Iain McCaig | |
|---|---|
 Iain McCaig | |
| Born | 1957 |
| Occupation(s) | Artist, writer, and filmmaker |
Iain McCaig (born March 19, 1957) is an American artist, writer, and filmmaker. [1] [2] He was involved in the Star Wars franchise and many other iconic film and book projects, including an album cover for Jethro Tull's Broadsword and the Beast. [3]
McCaig was born in Santa Monica, California, [4] but spent most of his younger years in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. [3] He later moved to Great Britain and attended the Glasgow School of Art, [5] but returned one summer to California to work at Korty Films, where he contributed to Sesame Street cartoons and a trailer for the 1983 animated film Twice Upon a Time .
Returning to the UK, he began a career as a freelance illustrator; his work there includes the cover for Jethro Tull's ( The Broadsword and the Beast ), [5] the design of the Games Workshop logo [6] and cover and interior illustrations for Ian Livingstone's 'Fighting Fantasy' books. [7] In 1990, he returned to California to work for Industrial Light and Magic and later for Lucasfilm. During that time, he directed his first professional film, a 1998 short called The Face, which won multiple awards, [8] including the Year 2000 Notable Video from the American Library Association.
In film, McCaig is best known for designing the Star Wars characters Padmé Amidala and Darth Maul and has contributed key designs to many of the films in the Star Wars franchise, including Episodes I , II , III , and VII . [4] At a 2016 speaking engagement at Academy of Art University, McCaig revealed that the original plan for Padmé's character was for her to almost kill Anakin Skywalker to start a galactic revolution. This part of the script was changed by the film's writer, George Lucas. [9] [10]
Among his other credits are Terminator 2 , Hook , Interview with the Vampire , Bram Stoker's Dracula , Charlotte's Web , Peter Pan , Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire , [11] The Spiderwick Chronicles , [4] John Carter of Mars , The Avengers , Guardians of the Galaxy , and The Jungle Book . He was also Co-Producer and Concept Design Director on Outlander .
In October 2008, a book of McCaig's work, Shadowline: The Art of Iain McCaig, was released. [4] The book is a combination of mini-art classes, an allegorical novella on McCaig's creative process, and a retrospective of 28 years of his film and personal work. [12]
McCaig has taught drawing and storytelling publicly and privately for most of his career. He is the author of four DVDs on Visual Storytelling and Concept Design for the Gnomon Workshop. In 2014, McCaig received the Spectrum Award for Grand Master.
McCaig's daughter, Mishi is also a film artist, [5] having contributed to Iron Man , Outlander and John Carter of Mars , as well as producing her own short film work. Iain and Mishi were both involved in the production of the Discovery Channel series Dinosaur Revolution . [13] His son, Inigo, is also an artist. [5]
McCaig currently lives in Victoria, British Columbia, [3] with his wife, Leonor. [5]
Jedi, Jedi Knights, or collectively the Jedi Order are fictional characters, and often protagonists, featured in many works within the Star Wars franchise. Working symbiotically alongside the Old Galactic Republic, the Jedi Order is depicted as a religious, academic, meritocratic, and military (peacekeeping) organization whose origin dates back thousands of years before the events of the first film released in the franchise. The fictional organization has inspired a real-world new religious movement and parody religion: Jediism.
Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones is a 2002 American epic space opera film directed by George Lucas and written by Lucas and Jonathan Hales. The sequel to The Phantom Menace (1999), it is the fifth film in the Star Wars film series and second chronological chapter of the "Skywalker Saga". The film stars Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Hayden Christensen, Ian McDiarmid, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Lee, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, and Frank Oz.
Darth Vader is a character in the Star Wars franchise. He is the primary antagonist of the original film trilogy and, as Anakin Skywalker, is the protagonist of the prequel trilogy. Star Wars creator George Lucas has collectively referred to the first six episodic films of the franchise as "the tragedy of Darth Vader". He has become an iconic villain of cinema.
Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith is a 2005 American epic space opera film that is the sequel to The Phantom Menace (1999) and Attack of the Clones (2002). It is the sixth film in the Star Wars film series, the third installment in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, and third chronological chapter of the "Skywalker Saga". It is written and directed by George Lucas, who also served as executive producer. The film stars Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Hayden Christensen, Ian McDiarmid, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Lee, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, and Frank Oz.
