SpenceEdit

EddieDean said:

I really didn’t think a movie edit was necessary, but reading through your thought process has absolutely sold me.

Likewise, I didn’t feel like music editing was necessary, but all four of those examples have been brilliant. I especially liked Obi-Wan in the water tunnel, and the Vader fight intro, where the music felt like it matched perfectly.

Thanks! I’m really trying to operate from a “what if this was planned as a movie from the beginning?” sort of viewpoint. It’s not necessarily about cutting things you don’t like or adding things you do like. It’s about what makes it feel like a real movie.

So I had a bit of fun today experimenting with adding some more classic Star Wars themes to the movie. Again, I wanted to do this fairly sparingly, but I felt like I could go a little further with it. It’s also important to me that we don’t hear any familiar themes until that first Imperial March at Vader’s castle, just for impact.

So here’s three tests. Nothing is final here, it just gives you an idea of what I’m trying to do.

First one is in the hallway at the fortress, where Kenobi finally gets back in tune with the Force.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RHLsWHUlO-Hwj3AsmBqrOamyXjc2SM43/view?usp=sharing

Second is the first half of the final duel. (I feel like a lot of people might like this one)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sjRDw1yf1sQbEq_pxvKxH2IWU3fCIs4I/view?usp=sharing

And finally, the transition from the duel to Alderaan.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J75QYQe0fuHRsRoPZ0yNwI7qT48cA2to/view?usp=sharing

I rendered these out at a pretty high quality level, so if you’re so inclined you can download it and check out how the new source files look.

I feel like these are more than enough regarding additional music. Not sure if I want to use them or not, so let me know what you think.

Back to the topic at hand, I am currently rendering out my first test of V3. Other than the big improvement to the video quality, here’s a few other changes:

• reinstated the GI’s “I would say that Jedi hunt themselves” in the opening scene.
• Added in a little more the Alderaan landing pad scene for better flow and transitions.
• reinstated Leia roasting her cousin.
• removed the remainder of the kidnapping scene. Ending it after the thug says “you!”
• removed the first scene of Leia with the kidnappers. Only keeping the one where Lola gets damaged.
• reinstated Kenobi digging up the lightsabers, which now acts as his “answering the call” moment.
• the scene where Kenobi leaves Tattooine has been removed, as it’s not needed now that the saber scene is back.
• reinstated the homeless clone trooper, for world building.
• Kenobi no longer sets off an explosion in the lab. He is able to slip through the lab unnoticed without it.
• reinstated Leia showing Lola to the other refugees on the ship, and her and Kenobi’s little bit of dialogue immediately after.
• reworked the refugee ship/escape sequence and the final duel for better transitions and pacing. Nothing hugely notable was removed or added. It was mostly audio work.
• other small changes throughout to help with timing and transitions.

You may have noticed that I added more than I removed on this go around. This is typical of the way I work. I tend to oversteer at first, then bring back things that feel like they need to be there.

So we are looking at exactly 2 hours and 25 minutes, which feels right to me.

I’m going to keep toying with this one till I’m absolutely satisfied, so I’d say another week or so.

I’ve so far been avoiding other Kenobi edits, but I did watch that one that went viral out of curiosity today and let’s just say… I don’t think I’ll be using any ideas from that one.

I’ve said this a thousand times, but I think it’s worth saying again.

The reason nobody can agree on Star Wars is that it means something different to everyone. It makes it challenging to be a creator in the universe, especially in an official capacity, but even in fanedits. Everyone loves (or hates) different aspects of the series. Because it’s so important to all of us, we all feel a sense of ownership over the story. It’s hard to realize that sometimes, Star Wars isn’t made specifically for you. And that’s fine!

No movie, show, book, game, comic, cartoon, or fanedit is going to please every single fan. It’s just not possible. And that’s also fine!

Anyway, that’s my roundabout way of saying I’m not putting the damn Palpatine scene back in.

… I jest.

Darth Muffy said:

Quality edit overall Spence, Octorox summarized most of what I felt and I completely agree with your comments here.
My additions would be:

• More John Williams score throughout
• Adding back the stormtroopers on the truck at Mapuzo but with a wipe to show time has passed before they get off.
• Cutting the wide shots at the trooper checkpoint to not show the massive gaps at the sides making the lazer gate redundant.
• Adding Obi vs Anakin flashbacks and splitting it to dream sequence on Tatioone & in backer tanks.
• Axing the fortress completely and making it seem Leia is in a more local rebal base on Mapuzo.

