Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace 3D The Movie in Guelph, ON

• Info
• Cast & Crew

• Genre: Science fiction
  
  Synopsis:
  As an enemy threatens the peaceful Galactic Republic, 9-year-old Anakin Skywalker comes under the tutelage of young Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Jedi master Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) .
  
  Running Time: 133
  
  Rating: PG - Parental Guidance Suggested
  
  http://www.starwars.com
  
• Cast:
  Qui-Gon Jinn: Liam Neeson,Obi-Wan Kenobi: Ewan McGregor,Queen Amidala/Padmé Naberrie: Natalie Portman,Anakin Skywalker: Jake Lloyd,Shmi Skywalker: Pernilla August,Voice of Master Yoda: Frank Oz,Senator Palpatine/Supreme Chancellor Palpatine: Ian McDiarmid,Sio Bibble: Oliver Ford Davies,Captain Panaka: Hugh Quarshie,Voice of Jar Jar Binks/Senator: Ahmed Best,Mace Windu: Samuel Jackson L.,Darth Maul: Ray Park,Voice of Darth Maul: Peter Serafinowicz,Ric Olié: Ralph Brown,Chancellor Finis Valorum: Terence Stamp,Voice of Boss Nass: Brian Blessed,Saché: Sofia Coppola,R2-D2: Kenny Baker,Nute Gunray/Radiant VII Pilot/Ki-Adi-Mundi/Lott Dod: Silas Carson,Kitster: Dhruv Chanchani,Fighter Pilot Bravo 5: Celia Imrie,C-3PO: Anthony Daniels,Watto: Andy Secombe,Jira: Margaret Towner,Seek: Oliver Walpole,Rabé: Kristina DaSilva,Rune Haako/Mas Amedda/Oppo Rancisis/Orn Free Taa: Jerome Blake,Capt. Tarpals: Steve Speirs,Fighter Pilot Bravo 2: Benedict Taylor
  
  Crew:
  Director: George Lucas,Writer: George Lucas,Executive Producer: George Lucas,Producer: Rick McCallum,Original Music: John Williams,Cinematographer: David Tattersall,Film Editor: Ben Burtt,Film Editor: Paul Smith Martin,Casting: Robin Gurland,Production Designer: Gavin Bocquet,Art Direction: Phil Harvey,Art Direction: Fred Hole,Art Direction: John King,Art Direction: Rod McLean,Art Direction: Peter Russell,Set Decoration: Peter Walpole,Costume Designer: Trisha Biggar,Special Makeup Effects: Mark Coulier,Key Makeup Artist: Paul Engelen,Hair Stylist: Sarah Love,Hair Stylist: Sue Love,Art Direction: Ben Scott
  
  Production Companies:
  LucasFilm Ltd.
  
  Distributors:
  20th Century Fox
  
  Notes:
  Production Notes -Notes provided by Twentieth Century Fox- Production Notes A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away Twenty-two years ago, these words first flashed across movie theater screens around the world, and a modern legend was born. Hundreds of millions of people would be introduced to a saga that would touch their lives in ways then unimaginable. Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, and the Special Editions of all three films, became defining events for two generations. The fast-paced action adventures, set in a new and exciting universe, featured grand design and boundless fun. The films inspired countless of viewers with themes that are universal and timeless: the conflict between good and evil and between technology and humanity, the celebration of heroism, and the limitless potential of the individual. The Star Wars saga is a modern-day fairy tale reflecting the vision of George Lucas. Lucas imbued this new myth with pieces of American pop culture, including movie westerns, swashbucklers and for seasoning - Japanese samurai epics. Star Wars was also a reaction against Watergate, Vietnam and other periods of domestic turmoil that seemed to undermine the concept of the hero for disillusioned Americans. With the Star Wars saga, Lucas decided to bring together these recognizable, modern-day threads under the umbrella of the basic mythic structure the journey of the hero that has been in place for thousands of years, in hundreds of civilizations. With its mix of the traditional and the modern, Star Wars' new mythology thrilled young and old alike. Now, with STAR WARS: EPISODE I THE PHANTOM MENACE, Lucas takes us back to the beginning, in which Darth Vader is a hopeful nine-year-old boy named Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi is a determined young Jedi knight. This first chapter, which is rich in art, design, costumes, architecture and technology, follows Anakin's journey as he pursues his dreams and confronts his fears in the midst of a galaxy in turmoil. ORIGINS AND DESIGNS Bringing EPISODE I to the screen was a journey years in the planning and making. It began in November 1994. George Lucas sat down to write the script, in longhand, in a binder he has used for all his films. After five years, three countries, thousands of designs, scores of cast and crew members, and a new world of groundbreaking special effects including the movies' first "digital backlot" the first new Star Wars film in sixteen years finally arrives in theaters around the world. The seeds of EPISODE I were planted more than twenty years ago, when Lucas was writing the story for the original Star Wars. During this process, he created a backstory that took place a generation prior