But, they do still have that impact on the audience, and having their presence explicitly ties everything together, in terms of his dealings with the character threats (assassins and Cad Bane) and other factions (the mayor, the three families).
Having them hang over the plot keeps the Boba plot feeling more tight and focused than keeping them a mystery, which means the three-act structure keeps the movie feeling like a complete movie, and it means that Boba’s central challenge (‘what kind of ruler will you be?’) keeps relating to their actions.
This is the approach I have now taken to the overall conflict against Boba. This principle has guided the pacing and scene structure, and how/when to introduce the antagonists (which I would argue aren’t necessarily the Pykes/crime lords, but the internal conflict Din and Boba deal with throughout).
If there are some scenes missing that you still wanted to see Boba in… perhaps it’s because I am saving them for Book 6/7 😉
I have removed all mentions of Din’s redemption. No discussion of the mines, waters, restoration… No hope. Din is on his solo journey, looking for a new purpose. He doesn’t engage in this quest for Mandalore at all in BoBF, so there’s no reason to even bring it up. After he lends a hand to Boba and realizes he still can’t be with Grogu, we will start to deal with the What’s next? in Book 6 and use the dialogue there to kick off his new journey.
There are a LOT of small updates in this that I can’t even begin to list. From new audio, voice lines, soundtracks, scenes, and intricately chosen shot ordering (for example, when Cad says to Boba, “You never should have left him without his armor,” referring to Cobb getting shot, the Disney version then cuts to Boba’s reaction first, then Fennec’s reaction, THEN Din’s reaction of coming out with his blaster over 5 seconds later. No…! That’s not natural timing, and that’s not thematically the correct reaction for Din. When that line is delivered, we need to cut RIGHT to Din’s reactions to show his emotions as he hears that his friend has most likely been killed). I have taken this approach to countless scenes, from Boba’s meeting with the petitioners to the crime lords, to his Western with Cad, to Cad’s meeting with the Pyke & Mayor… I think there were a lot of sloppy shot selections in this show and I couldn’t have possibly caught everything, but I tried!
With all that said, I’d like to leave some of the selected events as a surprise so that you can have a new experience as you watch this. The movie is clocking in around 2 hours and 5 minutes, which is right in line with where I have tried to keep my films.
Link to the trailer on YouTube.
Poster
Thanks, everyone, the release is right around the corner. Would love to be able to deliver for the weekend, but I can’t 100% promise it… Doing what I can to make that happen though!
Book 5 update going really well! Just taking some extra time in the kitchen with how much restructuring needed to be done. Merging my old BoBF film with my last Book 5 edit, so I had to go scene by scene through two films and create a new flow that works. Had a great first draft, now just moving some things around again and implementing a few new ideas, cleaning up the bugs, etc. Aiming to have it ready by the end of the week!
Thanks for an updated review, Kypo!
Acbagel, did you already try turning up the “Style Exaggeration” setting to 50 percent? Also try applying the accent:Kiwi tag to the voice (or something similar to that if it doesn’t recognize it by being grayed out). I think doing both of these should make it more accurate.
I know Vader wasn’t working properly unless you had the “Style Exaggeration” setting up really high. Oh, and this goes without saying, but “Clarity and Similarity Enhancement” should always be at 100%. I also always apply speed:Slow to all clones because 11 labs tends to speak way too quickly.
Those are some good tips, I will try again with a Boba model based on that. I have clear voice lines from Boba to clone, so I’ll play with those settings and see if I can get closer. g00b sent me another possibility that I think would work too.
Well, I watched your previous v2 edit of Book 5 tonight and thought it was fantastic. Very glad that’s the direction you seem to be heading toward for v4. Could definitely be tightened up quite a bit – it drags at the 2:24 runtime. Will you be building off your v2 for the next update or starting fresh? If you’re going back to v2, I can offer some more extensive feedback
Also… Loving all the updates you’ve done on books 1-4. Only complaint is those runtimes. I know you aren’t willing to go sub 2 hours but I think all these edits could be much quicker/better paced. But I suppose that’s my personal preference 🤷♂️
Thanks for watching again! Yes, agree on tightening it up, I currently have the updated version at 2 hours and 4 minutes. I have a first rough draft of this update, and about halfway through reviewing it, so feel free to send any feedback you had on the previous version!
Will you also do some finishing touches for episode 0?
Yes, definitely will go back and improve Episode 0. I’ve improved a lot as an editor since I started this so I should be able to do some polish!
Hey, just an update on this since I’ve been getting a bunch of DMs asking for this edit with Season 3 looming…
This edit is nowhere near complete and has been on pause for a lot longer than expected as I’ve spent all my available time on my The Way of Mandalore project. I do still fully intend to come back to this ASAP, but it won’t be ready until after Season 3 of the show concludes. I did make that initial Episode 0 which is ONLY the Clone Wars episodes with some edits to keep the focus on the Bad Batch characters and to frame their presentation in the way I want them to appear in the rest of my Bad Batch saga, but it’s not even a full length film.
My first full film edit from TBB show itself was ~50% complete when I paused it to finish the Mandalorian project. This Bad Batch edit saga is next up on my plate to complete, but I still have 1-2 months of work on The Way of Mandalore before I can move over to this. Sorry, I know a lot of people wanted to see this to get ready for Season 3, but this will have to be for a rewatch. Hopefully seeing Season 3 will help make this the best edit it can be though! I’m excited to see the conclusion and then make a fun movie saga from the full storyline.
Definitely will miss Carl/Karga, was a cool character and he did a great performance. I don’t think I’ll need to adjust anything around his passing though as I am of the opinion that we will not be getting a Mando Season 4. I believe the coming two Din/Grogu/Ahsoka movies in 2026+ will continue their story instead of the show for the foreseeable future.
I like EddieDeans structure proposal and I am eager to see how it plays out. I do need to go back and watch your original book five when I have a moment as it has been a minute. I am all for extending the Grogu and Din separation as much as possible, as Jon Faverau said in an interview I believe they were supposed to be apart for three years and honestly it does not even feel like three weeks in the original show.
