ANAHEIM, Calif. — “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” is about a generational transfer in more ways than one. Set 30 years after the events in “Return of the Jedi” and coming to theaters just over 30 years after the film first debuted, that idea remained top of mind for the film’s brand new production design team, fans learned at Star Wars Celebration on Saturday.
In other words, they didn’t have to reinvent the wheel. They just had to update it a bit.
Rick Carter, an Academy Award winner for “Lincoln” and “Avatar,” was joined on stage by his co-production designer Darren Gilford (“TRON: Legacy”), Doug Chiang (“Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace”), and Industrial Light + Magic Art Director Christian Alzmann (“A.I. Artificial Intelligence”) to discuss their work together on the seventh film in the “Star Wars” saga.
While the artists couldn’t reveal any specifics about the plot, they did treat a packed auditorium to a few revelations about modernizing aesthetics of everything from the X-wing fighters to the Millennium Falcon.
This image released by Lucasfilm shows character Chewbacca, left, and Harrison Ford in a scene from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” the highly anticipated film by J.J. Abrams that hits theaters Dec. 18.“Seven comes after six. It doesn’t come after three,” said Carter, referring to the poorly received prequels. “This is a period piece that we’re bringing forth. We’re always going back to go forward.”