Bytemarks
Star Wars fan sites keep track of the Empire
By Burt Lum
As the 2001 summer blockbuster hits roll into theaters like a south shore swell, none are more widely anticipated than the Star Wars episodes. Still a year away, George Lucas' next installment of "Star Wars," Episode II manages to preoccupy the minds of many faithful fans.
The official Web site is found at www.starwars.com but with millions of fans, you can access an incredible number of sites dedicated to the series. More interesting, though, was something a buddy of mine turned me on to. There are sites on the Internet that feature short movies and animations created by fans. If this isn't devotion to the Star Wars phenomenon, I don't know what is.
One example of this is found at www.theforce.net. Aside from the tremendous amount of information about all things Star Wars, the site also features works by fans. At first take, you might expect these scenes to be cheesy, amateur creations, but you couldn't be further from the truth. I was amazed at the professional quality that goes into some of these productions.
To get a sense of what I am talking about, a bit more background is necessary. Since the original "Star Wars" (Episode IV) aired in 1977, the world of computer graphics has completely changed the face of movies. Today's powerful computers and sophisticated software are no longer limited to the domain of a select few but instead available to the masses. Fans can now post their creations on sites like theforce.net, a.k.a. Fanfilm.com.
A recent post by Dave Macomber called "Duality" is impressive (www.theforce.net/theater/shortfilms/duality/). To get the full appreciation try the largest, 80 MB version. When I first viewed this, I mistakenly thought it was a trailer from Episode II. The fight scene and special-effect work looks like it came right from the ILM studio. For more information and the making of Duality, go to www.crewoftwo.com. Might I add: This work was all done on Apple Macintoshes. ;-)
Burt Lum, cyber-citizen and self-anointed tour guide to the Internet frontier, is one click away at burt@brouhaha.net.