Going well so far, I just about have a full rough draft of the new Book 5 which is a much more traditional Book of Boba Fett edit akin to my previous attempts at it. It definitely keeps the focus off Grogu and makes his absence noticeable, which should carry deep into my Book 6 as well. The original Favreau quote gets misinterpreted a lot as the “2 or 3 years” comment was in reference to real-life time from Mando Season 2 ending. He later clarified the in-universe timeline saying, “So now, I think somewhere in there, more than one and less than, you know, somewhere between zero and two years.” Still not a great quote and they have left it open-ended for whatever reason, but he seems to start to say “more than one year and less than two” before going back to more of a vague timeline. I think it’s safe to say it should seem that Din and Grogu are apart for at least a full year, whereas in the presented Disney content it feels like a couple of weeks as you mentioned.
As for trying to make Boba part of the retaking of Mandalore. I believe there are a few directions you may be able to go with the use of AI or depending on your/ this community’s editing skills with visual inserts as well. I know Jar Jar Bricks is amazing with AI.
You may want to connect with one another, as I think you could maybe use Din in his ship (helmet on obviously) conversing with Boba over the ship’s speaker using an AI convo for both men. You could have Boba saying he can’t make it unfortunately as he has his own problems putting down a gang war in his newly won territory on Tatooine (adding a mini hologram of Boba with helmet on would be even more ideal; think Palpatine during order 66 scenes with Plo Koon). Another more ambitious approach would be adding the Slave I to the fleet the amasses during season three to retake mandalore. The ship with a few Boba lines could really sell he is there helping. However, this may be out of the scope of your project, but I know it could be pulled off with the skills of people within this community. Just my two cents, let me know what you think!
For sure, I’m trying to integrate Boba as much as possible into the ending so I had a couple of easter eggs I’ve been working on myself. However, my biggest challenge has been his AI lines. I have not found any way to recreate his unique voice, and I’m not sure anyone else has either. I posted on one of Eddie’s threads about it, but if anyone has successfully made an AI Boba model, I would love to hear it!
Let me know if I missed anyone on links!
So I just finished watching the updated Book Four…Bravo! This is my favorite book so far and I loved how you reworked the scene in the imperial commissary where Din no longer removes his helmet. The payoff of removing Din’s face reveal till the parting of him and Grogu on the imperial cruiser definetly worked for me…chef’s kiss!
I believe you used the updated deapfake of Luke’s face in the conclusion too and while it looks a little devoid of movement, I think it really sells it is “Mark Hamill” as Luke again. The Book of Boba Fett scenes vastly improved so I do not think they need touch up down the road. Overall, awesome job and you deserve all the flowers…this series is awesome; can’t wait for the revised book five.
Thanks for the review! Glad you had a good time with the movie. Yes, that is the fanmade deepfake Luke, and while you’re right that it does look a bit stiff emotionally, the Disney version really didn’t look like Luke so you have to pick your poison a bit on this scene. As you mentioned though, BoBF did a fantastic deepfake of Luke that gives emotion and resemblance (probably because they hired the guy who made the Mando Luke deepfake).
One minor continuity issue I may have noticed is during the battle of Tython there is one transport ship shown landing around the 46 minute mark, then we see through the scope there are two transport ships at 46:38 ish then at 47:30 another transport ship lands and drops off more troops, but there only appears to be two ships total and Boba Fett takes out only two later. So by the edit I believe it would imply three ships total, but one is unaccounted for by the end. It could be implied one took off during the battle off screen, but I thought it was worth mentioning as I know you heavily edited the scene to fix the student film quality directing of the original which worked for me btw!
Nice spot! Yes, I do need to move that first infrared scope scene back ~90 seconds to preserve the placement of the transports.
So what’s the plan for Book 5? I spent 12+ hours over the weekend going through books 5/6 to examine my options. I enjoyed the uniqueness of my previous book 5 a lot and I think it did a ton right, but unfortunately, I may have written myself into a little corner with it. I loved the idea of pacing out Boba’s story into the later content of the saga, but there really is just no way to build anything out of it. I wanted to frame something about Din trying to get Boba to join the retaking of Mandalore and use the Tatooine battle as part of that, but the lack of dialogue with Din and Boba outside of battle scenes is extremely limiting. There’s not even a scene post-Tatooine of them together whatsoever. Battle ends with them apart, and there’s no ending dialogue at all. Din just leaves the planet without a scene with Boba so it can focus on Grogu. Really dislike it, but it is what it is. Thankfully, with the great feedback about some of my previous poor ideas, EddieDean proposed this:
… maybe there’s a less radical ordering here, where you can get both the most out of the Boba story AND extend out the time that Mando and Grogu were apart, which I know is a (sensible) priority for you. So how about something closer to the ordering of the original release, but just using your Book 5 edits to keep Din and Grogu apart for longer:
- Movies 1-4 as before. They’re perfect. Din’s lost his ship and his kid. He thinks the Mandalorians are scattered. [Offscreen] he’s ordered a new ship from Peli, but it’ll be a while.
- Movie 5 pretty much just from BoBF, but Din and Grogu DON’T reunite. Mando is back to bounty hunting, listless, no clan. He chases the bounty against the dog-butcher people to find the Covert, meets them, makes a gift for Grogu, and gets kicked out. No mention of redemption - he’s now at his absolute lowest. He goes to get his ordered ship (so he can go visit Grogu as much as use it for hunting) and gets pulled in to Boba’s whole storyline on Tattooine (which becomes the main plot of the movie, happening throughout this storyline). After helping Boba, he heads to Luke’s planet, and gives Ahsoka the gift, but is discouraged from meeting Grogu, who we only see distantly. He’s now realised he really needs a family (thanks Boba) and, without Grogu, wants to give the Mandalorians another try.
- Either at the end of Movie 5 or the start of Movie 6, he goes to the Covert now on the Rocky planet (using more of his original entrance there). THIS time he’s much more desperate - he asks to atone. Only NOW does he learn he can do that at the waters of Mandalore. NOW he has a fresh mission - and still no Grogu.
- Most of your current Book 5 now becomes your Book 6. We don’t have your current content on the ringworld or with Pelli remaking the ship, which removes ~35 minutes (of 2h20) which gets us to the Vane/Gorian Shard plot much sooner. We instead fill that lost time with Luke training Grogu, and perhaps the Mando-birds sideplot. At the end of the movie, we see Grogu making the decision to rejoin Din, and cut to them flying together (using the technique for this you used previously where they blast off together).