Have you looked at kai pattersons kenobi edit as he has some really good ideas you might want to consider using.

https://ew.com/tv/obi-wan-kenobi-fan-edit-turns-series-into-movie/

Hey! Thanks for the suggestions.

I’m considering more John Williams but I’m trying to be very selective with it. I don’t want to just add it in for no reason, as the music design of the show doesn’t completely match the rest of the saga, and I like that it has its own identity. I feel that Vader’s theme does need to be there more, so that was my focus.

I actually did add the troopers in the truck back for V2 and I’m further refining the scene for V3.

That’s a good idea about the laser gate, I’ll take a look at that.

The flashbacks are not going to be added to this version, nor is the fortress going to be cut.

I’m trying to avoid other Kenobi edits so I don’t end up taking a bunch of ideas. I’d rather see what I can come up with first. I’ll probably watch some other ones after I finish V3.

Phase3 said:

SpenceEdit said:

I just rendered my first full workprint with the new source video files, and oh boy. Even at 1080p it’s a huge difference.

What is your new video source file? Sorry if I missed an earlier post on this! Is it a higher-quality video file?
Your V2 already looks fantastic!

I was directed to some 4k files. They’re difficult to work with. So I’m using my 1080 ones to edit with, then replacing them with the 4k ones before rendering.

I’m not really interested in releasing in 4k, but the 1080p looks significantly better and it helped on the couple of shots I cropped.

I just rendered my first full workprint with the new source video files, and oh boy. Even at 1080p it’s a huge difference.

szopman said:

@Octorox
I meant cut it when they found her and say hello, them the next time we See her would be already on board of their ship.

I’m actually trying that out now, just removing the bit of the chase that I had. I think it works.

Better be careful, the anti-TLJ crowd might discover our conversation soon.

Octorox said:

SpenceEdit said:
I personally like that Kenobi is so hesitant. He’s been packing meat for 10 years, not used the force, not been in a fight. He’s depressed and feels useless. It would absolutely take a lot to get him back in the game.

Agreed

Oddly, I find a lot of the Star Wars community doesn’t like seeing their heroes struggle. I wonder why that is? It’s a really interesting story for these powerful characters like Kenobi and Luk.

szopman said:

-Bail convincing Obi-wan. It should be trimmed even more. Obi-wan wouldnt hesitate So much. Maybe the “Phone call” could be cut? Obi-wan shouldnt even be able to contact Bail So easily in the first place. Anyway, we dont need to See him how he enters the spaceship, we can cut directly to him landing On Daimyu.
-The cameo of Temeura should be reinserted 😭
-btw, not necesary for the story, but would be nice to See how Leia disses her cousin.

So I’m messing with this section of the movie right now. I personally like that Kenobi is so hesitant. He’s been packing meat for 10 years, not used the force, not been in a fight. He’s depressed and feels useless. It would absolutely take a lot to get him back in the game.

I am thinking of removing the big epic “going on the ship” moment because it feels needlessly epic. It works as the ending of the first episode, but I also feel like the buried lightsabers scene basically accomplishes the same thing.

I am starting to lean toward adding the clone trooper back in, just for world building.

I’m trying to make the escape from Jabim flow better, so I’ve got a little test clip here that I’d love some opinions on.

Basically, the scene needs to hit all the emotional/story beats while avoiding that “something’s missing” feeling due to all the Reva stuff I cut out. This sequence also takes way too long in the show. It works for the show as it’s the intro to an episode, but as a sort of tranistion/breaking point in the final part of a film, it can’t go on too long. So this gets us from leaving Jabim to Obi-Wan luring away Vader in 4 minutes.

There’s a section where I’ll need to rebuild the sound effects of the star destroyer firing at the ship. I did a little just as a placeholder, but if the idea seems to be working I’ll do much more detail on that.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bt7XB2vTq7ftZuDNFw-FH3crpFy2UuSZ/view?usp=sharing

Octorox said:

Thanks for your detailed response to my notes! If you’re having trouble with too much music bleed into the center channel, try https://www.lalal.ai/. It can very accurately isolates vocals, although that does mean that you need to rebuild sound effects.

