In celebration of Star Wars Day, a brand-new series that will take a look behind the curtain of Lucasfilm's revolutionary effects division has been officially revealed. This new series to be coming to Disney+ called Light and Magic, a new documentary focusing on the Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), the special visual effects, animation, and virtual production division that created the fantastical visuals from Lucasfilm and influenced the entire Hollywood film industry.
The first word of this upcoming series was revealed back in September by famous composer James Newton Howard when he made an appearance on the Score: The Podcast, where he said Lawrence Kasdan would be directing the six-part docuseries and Howard scored the documentary. Now, the series is officially been revealed. Kasdan is an Academy Award-nominated filmmaker and is also a credited writer on some of the studio's biggest films such as The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens, and Solo. The series will go behind the scenes of the innovative ILM, following the stories of the people behind the effects that have wowed audiences across the decades, from their smallest personal films to bringing George Lucas' world and ideas to the screen. From Imagine Documentaries and Lucasfilm, and executive produced by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard.
Fans in attendance at the Star Wars Celebration event in Anaheim, California later this month will get a chance to see the first look at Light and Magic with a sneak peek of the upcoming series being revealed at the event. Along with this early look, there will also be an “illuminating” discussion panel held featuring Kasdan and Ron Howard along with VFX titans Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Joe Johnston, and Rose Duignan. Also joining this group on the panel will be Lynwen Brennan, Lucasfilm executive Vice President and General Manager. The sneak peek and panel about Light and Magic will be held on Friday, May 27.
Industrial Light and Magic was founded in 1975 by Lucas. Teaming up with John Dykstra, the pair brought together a team of students, artists, and engineers to bring Lucas' vision to life and create the game-changing special effects that would become synonymous with the original Star Wars film and its sequels. After the success of the original film, Lucas began to expand the company to do special effects that went on to influence the many different films across many different genres and studios. These films not only included fellow entries in the Star Wars saga and other Lucas projects like Indiana Jones, but also films like the Back to the Future trilogy, Terminator sequels, the Harry Potter series, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and even more, topping out at around 300 different films.
The six-part docuseries Light and Magic will premiere exclusively on Disney+ on July 27.