Documentary
When George Lucas set out to make Star Wars, little did he know he would end up revolutionizing an industry. This is the story of a team of creative geniuses who put the magic in the movies we love.
The year is 1975, and George Lucas has a problem. There is no visual effects company in Hollywood capable of realizing the massive vision behind his new film “The Star Wars”. George and camera expert John Dykstra assemble an unlikely team of artists and dreamers for the job, but despite their best efforts and some remarkable new technology, the ILM team falls woefully behind.
When a near fatal wreck thwarts his boyhood dream of racing cars, George Lucas finds success as a filmmaker. He spends his own money on the special effects of an ambitious new “space opera”, but progress is painfully slow. With the help of key new hires, ILM rallies to finish the film on time. Star Wars premieres to worldwide success, yet George remains curiously unsatisfied with the results.
After Star Wars, ILM moves north to a new facility—but not everyone is invited. As work begins on The Empire Strikes Back, the team faces unprecedented new challenges. Frustrated by the available tools, George creates a new division to help modernize filmmaking. Upon the release of Empire, ILM takes on outside work for the first time, setting the stage for a remarkable string of success.
A new partnership with Steven Spielberg results in the memorable effects of Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T., and more. Meanwhile, the computer graphics group scores its first digital breakthrough. As the 80s blockbuster era rolls in, ILM crews are competing against each other, for both resources and awards. When George makes a fateful business decision, ILM is forced to rebuild on the fly.
ILM enters the digital era as its revamped computer division faces its first big test with Willow. With a new team of rebels arriving at the company eager to push CG to its limits, James Cameron gives them a chance with The Abyss and Terminator 2. But the transition to digital is not without its casualties, as some struggle to adapt. Then Steven Spielberg returns with his greatest challenge yet.
Stop-motion genius Phil Tippett feels like he’s gone extinct when CG unexpectedly takes center stage in Jurassic Park. The watershed moment convinces George Lucas to return to his long-planned Star Wars prequel trilogy and push the technology even further. As digital filmmaking continues to grow and evolve, The Volume proves that the spirit of innovation remains alive and well at ILM.
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The porn industry creates endless images and videos that are consumed by billions worldwide, yet surprisingly little is known about how this culture-shaping content is made - or at what cost. Beyond Fantasy is a series that takes viewers straight into the belly of the beast and brings them face to face with some of the biggest porn producers and performers as they describe, in their own words, an industry that profits from abuse, coercion, and ethical violation.
For centuries, explorers have searched for the Bible’s most sacred religious artefacts. One of the most mysterious of these objects is the famed Ark of the Covenant. The gold-plated wooden chest – one of the most instrumental symbols of faith and God's presence – was believed to house the two tablets bearing the Ten Commandments. The Ark’s exact whereabouts has long puzzled scholars. Where did it go? And why has it remained such a mystery?
Gosia Duszak unveils her direct written communications with Swaruu of Erra, a Taygetan from the Pleiadian star system. Sharing information and knowledge in various areas of human and extraterrestrial reality in order to give back to the people the knowledge obscured on Earth for millenia. Through these conversations Swaruu uncovers the potential of souls to evolve and escape the 3D matrix that was imposed upon 5D Earth more than 12,500 years ago as the result of an interstellar war, and maintained by the manipulated human collective mind.
Acclaimed profiles of eight great American film directors. Produced and directed by Richard Schickel and narrated by Cliff Robertson, with solid interviews and film clips, the series reviews the careers of Raoul Walsh, Frank Capra, Howard Hawks, King Vidor, George Cukor, William A. Wellman, Alfred Hitchcock and Vincente Minnelli.
Thailand is not just a vacation destination, it is a wealth of culture and beauty. From the dramatic mountains of the North to the very tip of the Malay Peninsula in the South, travel the length and breadth of Thailand in this unique aerial adventure. Discover glimmering coastlines, hidden Khmer temples, luscious mangrove forests, and the traditional majesty of Thailand's historic capital.