to the events that he was dramatizing. "It was just a little story outline with bits and pieces," Lucas remembers. "But it had a structure that hasn't changed much in all these years." Of course, at that time it never occurred to him that this backstory could actually be turned into a movie until Star Wars became a global phenomenon. "Everybody then started asking, 'How many are you going to make?'" Lucas says. "So I thought I could go back and do the backstories of the original trilogy" The characters and worlds Lucas envisioned for the new film could not have been created with traditional effects. But once he saw the digital breakthroughs in 1993's Jurassic Park achieved by Industrial Light & Magic a company Lucas created in the 1970s to handle the Star Wars effects Lucas knew ILM was up for the formidable challenge of seamlessly blending digital animation with live action in the new Star Wars movie. "Jurassic Park was a real milestone," Lucas recalls. "That, along with the wrapping up of (Lucas' award-winning television series) The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, led me to ask myself what I was going to do next." A new chapter in the Star Wars saga was the answer. One and a half years after this effects breakthrough, Lucas began writing EPISODE I of his landmark saga. But he faced some formidable challenges. Audiences around the world already knew the end of the saga; now Lucas had to go back and create the beginning. This story would have to be consistent with the three movies (Episodes IV-VI) that preceded it, plus the two that would follow (Episodes II and III). These challenges also pointed to a tremendous opportunity: The creation of an even richer saga. The notion of a continuing, epic story has been a critical one since the inception of Star Wars. "Ultimately, it'll be six films and about twelve hours of one story," Lucas points out. "Throughout the writing and making of EPISODE I, I always stayed focused on ten years from now, when the new trilogy will be completed. Then people can watch all six films together as they were intended to be seen." Lucas likens the saga's structure and themes to a musical piece. "The Star Wars saga is, in a way, symphonic in nature," he explains. "I have certain musical refrains that I am purposely repeating in a different chord, but still repeating." These thematic echoes emanate from the parallels between the story of Anakin Skywalker in EPISODE I, and of Anakin's future son, Luke, in the original trilogy. "In the first three films, I told a specific story," Lucas continues. "With the new trilogy, I'm telling nearly the same story, with many similar emotional, psychological and decision-making moments." One specific recurring theme is that of courage to leave home, to abandon what is comfortable, to follow one's dreams and to take a risk. In the Star Wars saga, Anakin and Luke both exhibit this courage, but it takes them in very different directions. EPISODE I's symphonic structure reflects and incorporates other key themes, including the balance between good and evil, discovery, and what Lucas calls "symbiotic relationships." That is, the characters work together and depend on each other to reach their goals and to survive. So there are several other key characters and storylines of near equal import, all of which are carefully interwoven and work together to tell the story. Lucas' fascination with intricate and interweaving plot structures dates back to his innovative work with multiple, concurrent plot lines in American Graffiti, a device now frequently used by filmmakers around the world. In EPISODE I, Lucas continues to experiment with story structure, enriching the plot to the point that there are five concurrent storylines taking place during the film. EPISODE I's framing plotline involves Senator Palpatine, an influential politician quietly making moves to consolidate his power in a time of unrest throughout the Republic, during which the government has been weakened and turned into a bureaucratic quagmire. A specific incident within this framework places Palpatine at the center of a conflict between the gigantic, commercial Trade Federation and the small, peaceful planet Naboo. Naboo is threatened by the might of the wealthy corporate powers, which begin to disregard the constraints of the weak galactic government. The young queen of Naboo finds herself faced with difficult decisions. Committed to peace, she must choose whether to sacrifice her ideals when war descends upon her people. Sent into this crisis to negotiate a settlement are two Jedi Knights, the guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy. Prepared for a political dispute, the Jedi Master, Qui-Gon Jinn and apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi discover that the Trade Federation is about to unleash its mighty forces in open combat against Naboo. Unless the two Jedi can