The Making of Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace [Paperback]

Laurent Bouzereau (Author), Judy Duncan (Author)

Book Description

Series: Star Wars

The Ultimate Behind-the-Scenes Tour de Force

In 1977, George Lucas brought Star Wars to the big screen--and made cinema history. Now, more than twenty years later, the visionary writer-director, his brilliant crew of special-effects wizards, and an exciting cast of talented stars have united to make the long-awaited and eagerly anticipated Episode I of the Star Wars epic.

Star Wars: The Making of Episode I is your exclusive entrée backstage where the wonders of the newest chapter in the Star Wars saga are brought to life, including

- A series of exclusive interviews with George Lucas as he discusses the genesis of the Star Wars story, from themes to scenes to dialogue

- The development of such classic characters as young Jedi student Obi-Wan Kenobi and R2-D2--plus intriguing newcomers Anakin Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn, Queen Amidala, and Jar Jar Binks

- The creation of new state-of-the-art creatures and special effects by the legendary Industrial Light & Magic team

- Pre-production: from storyboarding, set-building, and model-making to costume design and the casting of pivotal roles

- Post-production: Including editing, scoring, and combining computer generated effects with live-action footage

- Shooting in England, Italy, and Tunisia, with stars Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, and Natalie Portman

- Hundreds of drawings and photographs

Witness all the movie-making magic behind the sensational Star Wars saga's newest episode!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

An Imperial Star Destroyer plus a doughnut equals a Neimoidian battleship. So reveals Phantom Menace design director Doug Chiang, as he's discussing how the previous Star Wars films influenced the conceptual planning of Episode I. Fans of Star Wars, of course, love to get this kind of skinny, and The Making of Episode I doesn't disappoint. In this comprehensive account of Phantom Menace's origins, packed with page after page of behind-the-scenes sketches and set photos, you also learn about the many hairdos of the Jedi, how Huttese is based on the Incan language Catua, and what a huge influence Young Indiana Jones had on Episode I's seat-of-the-pants, guerrilla-style production.

All the films in the Star Wars saga share unusual origins, but Phantom Menace may take the prize with its ground-breaking technology, nonlinear digital production process, strenuous casting demands, and, of course, the idiosyncratic style of Lucas himself, with his focus on editing and collaboration with actors and designers. The veterans of quite a few "making of" books and documentaries, Laurent Bouzereau (Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays) and Jody Duncan (Cinefex magazine) don't miss a trick, combining exclusive Lucas interviews with blow-by-blow recountings of every stage in the process, from initial script development and casting to storyboarding, costume design, and set-building through to shooting, editing, and scoring. --Paul Hughes

About the Author

Laurent Bouzereau is the author of The De Palma Cut, The Alfred Hitchcock Quote Book, The Cutting Room Floor, Ultraviolent Movies, and Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays. Bouzereau has written, directed, and produced recent documentaries on the making of Steven Spielberg's Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, 1941, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and The Lost World: Jurassic Park; George Lucas's American Graffiti; Brian De Palma's Scarface; Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Trilogy; Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho; and Lawrence Kasdan's The Big Chill and Silverado.

Jody Duncan has authored dozens of articles on motion picture technology for Cinefex magazine, and has served as that publication's editor since 1992.  She is also the author of many books on the making of major motion pictures, including The Making of The X-Files movie, The Making of The Lost World:  Jurassic Park, The Making of Jurassic Park, and The Making of Terminator 2:  Judgment Day.  Her play, A Warring Absence, won a national playwriting award, and was produced in Los Angeles in 1994.


From the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 161 pages
• Publisher: LucasBooks; 1st edition (May 19, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345431197
• ISBN-13: 978-0345431196
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 0.4 x 11 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #732,507 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

LAURENT BOUZEREAU is an Award-winning filmmaker and Best-Selling author. In addition to his books on cinema, he has written, directed and produced many documentaries on the making of films by some of the world's most acclaimed directors, including Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Martin Scorsese, Roman Polanski, Brian De Palma, George Lucas, William Friedkin, Peter Bogdanovich and many others. His recent work includes the acclaimed Turner Classic Movies / Amblin TV series A Night at the Movies on the history of film genres, as well as documentaries for the all-new Blu-ray Discs & DVDs of Scarface, Ben-Hur, The Jurassic Park Trilogy, and The Tree of Life. In 2011, Bouzereau directed the feature length documentary, Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir, which premiered at the Zurich Film Festival.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Secret revelations, January 16, 2000

By 

Pablo A Diaz - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Making of Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace (Paperback)

This book along with the making of Jurassic Park is one of the best books of fimaking, it truly reveals all the secrets of this dazzling film, its a pity that this one didn't include the story development (for that you'll have to buy the Art of Star Wars), You most read this book if you wanna know more of this film. And realize how much digital scenes they used; believe me there are more than you can imagine.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Star Wars Book on the making of star wars episode 1 thephantom menace., October 11, 2011

By 

Kenneth Kraly Jr. "kenkraly2004" (Elyria, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Making of Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace (Hardcover)

This a great Star Wars Book on the making of star wars episode 1 the phantom menace. Their is so much great stuff on the making of episode 1. Say what you will about star wars episode 1 the phantom menace but this book is a great making of book on a star wars film. Very good book and well written.

5.0 out of 5 stars Behind the movie.., September 13, 2011

By 

Melanie C. Marshall - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Making of Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace (Paperback)

Good follow up to the movie and how it was made a little dry in verious areas but all in all a good book.