It seems like you have a really strong intention behind your cuts and I respect how you’ve thought everything through, even if some of the choices you’ve made are a bit different from what I would do. Regarding the Leia stuff at the beginning, I get your impulse to try to get through it as quickly as possible, but I do think a lot of it is important to her character arc, and the series/movie is very much a two-hander between Kenobi and Leia. I don’t think you would lose the audience if you spent a little more time there. I always have to remind myself that we don’t meet our main character in the original Star Wars until 20 minutes into the movie.

I think you’re right. I’m going to expand that scene and put her roasting the cousin back in. Probably retain the rest of my changes that I made though.

Hey! Thanks, there’s some really great feedback here.

Octorox said:

So I finally got a chance to sit down and watch V2. Overall I think it’s a big improvement, and as close to a perfect “movie length” rendition as you can get. That said, I do still have some quibbles. In particular, I think there are a few lines and scenes where either a setup or payoff is removed, so they don’t land as well as they should. I feel like 5-10 more minutes of breathing room, which would put the overall length in the ballpark of The Last Jedi, would really be the sweet spot.

The goal was always under 2 and a half hours, so I do have a bit of wiggle room.

Octorox said:
-When Leia tells her father that “she’s not a real Organa”, we no longer have the context of it being something Leia was told by her cousin that she internalized. In this new context, it seems like it was Leia’s original thought, which imo doesn’t quite add up. I personally don’t mind Leia’s precocious reading of her cousin because I interpreted it as an example of her latent Force ability. I wonder if there’s any way you could reinstate some of that scene, at least enough to get the original context of the line back.

In all honesty, I tried to get through it all as briefly as possible, as the only scene in that whole Leia intro that’s really essential is her conversation with Bail. I may have overcorrected. I’ll play with it.

Octorox said:
-when Reva stabs the Grand Inquisitor in the chest, she says “who’s in the gutter now?” Unfortunately the original line spoken to Reva by the Grand Inquisitor about “finding her in the gutter” has been cut, so this no longer makes much sense. It’s repeated by The Grand Inquisitor again at the end, and there it feels like it’s calling back to something that we no longer hear.

-In Fortress Inquisitorius, Tala says something to the effect of “what are they hiding down there” but we no longer have the payoff of the Jedi tomb scene. I would just trim this line out if possible.

Both of these things have already been corrected for the next version.

Octorox said:
-Tala’s death feels like it carries significantly less weight without her relaying her full history with the Empire in a heart to heart with Obi-Wan. Her character has a reduced presence overall, and while I think you were smart to cut a lot of the antics in the Fortress Inquisitorius, I feel like this scene should have stayed.

-When we see Leia dress up with her boots and holster at the end, it no longer mirrors her introductory scene. I was glad you reinstated her scene in the woods but I still missed this parallel, which showed the character’s growth in how she feels about her role as a representative of Alderaan.

Respectfully, I think these scenes feel like their missing only because you know they exist. If we weren’t aware they existed, it wouldn’t feel off to not include them. That’s my justification for it anyway.

Octorox said:
-In this cut, the fact that Reva is behind Leia’s kidnapping is now revealed when Obi-Wan learns it. I think this is a smart change, but I wonder if something about the score or the editing could be tweaked to really underline the fact that this is a reveal to the audience.

Maybe a more dramatic musical beat here? That could help.

Octorox said:
-At around 1 hours and 37 minutes in, Roken mouths a line but it can’t be heard. I assume this is just an editing mistake.

Not sure what happened on that one. I’ll look at it.

Octorox said:

-Obi-Wan digs up his and Anakin’s lightsabers: I would like to see if this scene could be incorporated without intercutting it with Reva. It’s a nice call forward to the saber’s final resting place in Rise of Skywalker
-Obi-Wan sees a Clone Wars vet begging on the street (this is so short that I can’t imagine it would significantly impact the runtime to reinstate it)

Yeah, I miss that scene too. I feel like it kind of needs to be there. Maybe just that bit with a new musical queue? Could be a good opportunity to throw some classic JW in there.

Octorox said:
-Haja’s whole “Fake Jedi” dog and pony show. I feel like his status as a huckster doesn’t quite land as clearly in this edit.

Personally, I think we got enough of him being silly and using the magnets to sell it. That portion of the movie needs to move at a higher pace, so I don’t see this going back in.