- Movie 7: Now follows directly from the aftermath of the Gorian Shard fight, where the Mandalorians have safe haven on Nevarro but Bo-Katan’s been tasked to gather the clans and reclaim their home, and Grogu and Din are with them. We open with Bo and Din going to rescue Axe Woves (they don’t get distracted by the rest of Plazir) and Bo finally takes the Darksaber back. Now we’re ready to lead people to Mandalore. We continue with the two finale episodes, which are a nice straightforward story using all the pieces we currently have in play, but we intercut this with the full Pershing story. The Pershing story fits here most of all because (1) it builds on the current knowledge of the Imperial Remnant and New Republic, but mostly (2) because it ties closely back into the cloning plot and the reveal of Gideon’s plans. The scene of Carson finding that Gideon escaped can come just after it’s discussed by Pershing, to better tie it all together and keep the whole movie on theme.
Also, this way, each movie would come out closer to 120-140 minutes.
Going through the pros & cons of this structure:
Pros -
Cons -
So right now I’m putting together a Book 5/6 with the Eddie proposed structure to see how it all meshes, and I like it overall so far. But just wanted to toss out my thoughts and see if anyone has any additional feedback that could spark some creativity.
I have some pretty cool Book 6 scenes setup to keep Boba somewhat involved by utilizing Plazir 15 content + Boba and the Hutts, but again it’s nothing major and more just some easter eggs so he doesn’t feel completely written away like Disney did.
Wrapped up production today! Finishing the exports and uploads, and links will go out tomorrow.
Book 4: The Way update changelog:
Then, in your Book 4, you could introduce “I’ve placed a tracker” and that subplot just after Mando leaves the planet with that ex-Imperial warlord. We know she’s got ties to Thrawn, and thus the Shadow Council, so it’s absolutely feasible that an Imperial spy could be operating there to report back to Gideon. The dialogue there would reinforce that Gideon wants Grogu - and then he’d strike immediately, on the very next planet, where Din finally meets Boba and the Imperials show up to kidnap Grogu.
Poster!
Thanks for watching my edits, Book 4 links tomorrow, and Book 5 next week!
One other thought: Depending on how good your Boba AI voice is, it might be nice to add, during the Boba-Fennec fireside chat in movie 2, something along the lines of “but first I’m going to get my armour back”, explaining the two-movie diversion where he seeks his armour before establishing a house.
Thanks for the review and all the feedback! I haven’t been able to make any model of unmasked Boba that sounds like him. The voice is so unique, that I can’t get any tech to replicate it well at all. Honestly, Temeura talks like Boba in real life so I looked into just using some interview/video clips, but I didn’t find any lines that would help. I like this idea though.
Still waiting for an updated book 3 link. Was hoping to watch it tonight so I’ll take it from anyone 😅
Sorry, I missed you, sent! If I missed anyone else, please feel free to reach out to me again, it’s not a bother!
The updated Book 2 with Fennec scene minus head injury and Greef betrayal now clocks in at 2 hours 26 minutes which I like more, and the Act 2:Act3 ratio is now much closer in length so I think it’s the right call. Uploading the adjusted Books 1 and 2 right now.
I’ve reviewed all the feedback in the thread about Book 4, and the consensus changes I’m tracking are:
Maybe a couple of other very minor adjustments Kypo suggested, but this one was close to being good to lock as it was.
As I work on those few updates, I’m also going to deploy the final fixes on Book 1 & 2.
Book 1:
Book 2:
Hey Acbagel,
I went back and checked regarding my previous comments in regards to continuity. I believe I was referring to the end of Book Two where Boba is talking to Fennec about how you can only gets so far without a tribe by the fire (2:25). His robs are acid burned, but he does not visit the sarlac pit to retrieve his armor and get the acid burns on his cloak until book three (0:25). Not a big deal, but just wanted to point it out.
Ah gotcha, that’s a good catch on the details, but I don’t think it’s anything worth moving scenes over. Since this is a costume difference in between whole movies I think there are multiple in-universe explanations for why the robes might look more or less tattered over time.
In terms of Moff Giedon’s facial hair I was say I was prepared for it to be jarring since his look is different in season two and season three. I went back and watched the new book three for a second time and I can so those fears are unfounded. You did a great job with the face. I just wasn’t a 100% sure you had tinkered with it since the hologram scene is not 100% clear image of his face and the stinger is a long shot from far away. Also it has been some time since I watched the original presentation of those scenes. Look forward to book four!
Great! Yeah, a lot of the close-ups are now removed anyway with the new tracker scene placement, so his appearance is good to go across the films as it doesn’t ever change within the same movie.
Also, I think I am for extending the Fennec being shot scene and keeping the Greef/ Mando conflict scene. I think it is important to see his change of heart and while I know many do not like the sequels, I think it helps reinforce force heal in the universe as we see both Grogu and Rey use it more than once. I would trim the Mando head injury if one needs to be cut as I feel without the helmet removal included, the scene is not that important and he is back with the gang only like a minute later so that gets my vote for the trim.
I can’t keep those two lengthy scenes in, the film just goes on for too long. And the more I look at it the more I like the total balance of the film to have the longer Act 2 with the Fennec scene and trim down Act 3 with the cuts. That just helps the pacing of Boba’s story in general anyway. Missing Greef’s change of heart over being healed is the toughest part to lose, but they don’t really bring that up ever again in the entire show so it’s sadly unimportant overall. I think we can get away with Greef’s demeanor toward Din and Grogu being a natural result of their shared experiences rather than the whole “I was going to kill you until I got poisoned by a bird and you saved me” explanation. I have completely altered the Rey force healing to not occur like that in my Sequels trilogy anyway as that type of force healing power completely broke Legends lore, so I’m actually glad to be able to cut Grogu doing that as well as I want these edits to feel as Legends friendly as possible. I always thought there’d be some sort of explanation for Grogu’s unique healing power, but then it’s just never addressed at all and then poof Rey was doing it in the theater a couple of months later and I hated it there too. But alas, I think the cuts help the pacing in general as Eddie suggested.
Book 3 seems good to go as is, so I’m still on pace for the Book 4 release this week!
I finished the revised book three recently and I do love what you have done with it! The standout scenes in my opinion is Boba being responsible for the speederbike crash of Din’s when he is carry his armor back to town. I also like the end montage from the introduction of the shadow council scene from season three, to the brief scene borrowed from season three with the mandos amassing their fleet and finally Boba with his “tribe” and Din with his “tribe”. You have done a great job. Cannot wait till the updated book four!
