There is much to be excited about for STAR WARS fans this weekend. With the thrilling new trailer for THE FORCE AWAKENS and so many other great panels from this years Star Wars Celebration, we at JoBlo.com had the chance to sit in on one that I’m particularly excited for before this massive event came to an end. And while “Conversations with Gareth Edwards and Josh Trank” was clearly supposed to feature both directors of the upcoming stand alone features – each one taking place in the STAR WARS universe – Trank was feeling “under the weather” according to the moderator of the event, Pablo Hidalgo. As disappointing as it was that we didn’t hear more about Trank’s project, we were in for a massive treat.
In the first of what will be called a STAR WARS ANTHOLOGY film, both Hidalgo and guest Gareth Edwards teased about having nothing to show from the upcoming adventure. After all, they don’t begin shooting until this summer. Yet we all knew that something was up and the two played this act out quite well. Soon, the director revealed that ILM had put together a teaser for ROGUE ONE, and this news was greeted by the audience with a huge and enthusiastic response. We even had a glimpse at a couple of cool pics from Edwards “email in-box” including one promising image.
In the brief glimpse of what is to come, we saw an overhead view of a forest planet. Soon, the camera pulls back revealing a TIE fighter that is speeding off into the distance. As the music rises, we witness looming not far into the horizon, the outline of the Death Star. All the while we hear Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan Kenobi in a voiceover dialogue from A NEW HOPE, “For over a thousand generations the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times. Before the Empire.” While it may have been short, it was an outstanding teaser that only makes 2016 seem further and further away.
Here is the official summary announced at the panel on Sunday.
A rogue band of resistance fighters unite for a daring mission to steal the Death Star plans in Star Wars anthology film ROGUE ONE.
In the film, Felicity Jones will take on the role of a “rebel soldier” in what Edwards claims will be more reality based. Taking place “after Episode 3, before Episode 4… a little bit more towards 4.” Edwards teased that the story revolved around the fact that:
God’s not coming to save us. We are on our own. And we are going to have to do this ourselves. We have to turn it around… It comes down to a group of individuals that don’t have special powers.
When speaking about the impressive names involved in the making of the film, one genre seemed to continually be brought up. And that is war films. The director emphasized one word that continued to come up during meetings, and that word is “real.” He also added that the film is called “Star WARS.” With several key members of the crew being a part of such films as BLACK HAWK DOWN and ZERO DARK THIRTY, the focus on the human battle without magic and the Force is at hand.
During the presentation, Edwards’ love for STAR WARS was especially evident when he offered up a slide show of how exactly he spent his 30th birthday. When asked where he wanted to go, he said he had always had a desire to go to Tunisia – the planet of Tatooine in the films. He proceeded to narrate a slide show of his vacation, which included a gorgeous Sunset similar to the one Luke Skywalker looked out into in A NEW HOPE.
Yet it was when the director talked about his reaction to the teaser trailer unveiled on Thursday for THE FORCE AWAKENS that truly spoke to the audience.
I sat back there when they showed the trailer for THE FORCE AWAKENS. I hadn’t actually seen it. You don’t get to see it so it’s a surprise as well. And then it started, I could feel myself with tears growing. But I was with the producers, and I was like, don’t cry. I’m not a crier… John Williams score came in. I’m not a crier… And as soon as Han showed up and said “We’re home” there was a single tear.
For all you STAR WARS fans – and there are many – we have a wealth of exciting news to look forward to. THE FORCE AWAKENS will be opening in a theatre near you December of 2015, with ROGUE ONE blasting into theatres December 2016… And so much more from a galaxy far, far away.