SpenceEdit

You know what, since it was brought up, here’s the work I did on the final Vader scene that I ended up cutting. It’s not finished from an audio standpoint, but let me know what you think. If this is worth finalizing and adding back in, I’m open to doing that.

The idea was to remove some of the dialogue and not have Vader get up from the gurney. I also used the French version of the “NOOOOO” as I think it sounds more anguished, and a little like Anakin’s voice is squeezing through.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PduGCkPUDS_pQDZbSXAmC70J8ENgbO24/view?usp=sharing

hinventon said:

Yeah, it’s a little silly, maybe cutting some of Vader’s dialogue and using a different scream would make it better. I do like the imagery of him rising on the table and him Frankensteining out of it though.

Honestly, the only shot I’m sad to lose is him being raised on the table, and I planned to include it originally. But I found the final shot of him being sealed into the Vader suit to be more impactful, both visually and from a character standpoint.

hinventon said:

Congratulations! I can’t wait to check them out, especially AOTC. The only change I’ll contest is cutting the Vader scene at the end of ROTS, the whole movie is about him trying to “save” padme so I think it’s important to see him react. But it’s up to you of course. These will probably be my go to edits too!

I’d agree if the reaction wasn’t so silly. I’d rather it be inferred than keep that dumb scene. Though I’m open to playing with it.

After some further tweaks, I am going to go ahead and consider all three of these “released”, at least as a version 1. I’m happy to make more tweaks as we go and people make suggestions or find issues I may have missed.

So I was at least able to get these done before the end of the year!

Massive thanks to everyone who go involved in the thread and helped push these to their best possible versions. I really enjoyed working on these films, and I’m very pleased with the result. I think we’ve ended up with a tight, connected, exciting trio of films.

I know there’s a lot of choices in fanedits of these films, but these versions unquestionably feel like “me”. All of my editing strengths, some of my editing weaknesses, and my general stamp is all over them.

Other than the removal of 3PO from films 1 and 2, there’s nothing else that breaks the canon, so you can slot these into your preferred viewing as long as you can deal with that. However, this project was viewed as a whole the entire time, and the three edits work together as a unit.

I’m now going to complete my very conservative preferred versions of TFA and TLJ so that, along with 4K77-4K83 and The Final Order, I now have my full preferred way of watching the entire Skywalker saga. The circle is now complete.

If you don’t like my more radical, canon breaking “Final Order” edit of TROS, you can replace it with HAL’s Ascendent version without there being any inconsistencies.

I hope you enjoy it, and please PM me if you want the links so we don’t get too many “link please!” posts in the thread.

Octorox said:

Watched the AOTC workprint. In short, it’s a triumph, I think you’ve made the best version of AOTC out there from a narrative and pacing perspective. I was a little skeptical of the decision to remove the asteroid dogfight, but it absolutely makes sense looking at the flow of the edit as a whole. The addition of the training scene from Kenobi works wondering from a narrative perspective, nicely foreshadowing Anakin’s downfall the Dooku fight. While it doesn’t totally match up stylistically, I find it no more jarring the the inclusion of the deleted scenes, many of which have unfinished VFX and have long been a staple of prequel edits.

My only quibble is while The 3PO removal is seamless, it unfortunately makes the edit incompatible with other versions of The Phantom Menace. Just something I will have to live with, I guess.

Very excited to check out ROTS!

Thank you so much for the kind words and for checking it out. I know the 3PO removal will be the thing some people have qualms with, but considering I made these specifically for my preferences, I’m happy with it. I hope and encourage anyone to steal my ideas to make their preferred version.

Octorox said:

I prefer the restructured format for TFA, but otherwise these look pretty close to what my preferred versions would be. Excited to check out TLJ especially.

My argument against the restructure, which I agree makes more logical sense and does work, is that there’s already a ton happening at the end of that movie. Han dies, Finn gets horribly injured (and in the moment looks to be dead) Rey uses the Force for the first time, Kylo injured, etc. Adding that big moment in with all those other big moments feels like one too many and lessens the impact of what’s already there.

