Rogue One Vader costume

CSMacLaren said:
Hi guys,

I finally have permission, albeit indirectly via Bookface, to share on the origins of the fanmade used for Rogue One. Due to NDA, we have been asked to be discrete. Perhaps this will bring a smile - and a bit of balance to The Force.

The mask of my "Quasimodo" helmet sculpt was used for the Rogue One Vader - laserscanned, then the 3D model modified and idealized, yet somehow preserving some of my sculpted characteristics.

I honestly found out by pure accident. I had asked Bookface to provide me with photos taken at the same angles as publicity shots, then asked him to paint one up in Rogue One style - as I puzzled over some similarities. I was stunned when he told me who his customer was, and he sincerely thought he had told me (as if asking for all those pics from him should have tipped him off that I had no idea!)

That is how I accidentally learned of the incredible honor of Quasimodo's part in Star Wars film history.

I have read that Gino on Rebelscum said the R1 helmet was one of his old Vaders. I believe Gino was sincere in his belief as it told to him by the current owner of his old helmet who is a crew member of Rogue One. Bookface contacted that crew member who told him helmet they laserscanned for the film was actually not Gino's old helmet, but was uncertain of the origin of the fanmade. It's entirely possible the intention was to use Gino's old helmet, but there may have been a change of decision made outside of Gino's awareness.

We are still trying to figure out the dome's origin. It may be Quasimodo or something else, but what is clear is a strong degree of evening out of the surfaces and edges, but I do not see PCR tells. But it still looks great compared with the oversanded helmets we've seen in the fandom.

(There is an old thread that compares Gino's old helmet against a VP face paired with a GH master dome, which may have raised the question of whether the dome is Darth Ugly ANH - which had its origins as a GH ANH. The tells of Gino's old helmet and those of Darth Ugly make those domes inconsistent with the R1. )

I, like some of you, wondered if Brian Muir was attached to making the Vader costume(s). I would have liked to see pulls from the original molds used instead. I have not spoken with Brian. Nevertheless, I think that we owe Brian an incredible debt of gratitude and praise for giving us the very stuff of dreams that has lasted 40 years and still continues to inspire - and my work with Quasimodo is my homage to his incredible sculpting of the original.

So hope this helps. I have not much more to share as I never spoke with this crew member personally (using a very generic rank to try to protect his/her rank) but I also want to thank this person for the very kind consideration of my work. I am still boggled by this. Thanks, everyone!
Click to expand...
Impressive, most impressive. :D
 
Wow - congratulations! I hope you feel deeply satisfied after spending so many years working on - aside from sculpting these helmets for a really good cause, this must be the highest accolade such a project could achieve! Well done.

Shame they decided to un-pair the dome and mask though.
 
Thanks for sharing this story. I'm completely new to the subtleties of the history of the various Vader masks/helmets and have learned a bunch through reading this thread. Congrats on the enviable honor of now having such a close personal connection to the history. Wonderful job - this is really neat!

Dan
 
It's made me chuckle a bit all day, thinking about the fact that so much of what I love about the whole Quasimodo project was the stated desire to make a "sculpture" that looked good regardless of its lineage. It seems lineage and provenance have entered the picture now, in a somewhat unexpected manner! :lol

The question is, speaking in Prop Den terms, is the screen-used lid with its alterations essentially a second-generation Quasimodo? And/or are all Quasimodo helmets now lineage/authentic casts? (I ask in jest, mostly, due to the idea mentioned above in which "provenance for provenance's sake" was always seemingly what the Quasi project was an argument against. I think it was a triumph in that, and has caused a good share of good discussion and reconsideration of the topic in the hobby. That said, I'm not sure what to make of this interesting news :) )
 
I'm very grateful for everyone's support. I look back over the last 10 years and never realized how much Star Wars helped me get back in touch with my inner child and find other aspects to myself, and this helped me breeze through mid-life crisis.

That Quasimodo resonates with people means a lot to me, as an aspiring artist, this is a heartfelt effort to evoke the emotion of the character that was central to connecting back to what inspired me as a young boy watching SW for the first time. I had only worked with clay once back in college, and never considered myself a sculptor, and had not revisited sculpting until the last several years. After Brian Muir encouraged me to use oil-based clays, things have not been the same since. There is a far more personal relationship I have with my sculpts, and I enjoy playing "Leia's Theme" while working - kind of like pretending I'm at the studios of Lucasfilm getting ready for the next Star Wars film.

Regarding the lineage topic, I prefer to think that the specific Quasimodo helmet they laserscanned was the progenitor, and the screen-used basically descended from that progenitor. All existing Quasimodos out there are merely peers to that progenitor, but are not in the lineage path. However, it's nice to think that they have some indirect connection - like I am my dad's son; I have a number of uncles who might look like my dad, but none of them are my father.

You are all most kind for the warm words and encouragement. Thank you for supporting my efforts all these years!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Fener said:
A case of illegal recasting...
Click to expand...

Let me offer a different "certain point of view"! From an artistic and storytelling/dramatic standpoint, there was a lot at stake. Rogue One was not one of the main Episodes which could have resulted in diminished importance in fans' eyes. But when I finally saw Rogue One, I was struck with a great deal of emotions to where it was of greater importance to me than TFA.

From the level of passion and attention to detail in Rogue One's making, it was clear the intention was not to just make a "here's one too" movie. It was to insert something that was extremely important directly into the storytelling timeline. And achieving emotional affinity with so many characters within the span of only one film is not an easy thing to accomplish. That the crew of Rogue One and all the supporting Rebels in their fighters and on the ground gave their lives to get that little data disc into Leia's hands hit me so hard, that it gave me a profound appreciation for A New Hope.

The director's minimal use of Vader was perfect, following the "less is more" otherwise we'd want a full Vader film, and that might end up diluting the character down. I watched Rogue One very late in the game after reading on RPF people pointing out problems with the armor, the cod, and how the lighting/mood or lens colors weren't right, etc. I was watching for enjoyment, but also trying to study the helmet from a prop standpoint (which is quite distracting).

The closing scene culminates with such ferocity, energy and desperation that it eclipsed any problems I had with the parts of the costume not either appearing right or interoperating with other parts incorrectly all quickly vanished in the action. I saw the face of Vader and felt fear for the first time regarding him - and this is coming from a guy who has been working on Vader projects for 10 years.

And all those lives, their hopes, their sacrifices, their pain. Those rebels died not knowing if their mission had truly succeeded or not. I was gripped by that realization and felt a pang of loss. In that, the director, Gareth Edwards, succeeded in drawing me into the Star Wars universe and making me believe again.

So I have absolutely no problem with - as Captain Jack Sparrow would say - "borrowing without permission" because if you focused solely on the upper third of Vader in the ending scene, it was enough to be held in the scene's emotional grip. I couldn't be more grateful that Quasimodo played a part in that, but that scene and what it means to me is far greater than Quasimodo as a mask or helmet. It means I have a movie with emotional momentum that will live with me the next 40 years.
 
Many congrats, Mac! Truly inspirational, just goes to show a lot of dedication and hard work will eventually pay off and be recognized. I dream of owning a Quasimodo one day, I just hope this new revelation doesn't mean a price hike. :p
 
Here some great pics from the bluray...:D

28975319ak.jpg


28975321os.jpg


28975329bu.jpg


28975341mt.jpg


28975364el.jpg


28975354ba.jpg
 
I'm confused because I am pretty sure that Brian Muir himself did the Vader in R1. I'm just confused. Provide me clarity.


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