succeed, the planet's fate is grim. In the course of their adventure, Qui-Gon discovers a young boy, Anakin, who is a slave on the desert planet Tatooine. Qui-Gon senses that Anakin is the individual destined to bring balance to the Force, and makes a fateful decision to train Anakin as a Jedi Knight. At the same time, Anakin begins a friendship with the Queen of Naboo. To bring these stories and characters to life, Lucas decided to return to the director's chair, following a more than twenty-year hiatus that began after he finished helming the original Star Wars. "I thought I was going to probably have to direct EPISODE I from the start," he says, "because the film involved a lot of experimental ideas." Lucas also figured it would save a lot of time and effort if he just directed it himself. "I wouldn't have to argue with or explain things to the director," he adds with a laugh. A central figure in helping Lucas bring his vision to the screen is producer Rick McCallum, who was producer of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles as well as the Star Wars Trilogy Special Edition. McCallum's efforts and skills were critical to the smooth running of the production, and hearken back to a time when producers worked in a creative capacity. "Rick's contributions to the film are immeasurable," says Lucas of his indefatigable colleague. "And his creative and organizational skills are remarkable." McCallum sees his very complex job in simple terms. "It's my job to help make George's vision a reality," he explains. "I had to be on top of everything and make things happen for him." McCallum's work began very early on as Lucas was putting pen to paper. First off, the producer hopscotched around the globe, scouting locations. Also key among his many early responsibilities was finding and hiring concept artists for a small art department, one that would eventually turn out thousands of designs for costumes, creatures, vehicles and sets for EPISODE I. This art department would play a critical role in the film. Lucas' story, which encompasses various cultures, planets and styles, necessitated a rich and varied design. "I tried to figure out what each culture was like," says Lucas, "and what kind of design would fit into each." The challenges involved a staggering number of designs for everything from an Art Nouveau underwater city to brooches for a queen, along with dozens of spacecraft, hundreds of costumes and thousands of otherworldly props. The architecture alone involves everything from Ibadite Tunisian adobe and Malian mud styles to futurist mile-high skyscrapers, Renaissance Italian palaces, and very alien free-form interiors. Doug Chiang, an art director at ILM, came aboard EPISODE I in 1994 to oversee its design. Among the talented group of concept artists working with Chiang were Terryl Whitlatch, whose background in zoology made her ideal for designing the story's hundreds of creatures and Ian McCaig, whose work included the intricate costume designs. Interpreting Lucas' vision, Chiang brought a new look to the epic saga. Initially, Chiang carefully studied the Star Wars style. But Lucas had something very different in mind: Instead of just duplicating the looks of the original trilogy, he wanted to create many entirely new settings and worlds. The importance that Lucas placed on the film's design was evidenced by the fact that he began meeting with Chiang and the art department in the very early stages of pre-production. "At our first meeting, George told me he wanted something new and different," Chiang remembers. "I was really pleased when George said, 'Push the envelope; make some new discoveries.'" This envelope-pushing helps define the look of EPISODE I, including its rich fashion and costume design. While concept artist Ian McCaig and costume designer Trisha Biggar were given considerable freedom, Lucas was nonetheless very involved in shaping the film's worlds of fashion. In less than a year, Biggar and her staff painstakingly designed and assembled over one thousand costumes, from elaborate, embossed formal attire to simple, yet carefully detailed slave outfits. The costume/prop department even manufactured all the accessories, including helmets, headdresses and belt buckles. For the vehicles of EPISODE I including starfighters, the Queen's ship, Podracers, troop transports, attack tanks and battleships function would often take a back seat to form. According to Chiang, some may even be considered works of art, expressing what Chiang calls "pure craft and aesthetics." To keep his designs unique, Chiang avoided contemporary aesthetics, instead opting to anchor the designs in world history. After Chiang and his team of artists completed work on the elaborate architectural designs, it fell to production designer Gavin Bocquet to bring them to life. Bocquet, who began work in 1996 nearly two years after Chiang had begun work on