Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Questions

1. Who owns Lucasfilm?

Disney. This is because in 2012, Lucas wanted to retire and sell the Star Wars franchise and had a meeting with Disney's CEO.

2. Who formed Lucasfilm?

George Lucas.

3. What year was Lucasfilm formed?

1971.

4. Who is president of Lucasfilm?

Kathleen Kennedy.

5. What other major films have they worked on?

Star Wars: A New Hope
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

6. How much was Lucasfilm sold for?

$4.05 billion. 

7. Who wrote Star Wars: The Force Awakens?

J.J. Abrams, Michael Arndt and Lawrence Kasdan. 

8. Who directed Star Wars: The Force Awakens?

J.J. Abrams.

9. What other major films is the director responsible for?

Star Trek
Star Trek Into Darkness
Mission: Impossible - Rouge Nation
Star Trek Beyond.

10. How many Star Wars films have there been so far?

There are 8 films so far, they are:

Star Wars (retitled to Star Wars: A New Hope) (1977),

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980),

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983),

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999),

Star Wars: The Attack of the Clones (2002),

Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005),

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). 

11. How much money have they all made at the global box office?

A New Hope - $775, 398, 007 (25 November 2011),

The Empire Strikes Back - $538, 375, 067 (1997), 

Return of the Jedi - $572, 705, 079 (2015), 

The Phantom Menace - $560, 618, 295 (25 February 2012), 

Attack of the Clones - $649, 398, 209 (10 December 2011), 

Revenge of the Sith - $848, 754, 768 (25 November 2011),

The Force Awakens - $2, 026, 638, 964 (14 February 2016).

12. When was the first Star Wars film released?

25 May 1997 (USA), 27 December 1997 (UK).

13. What does ILM stand for?

Industrial Light & Magic.

14. What do ILM do?

They create computer graphics (special effects/visual effects/CGI).

15. Who created ILM?
George Lucas.

16. Why did they create ILM?
Lucas wanted to include some visual effects that had never been seen on film before.

17. What do casting directors do?
They look for actors to be in the film, they understand what the director and producer require and find the right actors for the parts.

18. Where were the first scenes for Star Wars: The Force Awakens filmed?
They went to Abu Dhabi to film most parts of Jakku.

19. What format was Star Wars: The Force Awakens shot on?
35mm (Kodak Vision 2383)
70mm (IMAX DRM blow-up) (Kodak Vision 2383)
D-cinema.

20. What types of cameras were used to film Star Wars: The Force Awakens?
Arri Alexa, IMAX MKII, IMAX MSM 9802 and Panavision Panaflex Millennium XL2.

21. What studio was used to film a large portion of the film?
Pinewood Studio.

22. Where is the studio?
Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England.

23. What major franchise is famously filmed at this studio?
James Bond.

24. How does said franchise link to Star Wars: The Force Awakens?
Daniel Craig (who has played James Bond) is believed to have played a Stormtrooper in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

25. Who was the inspiration for the character Maz Kanata?
She is based around J.J. Abrams' english teacher, Rose Gilbert.

26. What technology was used to create Maz Kanata?
They used an actress and used motion capture to create Maz from the footage they got.

27. Who played Maz Kanata and what other roles is she famous for?
Maz is played by Lupita Nyong'o. She is known for Raksha in The Jungle Book (2016) and Gwen in Non-Stop.

28. Who Played General Snoke?
Andy Serkis.

29. What is he renowned for in the movie business?
He is known for his performance capture roles which uses motion acting, animation and voice work. He has done many characters that involve this technology, including Gollum (The Lord of the Rings), King Kong (King Kong, 2005) and Rise (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes).

30. Where was the final scene filmed?
Skellig Michael, Country Kerry, Ireland.

31. Who composed the film score?
John Williams.

32. How many Star Wars films has he composed the music for?
All 8 of the films so far.

33. What other famous films has he created the music for?
Besides Star Wars, he is known for Harry Potter. He also create music for:
War Horse
Jurassic Park
Indina Jones
Saving Private Ryan
Schindler's List
Jaws.