Octorox said:
-For whatever reason, I felt the absence of Obi-Wan packing up his stuff in his cave at the end. I really liked the symbolic aspect of him getting a fresh start by moving to a new home.

This is (partially) added back in for the next version.

Octorox said:

-In the scene where Reva explains that she put a tracker on Kenobi’s ship, I feel like you can cut after Vader says “it seems I have underestimated you”. Maybe end on a self-assured looking reaction shot of Reva if possible. The scene feels a little too drawn out right now, especially since you’ve cut most other bickering between the Inquisitors.

This is a great suggestion. I’ll see if I can make it work.

Octorox said:
Also I felt like there were a couple other instances where familiar JW themes could have been used:
-I wanted to hear the leitmotif from Battle of the Heroes somewhere. I feel like there are a couple callbacks to that fateful duel where it could have been slotted in. Not the full choir, just a few notes.
-it would have been nice to hear Qui-Gon’s theme when he finally appears.
-As for OT themes, I think you could have used The Rebel Fanfare when the T-47s come to the rescue, and Luke’s theme when Obi-Wan finally gets to meet him. For all of these themes, I would use just a hint and not the most forceful statement. There are quite a few bits of score in the saga films where they are used more subtly.

I actually tried a couple of those, the biggest issue is the muddy center channel. I’d have to rebuild a lot of sound effects to make these work. Though I do feel like we, at minimum, need another Williams track or two in there.

Thanks again for the detailed notes!

Phase3 said:

Please don’t misunderstand – I mean no disrespect! I really do think that your V2 is a great edit! I apologise if it sounded like a complaint – that’s not what I meant at all!!

I was only thinking in terms of pacing; it could be cut so that after Flea says “You!”, Leia is instantly kidnapped: the bag / sack gets put over her head, thereby eliminating the ridiculous-looking “chase” through the forest, where the adult actors were clearly running slowly.

SpenceEdit said:

Phase3 said:

SpenceEdit said:

There’s only three shots from that scene in the edit, you still find that to be too much?

The small-file version of V2 I downloaded has most of the chase sequence intact, lasting around 50 seconds. Does the large-file version truncate that sequence?

She runs away from them for a couple of shots, then sees the guard and yells to him, guard gets shot, and then they catch her. It’s about as short as that scene can get while still existing. I’m not really sure what else you think could be removed from it?

Hey. No offense taken! I’ll say I’m fairly happy with that sequence as it is now, but if I find a more efficient way to tell that story beat that still feels natural, I’m open to it.

BrotherOfSasquatch said:

Phase3 said:

SpenceEdit said:

There’s only three shots from that scene in the edit, you still find that to be too much?

The small-file version of V2 I downloaded has most of the chase sequence intact, lasting around 50 seconds. Does the large-file version truncate that sequence?

I mean, you could always make your own edit that removes more of the chase if you want, my dude.

I’m genuinely interested in any and all feedback, regardless of if I use it or not. I’m just not sure what else can be cut.

PixelJoker95 said:

SpenceEdit said:

hinventon said:

Someone on the fanedit subreddit has posted some great tests of a VFX enhanced grand Inquisitor and fifth brother along with Vader flying his TIE, would love to see those added when it releases.

I love the GI and tie fighter stuff that’s being worked on, and the creator of those clips already said he’d let me use them. That’s what I mean by a version 4. It would just be to incorporate that. I’m not going to wait for that to be done but would definitely add it in when they are finished.

I’d also be open to adding a crawl as an alternate version if there is demand. I personally don’t think it needs one.

Oh boy, talking about “under pressure” haha
I’m aiming for a before-Christmas release, so that we all have something to look forward to. Plus it’s a tradition for the past few years 😃

No worries! I’ll do my thing and you do yours, and if they sync up one day we will make something cool.

Phase3 said:

SpenceEdit said:

There’s only three shots from that scene in the edit, you still find that to be too much?

The small-file version of V2 I downloaded has most of the chase sequence intact, lasting around 50 seconds. Does the large-file version truncate that sequence?

She runs away from them for a couple of shots, then sees the guard and yells to him, guard gets shot, and then they catch her. It’s about as short as that scene can get while still existing. I’m not really sure what else you think could be removed from it?

hinventon said:

Someone on the fanedit subreddit has posted some great tests of a VFX enhanced grand Inquisitor and fifth brother along with Vader flying his TIE, would love to see those added when it releases.