I understand preferring it, but I just never have.

Guiguioh said:

I am very interested in this !!! Thanks for doing it.

Any interest in adding Han putting the dice in the falcon in TFA ? I know the scene is not perfect on the vfx side but I like the connection with TLJ it offers.

Yeah that’s likely going in.

Hi All!

I must confess, I’m a big fan of the first two films in the Sequel Trilogy, and quite like them the way they are. However, there are some great changes that have been made to them by various editors over the years, so I’m cobbling together what I consider to be my “preferred” versions of the films. These, for most people, will be totally unnecessary and I’m making them mainly for myself, but since opinions on the films are so varied, I thought I’d share them when I complete them.

Here’s what I intend:

Force Awakens:

• Both films will open with the original 20th century Fox and Lucafilm logos from the 70’s and include the fanfare so all 9 of my versions of the movies are uniform.
• Based mainly on Starlight, but not as drastic as that version. I want to keep a lot of the quality of life improvements and first act restructuring.
• I want to have Jakku it’s original color timing.
• Things like the etching in Rey’s home will stay, but I won’t include her getting “sith eyes” at the end.
• The first Falcon sequence will use Adywan’s IMAX restoration so that aspect ratio will open up.
• I also don’t want to use the “restructured” format, so the Hosnian system/New Republic will be destroyed in the middle of the film, like the theatrical version.
• Definitely including the deleted scene of Kylo on the Falcon.
• The third act of the film after Solo and Finn find Rey is more or less unchanged.

Last Jedi:

• An even softer edit, this version will include a few quality of life improvements from HAL (adjusted timing at Snoke’s death, etc.) but mostly remain unchanged.
• The “Leia remembers Han” and “Third lesson” deleted scenes will be included.

Again, these are mostly going to be pointless edits for most people, but I wanted these slightly extended, slightly reorganized versions for myself. So by the time I’m done, I’ll have my versions of the Prequels that are nearly completed, 4K77-4K80-4K83, these two edits, and The Final Order. The whole saga to fit my particular tastes. Everything should also fit nicely with Ascendent if you don’t want my more dramatically different version of TROS or you want something closer to canon.

I’m wrapping up work on the prequels, which will hopefully be done and released by the end of the year, then I’ll probably put these together. They shouldn’t take very long.

Jar Jar Bricks said:

So unfortunately we are unable to remove the background noises of the lightsabers. And because of that those lines would have to be created by someone who can do a good Anakin impression. But as you said, you aren’t interested in disturbing Hayden’s performance. So our only option would be to find a better way to isolate his lines in those places.

However, as a proof of concept, here are his first two lines de-aged:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1arnygZfBjcmIBnS9OKvi1Wm-ftnx-PWX/view?usp=sharing

This is impressive, however, I’m not sure that the benefits of it is worth the extra work of getting a clean audio track. I want to see what the reactions to it on the workprint are first.

Honestly, if I could find a way to remove the saber glow from on their bodies, it would work infinitely better. But I haven’t figured out a good way to do that yet.

Darthkovacss said:

I have watched the work print of AotC, overall I really enjoyed it. I think the only thing that threw me off was 1h16m24s, Anakin jumps up, slices the still active arm then instantly jumps to everything being deactivated and him captured, just felt a little jarring, the instant drop of padme felt slightly weird but I don’t know if her being trapped. Anakin getting captured then her being dropped and surrounded would work better. I’ve assumed you have tried some different things there. Apart from the ending of this part, everything else was really enjoyable ❤️

Hey! Thanks for that. That scene was nagging at me as well, I wasn’t sure if it was working as intended. I’ll play with it.

Well I already found a few minor things I want to adjust so I wouldn’t consider these “final versions” but they’re pretty close. I plan on tweaking the color timing a little as it looks way more drastic on a tv than it did on my computer. A couple of minor nips and tucks I noticed as well, but nothing major. You can watch these workprints without any glaring issues.

