Star Wars: Visions has earned itself a reputation as one of the best Star Wars TV shows of all time. An animated anthology series, it’s an opportunity for animation houses from around the world to play in George Lucas’ sandbox. These stories are unencumbered by canon and continuity, giving a maximum of flexibility. Lucasfilm is clearly proud of the show, which has run three seasons; there’s even a Visions spinoff show in the works, due to release sometime next year.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Visions has now at the heart of an unexpected controversy, however, with fan filmmaker Lorenz Hideyoshi calling out Season 2, episode 7 for copying lightsaber fight choreography – and even camera angles – from a fan film he released in 2019. Writing on Instagram, he’s accused Disney of feeling “justified in stealing from this pool of creative output.”
The episode in question, “The Bandits of Golak,” was made by the Indian animation studio 88 Pictures under director Ishlan Shukla. Inspired by the real-world Partition of India in 1947, it ended with a climactic battle between an Imperial Inquisitor and a Jedi. This is the confrontation seen in Hideyoshi’s side-by-side comparison.
Responding to comments in an Instagram Story, Hideyoshi conceded that he doesn’t own anything from the Star Wars IP itself, which is why the fan film was not monetized. “But I could easily show that the action design itself is not reliant upon the SW elements which were incorporated,” he pointed out. “If I took an existing melody but played it with different instruments than the original, is that not infringement if done without license?”
What Does This Mean For Star Wars: Visions?
Although Hideyoshi directs his ire towards Disney, it’s important to remember that the partnerships underpinning Star Wars: Visions likely mean the House of Mouse had no knowledge of this. Back in 2023, the episode’s director Ishlan Shukla told StarWars.com that the final battle was one of his two initial ideas; “From the early concepts, it was clear that having an India-inspired train and a highway dhaba [motel] would make this a memorable and unique spectacle,” he explained. Shukla described the combat styles as being influenced by the ancient Indian martial art Kalaripattu, explaining the unusual but distinctive lightsaber duel.
It’s disappointing to see Star Wars: Visions embroiled in such controversy, and it perhaps indicates that Lucasfilm need more oversight when it comes to managing external relationships like this. 88 Pictures did not return for Visions Season 3, but wouldn’t have been a good fit given the season’s core concept; the third season returned to Japan, rather than drawing on animation houses from across the rest of the world. Visions Season 4 has yet to be announced.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of The CW. -
Image Courtesy of Disney+ -
Warner Bros. Animation / Cartoon Network Studios -
Courtesy of Crunchyroll
