EP3: Wookiee World at War Posted By Joshua on August 6, 2004
The Homing Beacon newsletter sheds some light on what is one of the most-anticipated action sequences in Episode III.
"We wanted to have a sort of high-tech Frank Lloyd Wright feel where the Wookiees incorporated the natural environments into their living conditions," says Church. "George was very specific about not wanting to see the same thing over and over again. We're visiting a lot of planets in Episode III, so when we cut to Kashyyyk really quickly, you have to know where you are."
The end result will be a single city on Kashyyyk that straddles several massive trees. Though other published sources have explored the thickest areas of jungle canopy, Episode III's location is on the shore of a tree-lined lagoon, offering greater visual dynamics and story potential.
In Episode III, Kashyyyk will be at war, and as such, the Art Department needed to develop Wookiee instruments of warfare. "We wanted it to look distinct from what the rest of the cultures in the Star Wars universe use," says Church. "Feng Zhu did a lot of these technical illustrations, and came up with a very unique aesthetic. I wanted to come up with a type of vehicle that implied that only a Wookiee could handle it. Like they took some kind of technology that's out there, and they commandeered it and modified it for their own use."