the concept designs was responsible for overseeing the construction of the film's more than sixty sets in England, Italy and Tunisia, making a major contribution to EPISODE I's dazzling visuals. THE ACTORS AND CHARACTERS With all his films, Lucas has focused on casting the talent he sees as best embodying the characters. "The most important part of directing is casting," he says. "I've been very fortunate over the years in finding people who seemed born to play their roles. They've been exactly as I had imagined the characters when I was writing them." "I'm interested in the ensemble," Lucas adds, "and how the characters play against one another." For EPISODE I, Lucas, McCallum and casting director Robin Gurland assembled an impressive troupe that fulfills Lucas' casting imperatives. But first the trio faced some interesting challenges. Not only were they building an ensemble cast that had to fit together, but several characters also had to link physically to later incarnations of themselves, or in some cases, to their children. "For Anakin and the Queen, we had to extrapolate backwards," explains Gurland. "We knew what their children, Luke and Leia, looked like, so we had to draw on that in casting the parents. And of course, the actor cast as Obi-Wan had to resemble the older version of the character." Liam Neeson portrays Qui-Gon, a new addition to the Star Wars family of characters. Neeson's Oscar-nominated performance in Schindler's List is perhaps the standout of a distinguished career that also includes roles in the films Michael Collins, Rob Roy and Les Misérables, and an acclaimed performance on the Broadway stage in Anna Christie. Lucas originally imagined an American in the role, but Neeson, who is Irish, impressed the filmmaker with his skills and presence: "It's great to cast an actor who is considered a master actor, who the other actors will look up to, who has got the qualities of strength that the character demands." Neeson sees Qui-Gon as a timeless, wise soul with an Eastern-like philosophy. As a Jedi, the character is also skilled in the martial arts. "I think he's as close as you can get to the old time kind of warrior sage who has supreme confidence," Neeson says. "Qui-Gon is like a samurai warrior who has great powers and humility." Neeson also appreciated the saga's larger themes and scope. "These films are tapping into a void," he claims. "We've lost the oral tradition of storytelling, of myths and legends, and Star Wars helps fill that void." Scottish actor Ewan McGregor takes on the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, played by Alec Guinness in the original trilogy. In EPISODE I, Obi-Wan is a young Jedi apprentice, who sometimes clashes with his rebellious mentor, Qui-Gon Ginn. Obi-Wan prefers not to buck the Jedi Council and wishes Qui-Gon would play by the rules. One of today's most versatile and critically-hailed young actors, McGregor has made memorable appearances in films such as Trainspotting, Emma and the recent Velvet Goldmine and Little Voice. Lucas, who calls McGregor the "young Turk of the European film community," appreciated the actor's many facets: "Ewan has the energy, grace and enthusiasm to be a young Obi-Wan." Gurland was impressed by McGregor's similarities to Guinness, which exceeded those of simple physical resemblance. "Alec brought a sense of playfulness to many of his roles," she explains. "Even though Obi-Wan is a serious and strong character, he still has this glint and glimmer in his eyes. And Ewan also has that." To prepare for EPISODE I, McGregor studied several of Guinness' performances, from both his early work and the Star Wars movies. "It was important that my acting matched Guinness' in some important areas," McGregor points out. "I worked especially hard on getting the voice right, imagining how Obi-Wan would sound as a young man." The decision to take on the coveted role was an easy one for McGregor. "I obviously couldn't say no when the part was offered," he says. "It's really an honor to be part of this legend and modern myth." McGregor also has familial ties to the Star Wars universe his uncle is Denis Lawson, who played Rebel fighter pilot Wedge in the original films. Finally, the chance to wield the Jedi weapon of choice proved irresistible. "To draw a lightsaber and fire it up ... no one can imagine what that feels like!" Obi-Wan is serving as an apprentice, or Padawan Learner, to venerable Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn. Despite their closeness, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon have different ideas about key matters that will determine their fates. For example, each has a different viewpoint on Anakin. Qui-Gon takes the young slave boy, whom he thinks will bring balance to the Force, under his wing despite the misgivings of Obi-Wan and members of the Jedi Council. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon come to the aid of a beautiful young queen whose planet has come under attack by the Trade Federation. The role required a young woman who could be believable as the ruler of that planet, but at the same time be vulnerable and open. Natalie Portman, whose film credits include The Professional and Beautiful Girls, and who appeared on Broadway in The Diary of Anne Frank, takes on the role of the Queen. "I was looking for someone who was young, strong, along the lines of Leia," Lucas explains. "Natalie embodied all those traits and more." Portman embraced the role, showing a quick appreciation and understanding that the character was a role model. "It was wonderful playing a young queen with so much power," she enthuses. "I think it will be good for young women to see a strong woman of action who is also smart and a leader." Unlike most of her co-stars, Portman was unfamiliar with the Star Wars phenomenon when she came aboard EPISODE I. But some relatives quickly clued her in to the excitement. "My cousins had always been obsessed with the films," she remembers, "yet I hadn't even seen them before I got the part. When it all happened for me, my cousins were exclaiming, 'Oh, my God, you're in Star Wars!'" The search for Anakin, the 9-year-old Tatooine slave, presented the most daunting casting challenge. The boy's special abilities, some of which are demonstrated during an electrifying Podrace, attract the attention of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, who find themselves stranded on the boy's home planet. Over a two-year period Gurland looked at hundreds of youngsters to play the resourceful and hopeful boy, who is unaware of the destiny and fearful challenges that await him. Lucas wanted Anakin to be very outgoing, intuitive, inventive and self-reliant. He had to appeal to both young people and their parents. Following this exhaustive search, the filmmakers finally decided on Jake Lloyd. "I was looking for someone who was a good actor, enthusiastic and very energetic. Jake is a natural," says Lucas. Echoes Rick McCallum: "Jake had all the right qualities that George was looking for in Anakin. He's smart, mischievous and loves anything mechanical just like Anakin." Jake describes Anakin as "always getting into trouble and mischief." But, he adds, "Anakin is very smart and a very good person, who cares more about other people than he does himself." Anakin's future incarnation was, not surprisingly, an important enticement for Jake. "It meant a lot to me to play Anakin because Darth Vader is my favorite Star Wars character." Jake's mix of humor, fun and skills quickly won over his castmates. Ewan McGregor states, "I've never worked with a child actor as good as Jake. He seems to have always wanted to be an actor, and he was always professional even if he did love to pull practical jokes from time to time." As the multitudes of fans know from the first trilogy, Anakin's fate will later fall into the hands of Emperor Palpatine. In the first trilogy, Senator Palpatine is a powerful official who begins to move to consolidate his power. Ian McDiarmid reprises his role as Palpatine without the make-up that aged the actor in Return of the Jedi. The experience was a memorable one for McDiarmid. "Stepping onto the set of EPISODE I for the first time was like going back in time, due to my experience in Jedi," he remembers. "Palpatine's an interesting character; he's conventional on the outside, but demonic on the inside he's on the edge, trying to go beyond what's possible." Another character on the edge is the Sith Lord Darth Maul, who along with his mentor, wages a brutal war against the Jedi Knights. Martial arts champion and accomplished swordsman and gymnast Ray Park takes on the role. Park was originally brought on board to work with stunt coordinator Nick Gillard, but he so impressed Lucas, McCallum and Gurland that he was awarded the prized role, which represents his motion picture acting debut. Together with his on-screen opponents, Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor, Park worked closely with Gillard on combat scenes that bring a new athleticism and fighting style to the Star Wars saga. Gillard, in fact, created a new martial art by merging together several great sword fighting techniques with some tree chopping and tennis movements thrown in for good measure. The Jedi's climactic lightsaber duel with Darth Maul features intricate, meticulously planned stunts and took weeks to film. Returning to the Star Wars universe, albeit in slightly different forms, are the beloved droids R2-D2 and C-3PO. Kenny Baker again inhabits Artoo's metallic body, and Anthony Daniels re-joins the saga as protocol droid, Threepio, who in EPISODE I is a work-in-progress being built by Anakin. Since Threepio's is as yet without "skin," Daniels could not work in the suit as he had in the original trilogy; instead he