Minor Note: I was a bit concerned about continuity issue as you have moved scenes around from different scenes. The Moff Gideon scene was the biggest concern, especially how close the hologram scene is during the mando heist on the cargo ship and the shadow council scene and the stinger at the end of the moff overlooking his dark troopers (regarding is his facial hair appearing, disappearing and reappearing). However, I think it works as the hologram is not very clear, then you have the shadow council scene, then you have a long shot of him admiring the dark troopers. Only other minor continuity scene I believe I found, but I could be mistaken is moving Boba’s scenes around his cloak is burned by the acid in some earlier scenes now that are moved around before he visits the sarlacc, but overall it is not too noticeable. I do love this series and look forward to seeing how you save the modern day Boba Fett scenes and season three of mando. Keep up the great work and may the force be with you!
Thanks for the review! Book 4 had the least amount of needed updates, so that should definitely be out sometime this coming week.
Regarding the continuity of those scenes, I don’t think there should be any instances of Gideon’s facial hair changing. As you can see in the picture, I had deepfaked his season 3 face onto his scenes in this film to remove his facial hair and color-masked his hair to be black instead of grey in the shadow council scene.
Are there specific timestamps from where you noticed inconsistencies in his appearance? I can touch those up if there is something that jumps out.
For Boba’s robes, I hadn’t ever noticed that before but I can look at the scene order and see if I can maybe mask some of that too if it’s distracting. You said you might be mistaken, but if it stuck out to you, can you see which scenes you were saying the acid burns are there vs not?
Loved both movies 1 and 2. Both are structured excellently, feel focused and movie-like, and flow well. I especially enjoyed the balance of Boba/Mando in movie 2, and the movement of Sorgan to exclusively book two. I wouldn’t change any of their structure, stories, or trims. And your audio editing has got noticeably smoother. Definitely my mains.
However, you have a major issue with colour in book one. I know you’ve responded to comments here, but it’s a significant deterioration of colour, and more than just saturation, it’s added really strong unnatural shades of teal and orange. Have a look at the difference: https://ibb.co/NK2Gby3. If it’s deliberate recolouring, please reconsider! If not, something is going wrong in your pipeline - either an effect is being applied (and it should be easy to un-apply it), or you’re reading the files in a slightly incorrect colour space that’s maybe being compounded if your later versions are editing the rendered outputs of your earlier versions. This might be related to your crushed blacks issue from before, which also suggests a slightly incorrect colour space is being read. I know I’ve been a bit of a hound about these edits but I feel like they’re such a good idea and so well-executed that I just really want to champion you getting them to that 100% quality.
Great, then I’m going to do a couple of tiny bug fixes/adjustments on Book 1/2, but overall it sounds like the story is locked on the first 3 and ready to be considered complete!
As far as the color goes, I definitely prefer colorful visuals to the drab washed-out appearance that Disney Star Wars seems to lean toward. I have done color adjustments to every planet uniquely, but the pic you sent looks quite drastic and I suspect I made an adjustment layer on top of the scene in addition to adjusting the scene itself, which would double the intended effect. I will take a peak. As far as the blacks/banding go, I haven’t been able to address it at all. It’s burnt into the source footage on my timeline to begin with and I’d need to remake dozens of hours of work to fix it. I love crystal clear 4k footage as much as anyone, but as I’ve said before this project originated in my basement pre-covid and was my first foray into fan editing. I had very early versions of these films made just for me and my wife to watch back then, years before I even knew this website existed. If I ever hit a total lull in the action on editing, I have mentioned before I’d like to manually go frame by frame to replace all the bad-looking scenes with 4k, but at this point, I’d rather work on the story than spend a couple months solely on a visual update. Trust me, I know as is it knocks a point or two off of the films as far as reviews go, but it’s just a monster task to fix right now.
Other than that:
- Book one is great, as I say. You do still have the duplicated shot of Mando approaching the pirate station though. I think you can trim the second one away no problem.
- In book two, as I mentioned in a previous post, that duplicated scene.
- For me, even though your new book 2 improves the balance and pacing through to the ending, I’d probably still prefer to trim the Mando-Greef conflict and Mando’s head injury being serious, but that’s just me and I get why you’ve done that.
Looking forward to 3!
How do we feel about extending the Fennec death back to full, and trimming the Act 3 segment on Nevarro like Eddie suggests? I can’t keep all three scenes at full length, the film already drags on a bit too long as is. These are all changes I’ve gone back and forth on a lot so I’m open to a couple yays or nays to push me over the edge here.
Also, thank you to everyone else who has left kind words about the edits. It’s been an incredible experience working on this saga with such caring feedback and suggestions. The brainstorming that has occurred in this thread has been phenomenal. The films have grown so much and really feel like something special due to how many ideas have come from the Star Wars fan community.
Book 3: The Tribes update is released, and the film is now available for viewing. Post here or DM for the link!
I have a question about your book 3. I have never watched Mando Season 3, I dont intend to, I’m going to watch your cuts for the rest of the series. You put Grogu’s rescue by Luke in book 4, right? Watching that trailer, and maybe I’m wrong you can tell me, If I am looking correctly, do you move some of the Mando Season 3 Grogu content to /before/ he is captured by Gideon/rescued by Luke? Or maybe I am just confused. But if you did and it works, that would actually be a great way to salvage some of that S3 Grogu content.
Well thanks, I’m glad you enjoy my edits enough to do that! Yes, Grogu is rescued by Luke at the end of Book 4. I’ve got clips from Book of Boba interspersed throughout my saga, so if you’ve not seen that show perhaps those are the clips you are unfamiliar with? There are a few complications with using Season 3 footage early on, mostly to do with costumes/armor as it is acquired at certain points in the story. But I have just a couple of Season 3 shots in the early films, I don’t think any of it is Grogu though. If there’s a specific scene you have in mind I’ll be happy to tell you where it’s from though, I know this footage inside and out by now
I have watched Boba Fett, there was just stuff I didnt recognize in your Book 3 trailer that I assumed was Season 3. It’s been some time since I watched Season 2, I only watched it once since it released, maybe I’m just not remembering it (for example I didnt recognize that shot of the structure on the ocean blowing up)
Ah, so that structure explosion scene that you mentioned… Yes, it’s from the whole episode on Trask (the water planet), but I altered the speed/scale of the scene, the coloring grading, and custom-made the explosion soundtrack so that might be why it wasn’t as immediately recognizable.
