The Film Society is thrilled to be collaborating for the first time with legendary visual effects production company Lucasfilm. We are fortunate to have the incredible talents and expertise of this successful company right here in our backyard in the Presidio and are grateful for their willingness to share their knowledge—and their spectacular special effects secrets—with Bay Area students. This yearlong series will consist of five different 90-minute multimedia presentations by Lucasfilm personnel, demonstrating the intersection of art and science in the entertainment industry in general and at Lucasfilm in particular.

The program is designed to complement a range of high school curricula, including arts, language, social studies, math and sciences, and at each event students will have the opportunity to ask questions of actual directors, producers and effects specialists. The series aims to inspire and reach out to future generations of filmmakers, storytellers and artists as well as demonstrate the range of career opportunities available in today’s digital entertainment industry and give an insider view of today’s popular TV, film and video game productions. Study guides will be available for each program to assist teachers in preparing students beforehand and providing follow-up questions, activities and resources to help integrate the program’s content into their classroom.

All of these programs are designed to be interactive experiences rather than passive viewings, so students are expected to come prepared to ask questions of filmmakers and special guests and to participate in post-film discussions and Q&A.

Upcoming Events

The Moments Behind the Magic: ILM—Past, Present, & Future
December 11 (time/location TBA)
Miles Perkins takes you on a journey through the past, present & future of the most pioneering visual effects company in the industry: Industrial Light & Magic. He highlights the technological breakthroughs that have cemented ILM into cinematic history; gives a glimpse into ILM’s current projects, and provides an inside look on how the visual effects powerhouse plans to continue pioneering new techniques that raise the bar for visual effects while expanding the creative horizons of filmmaking.

Skywalker: Creating Sound for Film
Week of January 26 (date/time TBA)
Will Files, Sound Designer of films such as Cloverfield, Bee Movie, and Madagascar 2, guides an in-depth look at the art and craft of sound in cinema. The talk will explore both the process of how a feature film soundtrack is created, the impact that sound can have on cinematic storytelling, and the choices that are made along the way. The talk will include interactive demonstrations of sound creation, as well as clips from both recent projects and classics from Skywalker Sound's 25+ year history as the leader in motion picture sound.

Past Events

The History of Lucasfilm
Thursday, October 2, Sundance Kabuki Cinemas Howard Roffman, president of Lucas Licensing, shared a behind-the-scenes look at how art, science, technology and entertainment came together in the creation of Lucasfilm, Ltd. This kick-off program to the Lucasfilm series told the incredible and inspiring story of George Lucas’s journey from Modesto, California high school student to founder of one of the world’s leading entertainment companies. In his funny and compelling 90-minute multimedia presentation, Howard spoke to a packed house about the driving forces behind Lucas’s greatest technical and artistic breakthroughs, using a selection of current and archival clips and images from the company’s rich history. Students had the opportunity to ask Howard a range of questions about his job, their favorite Lucas films and games and how they might get a job or internship with the company. All questioners rewarded with a free Lucas t-shirt.