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Archived News
April 2004
Week 5
Friday April 30, 2004
EpIII: Marketing
Timeline Revealed? |
TF.N has
revealed what they claim to be the marketing timeline LucasFilm will
follow prior to the release of Star Wars: Episode III.
The marketing campaign starts officially in September, with the
Classic Trilogy Saga DVDs and the Ep. III documentary included
(which is very important because they no doubt plan to draw new fans
to the saga with this). Then November with the release of the teaser
poster, the trailer in March and the Movie in May 2005.
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Posted:
by Rebel
Racer
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Friday April 30, 2004
Homing Beacon #109 |
The latest edition of the Homing Beacon has arrived, and in this
issue we read about the Pro's of joining the Offical Star Wars Fan
Club. By now Star Wars fans know that the Official Star Wars Fan
Club and starwars.com Hyperspace have merged into one, offering the
greatest Star Wars experience ever for subscribers. A year's
subscription includes a unique membership kit, six issues of the
new-and-improved Star Wars Insider, as well as all the exclusive
online content that current subscribers have been enjoying since the
launch of Hyperspace in June of 2003. (Click
here for more details!)
"Hyperspace subscribers have had a great year of unprecedented
inside access and the response has been great," says Director
of Lucas Online, Paul Ens. "Now that Hyperspace is the online
component of a larger Fan Club experience, we're looking forward to
new opportunities to make that fan experience even better this
year."
Episode III is what fans are most interested in, and the final Star
Wars film will continue to be the focus for both Insider and
starwars.com Hyperspace in 2004-2005. "Right now, we're
planning on webcam coverage of the additional round of shooting in
August, as well as bringing back the Set Diaries direct from
London," says Ens.
In the meantime, subscribers can look forward to an inside look at a
big Lucasfilm event planned for this summer. "Hyperspace really
became ‘the-next-best-thing-to-being-there' during Sydney, and we
want to continue that during the convention season," says Ens.
"That's why we're working on letting subscribers in on some of
the surprises that will be unveiled this summer at Lucasfilm's big
Comic-Con presence. If you can't make it to San Diego, then tuning
into starwars.com Hyperspace is the next best thing."
One of the new features for 2004 is a brand new Episode III photo
series unlike any previously run on the site. "It's quite
different as it's very interactive, and it will allow users to
explore some of the Episode III production environments in a new
way," says Ens.
"A key element to Star Wars' success has always been the
collective experience, be it waiting in line, watching the movie in
a packed theater, creating new adventures with action figures,
gathering at a Star Wars Celebration or knowing you're reading the
same Star Wars novel as thousands of other fans at the same
time," says Ens.
"The internet has redefined what the concept of a community can
be, and it only makes sense for the Official Fan Club to embrace and
facilitate this important aspect of being a fan. This fall, look for
new ways for fans to reach out to other fans, spotlight their fan
groups, or share their creativity or opinions with their local and
global communities.
"Naturally, look for Hyperspace to tie-in closely with this
fall's Episode III teaser trailer and Star Wars Trilogy release on
DVD," says Ens, "and making those landmark events even
better for our members. Plenty of other surprises are also in
store... stay tuned."
Click
here to join the new Hyperspace: The Official Star Wars Fan
Club.
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Posted:
by Rebel
Racer
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Thursday April 29,
2004
Another Hyperspace Chat
Tomorrow |
The Official Star
Wars Site has announced another Hyperspace chat for tomorrow!
Continuing the series of popular online chats, starwars.com
Hyperspace welcomes Phil Tippett, an ILM alumnus from the original
Star Wars trilogy, and now a leading force in the visual effects
industry.
In the original Star Wars, Tippett was responsible for breathing
life into virtual characters -- at the time, through puppetry and
stop motion animation. His specialty was the latter, a painstaking
process wherein articulated models were moved by hand a frame at a
time, 24 times to capture a single second of motion. Tippett used
this technique to animate the holographic chess characters in Star
Wars, and the AT-AT walkers in The Empire Strikes Back.
Tippett helped engineer advancements of this age-old technique;
stop-motion and go-motion animation reached its peak with his work
on Dragonslayer and Return of the Jedi. For Jedi, Tippett also
oversaw the Makeup and Creature design crew, developing the look for
such classic Star Wars creatures as Jabba the Hutt and the rancor.
