September 08, 2003; Hyperspace: "Separatist Gathering":
• The Separatists are pawns who are manipulated by shadowy puppet-masters to wage what is ultimately a meaningless war. Today's shooting has gathered the leaders of the Confederacy of Independent Systems (CIS) into one place, which makes for a crowded set with a wide range of interesting alien faces and colorful costumes.

• In one scene, the Separatist Council will convene in a grimy and shopworn control room. The war has been hard on these pampered commerce barons. The locations where they run their wars and operations have become increasingly inhospitable to stave off Republic pursuit. This set will have minimal amounts of windows and doorframes. Large rectangles of illuminated color represent tactical viewscreens.

• Silas Carson is shooting the scenes as Nute Gunray and he will be communicating with a holographic form. For today's shoot, Rune Haako has no dialogue. Colin Ware plays a Neimoidian who is an aide to Rune and Nute.

• In the background are Senator Po Nudo and his aide in their Episode II costumes, Passel Argente and his aide, Denaria Kee, wearing new costumes.

• It turns out that Senator Tikkes will not be in Ep3 but rather Senator Tundra Dowmeia, the loyalist Quarren Senator.

• Poggle the Lesser, Wat Tambor, Shu Mai and San Hill will return in their CGI forms.

 

September 05, 2003; Hyperspace: "All Over The Place":
• There was a change of plans and today's scheduled shooting was postponed until next week due to an injury Hayden sustained while executing a leap in an action scene weeks ago. The injury has been aggravated to the point where it may start affecting Hayden's physical performance. Hayden will be taking it easy the new few days and hopes to be ready to go for the cameras on Monday morning.

• This shift in schedule means the scenes planned for next Wednesday (Sep 10) were moved up to today. This called for three new sets for use in today's shooting.

• Here are the six scenes shot today:

1: Darth Sidious communicates with someone via hologram. Duncan Young, serving as a vocal stand-in, provides the voice of one of Sidious' evil henchmen.

2: Obi-Wan Kenobi stunt double, Nash Edgerton, did a stunt where he is hurled through the air, hits the wall, and collapses on the ground - all without wirework. Nash manages to land in the exact same sprawled position that Ewan McGregor assumed in a previously shot segment.

3: One scene with the revolve (rotating set) was shot for the final time today. Originally the revolve was only a a floor and a ceiling. Stunt performers in the set were to start in a normal orientation, and then fall towards the "ceiling."

4: An alien wilderness rocky cave was shot with Obi-Wan Kenobi doing the spelunking. Given the craggy gray rocks and the circular cave-opening, Ewan compared the scenes as entering a rather unpleasant part of an elephant.

5: A new environment within the Jedi Temple as Obi-Wan fiddles with a high tech piece of equipment and a computer console in a pillar.

6: Another new section of the Jedi Temple where there will be a conversation between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda. Duncan Young provided the voice for Yoda. A little person, about the Yoda's height, served as a stand-in to block the scene, since the sage must walk across frame.