Ok, fresh workprints are uploaded. I say “workprint” but they’re more or less completed, barring any major errors anyone notices and maybe some audio tightening. PM me if you want to have a look.

I also have fresh workprints for AOTC and ROTS. They’re about 99% done. Honestly, ROTS is probably closer to done than AOTc. AOTC required so much work. Getting there.

Here’s the ending of ROTS. I’m pretty happy with how this is turning out.

• I decided that the last thing we would see of Vader would be the mask coming down. I find the scenes after that clunky and they lessen the impact of the helmet moment.
• I also jettisoned Yoda giving Obi-Wan “training” and mentioning Qui-Gon. I always kind of hated that we stop the end of the movie dead so Yoda can fill in that plot hole. I’d rather just have the plot hole.
• I am on the fence as to whether I want to include Yoda arriving on Dagobah. I like it, but it doesn’t feel necessary.
• You’ll notice I changed that weird circle in transition on 3PO’s face to something different.
• That’s me playing the medical droid, making my Star Wars acting debut (I’m also the protocol droid that isn’t 3PO in AOTC.) I wanted to remove the bit about her “losing the will to live” but my edits didn’t ever come out exactly how I wanted. So I figured I could just dub over him to get the dialogue I needed.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tISqzDEXun1503ES6QOl29_tNIKA0gQJ/view?usp=drive_link

Jar Jar Bricks said:

It isn’t something that AI would create 100% though. It’s more like applying a voice filter to the preexisting performance.

Yeah, I just doubt it’d be worth it anyway. The main stumbling block is the cinematography, and there’s nothing to really be done about that. Even if I stabilize the handheld camera, the choice of lenses and shots don’t match.

Jar Jar Bricks said:

Hayden’s voice could probably be fixed - it would just take quite a bit of effort.

We’d need to rip the center channel of when he’s speaking from other parts of the film and isolate his voice with AI. Then we use that as source material for a voice clone. And then we input his lines from the Kenobi scene into the new ElevenLab’s feature. His lines would then sound like his younger self and be delivered exactly how they were originally.

But yeah that’s a lot of effort for only one piece to the puzzle. The camera work is always going to be out of place.

I also don’t love the idea of messing with his performance in that way. The face deepfake thing is pretty subtle but replacing his dialogue with something AI created doesn’t sit well with me.

Jar Jar Bricks said:

SpenceEdit said:

timdiggerm said:

SpenceEdit said:

I’ve decided to release two versions of AOTC, exactly the same except one will include the flashback scene from Obi-Wan Kenobi and the other will not. I’ve thought a lot about this, and I personally feel like having the scene is like slotting in a missing piece of the script, something that always should’ve been there. However, I can’t ignore that no matter how much tinkering I do, it will never feel like it’s completely a part of this film, as it was filmed 20+ years later than the rest of it. Some may be more bothered by it’s inclusion than others, and I’ve made a lot of changes beyond that that people may be interested in. So it’s going to be available with the scene (my preferred version, and the one I’ll personally watch) and without it.

Have you done much in making it look worse, so it fits the rest of the film better?

The problem is mostly that the cinematography styles don’t match and the actors are visibly two decades older.

Aren’t you using the deep fake version?

I am, but just like deepfakes in general, it only goes so far. Hayden is built completely differently now, and his voice sounds different.

On top of that, you have the more kinetic directing/editing style, which I’ve worked on but still doesn’t match the film. The lightsaber glow on their faces/surroundings, etc. It just doesn’t quite fit. Nothing will make it fit completely.