34. How many times did John Bodega audition for the film (according to J.J. Abrams)?
8??

35. Over what period of time did these auditions occur?
9 months.

36. How many people operated BB-8?
Depending on the version used, the rod puppet version used one person, the remote-controlled version used 2 people.

37. What type of technology was the main version of BB-8?
The rod puppet version was the most used version of BB-8.

38. What colour suit did the BB-8 operator wear?
Green.

39. Why did he have to wear such a suit?
So they can edit him out in post-production.

40. What type of special effects (SFX) were employed on Star Wars: The Force Awakens?


41. How many people were behind the monitor watching the scene when Han and Chewie returned to the Millennium Falcon?


42. Why was Simon Pegg thanked in the credits of Star Wars: The Force Awakens?
He played Unkar Plutt in The Force Awakens. He has helped out thought the years of Star Wars.

43. J.J. Abrams shot part of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in IMAX. What is IMAX?
IMAX is a technique to achieve widescreen cinematography. This produces an image about ten times larger than from a standard 35mm film.

44. How many IMAX screen was the film available on?
About one thousand.

45. What was the age rating of the film in the UK?
12.

46. How much money did the UK government contribute to the production of Star Wars: The Force Awakens? (Express this figure as a percentage of the total cost and as a figure in pounds).
They contributes about £31.6 million.

47. How much was Harrison Ford paid to reprise his role of Han Solo?
Over £23 million.

48. How much were Daisy Ridley and John Boyega paid?
They received £300, 000 each. 

TV Drama - Stereotypes

Perkins 5 assumptions:

Stereotypes are not always negative:

The Asian woman is represented as being smart, this works well in the situation. Although this can be  seen as negative, in this situation, it is a positive thing.

They are not always about minority groups or the less powerful:

It shows the white immigration officer to be more powerful than others, rather than focusing on the black people. It shows that the white people are mean to the other ethnicities, which isn't shown often  in TV shows.

They can be held about one's own group:

In Hotel Babylon, many stereotypes are shown throughout, so most of the main stereotypes are shown. Therefore, the audience's stereotype is most likely to be shown.

They are not rigid or unchanging:

A few years ago, these stereotypes were probably different than they are now. As the years have gone on, the stereotypes have changed according to modern society. However, some of these aren't changed for many years.

They are not always false:

The idea of self-fulfilling prophesy makes it seem as though people are the stereotypes, but in fact they probably just believe that they are and make others seem like the stereotypes are true.

Festinger and the popularity of TV programmes:

Before watching the clip, you could think that stereotypes aren't accurate or used a lot. But after, it can be seen that they are exaggerated in this case. For Hotel Babylon, the stereotypes we believe to be true are shown, making us think they are a more realistic vision of reality. 

TV Drama - Representation of Ethnicity and Types of Shots - 'Hotel Babylon'

A mid shot showing three people reacting to hiding.

Can I identity what ethnicities are? How? Why? - It's pretty clear to see the different ethnicities in the clip. This is most likely because of the TV stereotypes shown in most TV shows, because of this, it's easy to spot these stereotypes as they are exaggerated. As they are easily spotted, this allows the program to be easily watched as you don't need to think about who is what ethnicity.

This is a high angle shot to show that she is weaker at this moment in time.

Are people from different ethnic backgrounds shown as different interests, personalities, attitudes, behaviour? If so, how? - There are different interests shown, mainly due to their stereotypes. For example, the first time we see the Asian woman, we see her sat behind a computer. She is also seen to be intelligent because she decides to hide them in a staff room to hide and realises one is missing.

This is a tracking shot to reveal all of the different cultures and how they differ.

Is their ethnicity represented as being important in their life? - From the clip, it could be seen as important because they're having to hide because of their ethnicity. It is also shown at the end where different ethnicities sit on different tables, eat different foods and one table prayed before eating, in that sense, it could be seen as important to them.

This is mid shot and it allows the audience to see some of the work she does.

This is a mid shot to show how intimidating they are.

Are people from particular ethnicities portrayed as being better, more powerful than others? - The white female we see at the beginning is seen as more powerful because she tells the others what to do. It also shows the immigration officers being more powerful, they are also white.