• Departures: Editor Roger Barton and Assistant Editor Jett Sally

September 03, 2003; Hyperspace webchat with Pablo Hidalgo - Summary:
• Sometimes the webcam does not show as much action s fans would like due to technical limitations or because the webcam is purposely placed away from the sets so it would not be a distraction.
• Anakin's Jedi robes are darker in Ep3. Trisha Biggar will have an article in the next Homing Beacon where she will discuss the changes in wardrobe to the characters.
• There at least six more cast members to be announced but they are only waiting for deals to be signed, paperwork. Expect another new casting announcement this week.
• Jocasta Nu is not in Ep3.
• Currently there are no plans for any major characters to shoot scenes in March during the scheduled pick-ups but that may change. (We know that Chewbacca, Owen and others will shoot scenes in Mar 2004)
• Kenny baker has not yet been on set.
• In addition to 70's style themes, there are plenty of "blinking lights" to merge the PT into the Classic Trilogy.
• Nick Gillard has shot part of his cameo as a Jedi.
• Anakin will "save" Obi-Wan at one point during the film.
• Ian McDiarmid will be shooting scenes until the very end of filming.
• Ian has several scenes with Hayden.
• Sola, Pooja, and Ryoo will shoot their scenes in the coming days.
• There is no truth to the rumor that the original person cast to fill the Vader suit was fired (due to fanboy giddiness).
• Obi-Wan's actions in the film are pivotal to what ends the Clone Wars.
• It appears Senator Lott Dodd will return for Ep3.
• Pablo has a hard time believing some of the imagery will get a PG rating. Nothing is too over the top but in today's MPAA standards, some scenes are intense.
• Christian Bale, Ralph Fiennes, and Peter Wingfield are confirmed as not playing Tarkin nor having anything to do with Ep3.
• Rohan Nichol has already shot his scenes as a starship captain.
• The EU character is neither Thrawn nor Xizor. But Pablo said "nice try."
• The Death Star plans are not really important in Ep3. The focus of Ep3 is on more important story points.
• Pablo doubts we will see daily updates during post-production but we will see further coverage of the completion of the film.
• Pablo said to re-read Rick McCallum's quote on whether or not anyone turns out to be a clone in Ep3.
• There will be a few tender moments of romance in the film.
• Pablo stated that the Dagobah cave was explained in Ep5, does not need further explanation, and to focus energies on other things.
• Palatine has more than one look/style of appearance in the film.
• The "no disintegrations" line will not be explained in Ep3.
• The "force ghost" theory will be explained.
• Jar-Jar's role in Ep3 is not that important, in Pablo’s words.
• Over the remaining 10 days of shooting left, the webcam will not cover much of the shooting but will be located on other stages.
• There will be no doubt that Anakin is Darth Vader as seen in the film. Pablo added "unless someone out there starts a clone theory or something".
• Plo Koon, Saesee Tiin, and Kit Fisto have completed their scenes. Ki-Adi-Mundi still has some shooting left to complete. Luminara, Barriss and Bultar will shoot their scenes in March during pick-ups.
• There will not be any puppet characters but there will be at least two important alien species showcased in Ep3 that will be realized through old-fashioned creature effects.
• So far no new styles of lightsabers, but we will see new styles of lightsaber combat.
• Anakin knows Padme is pregnant and expecting.
• The Trade federation Cruise will be a new design. Pablo is unsure on how large the ship will be on film but he expects it to be larger than the Republic Cruisers.
• There will be cut scenes from Ep3, as with every movie.
• The fate of the younglings will be explained.
• Ewan and Hayden are the actors with the most screen time.
• Palpatine and his entourage will be watching some performance art (Coruscant Theater) at one point in the film. The art will be created by ILM.
• Pablo related more to Obi-Wan's perspective n the film as opposed to Anakin's.
• Anakin's fall is shocking.
• Pablo sends his set diaries to California each day and the diaries are scrubbed for any potential spoilers that may be too revealing.
• Wherever the March 2004 pick-ups are held, someone from starwars.com will be there to document the production.
• At the beginning of the film Anakin and Obi-Wan are still good friends and we will see they have grown even closer since battling in the clone wars together. But Anakin has been building another friendship too...
• The March 2004 pick-ups will be studio-based and Pablo expects that some characters will be digitally added or edited in the scenes, such as Sio Bibble was added into Ep2.
• Overall, Palpatine has much more screen time than Sidious. But Sidious will have much more screen time than seen in Ep2.
• Pablo says that some of the theories seen on StarWars message boards are very close to the plot of Ep3, but also that the story is not that much of a secret since we have known the basic plot since the prologue to the Ep4 novel. The only mysteries to be revealed are the "why" and "where" things happen.
• The reason Obi-Wan changes his name to "Ben" will be seen in the movie but not an explanation as to why he chose "Ben" as the specific name.
• The timespan covered over the course of Ep3 is similar to that of the other films.
• Passel Argente will not have any lines in the film, but he will have a new look and will have on-screen closure to the character. Passel's aide Denaria Kee will also be seen in the film.
• Though Padmé's screen time is less than that of Obi-Wan and Anakin, she will still have an important role and a fair amount of screen time.
• Pablo knows the opening scroll text as it is in the script. The opening scroll will be important in Ep3 as it is in media res like ANH.
• Miniature work is part of post-production and that phase has yet to begin.
• All the droids in the Droid Unit, to include "copper top" (Obi-Wan's starfighter droid), have been crated up as their time for shooting has finished.
• There are scenes that will have moments that could be seen as "scary".
• Darth Sidious will remove his hood.

