Top SFX shots No.3: Star Wars

Martin Anderson


Published on Dec 29, 2008

Though the opening shot of Star Wars remains the most iconic, it suffered sniffy criticism from some quarters for being a higher-speed re-run of Douglas Trumbull's initial pan on the Jupiter mission in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). This shot, on the other hand is not only equally exciting but far more original, as we take the point of view of a rebel fighter diving into the Death Star's trench to take a shot at the reactors. The vast scale of the Death Star is revealed as soon as we have made our dizzying descent downward, and we see the walls of the trench extend for miles ahead. This three-element shot (model, laser-bolts and star background) relies on the flexibility (rather than the repeatability) of the Dykstraflex motion control system, and is still a stunner.

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Users Comments

Re: Top SFX shots No.3: Star Wars
Posted By beinglllnet 1 May 20, 2009 09:46:57 AM

At 0:02 or so there is a laser flash which hides the transition from a obvious flat 2d texture Death Star to the 3d model.
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