Sounds great though. Will the links I received for the old versions be updated or do I need to get new ones?
Sometimes I lose track of DM’s and links, so if you don’t have something then just let me know. All of the updated versions are now in their own folders that give you access to the poster, trailer, and film. I paid for enough space in the drive finally so I can just reupload into the folders without needing to send new links out each time I make a version of a film.
As far as going all in on your edits, I just feel your approach with Boba, integrating his content entirely into Mandalorian and truly making them one show, is the best way to salvage that content. I wanted a full Boba show, I love that character. I actually enjoyed his 5 episodes mroe than the Mandalorian… but… It’s not happening. We got what we got. I feel your approach is the best way to save that content.
Thanks! There’s been a lot of discussion about what to do with Boba’s “modern day” BoBF storyline, and eventually, I did decide to maintain as much of it as possible. In Book 6/7 you should see more of him. Still working out all the details and I’ve created a half dozen versions of so many scenes… but I’m confident I’ll get something to work.
In movie 2 you have the “don’t touch the buttons” scene twice- once at the start and once at 80 mins in. Otherwise, it’s excellent so far. You’ve nailed the balance and transitions of the Boba and Mando content.
Thank you! That was a total oversight on my part with the moving the Sorgan landing to Book 2. I am fixing it right now, splitting the scene in half so we get the Sorgan content in the beginning and then the humor bit individually at the 80-minute mark. The fixed version should be up in the folder this evening. Glad to hear the back-and-forth pacing of Din/Boba is improved!
Book 3: The Tribes update is released, and the film is now available for viewing. Post here or DM for the link!
I have a question about your book 3. I have never watched Mando Season 3, I dont intend to, I’m going to watch your cuts for the rest of the series. You put Grogu’s rescue by Luke in book 4, right? Watching that trailer, and maybe I’m wrong you can tell me, If I am looking correctly, do you move some of the Mando Season 3 Grogu content to /before/ he is captured by Gideon/rescued by Luke? Or maybe I am just confused. But if you did and it works, that would actually be a great way to salvage some of that S3 Grogu content.
Well thanks, I’m glad you enjoy my edits enough to do that! Yes, Grogu is rescued by Luke at the end of Book 4. I’ve got clips from Book of Boba interspersed throughout my saga, so if you’ve not seen that show perhaps those are the clips you are unfamiliar with? There are a few complications with using Season 3 footage early on, mostly to do with costumes/armor as it is acquired at certain points in the story. But I have just a couple of Season 3 shots in the early films, I don’t think any of it is Grogu though. If there’s a specific scene you have in mind I’ll be happy to tell you where it’s from though, I know this footage inside and out by now
I have finally finished all 5 Books: incredible work, they are now actually something I will genuinely want to re-visit again and again in the future and I look forward to doing so (I had given up with the original material as was likely never going to rewatch the original series).
They are so good in fact that I have removed all stored recordings of the original series and your edits are the ones I am keeping. The original will be unwatchable after having seen yours!
Thank you so much and if you have future links for Book 3 oniwards I would love to receive links if you can find time.
Many thanks for all your efforts,
Tim.
Wow, Tim, thanks for the review! I will keep you in the loop for all the updated releases and for the completion of the saga.
I know this isn’t an idea you’ll be able to implement immediately since you just did a release, but I was watching For A Few Dollars More, and it had this great opening text
“Where life had no value, death, sometimes, had its price.
That is why the bounty killers appeared.”I feel like something like this, in the star wars blue text, would be awesome at the start of your first movie.
It’s a cool idea that reminds of The Clone Wars intros, but I’m not sure that would fit with the visual style I’m going for in these edits.
Acbagel, just wanted to say I love your new poster images, they remind of the 90’s novel book covers you used to see back in the day. They look great in Plex.
For sure! That’s exactly what I was aiming for with them and so many people have asked for Plex posters that it’s been worth putting the time into. Speaking of…
Book 3 Poster, Trailer, and Changelog time!
Changelog:
deagan said:
Another thing I noticed for this part, is that Boba says “I can’t see a thing!” entering the Sarlac pit, then immediately turns on the light of their ship. This felt a bit redundant and out-of-character, wouldn’t Boba the brooding and intelligent bounty hunter just turn on the light quietly?
“OMG, it’s so dark inside of this monster rnrn, omg!” turns on flashlight
Haha fixed this sequence up to make more sense, bugged me too after reading your comment.
Moved Boba’s two Sarlaac scenes to be closer together so it didn’t seem like he was there for hours/days.
Now onto Book 3 (I’m doing a hasty review through with fresh eyes): I know you want to keep Gideon’s presence high throughout the series, but I’d change his appearances in this one. You have him in two main sequences in this movie - the first being the Shadow Council scene (where we learn that the Imperial Remnants are coordinated, get some good context for wider plots including Thrawn, and have Gideon declare he wants to stamp out the Mandalorians), and the second being the tracker scene and Gideon talking about catching Mando and Grogu to continue their cloning.
I think both of these need a little shift, and will try to justify why. But firstly, let me address the fact that I don’t think we need Gideon to have a strong presence in this movie. Yes it’s nice to see him, and to keep him feeling like an overhanging threat. But, so long as each movie at least escalates that threat, I think that need is satisfied. Compare now to your current Book 5, where we don’t see Grogu in the movie until the very end, which leaves us on an interesting development. I think doing the same here would be fine - you still come away from this movie on a punchy note where the Gideon plot has escalated.
So, regarding the tracker plot, I know it’s used here currently to illustrate Gideon’s will and skill to hunt Grogu down. However, the plot about capturing Grogu and his clone relevance really doesn’t continue until your Book 4. I know you’re using it to make the Imperial presence on the Mon Calamari planet more of a trap, but to be honest I don’t think that quite sells, with the dialogue we have. I also don’t think it’s necessary - from Din’s perspective his whole storyline in this movie has been to find Mandalorians, something he finally does at the end. Personal stakes for Gideon don’t add much here (especially as the Imperial resistance is quite weak), so having them as a thorn in his side which helps ingratiate him to Bo Katan’s faction is plenty.