This is a point-of-view shot to show the rush and panic of the situation, this is also hand held to help achieve this.

Are people from particular ethnicities portrayed as being abnormal, weaker, more pathetic than others? - all the immigrants are shown to be weaker because they are the ones who are having to hide, none of the white people are.

This is a close-up, two shot to show the relation between the characters,

How do other characters in the clip treat the other characters from different ethnic backgrounds? - all the immigrants help each other and the woman at the reception desk helps them. But the white immigrant officers are against them.




What is the message the clip is trying to portray about ethnicity? - it's trying to say that immigrants are bad and should be sent back to where they came from.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Research

Producers - JJ Abrams, Bryan Burk, Kathleen Keenedy.

Production companies - Lucasfilm Ltd., Bad Robot, Truenorth Productions.

Director - JJ Abrams.

Screen writers - JJ Abrams, Lawrence Kasdan.

Actors - Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren).

Budget -  $240, 000, 000.

Locations - Skellig Michael, Iceland, Greenham Common, Derwentwater, Scotland, Abu Dhabi, New Mexico, Pinewood Studios, Puzzlewood, Santa Monica.
Greenlight date - October 20th 2012
Screens shown on - 4134 screens on the opening weekend. Shown on over 4000 screens. It stayed in cinemas for two months.

Critical reaction - Rotten Tomatoes: "packed with action and populated by both familiar faces and fresh blood, The Force Awakens successfully recalls the series' former glory while injecting it with renewed energy". 92%. Metacritic: 48 positive reviews, 4 mixed reviews. 81%.

Box office figures - Worldwide: $129 million gross. US: $247.97 million. China: $33 million.

Music (composer of score/soundtrack) - John Williams
Marketing:

Teaser trailers:

Trailer:

TV spots (there are over 20):

Website - There is a website for the Star Wars saga (starwars.com) that has a section for each episode.

Posters:

UK and US poster

China poster

Tie-in products - Battlefront, Lego Star Wars game, action figures and plushes, 3D models of fighter ships, items for around the house e.g. money boxes, storage boxes, lights and lamps etc., novels and audiobooks, comics, costumes/cosplay, costumes for pets like dogs or cats, casual clothing, stationary, baking decorations, print-outs and posters, card games like Top Trumps, Lego sets.

SFX (special effects - technology used) - special effects: Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), Blind, DMG, Kelvin Optical, Base FX, Hybide.... (on IMDb). technology: camera: Arri Alexa (aerial plates). Lenses: IMAX MKII, Hasselblad lenses; IMAX MSM 9802, Hasselblad lenses; Panavision Panaflex Millennium XL2, Panavision Primo, Retro C-, E- series, ATZ and AWZ2 lenses.

Any issues - Daisy Ridley nearly had a panic attack on the first day of shooting as she thought her performance wasn't good. John Boyega originally played Finn with his natural English accent, but he and JJ Abrams felt it wasn't right for role, so he put on an American accent. Scenes were chosen to be shot using 65mm IMAX instead of 35mm due to weight and noise problems. Adam Driver didn't like wearing the Kylo Ren mask because his vision was impaired. 

My Representation

UK Tribes

I think I belong to both the Mainstream tribe and the Leading Edge tribe. I belong to the Mainstream because I am a bit of a Fan Girl, especially for vloggers and bloggers.
Fan Girls:

Fan Girls and Tumblr Kids have merged - 24/7 access to celebs means this tribe are getting younger and moving faster than ever. It's strange to think that in 2012 Fan Girls were a new tribe - today they are one of the most noticeable and well know facets of UK Youth culture! United by their love for musicians, vloggers, bloggers, models, books, TV series, TV personalities (and anyone in between) the Fan Girls start at 13 years upwards and are a powerful force on social media - and big spender on merchandise and experiences.

But I am also of the Makers side of this tribe as I am always doing something creative, whether that's photography, art, blogging and starting filming.
Makers:
Being creative is firmly in the Mainstream today. From photography to art, craft, music, film and blogging - everyone is curating online! Everyone is a creator now, and Makers are the new Tumblr Kids as everyone is creating original content online and sharing it on social media; while many are also getting hands-on creative at home. So from DIY furniture and art to animation, there's an explosion of creativity across the Mainstream - just don't confuse it with Leading Edge career Creatives, these guys are doing it for themselves!

