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Camcorders, Tech and Random Rants Blog
Getting the most from your camcorder: tips, tricks, and new products for those who want to take better videos.
Aug 5, 2005 6:00 PM
Posted by Richard Baguley
Movie of the Week: Star Wars Revelations
Posted by Richard Baguley
 Episode III may have completed the cycle, but there are still plenty of Star Wars films out there that you haven’t seen. They come from a growing community of fan film makers who tell their own Jedi stories, from satires and comedies (like Troops, the original fan film that deals with the aftermath of the Empire’s attack on Luke’s home, and the excellent Pink Five, which details the adventures of a valley girl Jedi recruit under Yoda’s tutelage) to serious films that explore new aspects of the Star Wars universe. One of the best I’ve seen is Star Wars: Revelations, an excellent film that details the adventures of a renegade Jedi. It’s incredibly well put together, with direction and effects that wouldn’t look out of place in the original movies. You can download the full move from the producer’s Web site: they provide a DVD image that you can burn to disc for the full experience. We spoke to the Shane Felux, the executive producer and director of Revelations about the process of making a Star Wars movie using nothing but volunteers and a second-hand Canon XL1….
CamcorderInfo.com: Why did you decide to make a Star Wars film?
Shane Felux: Well, why not? We’re huge fans of Star Wars, and when I first saw it as a kid it was remarkable in terms of imagination. It did incredible things for me that opened up a world of imagination. It inspired me to go to college and get a degree in acting and directing. My wife is also a writer and we’ve both been wanting to make a movie for a very long time, so we said let’s do Star Wars.
 CCI: How did you start the movie?SF: I went onto eBay and spent about $4500 for a Canon XL1. I bought the camera to box in my wife, who was the writer. It came in the mail and I told my wife “I bought the camera, start writing the script: we’re gonna do this”. And that’s what started pre-production.
CCI : How did you find the XL1 to use?
SF: I enjoyed shooting with the Canon. About that time (3 to 4 years ago) it was the gunship for prosumer cameras. It had interchangeable lenses, which I really wanted. It has connectors for professional sound and great glass in the lens. It’s lightweight and takes great pictures, but I did discover things I didn’t like. I was shooting with the stock lens and it tends to drift. It’s very difficult to rack focus (note: this where the focus changes from one object in the scene to another: see an explanation here). The standby feature pissed me off beyond belief: it will shut itself down after a period of time, and that’s just when you’re about ready to say “action!”. But from that I understand about the Canon XL2, they seem to have corrected that.
 CCI: How may people did you have working on the film?SF : there were about 200 working on it in some capacity. The CG (Computer Graphics) team was around 8 guys. I went through a large turnover of CG or special effects guys: probably around 30. 8 of them were the ones who did the work, the others were just dead weight that I had to cut. I terms of cast I had my principals, where were 5, 4 supporting actors and the rest were minor roles and extras. The most I had on location on any one time was around 150.
CCI: Was anybody paid to work on the film?
SF: No, they were all volunteers. I think filmmaking should be enjoyable, because people work very hard. I really try and make a point to get to know everyone and to make the experience enjoyable. Without these people, I don’t have a film. I made a lot of great friends making the movie.
CCI: how long did it take in total?
SF: About three years. I was about ready to hang myself by the end of it. I have a 9 to 5 job and two children, so I’d come home, pay the bills, then work until 3 in the morning for 3 years. That’s rough. But as a popular director once said, you never really finish a movie, you just abandon it. At some point you just have to cut the cord and say “that’s it”.
 CCI: I’ve heard that you managed to sneak behind the scenes at a convention and give a copy of the movie to Rick McCallum (the producer of the Star Wars movies). Do you know what he and Lucasfilm though to it?SF: No, and he never returns my calls [Laughs]. I don’t think that George (Lucas) has seen it himself. But in no way is Revelations sanctioned or approved by Lucasfilm.
CCI: Have they given you any problems? Star Wars is, after all, their property.
SF: I’ve talked to their permission lawyers and said that I’d sign any legal thing that makes out movie yours. I said to them, “it doesn’t belong to me in the first place. I made it, but we’re your biggest cheerleaders, and we’re respectful of your product. You can have my characters, my stories”. They said “That’s very generous of you”, but it’s nothing to do with generosity. I had the privilege of being able to play in their sandbox, and I respect that. I’m respectful of their work, and I’m not going to try and steal anything.
 CCI: Is there anything that you look at now and say “I wish I’d done it this way”SF : Oh, every part of it. I made mistakes every day. You could tweak and change this and that and keep working on it for ever. But in terms of the resources we had, the money and the people, I’m amazed with what we achieved. It exceeded my expectations. If I did it now, I’d shoot it in High-Def. You can get a Hi-Def camera now for about $5,000.
CCI: So what’s next for you?
SF: I’m doing a music video at the end of this month, and we are also looking to do an original Sci-Fi film. I’m excited about this project: it’s a matter of getting the treatment down. Some smaller studios have called me. I’ve proved with Revelations that you can do an independent film to almost near Hollywood quality, and I want to do another one and do even more, even better.
CCI: So what advice would you give to people who are thinking of making their own star wars film?
SF: Do it. That’s all I say. There are plenty of naysayers who will say “you’re just a dreamer! You’ll never accomplish that!” To me, those dreamers are the ones who accomplish things. When George Lucas set out to do Star Wars, everybody said “it’s a piece of crap. You’re never gonna do this”. He was the only one who believed in that film, but its people like that who say “the hell with you I’m gonna do this!” and do it anyway. So don’t let anybody tell you you can’t do something.
Thanks to Shane Felux or taking the time to talk to us about his movie.
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