Secondly, regarding the Shadow Council plot, I think that would work better AFTER that Mandalorian-Imperial conflict, as the triggering act behind making Gideon then declare that the Mandalorians must be stamped out. That then leaves our episode on the nice punchy finale (Thrawn reveal, escalation and all), which leaves the threat now overhanging the future movies. It’s the Mandalorians directly striking at Imperials which makes it into a vendetta for Gideon. I would also, as some have suggested, trim the lines about requisitions, as they’ll take now three movies to pay off. (Boba and team have also destroyed the Imperial base on Nevarro, including Gideon’s clones, this movie, so he’s taken a double hit onscreen, further justifying his rage at the end.)
This way, you’d have a straightforward Din-Grogu adventure as they seek Mandalorians, with issues and false leads along the way (and nearly bumping into Boba again), with their actions ending up triggering an escalation of the conflict between Mandalorians and Imperials.
Then, in your Book 4, you could introduce “I’ve placed a tracker” and that subplot just after Mando leaves the planet with that ex-Imperial warlord. We know she’s got ties to Thrawn, and thus the Shadow Council, so it’s absolutely feasible that an Imperial spy could be operating there to report back to Gideon. The dialogue there would reinforce that Gideon wants Grogu - and then he’d strike immediately, on the very next planet, where Din finally meets Boba and the Imperials show up to kidnap Grogu. Again, I think that’s neater, and keeps each movie more focused. You could cut the two elements of the tracker scene around the one of Din on the Crest trying to get Grogu to grab the ball with the force.
A final note on moving the tracker scenes to the following movie - this new suggested ordering would now make more sense of the lines about Pershing’s cloning work being lost, since in this ordering, this discussion would follow the events of Din and co destroying the final Nevarro facility (including clones) the movie prior.
I have implemented this whole idea. To summarize, the Shadow Council scene moved near the very end of the film, tracker scene moved to Book 4.
I have updated the “Boba Shoots Din’s bike” scene according to the feedback surrounding the prior version. The consensus was: Make Boba more clearly shoot and watch Din, add a voice line from thug “Grab the armor”, and add a Boba scene explaining why he doesn’t rush in to attack Din. See this scene demo here
Added a Din voice line, “This is why I don’t trust repair droids,” to explain why his landing gear fails again when trying to land on Trask, indicating that Pelli’s pit droids didn’t fix it properly.
As far as changes go- the ending seems rapid. This type of middle film could benefit from some Act 2 screenplay maneuvers. For example, at the end it would be great to see what each of the characters is doing, perhaps over a music montage. This is a BUILDER episode- so let’s see our characters build. Brainstorming here- something like showing Grogu play with the metal ball as music builds, briefly showcase Vance peaceful in the desert, Fennec and Boba (especially Boba) on his spaceship nodding, perhaps some happy Tuskens, INTERSPERSE THE BALL SPINNING AND MANDO LOOKS AT GROGU, Bo Katan on her new ship looking stoic, Cara Dune in her town…etc. Even an evil shot of Gideon would be good to include (he is building too). End with Grogu and Mando together. This film showed SO MANY CHARACTERS so a small musical denouement of “victory poses” can show the characters as “in progress” for what is about to come in the next Book 4.
I have created this new “montage” ending to reflect this comment.
Additionally, there are several other minor soundtrack and video transition updates for quality.
The film release will be tomorrow but for now…
Having watched the Clone wars this is really good haven’t been getting bored and have been engaged with every episode and no cringe dialogue. I have a suggestion if i may to improve the edit, how about using AI software to copy Temuera Morrison voice to read the intro dialogue at the beginning of every episode similar to the original star wars battlefront 2 game with the 501st journal.
I have tried multiple times to get an AI Temuera voice but I just can’t get it to resemble him at all. His voice is so unique, I’m not sure there is currently publicly available technology to replicate it well enough. If someone has found a way to do so, let me know though!
Looks awesome! I’d love a link to book 3 when you’re ready. I really like the structure of book 1, here’s a couple things I noticed:
- I think the cut where Mando puts mythrol in Carbonite is a little too abrupt, I think it would be better to extend it a little bit. I like the buildup seeing Mando’s gun closet and other bounties. Gives a good sense of the character as an intro.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the film. Yeah, I’ve experimented a bit with the scene over the different versions, the main goal was to help the pacing move into the main plot quicker and avoid the potty joke/weirdness of that scene… At the end of the day, I could tinker with 100 different shots every time I open the project and at some point, I have to just move along. But, I’ve added this as a note if I ever come back to this film down the road.
- I don’t know how much you color graded these, but I feel that it’s a little too saturated and not as crisp of an image as it could be. Book 2 looks better, though.
Overall I think it works great, can’t wait to see the new updates.
The earlier films struggle with source footage quality. Sadly, this has been something that has always held them back since I first started working on this project in 2020, and didn’t know as much about fan editing as I know now. The visual quality improves as the series continues.
Hey Acbagel, have you considered adding the title of each Book at the beginning of each movie?
I have, and I think way early on in the project I had the standard “The Mandalorian” cards in there before I made the “The Way of Mandalore” logo during the reboot of the project. However, I don’t like the feeling of the title cards interrupting the story, it makes it feel like a TV show rather than a movie. If I were to include a title, it would be at the very beginning of the film in place of the crawl, but also I don’t think my logo looks good enough to hold its own in place of a crawl haha. It’s kind of an intriguing idea to animate the logo a little bit and add it to the top of a standard Star Wars crawl with the grey colors…? Might experiment with that one day.
Book 2 additional materials are released. I still plan to release Book 3 trailer/poster tomorrow and the updated film on Friday!
(I used Photoshop to combine a couple of pieces of Disney-commissioned art for that one and am really happy with the results, looks pretty sweet!)
Links sent!
Still working on the Book 3 update, but I’ve had a few more requests from people who have never seen The Mandalorian before and my series is their first introduction to the story… I find that quite humbling and I wanted to take some time to prepare some surrounding material for my releases and organize the links/download folders a bit more.
So I have created a Trailer and Poster for Book 1, and those are immediately available to access in your previous download links in DMs as well as linked below. Book 2 material will be released tomorrow, and I hope to have the Book 3 update ready to release on Friday.