supplied the voice off-camera while a puppeteer manipulated the droid. Also making a welcome return is Jedi Master Yoda, this time, of course, in a slightly younger incarnation. Frank Oz once again performs Yoda from a puppet built by creature supervisor Nick Dudman's crew, which altogether turned out about 140 characters. In EPISODE I, Yoda is a member of the Jedi Council, as is a figure new to the Star Wars saga, Mace Windu, played by Samuel L. Jackson. Prior to production, Jackson, a longtime Star Wars fan, was asked during an interview what directors he would like to work with. His immediate response: George Lucas, adding that he'd love to work on the new Star Wars film. Gurland learned of Jackson's interest and approached him to play Mace Windu. It proved to be a memorable experience for the veteran actor. "There I was, with Yoda, acting in EPISODE I," he recalls with a smile. "It was one of my dreams come true." George Lucas' mandate to find the best actor for each role is also evident in the selection of Swedish actress Pernilla August, who plays Anakin's mother, Shmi Skywalker. The scenes with mother and son bring poignant moments to the story. A veteran of several films by Ingmar Bergman, August, says Rick McCallum, "has all the dignity and power that you could ever want for the role of Anakin's mother." Also new to the Star Wars family is Jar Jar Binks, a clumsy, childlike creature who speaks in a language all his own. Jar Jar joins Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, the Queen and Anakin on their adventures. On-screen Jar Jar will be a computer-generated character that actually interacts with the live-action characters. Great care was taken to cast an actor who could embody the character physically and vocally, and from whom the CGI figure would evolve. Stage performer Ahmed Best, who was spotted by Gurland during a performance of Stomp in San Francisco, plays Jar Jar. "Ahmed is Jar Jar," claims Robin Gurland. "His work made the character possible." Adds Liam Neeson: "Ahmed is a very funny and gifted performer who really brings Jar Jar to life." Sometimes Best's unique thespian antics would catch his co-stars off guard. "There were many takes when it was difficult to keep a straight face," Neeson recalls, "because he was hilarious and inventive with his movements and strange, new noises." To make Jar Jar as comedic and fun as possible, Best gave the character a host of unusual movements that usually result in landing the creature in trouble. "Jar Jar desperately wants to please everybody and get everything right," says Best. "But no matter how he tries, he always manages to break something and stumble over someone." Also making key appearances in EPISODE I are noted English actor Terence Stamp as Chancellor Valorum, who sees his power as head of the Senate threatened by Senator Palpatine; Ralph Brown as Naboo pilot Ric Olié; and Hugh Quarshie as the Queen's courageous guardian, Captain Panaka. THE DIGITAL BACKLOT For more than twenty years, George Lucas has been known as a pioneer in the visual effects arena. The original Star Wars trilogy had a major impact on the way visual effects were created, as well as on the post-production process and on motion picture presentation. In order to realize his visual effects ideas for Star Wars, Lucas created the effects house, Industrial Light & Magic, which introduced computer technology to the film industry and revolutionized special effects. ILM, which began as what Lucas calls a "commando unit" of 45 and now numbers more than 1,000 employees, has subsequently been honored with 14 Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects and 14 Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards for its breakthrough work in special effects on more than 120 films. That tradition of breakthrough effects work continues in EPISODE I, which builds upon ILM's groundbreaking digital work in Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Jurassic Park, Forrest Gump and Twister. In EPISODE I, the digital technology plays a more prominent role than in any film in history. For this "digital backlot," ILM was challenged to realize worlds of extraordinary fantasy while maintaining a realistic look and accommodating live-action footage of the actors. Not only the fantasy backgrounds, but many of the sets, vehicles and even characters are computer-generated. In fact, 95 percent of the frames in the film, encompassing nearly 2,000 shots, employ digital work more than tripling the greatest number of CG shots ever generated for a motion picture. Despite the daunting task that Lucas laid out before ILM, he never doubted the company was up to the challenge. "After working with them for over two decades," he says, "I knew they could do it." EPISODE I's ILM team, which included 250 computer artists, worked for two years on this digital universe. The visual effects tasks of the film