Repeatedly dropping a refrigerator from a forklift to record the sound. Moving the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon from the front to the side. Molding snow lizards and squid people, soon to be named by George Lucas. Soaking in a hot tub on breaks.
These are some of the glimpses that the “Light & Magic” panel gave into the daily life of Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) in its early days.
A new docuseries of the same name will arrive on Disney Plus on July 27. If the goal of the panel was to get me interested in watching the docuseries this summer (and I think it was), then mission accomplished. There were so many fun little behind-the-scenes tidbits that explain the artistic origins of iconic Star Wars characters, ships, and sets. And considering the impact ILM has had on modern film history, this series will not only interest Star Wars fans, but general movie fans as well.
To preview the series, the panel gathered some of the earliest members of ILM: Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Joe Johnston, and Rose Duignan. They not only vouched for the integrity of the series, but continued to reminisce about what it was like to create work that would not only define the aesthetics of Star Wars, but revolutionize the entire film industry with their innovations in visual effects. These four legends shared so much with the audience, but the point they kept coming back to was that ILM was not only a VFX company, but a collective of artists, designers, and engineers who could work together to make movie magic. No egos. And a simple yet effective philosophy: always say “yes, we can do that” first and figure out how to make it happen later.
Panelists used the phrase “rebel spirit” more than once, citing unorthodox methods combined with unprecedented collaboration as the key to ILM’s success. Current Lucasfilm vice president and general manager Lynwen Brennan rounded out the panel to confirm that this “rebel spirit” and creative collaboration live on in current Lucasfilm productions. While Brennan only chimed in a few times during the panel, her presence did a lot to establish the discussion and the upcoming series as one of historical legacy.
Who better to capture that innovative spirit than legendary filmmaker Lawrence Kasdan, who co-wrote The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi? Kasdan, unfortunately, had a “positive test” that prevented him from attending in person, but he still joined the panel remotely. He did his best to contribute to the panel, and when he spoke he did seem to have a lot of love for telling this story on behalf of these artists. It’s also nice to know that even a brilliant Hollywood giant like him also forgets to unmute before he speaks. But it would have been much more impactful to have him in the room to freely interject.
The other mastermind behind the series is Executive Producer Ron Howard (whose resume is too long to include here). Howard heart-warmingly mentioned how his daughter, Bryce Dallas Howard, has inherited the ILM tradition, as she’s directed some of the most beloved episodes of The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett. The crowd went wild at the mention of her name, and Howard very sweetly thanked them and said that their cheers made him feel like a “proud dad.”
When it wasn’t Kasdan’s cue to speak on the big screens flanking the stage, the format of the panel alternated between ABC’s Chris Connelly interviewing the panelists on stage and clips from the Light & Magic documentary. This mostly worked, but occasionally created redundancies because sometimes the clips repeated stories that the panelists had just told a few minutes prior. Phil Tippett, for example, told this great story about designing the Tauntaun for The Empire Strikes Back and how George Lucas always responded more positively to 3D models or “maquettes.” But then they rolled a clip from Light & Magic of Tippett telling essentially the same story, which made Tippett apologize to the audience for repeating himself.
Production Supervisor Rose Duigan, on the other hand, tried to add a new, even more behind-the-scenes dimension that we will likely not get in the docuseries. Her stories were the most fun and salacious; she seemed to think she was on a different kind of panel, and I wanted to be at it too. She’s the one, for example, who shared the story of John Dykstra lifting a fridge with a forklift only to drop it over and over again. In the middle of this absurd exercise, a limo full of studio executives – including Lucas – pulled up; when they saw what was happening, they immediately got back in the limo and drove away. Someone else on the panel informed Duigan that sound designer Ben Burtt was actually recording the sound of the crashing refrigerator, and she immediately shouted, “Quick, we have to call the studio and explain!” In a clip from the series, George Lucas describes Duigan as “the adult in the room,” and the way she answered Chris Connelly’s questions gave me the impression that she was single-handedly keeping the place afloat, making sure her fellow geniuses stayed on track.
The primary creative leadership all the panelists cited, though, was, unsurprisingly, George Lucas. A less attentive listener may have gotten the anecdotal impression that Lucas was vague and didn’t know what he wanted, but the panelists always brought it back to how even though they often tried to pitch work to him in a way that would make him choose what they themselves liked most, he always gave them the creative freedom to do what they do best.
While not as flashy as some other Celebration Stage panels that weekend, the “Light & Magic” panel was a hidden gem because it paid tribute to creators without whom we would not have the treasure trove of Star Wars content we enjoy today. If the panel was an indication of the insight we could gain into this early period in Star Wars history, I am very much looking forward to watching Kasdan’s documentary this summer.
Jen Sopchockchai Bankard is an Associate Professor of Writing at the University of California and has been a Star Wars fan since she wore out VHS tapes of the Original Trilogy in middle school and watched the Prequel Trilogy in theaters in high school and college. She has been a guest on the Rebel Base Card podcast and The ColbyCast. For in-depth reviews of all new Star Wars releases, visit and subscribe (for free!) to The Long Take.
Instagram and Twitter: @sopchockchai
- Hardcover Book
- Lucasfilm Press (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 352 Pages - 06/07/2022 (Publication Date) - Random House/Star Wars (Publisher)