All footage belongs to Disney
Soundtrack by Samuel Kim
Poster artwork by Chelsea Lowe
Links sent! I am starting work on the Book 3 update today. I will let you guys know how it goes, shouldn’t take too long as this one was pretty close to being final form already.
Watched the revised Book One and Book Two over the weekend and you really have outdone yourself! The ending to Book Two is so satisfying. I can’t wait to get the rest of the revised books and to see the conclusion of season three of Mando in this series. Keep up the amazing work!
Thanks for the new feedback, Darth! I’m glad the final touches were worth it, with the time off of editing for a while, being able to review my whole series before finishing Season 3 is helping a lot to clear my vision on the final arc of the story. And then it seems like my next entry into TWoM will be from something already in movie format perhaps in 2025…? That will take care of a lot of my work for me haha
These sound really great. While I wait for this to download, I’ll ask: Did you decide to trim the ending in the couple of ways I suggested? I posted a test which skipped the false Mando-Greef conflict, and another which made Mando’s head injury much more minor to allow the ending conflict to progress quicker. Worked for me, but it’s cool if you didn’t!
I pondered and struggled with these suggestions, and I’m not sure if it was the right call, but I decided not to implement them. The Mando head injury one had conflicting suggestions from various people, some saying they wanted me to re-extend the scene, and some saying they liked it short or wanted it even shorter… I couldn’t find a consensus and have never felt strongly about it past the initial changes I’ve made, so I left it as is which was the middle-of-the-road (perhaps cowardly haha) option. As far as the Greef trim, that’s the one that I might regret leaving in? I have no doubt the pacing of Act 3 works better with your edit, and admittedly this film drags on a tad too long right now, but I couldn’t pull the trigger on cutting that segment. It’s something where if I was a director, someone above me would’ve forced those scenes out, but I’m fine with the “extended cut” release I have here. Looking back, I’m still not a fan of the overpowered force healing ability, but damn if it doesn’t make me emotional every time I see it. And I recall watching it originally when season 1 first released, and that scene had magic and stuck in my mind, so again it’s just something I didn’t have the guts to cut entirely. Great suggestion for pacing and structure, but I subjectively left it in because of good memories with it.
Updated Book 2 is released! Post here/DM for the new link. Changelog below:
New Act 1 scene order/transitions. The back-and-forth pacing of Din and Boba’s story was an incredible challenge when I first created this idea, and one of the sticking points from the last release was trying to get some better “connective tissue” and balance between the storyline transitions. I painstakingly wrote out every scene from the last release and tried to combine the puzzles to give thematically and visually satisfying transitions. I believe it is a marked improvement over the prior film in this area. From new shot orders within scenes to scene organization to altered transition SFX and visuals, I hope this creates a more unified structure.
Per my scene demo posted above, I have engineered a new extended scene for Din’s Sorgan landing to better pace out his content in Act 1. With new content in the landing to the nighttime scene with the locals, this will help explain how they got into the Sorgan village in the first place.
New Cara Dune storyline. This was my biggest personal gripe with the last release, I could not figure out a cohesive way to introduce/involve Cara without the full Sorgan side quest. I tried something in the previous version, and it was functional, but still felt a bit choppy to me. I have a brand new attempt at all of her scenes on Sorgan plugged into this update which I much prefer. To summarize, it’s a bit more somber than the old chummy version where it seemed like they bonded too quickly. When I watch this version, I now see mutual respect more than buddy-buddy friends right away. As Cara tells Din he needs to leave the planet for her safety, Din understands why, and out of respect for a fellow warrior he does so. As Din prepares to leave, Cara sees how happy Grogu is and she starts to regret it all, Din tells her that he will be leaving but Grogu will be staying. She seems to accept this proposal after watching Grogu play with the children, but of course, this is before the assassination attempt on Grogu, and that prompts the whole storyline to move forward. As Din leaves the planet with Grogu, I have a new soundtrack to tie into Boba’s journey which completely changes the tone of this whole scene. I hope it tugs the heartstrings!
- When Mando’s ship is shot at before he heads to Tatooine, can you add some line about looking for a nearby planet? Because he mentions losing fuel and then he’s just pushing buttons, switches and then a voice says: “Mos Eisley, bay 3.” It just would make it make more sense. If that line is available.
This suggestion is added, great idea! Din now says, “We meed to make an emergency landing,” before he sublight travels to Tattooine.
- Here I go with the ending again, sorry. I think you should SW wipe from the darksaber moment with Gideon to Boba and Fennec with him saying “tribes” to the last scene you had with Mando, where we see him with his little tribe, him and Grogu. That way you end on Mando.
I have also altered the ending scene order to this as well. Another great idea! New soundtrack here as well.
EddieDean said:
Another thought for Book 2. We’ve talked a lot about the overlap point between Din and Boba, around Fennec’s unconscious body. I think the ordering you have right now from Din’s perspective is absolutely right, but I’d tweak Boba’s just slightly. I’d cut from the scene of Din and Grogu flying away (the shot of the Crest from behind going off into space) to the scene of Boba discovering Fennec - but only to the point where he turns her over and sees who she is. (This works nicely with the shot of the ship leaving, since abnormally for this show, the camera doesn’t follow the ship away - it’s almost as if the direction here says “there’s more to see on Tattooine first even though Din is leaving”). Then, once Boba turns over Fennec, cut to the scene of levity in the Crest cockpit into the flight toward the wetlands planet (music works for this), and the scene of Din and Grogu seeing Cara’s fight. Then back to Tattooine for Boba and Fennec now sitting at a warm fire, and you’re back to where you were. This version of events just slightly improves the timing of scenes relative to each other, and makes a bit more logical sense to me.
This suggestion was implemented, thanks!
It feels like it takes a long time to reach Mando- (14 minutes). Perhaps starting the Mando in the village scene earlier could help. A good earlier segue point would be when Boba arrives at the raider camp. If we add a Mando cut here, we see a tighter similarity in Mando “Moving in” to the village, as Boba is “moving in” to the slave camp. It would also mean where your second cutaway would land is now when Mando is “fitting in” as Boba is “fitting in”- tightening the two halves of our story.
I would also love to see even a glimpse of Boba in his nighttime chains to extend the perception of time to the audience.
Both of these are now in!
