Rogue One Visual Effects To Be Featured At NAB Show

NAB Show will feature the Super Session “The Force Returns: ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story‘,” produced in collaboration with Motion Picture Sound Editors, on Wednesday, April 26 at 2:00 p.m. in Las Vegas. The session will showcase how sound and visual effects worked together to help produce the box office hit for Lucasfilm.

The National Association of Broadcasters put on the NAB Show every year to showcase the convergence of media, entertainment, and technology, taking place in Las Vegas April 22-27.

John Knoll, executive producer and VFX supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic; Hal Hickel, animation supervisor at ILM; and Matthew Wood, supervising sound editor at Skywalker Sound will discuss how they brought the magic of Star Wars to life featuring more than 1,700 visual effects shots, including new spaceships, fresh weapons, and Droids for which Skywalker Sound designed distinctive, original sounds. The session will address how ILM and Skywalker Sound balanced new and classic elements of the film through technical innovations like virtual production, their proprietary “Flux” software, and an innovative production pipeline.

“Cutting-edge sound and visual effects have been key to the success of the ‘Star Wars’ franchise from the beginning,” said Chris Brown, NAB executive vice president, Conventions and Business Operations. “We look forward to hearing from these sound and visual effects leaders about the techniques and tools they used to bring the film to life.”

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Knoll is chief creative officer and senior visual effects supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic. Over his more than 30 years with the company, Knoll has led the visual effects on more than 20 feature films and commercials. For Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Knoll served as chief creative officer and led the development of the film’s concepts and original story. Knoll received Academy Award nominations for “Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace,” “Star Wars: Episode II, Attack of the Clones,” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” as well as BAFTA nominations for “Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace,” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.” “Rogue One” also received nominations from both the Academy and BAFTA for Visual Effects and Sound.

Hickel is an animation supervisor for Industrial Light & Magic. He is best known for his work on “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Iron Man” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” for which he was awarded an Oscar. During his career, Hickel has received five BAFTA nominations, a Visual Effects Society Nomination for Outstanding Visual Effects, and was the Animation Supervisor on “Rango,” which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

Wood has been bringing digital technology to the forefront of filmmaking for over 25 years. He is a supervising sound editor at Skywalker Sound and received an Academy Award nomination for his work on “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” Wood also contributed to the 2015 blockbuster “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” and the “Star Wars Rebels” animated series. He also served as the supervising sound editor on Paul Thomas Anderson’s “There Will Be Blood” and Disney/Pixar’s “WALL-E,” which earned him a BAFTA and Academy Award nominations on both films. In addition to his sound editing work, Wood lent his acting talents to a variety of “Star Wars” characters including General Grievous for “Revenge of the Sith.“

For complete details, visit www.nabshow.com.

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Directed by Gareth Edwards, it’s the first of the new standalone features from Lucasfilm and Disney, which take place outside the core “Skywalker Saga” of films noted by an Episode number. Rogue One tells the story of the small band of rebels that were tasked with stealing the plans to the first Death Star.