Obi-Wan Kenobi is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. Within the original trilogy, Obi-Wan is a Jedi Master as a supporting character and is portrayed by English actor Alec Guinness. In the later-released prequel trilogy, a younger version of the character serves as one of the two main protagonists, alongside Anakin Skywalker, and is portrayed by Scottish actor Ewan McGregor. In the original trilogy he is introduced as Ben Kenobi, an alias he uses while in hiding from the Empire. He is a mentor to Luke Skywalker, to whom he introduces the ways of the Jedi. After sacrificing himself in a duel against Darth Vader, Obi-Wan guides Luke through the Force in his fight against the Galactic Empire. In the prequel trilogy, set two decades earlier, he is initially a Padawan (apprentice) to Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, and later mentor and friend of Luke's father Anakin, who falls to the dark side of the Force and becomes Vader. The character briefly appears in the sequel trilogy as a disembodied voice, speaking to protagonist Rey, and serving as the namesake of Ben Solo. He is frequently featured as a main character in various other Star Wars media, including the streaming television miniseries Obi-Wan Kenobi, in which McGregor reprised the role.
Count Dooku of Serenno, also known by his Sith name Darth Tyranus, is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise, created by George Lucas. He is an antagonist in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, appearing in both Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) and Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005), played by Christopher Lee, as well as associated media, such as books, comics, video games, and television series. Actor Corey Burton has voiced Dooku in most of his animated and video game appearances, most notably Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003–2005), Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and the miniseries Tales of the Jedi (2022). Lee reprised the role in the 2008 animated film that launched The Clone Wars series.
R2-D2 or Artoo-Detoo is a fictional robot character in the Star Wars franchise created by George Lucas. He has appeared in ten of the eleven theatrical Star Wars films to date, including every movie in the original trilogy, prequel trilogy, and sequel trilogy. At various points throughout the course of the films, R2, an astromech droid, is a friend to C-3PO, Padmé Amidala, Anakin Skywalker, Leia Organa, Luke Skywalker, and Obi-Wan Kenobi. R2-D2 and his companion C-3PO are the only characters to appear in every theatrical Star Wars film, with the exception of Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018).
C-3PO or See-Threepio is a humanoid robot character in the Star Wars franchise who appears in every movie of the original trilogy, the prequel trilogy and the sequel trilogy. Built by Anakin Skywalker, C-3PO was designed as a protocol droid intended to assist in etiquette, customs, and translation, boasting that he is "fluent in over six million forms of communication". Along with his astromech droid counterpart and friend R2-D2, C-3PO provides comic relief within the narrative structure of the films, and serves as a foil. Anthony Daniels has portrayed the character in eleven of the twelve theatrical Star Wars films released to date, with the exception of Solo: A Star Wars Story, where the character does not appear.
Yoda is a fictional character in the Star Wars universe, first appearing in the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back. He is a small, green humanoid alien who is powerful with The Force and is a leading member of the Jedi Order until its near annihilation. In The Empire Strikes Back, Yoda was voiced and puppeteered by Frank Oz, who reprised the role in Return of the Jedi, the prequel trilogy, and the sequel trilogy. Outside of the films, the character was mainly voiced by Tom Kane, starting with the 2003 Clone Wars animated television series until his retirement from voice acting in 2021. Yoda is an iconic figure in popular culture due to his distinct pattern of speech and role as a wise mentor.
The Skywalker family is a fictional legendary human family in the Star Wars franchise. Within the series' fictional universe, the Skywalkers are presented as a bloodline with strong inherent capabilities related to the Force and sometimes lightsaber skills. Luke Skywalker, his twin sister Princess Leia Organa, and their father Darth Vader are central characters in the original Star Wars film trilogy. Darth Vader, in his previous identity as Anakin Skywalker, is a lead character in the prequel film trilogy and so is his wife and the twins' mother Padmé Amidala; while his mother Shmi is a minor character in the first and second films respectively. Leia and Han Solo's son, Ben Solo, renamed himself Kylo Ren and is the main antagonist in the sequel film trilogy, while they and Luke serve as supporting characters. Shmi, Padmé, and Han are the only members who are not Force-sensitive. The Skywalker bloodline, alongside the Palpatine bloodline, are the two bloodlines that are the strongest with the Force.
