Light & Magic Season 2 has arrived on Disney+, and with a brand-new trailer and poster to go with it. The acclaimed documentary series from Lucasfilm and Imagine Entertainment explores the continuing legacy of Industrial Light & Magic, now celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Star Wars voice artist Sam Witwer hosted a live discussion at Star Wars Celebration Japan with Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best, president and general manager of Lucasfilm business Lynwen Brennan, senior vice president, general manager and head of ILM Janet Lewin, ILM executive creative director and senior visual effects supervisor John Knoll, ILM Sydney creative director and senior animation supervisor Rob Coleman, and Lucasfilm senior vice president and executive design director Doug Chiang.
Watch the new trailer:
As the panel began, Season 2 director Joe Johnston and executive producer Ron Howard each shared a video greeting with the fans at the Celebration Stage. In his recorded message, Johnston thanked the viewers of Season 1 and looked ahead to Season 2. “All these decades later, I’m amazed of what we were able to accomplish in the early days,” he said. “My goal [with Season 2] was to explore the incredible chapter of change as The Digital Revolution began to take hold. We have lots of exciting stories to tell.”
Johnston himself was one of ILM’s original hires back in 1975, working as a concept designer and storyboard artist on the original Star Wars trilogy. Years later his accomplished work as a director led him back to ILM, working side-by-side with the company to bring movies like The Rocketeer, Jumanji, and Jurassic Park III. After veteran screenwriter and filmmaker Lawrence Kasdan directed Light & Magic Season 1, Johnston was given the opportunity to pick up the story.
As Howard related in his video, “The stories of these unsung artists somehow make the iconic movies they were working on even more fascinating. Season 2 showcases how the innovators at ILM, with the visionary guidance of George Lucas, continued to pioneer new techniques, develop revolutionary digital technology, and transform the way we experience the art and craft of filmmaking. I promise, there will be even more stories about the making of the magic this time around.”
The Rogues and Rebels of ILM
Season 2 picks up in the mid-1990s after ILM’s work on Jurassic Park ushered in massive changes in the visual effects industry and artform. For the next decade, ILM would introduce countless innovations, each a “first” in its own right. The Star Wars prequel trilogy in particular pushed ILM and Lucasfilm to develop new digital tools to empower their artists and fulfill George Lucas’ vision.
Lynwen Brennan is incredibly grateful to how the documentary showcases both the tools and the artists. “Joe did such a great job on this series,” she said, “and the behind the scenes crew did such a great job capturing these moments. There’s sometimes a misconception that we’re a black box of secrecy, that we press a visual effects button, but it’s literally thousands of talented artists figuring it all out together.”
Commenting that ILM employees were “rogues and rebels, and quite like the Rebel Alliance,” Brennan further elaborated, “Part of what makes ILM special is the people. When George Lucas originally created ILM, he meant to bring together people who like to break the status quo and who are not afraid of the impossible. That’s what’s still in the DNA of ILM – and there’s nothing more rebellious than that.”
One of those people, Doug Chiang, was among the first artists to work on the prequel trilogy and was tasked with helping lead the effort to design an entirely new era in the Star Wars galaxy. Chiang, ever humble, was first inspired by behind-the-scenes content just like this. “I had always dreamt of working at Industrial Light & Magic,” Chiang said, “ever since I saw the original making-of documentaries. It’s the craziest thing because I didn’t think I could actually fulfill that dream – so to be sitting here with everyone on this panel, it’s still a little surreal.”
Although the prequels utilized digital visual effects unprecedented for their time, each film in the trilogy was very much a hybrid affair. Cutting edge techniques combined tried-and-true practical methods. As visual effects supervisor, John Knoll was responsible for helping determine what methods were best for each shot and sequence, from high-speed podracers on Tatooine to boiling lava rivers on Mustafar.
Dubbed by his fellow panelist as a member of the “prequel pros,” Knoll was relatively cool about his focus and determination during that time. “There were a lot of things that were beyond the capabilities of the tools themselves,” he recalled. “I was keeping a mental tally of what needed to be invented. But I was very inspired by the Star Wars films, and I wanted to get to a place where I could someday work on something of that size and scope.” The results speak for themselves, and are documented beautifully in Light & Magic.
“We Are Jar Jar”
Ahmed Best was on the frontlines of innovation in his performance as Jar Jar Binks in 1999’s Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. Light & Magic Season 2 explores his journey as the first actor to play a major role in a feature film using digital performance capture technology. As he animatedly recalled to the enraptured crowd, “What we all have in common [on this stage] is that George saw something in us. In order to deliver the best work we could do for this thing we all love, and for this person we all love, we had to bring our A-game. Jar Jar isn’t just me – it’s all of us, everybody sitting on this panel. We are Jar Jar.”
Following Jar Jar Binks, animation director Rob Coleman was eager to realize Master Yoda (voiced by Frank Oz) in a digital form for Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. It was, in fact, the only way to realize the character’s performance in his elaborate lightsaber duel with Count Dooku. With a background in choreography and martial arts, Best even consulted with Coleman on the design of the fight.
A major highlight of the panel was also Coleman’s sentimental note that the panel was the first time that he and Best had seen each other in person in two decades, after their years of close collaboration. As he eloquently put it, “This doc is like a time machine for me. It’s surreal. Those days and meetings were somewhere in my brain, and by watching this documentary they all came speeding back. I am so grateful for this documentary, because it captures a time in my life, our lives, that we created something really special.”
50 Years of Magic
It is a testament to the hard work and determination that defines the work fans love so much. As ILM celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2025, there are many past achievements to celebrate, and each of them informs and inspires the artists working at the company today.
Lewin sums it up best. “I think I’m most impressed with how Joe Johnston was able to tell the story of visual effects. It’s groundbreaking, it takes artistry and innovative ideas. Everyone has a voice, and that’s what makes it so exciting. I love the fact that we have a program that shows that, and I hope you all love it, too.”
Watch Light & Magic Season 2 on Disney+, and don’t miss additional coverage of the documentary series on Lucasfilm.com and ILM.com.
