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any specifics about the plot, they did speak about modernising aesthetics of everything from the Xwing fighters to the Millennium Falcon.

“Seven comes after six. It doesn’t come after three,” said Carter, referring to the poorly received prequels. “This is a period piece that we’re bringing forth. We’re always going back to go forward.”

Indeed, at the insistence of director JJ Abrams, the team relied on the original art of illustrator Ralph McQuarrie to inform the aesthetic of The Force Awakens.

The early trailers for the film reveal a dirty, grungier world. Droids and ships are beat up and run down in the desert landscape, much like they were in the original films. “We wanted to play tribute to Ralph McQuarrie. It’s come full circle,” said Chiang.

They had access to the extensive Lucas film archives to answer even the minutest questions. Sometimes that backfired. When Abrams told the team that he wanted the Millennium Falcon to look identical to the way it did in the originals, they realised there were actually three versions.

In the end, using elements of all three, they created the “quintessen- tial fan version” of what the ship should be.

Even the designers themselves saw themselves as part of this generational shift in ushering George Lucas’s original vision to the big screen.

Continuing with Abrams’ goal of building as much as possible instead of relying on sterilised computer graphics, the team discussed the idea that less was more.

“You can have all of this fancy stuff and a sci-fi movie is whatever it wants to be. Everyone is trying to outgun one another. This isn’t about that. This is about the Force,” said Carter. He said they had entire brainstorms trying to answer one question: “What would frighten us if the dark side came back?”

Carter remained cryptically informative.

“It’s right in front of you. This is the movie. It’s going from a deep level up. It’s confident because there’s a real story to be told,” he said. “When we say the force awakens, it is the dark side and the light side.” – ANA-AP

● The Force Awakens December.

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