New Star Wars films from Game of Thrones duo

This was a fantastic post. A quick question; you say that KK would have been a part of the creative process - would that mean in terms of being an actual "idea person", or merely greenlighting/quashing others (writer/director) ideas?

Both. In development it's not unusual for there to be several EPs involved in brainstorming sessions. Here's the transcript I was talking about-- Kennedy wasn't in this one, but you have Spielberg as director, Kasdan as writer, and Lucas as EP.

http://maddogmovies.com/almost/scripts/raidersstoryconference1978.pdf

This is how development meetings go, and there will be several of them. When Kennedy was looking for somebody to do Episode 8 I'm sure she met with several people. Ahead of the meeting, they were likely told what was going to happen in TFA (at the time) and then each writer/director would come in and give their take. Rian came in, and pitched his general ideas, where he wanted to take the characters, etc. After getting the job, but before writing, there would be several development meetings to iron things out. Generally, a writer will go from their pitch, to a more detailed treatment, to a revised treatment, to a detailed outline, with notes and meetings from producers between each step. So before Rian has written a single word, Kennedy, and likely Abrams and Kasdan and Kinberg, would all offer up notes. Notes can be anything from "you should give that character a sibling that dies in the first act" to "what if we killed off this character here?" They could be the tiniest of details, or huge changes to the arc. When you hear about movies in "development hell" they are stuck in this phase where the EPs are never satisfied and continue to give notes to the writer who generally gets burnt out. So before a single script page is written, the EPs are essentially workshopping the treatments with the writer, so it's 100% a creative job. And as workshops go-- maiking small changes a nd ideas can often lead to bigger idea. This is how TV writer's rooms work generally.

And would she then be involved in "on the fly" decisions? As a hypothetical example: <After a hallucinogenic dream, RJ awakens and thinks "Oh man, I should have Leia, like, channel the force after being blown into space, and totally force-drift back to the ship. Duuude, this is going to be epic">...would he be expected to "check in" to have something like that okayed? (Assuming it didn't affect the overall narrative - if, say, the script at that point still had her surviving the blast, regardless - but it's merely a moment of "optical" significance)?

It depends to some extent. I don't know if she is on set for the entire shoot, or portions of it, or what. I was working on a movie at Pinewood while TFA was shooting. We were literally next door to their offices and stages and despite that I ever saw a damn thing... except for Kennedy's golf cart parked outside of my office window. So I know she was there for a good portion of it. It seems like, for better or worse, her jam is to hire people she thinks she can trust to go with the flow. A director has free reign generally try different things, but with Star Wars, when everything is tired to set-pieces and FX sequences that have an army of people already working on them, you have to be pretty locked into the script.

If she's not on set, there's a producer there whose singular job is to report back. This is how the original Solo directors were let go. They were straying from the script too much.

In general, most of the time a director will get coverage for what's in the script, and then a lot a little time for alternate takes, improving, or experimenting (time permitting). This is how we got the "I love you..." "I know." moment. Big changes always have to be a call with the EP and/or studio if they aren't there.

Just curious as to how closely the folks up the ladder are tied to the details. Only using that example because it's a polarizing moment in a film; not trying to pile on TLJ or anything (it's just easy). And as far as that goes, it sounds like she has had a good track record for a long time (which I only know from your post!); do you think being part of a team (with great creative minds around you), is a much different animal than if you're the point-person for a project? Maybe even just in terms of a "blazing your own trail" kind of thing?

On the average film there's always a producer on set protecting the studio's interest. Directors are generally hired for their ideas. On a ,movie like Star Wars, with so many moving pieces and so much money on the line, there's not a ton of room for experimenting and Kennedy wouldn't likely be taken by surprise by anything.
 
Thanks again for sharing your knowledge regarding this process @SethS .

So , basically ( correct me if I’m wrong ) what you’re saying is that everyone of Note at LF and Disney , ( the powers that be essentially ) were aware of what these ‘ planned ‘ films being made would become ( being greenlit ) - from start to finish - , for the movie going public ... and Longtime Fans of the series !?

If that’s really how it happened , then all I can say is .... Wow ... Unbelievable ... and ... Why !? Especially , the disconnect between Ep VII and VIII ,... and No I don’t hate TLJ ,... I just don’t understand it !

Ged
 
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I just want to say real quickly how awesome this site is. There are more populated such sites, but none as informative and inquisitive. The bickering is born of passion, and it's no where near as bad as some sites (with the ad hominem stuff), and there's no mods needlessly inserting themselves into situations (I'm looking at you, Jedi Council board).