I love the GI and tie fighter stuff that’s being worked on, and the creator of those clips already said he’d let me use them. That’s what I mean by a version 4. It would just be to incorporate that. I’m not going to wait for that to be done but would definitely add it in when they are finished.

I’d also be open to adding a crawl as an alternate version if there is demand. I personally don’t think it needs one.

Octorox said:

Thanks for all your hard work! I will try to watch V2 and provide feedback soon. And while a 4K version would be nice, I think a high bitrate 1080p version with the new source would also look quite good. If you don’t release a 4K, the 2160p source might give you more latitude to crop or reframe certain shots if you find a reason to do that.

It’s already helping with that. I have one shot that I slowed using Flowframes and another I cropped substantially that both now look significantly better. Thanks for your help!

So, just so everyone is aware, there will be a Version 3 of this, and that will likely be the final version. The only way I would consider making a Version 4 is if some of the effects work being done on the Grand Inquisitor’s look some intrepid fans are doing on Reddit come to fruition. I would incorporate those.

I’m going to spend a bit longer between V2 and V3 just to make sure I have every piece of feedback and have left no stone unturned before releasing V3. So, if you’ve watched it and have things you’d like to share, please do so. Even if I don’t use the feedback, I appreciate every piece of it. Some times a new idea that I don’t want to lose will lead to other creativity I do want to use.

I am also upgrading my source for this to 2160p. I don’t know that I’ll be releasing a 4k version, as I’ve never done that before, but at minimum the final version of this will look significantly better than the current ones.

smpearce1981 said:

Hi Spence,

So I have to confess I’m not all the way through this yet so, I should perhaps hold off on any my overall thoughts until i can offer a full ‘review’

Anyhow, I’d just like to say that technically this is flawless and so please know that Im aware any/most/all critique’s on your work are most likely you doing the best job you can whilst trying to work within the limits and flaws of the source material.

Im also very aware that I’m mostly bringing up ‘problems’ but not offering much in the way of solutions, so it’s not like I’m suggesting I could do better?!?

This is merely me querying whether there might be more ways to skin the cat??

Iv tried to view this as a standalone movie, bringing as little of my fandom and franchise knowledge to this as possible, as if I was a first time uninitiated viewer.

Anyhow, as far as I’ve watched here are some thoughts.

The opening and the arrival of the inquisitors?

Im not sure this is the ‘way in’ to the story.

Without an opening crawl or the ‘previously on star wars’ montage, the inquisitors immediate arrival on tatooine, and hunting a nameless seems a strange/unengaging jumping off point for the story?

As i watched a bit more, I wondered if starting on Alderaan might be a better way in. Meet/introduce Leia until she gets kidnapped.

The way into this story is the abduction of a young girl… which that is what leads us to introducing our hero, Obi-wan, who after we see his down on his luck existence, receives his call to action?

Once Bail has given him the call asking for help, perhaps that prompts the arrival of the inquisitors?

Hey! Thanks for the feedback. The short answer to this is that I’m very much happy with how I have this structurally already. I think it’s important to introduce the villains, and especially that Reva is obsessed with finding Obi-Wan, right at the very beginning. The scene introduces us to the inquisitors and the role each will play going forward. So I believe it needs to be at the beginning. Opening with Leia doesn’t solve anything there, and actually makes the kidnappers appear to be the main villains, which could be an interesting twist but is unneeded in a first act with a lot going on already.

Again, this is all my opinion. I know that other edits are doing the opening differently. I feel really strongly about structure, pace, and flow when I do a fanedit. Personally, I think it’s one of the things that makes my projects stand out, even if it’s a subconscious thing for the viewer. The way I have it now is the way that makes the most sense to me.

There’s only three shots from that scene in the edit, you still find that to be too much?

The simple answer is Kenobi can’t bring himself to end him. Which I think is pretty clear in the acting.

bkev said:

Wonder if anyone’s interested in applying this new preservation to VR? There’s an excellent recreation of the environment here, it could just use the original video track instead of a CGI duplication: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFYXdoxyJ1E

That’s pretty cool, but would take a lot of Roto work around Rex. Unless the person who originally made it can do it.