September 02, 2003; Hyperspace: "Concentrated Action":
• Shooting of the duel continued. Hayden and Ewan are happy since the duel gives them an opportunity to show off their extremely well honed lightsaber skills. But when it comes time for filming, it's all business, and they are able to maintain their intensity.

• Wind machines blast Anakin and Obi-Wan and steam obscures their paths. There are moments when words cut as deeply as lightsabers.

• This part of the duel will focus on the final moments of Anakin and Obi-Wan's relationship. Ewan asks for non-essential personnel to step back from the set and said "This is a rather important scene here."

• The scenes scheduled for March 2004 are less than a dozen and "aren't any more seismic in their revelations".

• "Pivotal scenes" have been shot over the past two days. One of these scenes is shot on a stage of intricately patterned mechanical floor. Some of the crew whistled the nine notes of the Imperial March.

• On Sept 01, at 5:48 p.m., an unmistakable and iconic dark form was captured on camera. The first take was mesmerizing and everyone applauded.

August 28, 2003; Hyperspace webchat with Pablo Hidalgo - A Summary:
• Shooting is currently ahead of schedule and the tentative completion date for principal photography is Sept 18th.
• Nick Gillard's background character will be the one to wield the odd-looking metal lightsaber seen in the set diary picture for 27 Aug.
• Pablo has seen no proof that Peter Mayhew's comments about "Chewbacca saving the twins" and/or "being in an action scene involving war machines" are anything more than rumors.
• We may see a new casting update tomorrow (29 Aug) if the headshot pictures are ready in time. If not tomorrow, then early next week.
• As previously stated, the duel will cover several sets/locations.
• All of next week's shooting will be on non-webcam accessible stages. Production is slowing down and gradually coming to a close.
• The Darth Vader scenes will be filmed next week.
• During the duel, the cameras filming the shots are very active when need be, in regards to movement and different angles.
• After Ep3 is released, Pablo is sure that some fans will still have unanswered questions even when the answers are staring them in the face.
• No details have been confirmed about post-production Hyperspace webcam coverage.
• Pablo avoided the question about whether or not the Sifo-Dyas mystery would be revealed in Ep3. (Lucas already said it would be explained)
• The ..."should have stayed on Tatooine and not gotten involved." line has been addressed already according to Pablo.
• Pablo has seen the clonetrooper design and so far they do not have a different name in Ep3. Some of the concept art has been seen before...
• There are no Bothans in Ep3.
• Pablo avoided the "Is Palpy the same person as Sidious?" question because he said it is too much fun to watch all the debate on the internet to come out and answer one way or another.
• The EU character is not a "major character" and his/her part in the story may change by the time they shoot the character's scenes in March 2004.
• Hayden and Ewan are very busy and may not have the time to do a webchat. Even between takes they are doing their publicity photos and documentary interviews.
• Jabba the Hutt is not in Ep3.
• The light sabers that were photographed for the set diary were practice lightsabers.
• Pablo was not sure about hearing "the son of the suns" in Ep1 and Ep6. All he heard was gibberish but would have to ask Ben Burtt.
• Ian McDiarmid will finish shooting his scenes in early-mid September, but Hayden will be there until the very end, Sept 18th (tentative).
• All characters have been cast for Ep3. But some paperwork is yet to be signed which is why the delay the official casting announcements.
• We will see Rodians in Ep3, specifically Dar Wac, Palpatine's aide from Ep2.
• Pablo purposely eluded the question about any bounty hunters in Ep3...for now.
• If Pablo had to venture a guess, he'd say that the EU Character will not be the only EU thing (ship/place, etc) that we will see in Ep3.
• Pablo believes there will be components of the film that are leaps of faith similar to the Yoda fight and pod race. And part of the challenge is the massive scale involved with bigger and more complicated shots.
• The duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan is not a gentleman's duel. It will get nasty (when asked about kicks and moves similar to Darth Maul).
• The character who speaks the classic line, "I have a bad feeling about this" is one that has not spoken the line before.
• We will see at least two sunsets in the film.
• All of the underwater shooting is complete.
• The film budget is about the same as Ep1 and Ep2.
• Dominique Chionchio is a Jedi that will be seen in the film.
• We will not see any further changeling characters such as Zam Wesell.
• Naboo does not get destroyed in Ep3.
• The biggest Official Site Ep3 databank entries will appear around the time of the first trailer (Nov 2004), however there are plans to "reveal things" a bit sooner then previous films...
• Pablo can visualize the entire ending sequences in his head after seeing the concept art and visual script.
• Kamino is not Hoth.
• For Hyperspace members, the Clone Wars cartoons are on the way, followed by Episode III Select images and even more surprises.
• Hyperspace members will be able to view the clone wars cartoons in their entirety.
• Pablo denied any rumor that a scene of Darth Vader flying this TIE to report to the Emperor will be added to the Ep4 DVD.
• Tears will be shed by at least one character.
• While much of the Dooku duel requires visual effects work, from what Pablo saw it will be very cool, especially a certain part at the end. But Pablo's favorite duel is still Anakin vs. Obi-Wan.