The Clone Wars are a series of fictional conflicts in the Star Wars franchise by George Lucas. Though mentioned briefly in the first Star Wars film, the war itself was not depicted until Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). The Clone Wars are also the setting for three eponymous projects: a 2D animated series (2003–2005), a 3D film (2008), and a 3D animated series. They have featured in numerous Star Wars books and games.
Star Wars: Clone Wars is an American animated television series developed and directed by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Lucasfilm and Cartoon Network Studios for Cartoon Network. Set in the Star Wars universe, specifically between the Star Wars prequel trilogy films Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, it is amongst the first of many works to explore the Clone Wars. The show follows the actions of various prequel trilogy characters, notably Jedi and clone troopers, in their war against the droid armies of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Sith.
The Broadsword and the Beast is the 14th studio album by rock band Jethro Tull, released in April 1982 by Chrysalis Records. The album's musical style features a cross between the dominant synthesizer sound of the 1980s and the folk-influenced style that Jethro Tull used in the previous decade. As such, the band's characteristic acoustic instrumentation is augmented by electronic soundscapes. The electronic aspects of this album would be explored further by the band on their next album, Under Wraps (1984), as well as on Ian Anderson's solo album Walk into Light (1983).
The Star Wars prequel trilogy, colloquially referred to as the prequels, is a series of epic space-opera films written and directed by George Lucas. It was produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and distributed by 20th Century Fox. The trilogy was released from 1999 to 2005 and is set before the original Star Wars trilogy (1977–1983), chronologically making it the first act of the Skywalker Saga. Lucas had planned a prequel trilogy before the release of the original film, but halted major Star Wars films beyond the original trilogy by 1981. When computer-generated imagery (CGI) had advanced to the level he wanted for the visual effects he wanted for subsequent films, Lucas revived plans for the prequels by the early 1990s. The trilogy marked Lucas's return to directing after a 22-year hiatus following the original Star Wars film in 1977, as well as a 16-year hiatus between the classic and prequel trilogies.
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the film score to the 2005 film of the same name released by Sony Classical on May 3, 2005, more than two weeks before the film's release. The music was composed and conducted by John Williams, and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices in February 2005, with orchestrations provided by Conrad Pope and Eddie Karam. The score was Williams' sixth score in the saga. Shawn Murphy recorded the score. Ramiro Belgardt and Kenneth Wannberg served as music editors; Wannberg served as music editor for the previous Star Wars scores. A remastered version of the soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records on May 4, 2018.
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith is a novelization of the film of the same name, written by Matthew Stover and published on April 2, 2005, by Del Rey Books.
Sheev Palpatine is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise created by George Lucas. He first appears on screen in The Empire Strikes Back (1980), in which he is credited as The Emperor, and is the overarching antagonist of the three film trilogies in the Skywalker Saga, in which he is portrayed by Ian McDiarmid. The character is also known by his Sith name, Darth Sidious, which was first used in the novelization of The Phantom Menace (1999). In creating Palpatine, Lucas was inspired by real-world examples of democratic backsliding during the rise and rule of dictators such as Julius Caesar, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Adolf Hitler.
Mace Windu is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise, portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson in the prequel trilogy. Jackson later reprised the role with voice only in the 2008 animated film Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the 2019 sequel film The Rise of Skywalker, whilst Terrence C. Carson voiced the character in other projects, such as The Clone Wars animated television series. The character also appears in various canon and non-canon Star Wars media like books, comics, and video games.
Padmé Amidala is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise, appearing in the prequel trilogy and portrayed by Natalie Portman. First indirectly mentioned in Return of the Jedi, she is introduced in The Phantom Menace as the teenage Queen of Naboo, and after her reign, becomes a senator and an anti-war activist in the Galactic Senate. She secretly marries Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi Knight, then later dies while giving birth to twins Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa. Anakin's fear of losing Padmé serves as the catalyst in driving him to the dark side of the Force and becoming Darth Vader.
Darth Plagueis the Wise is a fictional character and the overarching antagonist of the Star Wars franchise. A Sith Lord with the ability to cheat death and create life, Plagueis is the enigmatic mentor of Sheev Palpatine / Darth Sidious, who, in accordance to the Sith's Rule of Two, eventually betrays Plagueis by murdering him in his sleep, taking his place as Sith Master. The character was first mentioned on-screen in the 2005 film Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, in which Palpatine frames his life and death as a "legend" to pique Anakin Skywalker's curiosity about the dark side of the Force. Plagueis has a more prominent presence in the Star Wars Expanded Universe.
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