Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/929567
P E R S P E C T I V E | M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 8 41 The driving narrative incitement of The Last Jedi is the titanic conflict between the forces of dark monolithic oppression and the plucky but desperate resistance set against it. All of the main characters are individuals motivated separately by the unfolding events to chart their individual course. Following in the footsteps of The Force Awakens, there's not a lot of pipe to lay in establishing the characters in the film. It just gets right into the propulsive opening sequence. The story takes place onboard First Order and Resistance vessels of contrasting shape, size, character and designation, and on three unique planets. The iconic visual quality of the First Order is darkness, the diminishment and absence of color and any sentimental association with humanity. I adhered to the Star Wars canon of a monolithic, polished, sterile, cold shape language to define the First Order Fleet vessels, with dangerously sharp angles that cut a malevolent profile. The silhouette shapes of the Resistance Fleet are by contrast more benignly curved and defensively protective, layers of age-worn distress swathe white hulls and light interiors, creating an illuminated canvas for warm color in sets, props, vehicles and wardrobe. The benign shapes extended to the Resistance Bombers, metaphorically characterised by Rian as a lumbering herd of cows, clumsy and vulnerable. These defining visual characteristics elicit an emotional resonance in the viewer that fosters empathy for the film's heroes. This production inherited the watery planet of Ahch- to from The Force Awakens but was tasked with developing new narrative elements for the fictional island, particularly the Jedi Village. The goal was to portray a natural environment on locations as a counterpoint to the created, artificial vessels in space. More accessible locations on mainland had to be found to solve the severe production challenges of Skellig Michael, the beautiful F G H I