Fans watching the webcam closely during the post production of Episode III at Industrial Light & Magic may have caught glimpses of Nina Fallon not only working behind the scenes as the Episode III Production Coordinator, but in front of the camera as the third performer to play Jedi Knight Stass Allie.
When Fallon first began her role as a production coordinator for ILM four years ago, her first big project was none other than Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones.
"My first project at ILM, and in the film business, was Episode II. I had always wanted to work in film and visual effects, and was thrilled to be working at ILM. Previously, I worked at a marketing consulting firm (a company that developed names for companies and products), and before that in PR at SFMOMA. I got my degree in Art History. Needless to say, with this background, visual effects was brand new to me. I'm not an artist myself, but I thrive on working with creative people in an innovative environment. ILM has all of this, and more, so it's a wonderful place to be."
"I'm amazed at the clarity of vision on Episode III," Fallon says. "It really helps to focus the visual effects process, since we know what we're trying to achieve, and can focus the talent on making the effects as spectacular as possible. Every member of the team is amazingly talented and enthusiastic about Star Wars, and the chance to work on Episode III. That we get to work so closely with Lucasfilm, with Art Directors on site, and regular reviews with George Lucas keeps the process moving smoothly. It also allows for a lot of back and forth, and the opportunity to push ideas to the next level, which we don't necessarily get to explore as often on other projects."
A typical day for Fallon begins with viewing the dailies, where one of the Visual Effects Supervisors, in this case Roger Guyett, reviews various shots that the CG artists are currently working on and provides them with feedback to guide their work for the day. After the dailies, her day involves following up on issues raised during the dailies, scheduling out the work that artists have remaining, keeping track of what shots are ready to begin, and what work is outstanding on those that aren't, as well as making sure that artists continue to get the feedback they need throughout the day.
"Another important part of my day includes communicating with the various departments from editorial to animation to simulations to make sure that everything is correct and up to date in the shots we are going to final," Fallon explains. "Since the TDs and Compositors are typically the last steps in the shot pipeline, I also work to establish final shot target due dates, and compiling what work we will show to George Lucas in our HD shot reviews."
Nina Fallon as Jedi Stass Allie.
Born to ride!
"The scope of work on this show is unprecedented," Fallon reveals. "There are a huge number of shots (well over 2,000), and many of them are all CG, or mostly CG. George Lucas knows so well the potential of what we're able to achieve at ILM, and is really willing to push the limits. We are faced with new technological challenges and demands all of the time, and I think it's really satisfying, and sometimes surprising, for all involved to meet those demands, or exceed them."
When she's not coordinating almost every aspect of production, Fallon could be spotted in front of the camera riding a speeder bike as Jedi Knight Stass Allie.
"For me the most memorable moment of working of Revenge of the Sith was definitely getting to do
The camera lens wasn't the only thing documenting Fallon's movements as Allie. The Hyperspace webcam was also on set giving fans a sneak peak at her role as the one of the few female Jedi in the film.
"It's fun to imagine how many people could be out there watching," Fallon admits. "At first I was very conscious of the webcam, wondering when it was taking a picture, and what I was doing at every second. But we're always so busy around here, so you quickly forget the camera is even there. In the end it's fun to think about all of this time and activity being documented. I'd be curious to know what those watching the webcam think of our daily routine, and how our jobs are perceived on the other side of the camera."