August 27, 2003; Hyperspace webchat with Trisha Biggar - A Summary:
• Certain characters will have darker costumes than previously seen. For example, Anakin's costume will "become darker" as the film moves forward.
• The challenges with Padmé's costume designs were to create outfits that allowed her to be a senator and still hide the fact that she is pregnant.
• More time is spent on the costumes of the major characters but the minor characters costumes are still given much attention.
• Concept artists design the costumes for the digital characters with the exception of Jar-Jar. Trisha's department created costumes that were then copied by ILM in post-production.
• Jimmy Smits and Ian McDiarmid seemed to be the actors that enjoyed wearing their costumes the most. Both have many more costumes than previous films and a number of costumes that could almost match Padmé's wardrobe in size.
• There will be new costume styles. Some will be moving towards the Classic Trilogy style and others will be unique as they are worn by new characters on new worlds.
• Some costumes seen in Ep1 and Ep2 will be seen again in Ep3.
• For the unknown EU character in Ep3, the costumes will match the pre-determined style and the action this character does in the EU fiction will be different than that action seen in Ep3. The character's costumes will have certain accomodations for these demands.
• Bail Organa will be in situations that will require many costume changes.
• The costume for Obi-Wan will have slight changes from the Ep2 look, which are chnages to move the costume closer to the Obi-Wan look of Ep4.
• Trisha has read the script and thinks it's great.
• The alien race played by Bruce Spence are tall and thin. The costumes are designed to exaggerate those traits.
• The headband worn by Obi-Wan in Ep2 is a "Jedi flight communicator" and will be seen again in Ep3, only it will be a different color.
• So far, less costumes have been made as compared to Ep2, but that could change.
• In addition to the Bail Organa pic seen on the official site, we will also see more costumes that resemble Imperial uniforms/costumes.
• Trisha describes the Ep3 costumes to be more "muted" rather than more "monotone", when referencing the Classic Trilogy costumes.
• Mon Mothma's costume will have some similarities to her ROTJ outfit and she will be recognizable.
• The Mon Calamari character's costume is completely different than the one seen ROTJ and Trisha says "It looks great".
• Chewbacca will not be wearing clothes, not that he ever did.
• Trisha has worked on the Vader costume and will be doing a costume fitting immediately after this webchat!
• The Costume Dept works closely with the concept artists but they do not focus on or consider the materials used in creating the costumes.
• Trisha has never had a disagreement with Lucas since he is "the boss".
• After principal photography has finished, all the costumes will be saved for potential use during pick-ups next year.

August 26, 2003; Hyperspace: "The Action Heats Up":
• Today's action featured red-gelled lights providing a glow to the set. Ewan and Hayden are shooting the duel.

• Shooting today focused on a third set for which the duel takes place. It will be a fierce confrontation and will keep up the pace for a while. Some of the fighting will take place on an incline...and "Anakin is weak on a slope", as Nick Gillard pointed out in his webchat.

• Anakin and Obi-Wan's costumes will have discolorizations, cuts and burns from fighting that had occurred previous to today's scenes.

• This particular fight entire segment will last 30 seconds on film.

• Obi-Wan has close-ups and looks determined and intense.

• Who is the aggressor and who is the defender will alternate during the fight.

• The Creature Shop was tasked to create many new background aliens.

August 21, 2003; Hyperspace webchat with Pablo Hidalgo - A Summary:

• Pablo has read the entire script.
• Vader will have lines that make it clear that he is with the Dark Side of the force.
• The most often-quoted line on set is one spoken by Palpatine, which is cool and will likely make many a person's email signature.
• Bruce Spence's character and species has been named, and though it is too soon to reveal them, they will sound familiar.
• Pablo is not in control of what is shown on the webcam. It is usually set up to monitor the largest stage possible and is placed where it is safe and out of the way.
• Pablo is now scheduled for weekly webchats from now until the end of production (4 more weeks). No info on possible webchats during additional shooting calls in 2004.
• There are at least 2 more other cast/crew scheduled for webchats and Pablo will try to get Rick McCallum for at least one more chat.
• In Pablo's opinion, the most dramatic scene of shooting he has witnessed so far was the day Palpatine delivered a riveting performance, and the entire crew applauded because it was so well done.
• Pablo believes Ep3 will be the largest of the StarWars films and will be the "shining point" of the prequel trilogy.
• There are plans for the webcam after production wraps, but nothing is confirmed as to how it will be used and where it will be placed.
• Ewan McGregor is alongside Ian McDiarmid as Pablo's favorite actors of the prequels.
• Jimmy Smits is great as Bail Organa and we will have a greater understanding of Bail's character and his "accessories".
• We will probably start seeing Episode III Select images after production has finished (4 weeks from now).
• The coolest thing Pablo has seen in Sydney so far was the "Original Trilogy Set".
• In tomorrow's set diary (Aug 22) we will learn more about the "toxic trooper" which was seen on the webcam being scanned for digital referencing.
• We may see Pablo in a future Ep3 DVD documentary since the crew did film him setting up the webcam one day.
• There are two webcams. One is typically remains set up on a stage sets and the other is moved around to an area where there may be something worthwhile for viewers to see.
• Some shots of the last ten minutes of the movie have already been filmed.
• Pablo believes the script is very efficient and fast-moving. All of the questions about the prequels he had in his mind were answered in the script.
• Reading the scripted scenes is nothing compared to the impact of actually seeing it in action and come to life before the camera. Even seemingly small scenes in the script proved to have real impact.
• When we hear about the script having pages added to its total length, it is often the addition of a only few line(s) on addendum pages.
• Yoda's scenes have not been in the set diaries due to the fact that Yoda is really brought to life in post-production by ILM and Frank Oz.
• The lightsabers used by Obi-Wan and Anakin are ones we have seen before.
• Regarding Ian's intensity in playing Palpatine in Ep3, "Ian doesn't hold anything back."
• Anakin will be seen using a blue lightsaber (seen in Ep4) and a red lightsaber.
• Pablo has briefly seen Lord Vader.
• We will hear the classic "I have a bad feeling about this" line spoken in Ep3.
• Pablo notifies George when there is a webcam on set to make sure George is comfortable with it.
• The character Pablo thinks is "hot" is Bail Organa's aide.
• Pablo thinks Darth Vader will prove to be the "most deadly character" in the film.
• It is unlikely that we will see Jawas in Ep3.
• No scenes with wookies have been filmed yet. (see previous report that wookie scenes are scheduled during pick-ups in 2004)
• There are currently no plans to use a CG Darth Vader.
• Pablo's favorite character from the entire saga is R2-D2.
• Characters will have hairstyles that blend with Ep4, such as sideburns.
• In the current script, Chewbacca wil be identified by name in the film.
• The Creature Shop is the department that has most impressed Pablo.
• A webchat with Ewan McGregor is in the works.
• It is doubtful we will see ARC troopers in Ep3. The design of the clones have progressed beyond the ARC design, but you never know who/what may make an appearance.
• Pablo has seen the "copper top" bronze R2 unit that will belong to Obi-Wan's starfighter. And the droid has been named.
• A conference room set will be shot next week.
• The infamous Anakin pic on the webcam was actually an accident, but it was planned by George. This meant Pablo didn't get in trouble.