In 1983, Tippett formed his own company, Tippett Studio, which would
provide the vivid animation seen in such films as Robocop. In 1991,
he was on the forefront of the developing digital realm of
computer-generated animation when work began on Jurassic Park. The
?Dinosaur-Input-Device? crafted by Tippett and his team bridged the
transition of both stop-motion and digital animation by providing
computer animators a hands-on method of animating living creatures.
Since then, Tippett Studio has provided digital character animation
in such films as Hollow Man, Starship Troopers, Evolution and
Hellboy.
Phil Tippett has worked on 34 feature films, and won Academy Awards
for Return of the Jedi and Jurassic Park. His other nominated works
include Willow, Dragonheart, Starship Troopers and Hollow Man.
Tippett makes his directorial debut with Starship Troopers 2: Hero
of the Federation, a video release coming this June.
Phil Tippett is scheduled to be online on Friday, April 30 at 10:00
a.m. Pacific time (1:00 p.m. Eastern time). Please note that
last-minute scheduling changes may happen, and because hundreds of
questions are submitted, not all can be answered.
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Posted:
by Jedi
Power
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Thursday April 29,
2004
Hasbro's Star Wars
Q&A |
Hasbro.com
has provided a couple of answers to some questions you may
have.
Q: Hasbro
announced in Star Wars Insider that they are releasing the
Sandcrawler this year at Target (in the US). However, an
International retailer has announced that the item is cancelled.
What is the story with this item?
A: Since the article for the Insider went to press a couple of
months ago, Target has decided not to carry the item. We have
been discussing the item with other retailers and are hopeful that
we will still be able to find a home for the Sandcrawler in 2004.
If it is placed in the US, then we anticipate that it will also
be sold in other countries as well. However, if it is not sold
in the US, then it is unlikely to be sold anywhere. We will
announce new plans on our website as soon as they are confirmed.
Q: What is
the plan for the "vintage" 3-¾ inch line of figures?
A: First, we’d like clarify what we mean when we say “vintage
figures.” The line consists of 12 entirely new 3-¾ inch
figures, with enhanced deco and/or articulation. The
"vintage" refers to the packaging artwork. These
figures will feature reproductions of the original packaging from
the 70's and 80's. These are part of our Original Trilogy
Collection to commemorate the release of the classic trilogy on DVD
this September.
In terms of distribution, we expect the line to be carried by all
major toy retailers. While we do not disclose production
quantities, we caution fans against Internet rumors. We will ship
these figures in multiple ratios to try and ensure that the most
popular figures are available throughout the Fall.
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Posted:
by Jedi
Power
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Tuesday April 27, 2004
Craig Burt's Premonition
Padmé |
Craig Burt e-mailed his latest piece entitled "Premonition Padmé."
If you dig out some of your old Episode IV cut scene pictures, you
will find the exact location Craig has used for this cool picture.
Thanks Craig! Be
sure to see all of Craig Burt's Paintings on Page
1 and Page
2 along with Craig
Burt's Cartoons! Also, you can find other great work at the Featured
Artists section.
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Posted:
by Jedi
Power
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Monday April 26, 2004
Hyperspace Chat-Paul Ens |
The Official Star
Wars Site has announced that Hyperspace members will be able to
participate in an online chat this week with Paul Ens (aka Ghent),
Director of Lucas Online. Like the previous chats, these events are
held in the Celebrity Talks and Schedule forum only visible to
Hyperspace members. Please note that past chats have produced
literally hundreds of questions from enthusiastic participants, so
not all can be answered.
It's been almost a year since the launch of Hyperspace -- a year
packed with premium content like the Set Diaries, production webcam,
pictures, articles, celebrity chats and more. Most recently,
starwars.com has added ShopStarWars.com, the official Lucasfilm
online store.
What does the future hold for Hyperspace? What new and exciting
products can we expect from the store? There are big plans in the
works, and you'll soon find out more.
To answer your questions about what the next year has to offer, Paul
Ens (aka Ghent), Director of Lucas Online will be here to answer
questions on Thursday, April 29, starting at 11 am, Pacific time. So
be thinking about your questions!
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Posted:
by Jedi
Power
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