The Walt Disney Company has released a new featurette, “How Industrial Light & Magic Changed Movies Forever,” charting the visual effects pioneer’s evolution from its origins on the original Star Wars to a household name in visual effects.
Highlighting technical milestones like IMOCAP and StageCraft virtual production for live-action television, the video underscores ILM’s core philosophy of technological innovation driven strictly by narrative necessity.
Before ‘Star Wars: A New Hope’ changed an entire industry, Disney Legend George Lucas faced one major challenge — no visual effects company was capable of bringing his ambitious vision to life. His solution? Create one.
In this video, discover the origin story of Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), from its founding in 1975 to its evolution into a global leader in visual effects, feature animation, immersive entertainment, and virtual production.
Hear from ILM leaders Janet Lewin (SVP, General Manager) and John Knoll (Executive Creative Director) and Lucasfilm’s Doug Chiang (SVP, Executive Design Director) as they share how a team of artists, innovators, and dreamers transformed filmmaking — and continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible.