Talking Bay 94: Star Wars Interviews

Admiral Garrick Versio himself is on the show today ... Mr. Anthony Skordi, best known from Star Wars Battlefront II . This is a quick conversation about his work on the game, his experience in the mo-cap suit, and his latest project. It's a good one! (And, yeah, let's get this Mandalorian Season 2 rumor going, huh?) For more information about his one-man show Onassis, check out the IndieGogo camp...

As a creature concept designer, Jake Lunt Davies has his exceptionally creative fingerprints all over the most recent Star Wars movies. From helping to design BB-8 and the Luggabeast in THE FORCE AWAKENS, the Porgs and Thala Sirens in THE LAST JEDI, Pao in ROGUE ONE, collaborating with his daughter for SOLO and, of course, working on D-0 , Space Horses and the Aki Aki for THE RISE OF SKYWALKER, we...

Well, this is wild: today's conversation is with an absolute effects legend ... 9-time Academy Award winner, Dennis Muren . This is honestly a dream come true and our conversation did not disappoint: from the landmark achievements of original trilogy's space battles, the Temple of Doom 's mine car chase, Willow 's morphing, Terminator 2 's liquid metal and more … we dive into so much of Mr. Muren'...

TyRuben Ellingson is an exceptional Visual Effects Art Director who has worked on a ton of projects, including Star Wars: A New Hope (Special Edition) . Whether breaking his arm on Jurassic Park or drawing floating Jabbas, we dive into his story and career … and what George Lucas really said in that first Special Edition meeting. (He also goes on the record about his involvement, or lack thereof,...

Hey everyone, it's Brandon. I just wanted to take a second and put this episode (Episode 47, from this past fall) back in your feeds because today it was announced that Mr. Alan Harris had passed away at the age of 81.  I am so glad I got to meet him and chronicle his story. He was so generous with his time and such a delight to be around. I hope you enjoy this brief window into his experience wit...

As an incredibly special Thanksgiving treat, today I am talking to Academy Award winner Craig Barron , who not only worked on The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi , but has been a visual effects pioneer for decades, beginning with his start at Industrial Light & Magic as an 18 year old. From portraying Darth Vader to working with David Fincher, we go through as much of his filmography as...

The paper engineer and the pop-up master himself, Matthew Reinhart,  returns to the show after our live chat for Episode 38 , to talk all about his latest book from Insight Editions ... STAR WARS: THE ULTIMATE POP-UP GALAXY. Even Talking Bay 94 producer Jason gets out on the mic to help me ask the big questions all about design and Easter Eggs in his work. (I would like to reiterate, that we were...

For those who do not know, my day job is as VP of Marketing for FANGORIA (the horror movie magazine and production studio). And, as part of that job, I interviewed Paul Dini (BATMAN:THE ANIMATED SERIES) and Stephen Langford (FAMILY MATTERS), who both scripted one of the episodes of Shudder's CREEPSHOW . But, of course, I had to ask them about EWOKS and DROIDS. Dini was an associate producer on bot...

Prop maker and droid creator, from EV-9D9 and probots to B'omarr monks and mynocks … to, of course, IG-88 , we go through Bill Hargreaves' start working on Alien all the way to his tortuous coat hanger creation for Raiders of the Lost Ark . I want to stress here: the coat hanger story is a masterpiece. Again, a huge thank you to Zack McGinnis and Galactic Productions for coordinating this. Go to G...

We're talking to one of my heroes, one of the people who has been at the very top of the list to have on this show from the very beginning ... two time Academy Award winner, the legend: Phil Tippett . From the Cantina reshoots to the Dejarik chess table to the AT-AT stop motion to the ILM Return of the Jedi creature shop , Mr. Tippett was one of the driving forces of, not only the Star Wars world...

Angus MacInnes played " Dutch" Vander in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope ... you might know him better as Gold Leader .  We go through some fascinating stories about being on the set of Rollerball, his experience with the Canadian actors that populated the original trilogy, working with George Lucas and Stanley Kubrick, and (of course) his triumphant return in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story . Again...

Juan-Luis Sanchez is a visual effects artist who worked on clothing, digital stand-ins and so much more for Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith . From working at Industrial Light and Magic to trying his hand at the sound stages, Mr. Sanchez's time in the VFX industry is full of incredible stories and equally incredible passion.   (He also stood in for Count Dooku 's...

Alan Harris  is perhaps most famous for portraying one of the most iconic aliens in Star Wars : the fearsome bounty hunter Bossk , in  The Empire Strikes Back.   However, he had roles in each of the Original Trilogy, as well as returned to the saga briefly, two decades later, to appear in  The Phantom Menace.  From being the first person to wear a Boba Fett costume (now the famous white " Prototyp...