But it’s a great, important scene. So I’ll do my very best with it and have available that way for those that want it.

timdiggerm said:

SpenceEdit said:

I’ve decided to release two versions of AOTC, exactly the same except one will include the flashback scene from Obi-Wan Kenobi and the other will not. I’ve thought a lot about this, and I personally feel like having the scene is like slotting in a missing piece of the script, something that always should’ve been there. However, I can’t ignore that no matter how much tinkering I do, it will never feel like it’s completely a part of this film, as it was filmed 20+ years later than the rest of it. Some may be more bothered by it’s inclusion than others, and I’ve made a lot of changes beyond that that people may be interested in. So it’s going to be available with the scene (my preferred version, and the one I’ll personally watch) and without it.

Have you done much in making it look worse, so it fits the rest of the film better?

The problem is mostly that the cinematography styles don’t match and the actors are visibly two decades older.

Hi everyone, sorry I disappeared for a bit. Real life got in the way.

I’m back to working on this after satisfying my obligations to another project. AOTC is still getting fine tuned and is almooost there. There’s a lot more going on in this edit as opposed to TPM, with lots of effects shots and reordering, often requiring new music cues.

Currently, I’m trying to get the deleted scenes looking a little closer to the rest of the film, which is tricky since they’re only really available in DVD quality with some fan upscales out there. There’s a good 20 minute section of the movie that’s almost entirely made up of deleted scenes, so the quality drop is more noticeable than it would be in the other films. I’ve been toying with them in Topaz and they’re getting to the point where I’m pretty happy with them.

I’ve decided to release two versions of AOTC, exactly the same except one will include the flashback scene from Obi-Wan Kenobi and the other will not. I’ve thought a lot about this, and I personally feel like having the scene is like slotting in a missing piece of the script, something that always should’ve been there. However, I can’t ignore that no matter how much tinkering I do, it will never feel like it’s completely a part of this film, as it was filmed 20+ years later than the rest of it. Some may be more bothered by it’s inclusion than others, and I’ve made a lot of changes beyond that that people may be interested in. So it’s going to be available with the scene (my preferred version, and the one I’ll personally watch) and without it.

This is really cool! I don’t know that every pilot arriving needs a line of dialogue. It all gets a bit jumbled. Maybe take out a few of them or just show them flying their ships?

Daiyus said:

There was an audio shadow we noticed from one of the deleted lines during the podracer build; you can just hear C-3PO’s line about Jar Jar being an odd creature. I think the only continuity error I noticed was during the podrace; Anakin does his barrel roll over Teemto Pagalies, but then a few shots later we see Anakin moving up the field to pass him again down the canyon.

I’m having trouble locating this audio shadow, you wouldn’t be able to pinpoint where it is, would you?

PrinceMusashi said:

Could I get a Link, please? I love your edits

Please don’t request links in the thread itself, just PM me.

Daiyus said:

Is there any way to use some of the battle shots in the throne room but mask the blaster fire to show the droids breaking down before launching into Padme’s “new treaty” line? It only needs a couple of seconds I think.

I have tried to make this happen so hard, but so far haven’t been able to make it work. It’s something I definitely want to include so I’m going to give it another attempt with fresh eyes. Thanks for the feedback! I’ll also look into that 3PO line bleeding over the surround channels.

timdiggerm said:

G&G-Fan said:

I find it kinda ironic that you cut the bongo sequence with the sea monsters because the cool creature stuff is the only reason I’d ever keep the journey to Otoh Gungah at all. Just my preference tho, obviously you can do what you want.

I feel like, without Otoh Gungah, Boss Nass & Co come out of nowhere in the 3rd act

This is the reason I kept it. Not only does it introduce the other Gungans, a very important part of the third act, but it lets us get to know Jar Jar.

Octorox said:

So I finally was able to put some time aside to finish watching. Overall, I liked it but I don’t think it’s the Phantom Menace edit for me. There were a few too many little things left in that still grated on me, and missed C-3PO’s presence in the movie more than I thought I would. That said, I do really appreciate some of the choices that were made, particularly the Otoh Gunga sequence and the podrace were really well done.

I did spot C-3PO in the background of one shot during the podrace, although without context he could easily just be another droid. Not sure if that was an oversight or not.

That’s an oversight, do you remember when it was?