It's like there's at least one person around here to play every significant role, like a good sitcom. Nice and balanced. :)

Carry on!
 
That is true. Two high-SWIQ individuals can disagree--but those occasions will be rare. Because whenever there is a disagreement, that means one person is right and one person is wrong. And since both individuals, to use your example, possess a high SWIQ, that means that each individual is rarely wrong. Which, in turn, means that they rarely disagree with each other.



Glad to hear it. I find it fascinating, too. As for a thread specifically for discussion of SWIQ? lol Perhaps. Lemme think about it.

The Wook

Here’s a question for ya Wook. Am I right to pass judgement on anyone who incorrectly uses the acronym ESB instead of TESB?
 
Here’s a question for ya Wook. Am I right to pass judgement on anyone who incorrectly uses the acronym ESB instead of TESB?

Lol...pass judgment on them, by all means...if that offends you.

But it is not a reflection of their SWIQ. It is a reflection of your pedantry.

The Wook

ps~Unless, of course, they are unaware that the full film title begins with a, "The". Then their SWIQ will take a hit for that kind of ignorance, no doubt. But I'd guess that 99% of the people who say or type, "ESB", do in fact know that the full film title is, "The Empire Strikes Back". ESB certainly rolls off the tongue better than TESB. And in writing, it's one less keystroke.
 
Good call. I’m not offended by it even though it is wrong but c’mon, it’s already an abbreviation, is one letter too much. I am definitely a pedant though.
 
G’day @The Wook ,

I’m old enough to remember Star Wars being called ‘ Star Wars ‘ when it first came out , being 11 at the time .
Wondering then , if it’s referred to as ‘ Ep IV or Ep IV - ANH ‘ now , why is that a sign of low SWIQ ?
After all , Star Wars’ opening scrawl starts off ‘ Episode IV - A New Hope ‘ right ? . Yeah , George Lucas made it a one off at the time maybe ( why else inc. Ep IV? , unless it was a reference to his beloved serials ) , but I digress - that thankfully changed , due to its brilliant impact and success as a ground breaking film .

:cheersGed
 
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G’day @The Wook ,

I’m old enough to remember Star Wars being called ‘ Star Wars ‘ when it first came out , being 11 at the time .
Wondering then , if it’s referred to as ‘ Ep IV or Ep IV - ANH ‘ now , why is that a sign of low SWIQ ?
After all , Star Wars’ opening scrawl starts off ‘ Episode IV - A New Hope ‘ right ? . Yeah , George Lucas made it a one off at the time maybe ( why else inc. Ep IV? , unless it was a reference to his beloved serials ) , but I digress - that thankfully changed , due to its brilliant impact and success as a ground breaking film .

:cheersGed
Well, when I saw Star Wars in 1977 at the gentle young age of ten years, the opening crawl just said "Star Wars", without any silly "episode IV, A New Hope". That retcon came later - 1978, I believe.

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What about when going to the theater? Do you ask for a ticket for the subtitle of the Star Wars movie? I don't. Every SW movie I've ever seen in the theater I've just said "Ticket for Star Wars." They know what I mean.
Me too. Good point.

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What about when going to the theater? Do you ask for a ticket for the subtitle of the Star Wars movie? I don't. Every SW movie I've ever seen in the theater I've just said "Ticket for Star Wars." They know what I mean.


Same as me....

Do the same with James Bond movies etc

J
 
Well, when I saw Star Wars in 1977 at the gentle young age of ten years, the opening crawl just said "Star Wars", without any silly "episode IV, A New Hope". That retcon came later - 1978, I believe.

The Ep 4:A New Hope was added after ESB came out....but home video releases still called it on the cover Star Wars right up to 2000 when the Phantom Menace came out for home

I still just call it Star Wars

J
 
So , basically ( correct me if I’m wrong ) what you’re saying is that everyone of Note at LF and Disney , ( the powers that be essentially ) were aware of what these ‘ planned ‘ films being made would become ( being greenlit ) - from start to finish - , for the movie going public ... and Longtime Fans of the series !?

Lucasfilm, yes. Disney-- probably just Bob Iger and maybe one or two other VPs. Like Pixar and Marvel, Disney expects Lucasfilm to run itself. They give Lucasfilm money, and Kathleen promises them a box-office crushing movie every year. As long as she delivers on that, she can do whatever she wants.