Jock is not only one of the best comic book artists in the world, but also was one of the Costume Concept Designers of The Last Jedi . From Luke Skywalkers ' hermit gear and Crait robes to General Organa 's collar to Rey 's poncho, we go through the process of so many of the iconic outfits he helped to design. So pull out your The Art of the Last Jedi  and follow along as we go page-by-page throug...

In this episode, I'm talking to one of my favorite current  Star Wars  authors, Mr. Jason Fry , who not only wrote the incredible novelization of  The Last Jedi , but has been contributing to the universe for many, many years.  Learn more about how Incredible Cross-Sections  are put together and find out the details behind Luke's wife , Han Solo's funeral and deleted scenes of the Master Codebreak...

Today's conversation is with one of the most formative voices in Star Wars , as we know it today, Mr. Bill Slavicsek , writer, game designer and Creative Director for West End Games and Wizards of the Coast .  From naming alien creatures like Ithorians , Quarrens and Sullastans to shaping what we now consider to be the "voice" of Star Wars, we take a fascinating look at the early Expanded Universe...

So, I did something dumb. When The Academy announced a panel featuring Marcia Lucas  (!!!!), Ben Burtt (!!!!),  John Dykstra , Dennis Muren , John Knoll , Harrison Ellenshaw ( TB94 Episode 18 ), Richard Edlund ( TB94 Episode 19 ) and many more ... I bought a ticket. And then it sold out. The event was in Los Angeles on a Thursday and I, well, live in Dallas. So I booked a flight, flew out to Calif...

Troy Denning is the author of so many classic Star Wars novels, including Star by Star, Tatooine Ghost, the Dark Nest Trilogy and a ton more. From the New Jedi Order bible to the deaths of Anakin Solo and Darth Caedus, we take a trip back to the Expanded Universe for some behind-the-scenes stories. For more information about his latest novels and upcoming appearances, follow him on Twitter at @TDe...

Bill Kimberlin  started at Industrial Light & Magic as a Visual Effects Editor on Return of the Jedi , working alongside Ken Ralston , on the infamous SB-19 shot … dubbed the most complicated VFX shot in motion picture history We go through the history of ILM, the stories behind the movies and we even get into the Back to the Future sequels, which shouldn't be a surprise if you know me at all. For...

This is my conversation with Kevin J. Anderson , one of the most prolific Star Wars authors of all time. From the beginnings of the expanded universe to Darksaber and the Young Jedi Knights series, we really go through the history of those original Bantman books. And we talk some Dune , of course. His latest epic novel, Spine of the Dragon came out on June 4, 2019 and is available anywhere books a...

Mike Quinn is an incredibly talented puppeteer and creature performer, from Jabba the Hutt 's eyes to Sy Snootles to Nien Nunb returning and then surviving to the end of The Last Jedi , we talk about it all. I've been wanting Mr. Quinn on the show since the very beginning so it is SO exciting to have him on today. Check out his website:  http://www.quinnzonestudios.com/ And pre-order Mr. Quinn's a...

This is my special TALES FROM JABBA'S PALACE conversation with previous guests Gerald Home (Tessek and a Mon Calamari officer) and Simon J. Wiliamson (Max Rebo and a Gamorrean Guard).  We got to talk to them again, this time in person, to tell some of our favorite stories, as well as quite a few new ones in this special anniversary episode. I can't really believe it but, yes, this is the one year...

LIVE from Star Wars Celebration, this is my conversation with Matthew Reinhart , author and creator of A POP-UP GUIDE TO THE GALAXY, as well as the upcoming THE ULTIMATE POP-UP GALAXY, from Insight Editions. You'll be able to tell very quickly, but he was an absolute joy to talk to and I enjoyed it very, very much. His upcoming book is coming out in the fall (October), published by Insight Edition...

This is my conversation with the legendary Paul Hirsch , Academy Award-winner for his editing work on the original Star Wars . From working with Brian De Palma and John Hughes , to his time in the editing bay for both A New Hope and The  Empire Strikes Back , side-by-side with Marcia Lucas, Richard Chew (and George), we go through as much as we can of his storied career. Even more stories can be f...

"The shield will be down in moments, you may start your landing." Julian Glover is an incredible actor, who has appeared in numerous movies and franchises, including  The Empire Strikes Back  as everyone's favorite AT-AT commander, General Maximilian Veers . From being next door neighbors with producer Robert Watts to working with Irvin Kershner and Steven Spielberg , we cover a lot of ground in t...