I would love to get just a little more of Fennec’s droid, we jump immediately to the droid returning. It’s minor but a scene separation or slightly additional footage of its exploration might help here.
When they sneak into the bay- they are caught immediately. It seems really quick. A second or two of sneaking before this would be good to imply they have gone undetected for a bit- but I don’t know what footage you even have for this!
Added a brief scene of each of these moments, thanks!
“Kuilil do you copy” - I think the pan up would go to his body for the most efficient storytelling. We can infer Grogu is with the scouts.
Done!
Aside from those changes above, I did a bit of volume balancing across the film, new transitions throughout, a couple of new soundtracks, adjusted shot orders in scenes, etc. A step up all around, thanks so much to everyone who wrote out so many suggestions and participated in the discussion about this film, months later it was amazing to have all of that available to review and implement. You guys are the best, hope you enjoy the new version of the film! Onto Book 3 after the weekend!
Book 2 update is complete! Exporting right now, will post changelog in the morning and start sending out links tomorrow once it’s uploaded to the drive.
Great to see you back in full swing. Your Mando edits are the best I’ve seen. (Which btw I’d love to have the updated book 1 if you don’t mind sending a link my way)
And enjoy Witcher 3! What I’d give to play that for the first time again
Thanks, very kind of you! I have been getting a ton of requests for the series lately in DMs, so I really appreciate everyone online who keeps recommending them on various forums and sites. Makes this Star Wars fan happy to see others get some new enjoyment out of an awesome storyline.
Thanks Acbagel for the links, much appreciated. I just finished watching Book 1 earlier this evening, such a better format and flow than the TV series, fantastic work! I’ll be going back over the TV series to see the changes and to give some perspective. Then onto Book 2 and onwards 😃
Again, thanks so much for all your hard work.
Glad you had fun with it! Highly recommend waiting for the Book 2 link tomorrow since it’s designed to pair with the updated Book 1 in terms of scene organization. Can’t wait to share the film tomorrow, I really think I found some great solutions for a couple hang-ups in the previous Book 2.
T-202 said:
Honestly this works pretty well, sure some of the AI is a little lifeless but I think the lines work well. It gives the story a little more room to breath and helps better explain why Mando is on the planet and how he got to the village. The only thing that weirded me out was the changing aspect ratio but that was probably just to hide something I can’t remember off screen.
The pacing is needed and some lines sound a bit better than others, but I didn’t have any music/sfx blending completed in that preview yet so it should feel much more natural in the final cut. I also didn’t fix the aspect ratios yet, this was just an idea concept draft.
kypo said:
I like this addition. The AI is pretty good here and it makes total sense for this stage of the story. This addition lets the characters breathe, and the double night scenes with Boba helps show time pass for every story thread. It sounds like the bounce back and forth will help hold tension on Boba’s narrative.Great work, ACBAGEL!
Kypo approved, it’s locked in! I did some more touch-ups on the lines and background sound and also changed some of the AI dialogue to have a better delivery/tone, so I’m happy with the overall inclusion now.
Was the AI those first lines “need to do some maintenance” ?
Because if so, that sounds GOOD. I was critical of the example you were testing for the first movie (in the Werner Herzog scene), but this one really works. The fact that I was questioning it at all, you got me.
Yes, that line is all AI. Some lines in the clip sounded better than others, but there are a few that even I can barely tell which ones I created! I don’t want to use AI lines much throughout the saga, but the potential to occasionally buff up a scene is something I don’t want to pass up on.
Also a quick workload/life update. I haven’t been editing nearly as much as over the summer/fall, and I won’t go into details but I have completed the personal project that was taking up so much of my time previously. Work-related project that has nothing to do with fan edits, but I am hopeful to get back into focused editing again on Monday. The time off here also came with a very enjoyable dive into the Witcher series where I read all 8 books, all the comics, 2 games (currently playing the 3rd for the first time), etc. Man, I wish I could edit that Netflix series to be anything watchable, but holy crap that thing is an actual abomination… Anyways, The Way of Mandalore lives! I am about 33% through the update on Book 2 and plan to have that released next week. Then onward full speed. I’m excited to get into the Bad Batch at some point soon too.
I believe everyone who asked for the new version has it now, but let me know if I missed you!
I am working through the Book 2 update right now. The main task was to get more of a balance with Din scenes in Act 1, and possibly make some better “connective tissue” between the transitions and story beats with Boba. So I had the main benefit of being able to get Din’s Sorgan landing sequence in this film instead of Book 1, but I also wanted to extend that out a little more for pacing balance. I have a little mock up scene here (still unpolished in A/V editing) that helps lengthen the landing sequence rather than having Din immediately make it into the fishing village for lodging like my previous Book 2. Let me know If you think any of this works and I’ll finish it up!
This occurs ~6 minutes into the film after Boba is dragged away by the Tuskens for the first time.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1saXqaYV0VQfxkviqTs54D2g6yheM_2IF/view?usp=sharing
Updates are completed on Book 1 and the film is exported. I decided not to go with any additional AI voice lines as I couldn’t get anything to feel natural. I have some placed in later films that I think work much better. Onto Book 2 now! Going through some older posts to find the consensus on a few scene changes.
Simple poster I made with the end card logo to use on my plex server:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nvUpNH5TRzNDl68yLW2IGu2Wc2iUmY9z/view?usp=drivesdk
Excited for the next updates!
Love it! Movie posters are something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. Would love to be able to release a unique one for each film for all the Plex users out there.
Acbagel said:
Yes, I agree on that. Tough to replicate gruffness in an AI voice model… I’m trying out some different effects to see if I can make it work. Din actually loses a lot of the gruff sound in his tone as the seasons go on, but early on it’s definitely present.So, I’ve been watching your first movie and I’ll post notes later (been sick this weekend so I couldnt do it in one sitting, Im gonna start it over and watch in one sitting later this week).
But I will say, for this particular scene, it’s a cool experiment that I think could be useful elsewhere, but for this scene it’s totally unnecessary. How in your current version Din just says nothing… It’s fine. There’s nothing to fix so I think it would only be detrimental in this particular case.
Thanks for the feedback! Yeah maybe it isn’t needed. Was trying to get in that “thesis line” that Kypo talked about, but maybe it isn’t necessary. I think Din comes across as the lone wolf warrior without needing to actually state it. I think I’ll render the update and ship as is!