The inside story of George Lucas, his intensely private company, and their work to revolutionize filmmaking. In the process, they made computer history. Discover the birth of Pixar, digital video editing, videogame avatars, high definition television, THX sound, and a host of other icons of the media age. Lucas and his friend Francis Coppola were not only central to the renaissance of independent film, but they both played pivotal roles in the universe of entertainment technologies we see everyday. Book jacket.
George Lucas is an innovative and talented director, producer, and screenwriter whose prolific career spans decades. While he is best known as the creative mind behind the Star Wars franchise, Lucas first gained renown with his 1973 film American Graffiti, which received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Director and Best Picture. When Star Wars (1977) was released, the groundbreaking motion picture won six Academy Awards, became the highest grossing film at the time, and started a cultural revolution that continues to inspire generations of fans. Three decades and countless successes later, Lucas announced semiretirement in 2012 and sold his highly successful production company, Lucasfilm, to Disney. His achievements have earned him the Academy's Irving G. Thalberg Award, the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award, induction into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame and the California Hall of Fame, and a National Medal of Arts presented by President Barack Obama. Lucas: His Hollywood Legacy is the first collection to bring a sustained scholarly perspective to the iconic filmmaker and his legacy beyond the Star Wars films. Edited by Richard Ravalli, this volume analyzes Lucas's overall contribution and importance to the film industry, diving deep into his use and development of modern special effects technologies, the history of his Skywalker Ranch production facilities, and more. With clearly written and enlightening critiques by experts consulting rare collections and archival materials, this book is an original and robust project that sets the standard for historical and cultural studies of Lucas.
When Freddy Bird’s genius-inventor dad goes missing, he and best friend Minnie find themselves plunged into mortal danger, pursued by dangerous thugs, deadly mechanical birds and a sinister businessman with an incredible shark-like car. But when the children discover a secret tunnel where Freddy’s father has hidden parts of an amazing robot, they decide to outwit their enemies by putting the droid together – a droid that looks just like Freddy’s dad... Dad Droid is a fun, fast-paced illustrated adventure story for children aged 8–12, from the creators of This is Jinsy. It may contain nuts (and bolts).
Destined to be the classic illustrated survey of Lucas's career, the book is sure to fascinate not only die-hard fans but also general film and popular culture enthusiasts.
Nonlinear, now in its 4th edition, is an easy-to-understand handbook about the popular world of digital nonlinear editing. It's written in nontechnical language for both professionals and students, as well as for interested bystanders. Profusely illustrated. The first edition was designed for professionals in Hollywood's film and video industry, to bridge the chasm between film editors (older, non-technological, mechanical), videotape editors (younger, highly technical, electronic), and computer users (prosumers, cost-conscious, digital) in casual language. Today, Nonlinear has not only penetrated the professional industry, but has been expanded for consumer use. Widely used in colleges, universities, and professional organizations. Although nonlinear editing technology began to explode in 1991, nonlinear systems had already been around for almost 5 years. Nonlinear became the Rosetta Stone of the industry: it was a universal translator -- between film and video, video and computer, computer and film. It still covers virtually everything anyone would want to know about the new world of electronic post production, without the geeky mumbo jumbo that characterizes most professional texts. While the book is useful for anyone investigating or wishing to purchase a digital editing system, it is not meant to be a buyer's guide. It is designed not to go out of date every time a new new product is introduced or software release comes out. It is about essentials. Fundamentals. Concepts. And language. With over 25,000 copies in print, Nonlinear is the best selling textbook on nonlinear editing in the world today.
From a basic two-camera interview to an elaborate 26 camera HD concert film, this comprehensive guide presents a platform-agnostic approach to the essential techniques required to set up and edit a multi-camera project. Actual case studies are used to examine specific usages of multi-camera editing and include a variety of genres including concerts, talk shows, reality programming, sit-coms, documentaries for television, event videography and feature films. Other features include: * Advanced multi-camera techniques and specialty work-flows are examined for tapeless & large scale productions with examples from network TV shows, corporate media projects, event videography, and feature films. * New techniques for 3D projects, 2k/4k media management and color correction are revealed. * Technical breakdowns analyze system requirements for monitoring, hard drives & RAIDs, RAM, codecs and computer platforms. * Apple Final Cut Pro, Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere Pro and several other software programs are detailed. * Tables, charts, screen-grabs, photos, web-links, blogs, tech school lists and other resource tools for further study. * Unique interviews with the 'Masters of Multi-Cam' including EMMY and academy award-winning directors and editors who share their project notes and give insight to award-winning techniques.
By examining three case studies of award-winning soundtracks from cult films-Barton Fink (1991), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), and The English Patient (1996)-it becomes clear that major American film communities, when confronted with the initial technological changes of the 1990s, experienced similar challenges with the inelegant transition from analogue to digital. However, their cultural and structural labor differences governed different results. Vanessa Ament, author of The Foley Grail (2009), rather than defining the 1990s as an era of technological determinism-a superficial reading-it is best understood as one in which sound professionals became more viable as artists, collaborated in sound design authorship, and influenced this digital transition to better accommodate their needs and desires in their work.
The essential biography of the influential and beloved filmmaker George Lucas. On May 25, 1977, a problem-plagued, budget-straining independent science-fiction film opened in a mere thirty-two American movie theaters. Conceived, written, and directed by a little-known filmmaker named George Lucas, the movie originally called The Star Wars quickly drew blocks-long lines, bursting box-office records and ushering in a new way for movies to be made, marketed, and merchandised. It is now one of the most adored-and successful-movie franchises of all time. Now, the author of the bestselling biography Jim Henson delivers a long-awaited, revelatory look into the life and times of the man who created Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Indiana Jones. If Star Wars wasn't game-changing enough, Lucas went on to create another blockbuster series with Indiana Jones, and he completely transformed the world of special effects and the way movies sound. His innovation and ambition forged Pixar and Lucasfilm, Industrial Light & Magic, and THX sound. Lucas's colleagues and competitors offer tantalizing glimpses into his life. His entire career has been stimulated by innovators including Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola, actors such as Harrison Ford, and the very technologies that enabled the creation of his films-and allowed him to keep tinkering with them long after their original releases. Like his unforgettable characters and stories, his influence is unmatched.
