The team behind Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker took careful consideration to ensure that Carrie Fisher, who tragically passed three years ago, would remain a pivotal part of the film without sullying her memory. That meant repurposing leftover footage from previous movies to insert into The Rise of Skywalker. But the entirety General Leia’s arc couldn’t be pulled off with old Force Awakens footage. The VFX team would have to turn to dailies from the original Star Wars trilogy films and a very fitting body double.
Spoilers for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker follow.
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When you’ve garnered the disgust of everyone on the planet by digitally resurrecting one of the most beloved Hollywood legends, the only thing you can do is double down on being terrible. The team behind the controversial digital resurrection of James Dean for a new Vietnam War movie is forming a new company with the express aim of digitally exhuming even more Hollywood legends.
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Finding Jack directors Anton Ernst and Tati Golykh believed they had struck gold. Unable to find the perfect actor for a role in their Vietnam War drama, they decided to use cutting edge technology to resurrect one of Hollywood’s greatest legends, James Dean. Using digital technology, the co-directors would cast a CGI James Dean in a major supporting role in their adaptation of the novel by Gareth Crocker. Then, the backlash started to roll in: It’s a dishonor to Dean’s legacy, cinematic sacrilege, critics cried. And Ernst and Golykh were somehow baffled.
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Today brings the seemingly unceremonious launch of Apple TV+, the new streaming service from the tech company who is probably hoping that they didn’t just release the streaming equivalent of the Newton. Apple is hoping to get as many customers as possible to sign up for the service for just $4.99 a month, and AT&T has just made it a little easier for you to make that happen.
If you head to the AT&T online store, you can snag an Apple TV 4K for $90, which is half off the usual $180 price tag. The good news is that you don’t need to be an AT&T customer in any capacity to take advantage of the deal. And even if you’re not thinking of signing up for Apple TV+, this deal is a steal, because the Apple TV is one of the best streaming devices on the market, especially for this price. Read More »
If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to swing through the streets of New York City as its friendly neighborhood web-slinger, a new Spider-Man VR game is here to approximate that experience. I say “approximate” because this is far from a perfect recreation of Spidey’s abilities or the city in which he operates, but considering it’s a free VR game, beggars can’t exactly be choosers. For a slightly more high quality experience, you can take a closer look at Peter Parker’s Spidey suits in an augmented reality app that gives you a window into Peter’s social life. Learn more about both below. Read More »
Since we’re in the heart of Peak TV right now, there are far too many entertainment options at our disposal. It’s hard to keep up with all the new movies and TV shows being added to Netflix, Hulu, HBO, Showtime, Epix and the inevitable McDonald’s streaming service that will probably happen at some point. But Apple and Netflix have a solution that is coming this fall.
First, when the new tvOS software update comes to Apple TV this fall, the revamped Apple TV app will allow users to have picture-in-picture functionality, giving them the ability to stream two different programs at the same time. One will take up the entire television screen while another will sit in the corner and play something else. However, not everything will be available for the Apple TV picture-in-picture mode.
Meanwhile, Netflix is testing a picture-in-picture feature that customers could use on the desktop version of Netflix, which will be perfect for everyone trying to waste time at work but still look like they’re getting something done. Find out more below. Read More »
Yesterday, Apple announced a few new updates for the AppleTV 4K device that lets users enjoy TV shows, movies, music, photos, games and apps on their home television. With the tvOS 13 update coming this fall, the Apple TV will have a new home screen, multiple user profiles with personalized recommendations, and compatibility for other controllers. Get the rundown of Apple TV updates below. Read More »
Well, it finally happened. Someone made a vertical TV. Taking note of how often those darn kids watch videos on their phones in portrait mode, Samsung has created the Sero – a TV that flips into portrait mode and connects to your mobile device. Which means youths can watch their Snapchats, and Instagrams, and TikToks and whatever the hell else it is they watch, on a big screen. The future is here, and it’s bad!
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Jon Favreau is proving to be one of the foremost filmmakers when it comes to testing game-changing technology, from his dazzling visual effects work in The Jungle Book, to the audacious CGI scale of the upcoming The Lion King. And The Mandalorian, for which Favreau acts as showrunner and executive producer, is no exception.
Favreau may have been touting the upcoming Disney+ show’s use of practical effects that pay homage to the techniques used in the original Star Wars films, but The Mandalorian is doing more than just using rigs to shoot miniature ships. According to actor Giancarlo Esposito, who stars in the series alongside the titular Mandalorian, Pedro Pascal, The Mandalorian will be using a unique blend of physical sets and digital technology that is unlike anything we’ve seen in a Star Wars property before.
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Cool Posts From Around the Web:
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is already turning into one of the most immersive theme park experiences to date. But the Imagineers behind Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge are taking it one step further by integrating a piece of technology that we all have in the back of our pockets: our phones.
But in a galaxy far, far away, our smartphones are not just regular old phones but are “transformed into an amazing in-story tool,” Walt Disney Imagineering Executive Creative Director Asa Kalama said at the Star Wars: Celebration panel in Chicago. The new Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge app will take guests beyond just experiencing the story of Batuu, a grimy outpost planet on the edge of the galaxy. They will live it.
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