But I am also part of the Leading Edge tribe as I am also a Creatives as I have done most things for myself, started by myself.
Creatives:
Creatives are still top of the tribal map and care constantly creating new content. DIYers are creative, tech savvy self-starters that bring culture to life for tribes today - they produce music, promote club nights, start indie bands and create festival stages. Many are also Creatives, but DIYers are set apart by their aspirations to 'make it', create events and actively influence culture in their area. DIYers used to be focused more in London, but in 2015 all major cities have a strong DIY scene.

What media figures (actors, musicians, sportspeople, celebrities) do you consider similar to you. In what way are they similar to you/are you similar to them?

I think I am similar to Zoe Sugg as I act similarly to her and we have similar sense of humor. I really enjoy watching her with her friends because her friends are similar to mine.

I also see myself similar to Dan Howell as I can always relate to him and what he says and see the similarities between us.

Do you consciously 'model' (copy modes of dress, style yourself, act like) yourself on any of these media figures? Why is that?

I have my hair inspired my Zoe Sugg's old hair, when she used to have it as long as mine with blonde dip dye. Now that she has cut her hair and coloured it more blonde, I have done a similar thing, but I don't plan to cut my hair. I think this is because I really like her hair style and the way it looks day to day.

 I also have a my room decorated in a similar way to her house, it was before I found her but I buy more things that she'd buy because I like the style of her house and decorations throughout it.

I take my style of clothing from Dan Howell, even though he is a guy. He wears a lot of black, especially skinny, black jeans. I have worn dark clothes for years but seeing him wearing dark clothes has given me more ideas about the things I can wear, even if he is a guy.

Institutions and Audience - Film Production

Development - this is simply the process of 'finding' a story. Ideas for films come from a variety of sources, they can range from novels, real life events to computer games adaptations. Once you've got an idea, you'll need someone to write a pitch for you which you take to film producer in an attempt to get some funding to make your film. Even at this stage, you need a very clear idea of who you're aiming your film at so you can include elements that will appeal to them.

Pre-production - Once you've got funding, you establish your budget and can begin to get a film crew together, you can storyboard the script. You also need to break he script down into individual scenes and identify all the locations, props, cast members, costumes, special effects and visual effects needed.


Production - this is simple the process of 'making' the film. Provided you've done your job properly in the pre-production stage, making the film should be straight forward. 'Film' is very expensive and difficult to store so an increasing number of film makers are using digital cameras to save money.


Post-production - during this stage, you take all the 'film' you're shot and give to it a film editor. They will the begin putting it together. Special effects will be added, a soundtrack will be added, any missing dialogue will be re-recorded and added resulting in a 'rough cut'. This will be shown to the director and a test audience who will offer feedback. Often, this causes scene to be filmed and added or removed.

Screenwriter/writer - research and develop story ideas and write screenplays.

Producer - responsible for all aspects of a film's production, putting together a creative and talented cast and crew, and turning story ideas into profitable films.

Casting Director - organise the casting (selecting) of actors for all roles in a film.

Director - driving creative force in a film's production - visualising and defining the style and structure of the film, then bringing it to life.

Film Finance - manages all aspects of the finances  a company or large film production. Or represent filmmakers looking for distribution deals for their films, working with the to develop marketing strategies and deliver all the elements of the film to the distributor.

Camera Operator - prepare and operate the camera and all its equipment, working with the director and director of photography.

Editor - work closely with the director to craft the finished film.

Production Designer - define and manage every visual aspect of a film.

Marketing - planning of marketing campaigns.

Exhibition - choosing the right films for the right target audience.

TV Drama - Mise en Scene Analysis - Divergent

The lighting is high key. They are both wearing black clothing to make them seem threatening to the others. They are very close to suggest that they are protecting each other. Their facial expressions are suggesting that they are being threatened and the people in the background help to emphasis this. The white buildings in the very back suggests the innocence of the two main characters and the faction they are currently in.