were so immense that not one but three of ILM's best supervisors were called upon to share the load, each taking primary responsibility for one or more main action sequences as well as specific effect types that occur throughout the films, such as glowing lightsaber blades. Oscar-winner Dennis Muren, a veteran of the original pioneering Star Wars effects work, supervised the film's huge ground battle effects and the underwater sequences. John Knoll, an original author of the widely used Photoshop program, oversaw the spaceship and Podrace sequences, and Scott Squiers supervised the creation of the exciting Theed City sequences, as well as lightsaber effects. Together these effects wizards literally created entire worlds in the ILM computers an achievement that brings wonder to the screen, but left the actors often standing on empty stages of "blue screen" which would later be replaced by digital backgrounds. Acting among a world of blue screen and CG elements was a key challenge to the actors, who often found their entire environments up to their imaginations, with only their costumes or an occasional stand-in to help them visualize the universe that would eventually surround them on film. Surprisingly, none of the actors had had any previous experience working against blue screens; but all seemed not only to cope with the process, but embrace it. Says Liam Neeson, who compares the experience to being on stage, "You have to use your imagination. We approached it all in a very intuitive way. For my part, I wanted to make sure I looked like I believed everything was real." The digital realm also extended into the creation of some of EPISODE I's characters, including a familiar figure from Return of the Jedi and Star Wars Special Edition Jabba the Hutt. Among the more than 60 new CG creations, overseen by animation supervisor, Rob Coleman, Jar Jar Binks; Sebulba, the Podrace champion challenged by Anakin; and Watto, a gruff-speaking creature for whom Anakin toils in servitude. Each CG creature gives its own vivid performance through its expressive face and distinctive body language, created by the film's effects magicians. Even their clothes ripple and move like those of their flesh-and-blood counterparts. It may have been a digital world, but it was also necessary that more traditional methods worked harmoniously with the envelope-pushing effects. Model making, supervised by Steve Gawley at the ILM model shop, continued to play a strong role in the Star Wars universe, working in conjunction with the CG material. The digital work plays a key role in the creation of EPISODE I's exotic and disparate worlds, three of which serve as the story's principal locales. The desert planet Tatooine, already familiar to fans of the original trilogy, is home to many alien species that travel through its remote spaceports. This frontier world lies beyond the civilizing influences of the galactic republic, leaving Tatooine a rugged planet ruled by gangsters, where black market trade and gambling drive the economy, and where slaves are owned by the rich. Naboo is a peaceful, idyllic paradise of green landscapes and few cities, found both above and below the water. This provincial world is the scene of the conflict that ignites the entire chain of events that sets the Star Wars saga in motion. Coruscant is a world-city where urban sprawl has covered the entire planet in colossal skyscrapers, and it is the center of the Star Wars universe. Here, the Jedi make their headquarters in the mighty Jedi Temple, and from here the Galactic Senate rules the Republic. LOCATIONS In addition to the digital work done at ILM, EPISODE I's far-flung locales called for special sets and home bases for the production. To this end, the filmmakers took over Leavesden Studios in the United Kingdom, creating a virtual movie factory under its sprawling roof. The facility's 850,000 square feet were converted to ten stages and sixty sets, plus extensive areas for floor effects, special creature effects and costume manufacturing. It even had its own rigging and fire departments. Leavesden, which was once a Rolls Royce aircraft engine factory and has the largest backlot of any studio in the world, truly was the ideal choice for the scale and rigors of much of the EPISODE I filming. "It's probably the best place I've ever made a movie," says Rick McCallum. "We were able to shoot and build at the same time, effortlessly and seamlessly." Filming on EPISODE I began in Leavesden in the summer of 1997, almost three years after Lucas started writing and his design team started putting together initial concept drawings and a year since construction had begun on the sets. The production then moved to the Caserta Royal Palace near Naples, Italy, for scenes set in the Queen's palace on Naboo. Several other locations had been scouted, but the filmmakers agreed that the Caserta Royal Palace, one of Europe