a general overview

1. A General Overview

2. J.J Abrams, the director of the highest grossing Star Wars film to date,
was part of the large team who produced The Force Awakens from
2013 to 2015 with Disney and LucasFilm.

3. This came shortly after Disney brought LucasFilm for $4.05billion, as
Disney wanted to revive the franchise and draw in a new, younger
target audience greater than the die-hard fans who had been following
the force since the first instalment in 1977.

4. In order to do this a considerable budget of $306 million was spent on
creating a fast paced, intricately CGI-ed masterpiece that young viewers
would find new and exciting, yet J.J Abrams still managed to keep the
authentic 80s style of cinematography relevant for the highly
speculative current fan base.

5. The production process spanned over 2 years and was kept highly
secretive, from the general public to the actors who were auditioning
for roles, yet small snippets were released via social media and the
internet in order to keep the climax building.

6. After a gruelling shooting process covering from the Rub al Khali desert
near Abu Dhabi to the County Kerry Islands in Ireland and including an
injured Harrison Ford the film was finally edited and released for the
17th of December 2015.

7. The purpose of this film was by far to produce a profit, and by that I
mean a generous one. Considering the amount spent on the film plus
all of the advertisements, distribution campaigns, products and all
those involved it is clear that Disney were setting up for a great deal of
financial success.

8. It was the first large scale project Disney took on with LucasFilm under
their wing and can be clearly pinpointed as their idea of starting as they
mean to go on, as well as proving to LucasFilm and the public that this
partnership will be an asset to the film community.

9. Other purposes behind The Force Awakens such as to educate and
entertain have also been identified, though not as prominently as
producing a large turnover. It has been recognised as enlightening and
educational for impressionable younger viewers with Rae portraying a
dominant female.

10. Most large scale sci-fi films are often devoid of this role and any
independent female representation and as a result this instalment was
praised for providing such a strong role model for young children
specifically young girls.

11. As for entertainment it is clear that with the extensive budget there
was no expense to be spared on creating an entertaining and fresh sci-
fi experience for the viewers.

12. This makes the film appealing to a wide range of audiences, from young
to old and new fans to star wars veterans.

13. As a franchise Star Wars sits at the top of the sci-fi genre, The Force
Awakens currently occupying the throne with its modern and fast
paced technological cinematography. The film covers pretty much all of
the typical science fiction codes and conventions as well as a few more
sub-genres such as action, western and Fantasy.

14. One of the most predominate conventions of the genre is the
Dystopian aspect to the storyline and this is one that the Force
Awakens focusses quite heavily on with the theme of rebellion and
totalitarian control between The Resistance and The First Order.

15. The definition of a dystopia is “an imagined place or state in which
everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or
environmentally degraded one set in the future” and this has been
replicated in the state of the universe within the Force Awakens. This
will be reminiscent with the audience of the destructive leaders of the
past like Hitler or Stalin and the great army of stormtroopers rallied to
fight the resistance are similar to the armies trained in Germany and
Russia to invade other countries.

16. Other codes and conventions include the clones and robots
representing the rise of artificial intelligence and the narratives
involving space travel such as the Millennium Falcon and the futuristic
costumes.

17. Within the subgenres feature the guns and destruction as Action codes
and conventions, the wide sandy landscapes and the duel between Kylo
Ren and Finn as Western and the fantastical costumes and characters
as well as the famous tagline “a long time ago in a galaxy far away” as
Fairy Tale/Fantasy codes and conventions.

18. JJ Abrams chose to film The Force Awakens on 35mm film stock and
also used 65mm IMAX stock for a specific action sequence to recreate
the warm 80s feel of using real film that many films lack nowadays.

19. This trend has been recently dying out due to the cost and new more
advanced technology yet this choice was a rewarding one as they were
highly praised by the audience for supporting failing film companies like
Kodak and making this film a special occasion for those who miss the
natural warm feeling of film.

20. As The Force Awakens is part of such a classic and historic series of
films (Star Wars being one of the most well-known franchises of all
time) JJ Abram’s incentive was to create a new film that extends the
use of CGI to new, fantastical levels whilst maintaining the nostalgic 80s
style that was created by the instalments before.

21. This was key as it meant that an extensive audience could be drawn in,
ranging from the oldest fans who were looking for a sentimental new
story to the newer viewers who would be occupied by the impressive
special effects.

22. Abram’s efforts can be recognised in the use of 35mm film, returning
characters and reoccurring props like the Millennium Falcon, arguably a
character of its own after the elation as a result of its return.

23. On the other hand the new 65mm film usage can be seen as a way of
updating and modernising the cinematography in The Force Awakens as well
as the more technically advanced CGI and the fast paced editing that was not
employed in the earlier films.