It's pretty safe to say that 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' has been a fairly divisive film. While some people have applauded its originality, its bold new direction, as well as its innovative approach at depicting sci-fi, others have garnered a strong disdain for the story's mistreatment of certain characters, especially those from the original trilogy. Either way, the one thing that most people can definitely agree on is how beautiful the film looked. In fact, the film was so lovely to watch, Abrams Books has even published a book dedicated to...
Concept art for DJ once Benicio DelToro won the role (Illustrated by Jock)
The Art of Star Wars: The Last Jedi Price: £30.00 Format: Hardback. Page Count: 256 Size: 264x287mm Age Range: 10 and over.
Synopsis: Star Wars: The Force Awakens broke box-office records and is now known as one of the highest-grossing films of all time. So, it's no surprise that it's eagerly awaited sequel, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, is sure to do the same thing, given half the chance. The movie was written and directed by Rian Johnson (Looper) and designed by Rick Heinrichs (Captain America: The First Avenger), and together, they gave this episode, like every single episode before it, its own visual language and cinematic landscape, aided and abetted by those incomparable 'visualists' located at the art department in Lucasfilm.
Well, for those of you not in the know, before a film is made, all the big wigs come together in order to discuss how its going to look, sound, and flow onto the silver screen. Of course, with this being a Star Wars film, there are a number of pre-requisites they all have to abide by, such as the sound of the lightsabers, the pace of the opening title scrawl, and even the type of material used for costumes and their like. That said, however, that doesn't necessarily mean they don't have a certain amount of leeway, and that's precisely where the storyboard artists come out to play.
Supreme Leader Snoke (Illustrated by Rowley)
The Art of Star Wars: The Last Jedi explores the creative process they took when it came down to visualizing it. Featuring unforgettable art and exclusive interviews with the filmmakers, the actors, as well as select members of the crew, this beautifully illustrated 'visual archive' manages to highlight movie-magic at its finest. This obviously includes showcasing what it has on offer, such as the concept art, costume sketches, storyboards, and blueprints, so fans and art-lovers alike will be able to take a look at the gradual development of those fantastic worlds, awesome characters, and creative creatures, both old and new.
The book was written by Phil Szostak, a graduate of the School of Visual Arts, based in New York, and for eight years he has worked in conjunction with the Star Wars art department at Lucasfilm. He's also done some work for Wild Brain Animation on the Disney Channel series, 'Higglytown Heroes', and for over three years he ran the JAK Films Art Department at Skywalker Ranch, before joining the narrative design team on LucasArts’s Star Wars 1313. He currently resides in San Francisco and is a senior content and asset specialist at Lucasfilm.
Overall I'd say the book is a pretty decent read because it is jam packed with art, incites, and little snippets of trivia related to what could have been. For instance, there's a picture featured in it which visualizes a scene between Luke and a mysterious Sith ghost, possibly his fathers, and goes to show to what extent the filmmakers are able to play around with the story before anything is set in stone. I also appreciated the logical way the book flowed from one section to another, almost as if I was following the same path the filmmakers eventually took. Now if you want to know more then I would suggest that you pick up a copy by clicking on the links provided. But before you do that, here, check out some of the images graciously sent to me by Abrams Books. Please enjoy.
An alternate version of the Gorilla Walkers on the march (Illustrated by Jenkins)
Rey meditates next to Luke (Illustrated by Sweet)
An alternate version of the fight between Luke and Rey (Illustrated by Engstrom)
The final battle on Crait (Illustrated by Clyne)
Kylo emerges from the Red Room (Illustrated by Clyne)