I'm sure Disney has a list of standards, every studio does, of things they don't want in a movie they distribute, but everyone would know that up front. And the standards will be oddly specific-- like chopping people to pieces and patricide is totally cool, but they don't want to see anybody smoking.
 
Well, when I saw Star Wars in 1977 at the gentle young age of ten years, the opening crawl just said "Star Wars", without any silly "episode IV, A New Hope". That retcon came later - 1978, I believe.

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I’m feeling so freakin’ old - my memories shot !:facepalm
 
G’day @The Wook ,

I’m old enough to remember Star Wars being called ‘ Star Wars ‘ when it first came out , being 11 at the time .
Wondering then , if it’s referred to as ‘ Ep IV or Ep IV - ANH ‘ now , why is that a sign of low SWIQ ?

It's not. I frequently refer to it as ANH (and occasionally Ep.IV) for convenience, depending on the situation, and the audience I'm addressing. If I think my audience will know that I mean the 1977 film when I refer to it as, "Star Wars", then I'll use that. But if I think they'll be confused, and not know which Star Wars movie I'm talking about, then it's likely I'll clarify it by using A New Hope, ANH, or Episode.IV,

So no, referring to the film as A New Hope or ANH or Episode IV is *not* a sign of a low SWIQ. However, if someone *does* refer to the film as "Star Wars", then it *is* a sign he has a high SWIQ, that he *gets it*, that he saw the film during that magical summer of '77, and that he believes the theatrical cut of the film is a masterpiece, and should not be tampered with in any way.

What about when going to the theater? Do you ask for a ticket for the subtitle of the Star Wars movie? I don't. Every SW movie I've ever seen in the theater I've just said "Ticket for Star Wars." They know what I mean.

Ditto. And I love saying it! I daresay I enjoy the 3 seconds it takes to say, "Ticket for Star Wars", much more than the two hours watching these new movies which bear its name..

Well, when I saw Star Wars in 1977 at the gentle young age of ten years, the opening crawl just said "Star Wars", without any silly "episode IV, A New Hope". That retcon came later - 1978, I believe.

The Ep 4:A New Hope was added after ESB came out....but home video releases still called it on the cover Star Wars right up to 2000 when the Phantom Menace came out for home

I still just call it Star Wars.

Jaitea is right. The first time we saw Episode IV A NEW HOPE was during its theatrical re-release in 1981.

The Wook
 
Jaitea is right. The first time we saw Episode IV A NEW HOPE was when the film was re-released in 1981.

The Wook

Yep, that's correct. I may have read it sooner in a Starlog magazine or some such thing back in the day, prior to 1981. I've still got those things in a box in the basement, maybe I should go back and try to find out the first time they referred to episode IV.

Seriously Wook, this needs its own thread. People eat it up.

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Thanks for your clarification Wook .

By the by , any idea when you’ll be sharing your thoughts on TLJ ?

:cheersGed

No worries, mate.

As for my yet to be written TLJ review, here's why I've not sat down to do it. I saw the film opening night at midnight. My goal was to see it a second time, before writing my review and posting it on the RPF. But my God, the film was so atrocious and offensive to my SWIQ, I have just not been able to drag myself back to the cinema to see it a second time. I know I had better hurry, because while it is still playing here in Whale's Vagina, it will be yanked soon. And if I miss it, then I'll just write the review. But my goal remains, to see it one more time--one last time--to clarify my thoughts.

But I appreciate the interest that you and @joshvanrad and @Mr Webber and a handful of others have expressed in threads like this, and via PMs, and I will git 'er done someday, I promise.

The Wook
 
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No worries, mate.

As for my yet to be written TLJ review, here's why I've not sat down to do it. I saw the film opening night at midnight. My goal was to see it a second time, before writing my review and posting it on the RPF. But my God, the film was so atrocious and offensive to my SWIQ, I have just not been able to drag myself back to the cinema to see it a second time. I know I had better hurry, because while it is still playing here in Whale's Vagina, it will be yanked soon. And if I miss it, then I'll just write the review. But my goal remains, to see it one more time--one last time--to clarify my thoughts.

But I appreciate the interest that you and @joshvanrad and @Mr Webber and a handful of others have expressed in threads like this, and via PMs, and I will git 'er done someday, I promise.

The Wook
I thought it would get better with a second viewing. It doesn't. It was even more of a slog the second time through it.

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