Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
09-15-13, 11:07 AM
#1
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Formerly known as "Jeffy Pop"/Denver
Posts: 3,038
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes
on
2 Posts
Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
http://www.mekanikalblog.com/2013/09...ly-played.html
Here's a story for the Star Wars übernerd in all of us.
As many of you probably don't remember at all, the showings of The Empire Strikes Back in Australia and some parts of Europe came with a preceding short by the name of Black Angel. This short was the directorial debut of Roger Christian, the Oscar-winning original Star Wars set designer, who was allotted just a bit more than $50,000 USD to flesh out an idea for a medieval myth that he said he "couldn't afford to make" back in film school.
The "medieval myth" idea was centered around a knight that fought in the Holy Wars. Upon his return trip, he very nearly drowns in a river. Weighted down by his armor and struggling against drowning, he finally surfaces -- but in another world. His maiden is trapped by the Black Angel, a villainous knight, and he must quest to save her.
While it doesn't really have much to do with Star Wars, Black Angel has always been a coveted part of the franchise, mentioned in passing conversation on fan boards or general nerd gatherings. See, after The Empire Strikes Back, a convoluted system of archival and the general misfortune most extraneous film met back in those days caused the only known remaining film-worthy copy of Black Angel to end up in a rival company's (Universal) archives.
And there they sat, collecting dust until a lucky e-mail from a Universal employee brought Christian back together with his precious debut. The director says he has been holding out from releasing the short all over the internet and DVDs until it is truly ready, citing the extensive work needed to perform restoration.
Here is a link to a longer article about the film:
http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/0...e-in-33-years/
Here's a story for the Star Wars übernerd in all of us.
As many of you probably don't remember at all, the showings of The Empire Strikes Back in Australia and some parts of Europe came with a preceding short by the name of Black Angel. This short was the directorial debut of Roger Christian, the Oscar-winning original Star Wars set designer, who was allotted just a bit more than $50,000 USD to flesh out an idea for a medieval myth that he said he "couldn't afford to make" back in film school.
The "medieval myth" idea was centered around a knight that fought in the Holy Wars. Upon his return trip, he very nearly drowns in a river. Weighted down by his armor and struggling against drowning, he finally surfaces -- but in another world. His maiden is trapped by the Black Angel, a villainous knight, and he must quest to save her.
While it doesn't really have much to do with Star Wars, Black Angel has always been a coveted part of the franchise, mentioned in passing conversation on fan boards or general nerd gatherings. See, after The Empire Strikes Back, a convoluted system of archival and the general misfortune most extraneous film met back in those days caused the only known remaining film-worthy copy of Black Angel to end up in a rival company's (Universal) archives.
And there they sat, collecting dust until a lucky e-mail from a Universal employee brought Christian back together with his precious debut. The director says he has been holding out from releasing the short all over the internet and DVDs until it is truly ready, citing the extensive work needed to perform restoration.
Here is a link to a longer article about the film:
http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/0...e-in-33-years/
09-15-13, 11:12 AM
#2
Banned
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Formerly known as "Solid Snake PAC"/Denton, Tx
Posts: 39,239
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes
on
4 Posts
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
ooooooh. Sooooooo did any of you old ****s see that? Sounds interesting. I like hearing about shit like that. Lost films that are found again.
09-16-13, 07:21 AM
#6
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
never heard of this but definitely want to see it.
And Battlefield Earth was fun B-movie cheese.
And Battlefield Earth was fun B-movie cheese.
03-06-14, 09:40 AM
#9
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Formerly known as "Jeffy Pop"/Denver
Posts: 3,038
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes
on
2 Posts
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
http://screenrant.com/lost-star-wars-movie-black-angel/
Lost ‘Star Wars’ Short Film ‘Black Angel’ Releasing Soon
Published 1 hour ago by Araceli Roach
The power of Star Wars knows no bounds. From two film trilogies to numerous animated series (including this fall’s Star Wars Rebels) and the upcoming sequels (the first of which will be directed by J.J. Abrams) – as well as an untold number of books, comics and video games – the billion dollar franchise has existed in some form or another for the last 37 years.
The franchise’s success is all due to its insatiable fans, who have devoured every new entry released, whether it features their beloved characters or has any relation to the main films at all. Until recently, it was thought that no stone had been left unturned in terms of Star Wars content, but fortunately that’s not the case.
These days we get an endless amount of previews shown before movies, but back when the original trilogy premiered, short films were created to introduce a picture instead. In 1979, George Lucas was searching for one that would pair well with the tone of his newly completed The Empire Strikes Back.
Set decorator Roger Christian, who had won an Oscar for A New Hope, was awarded that esteemed honor after Lucas read and approved his fantasy script Black Angel, about a knight (Tony Vogel) who returns from the Crusades, only to be transported to a fantasy world to rescue a princess. Already well versed in working under a tight budget after finding creative ways to use the first Star Wars film’s cool $4 million, Christian was granted $50,000 to direct a 25-minute short film.
Black Angel was attached to screenings of The Empire Strikes Back in Europe and Australia, and everyone loved it, even Steven Spielberg who said it was “one of the most enigmatic films he’d ever seen.” Then, somehow, all copies of the short film were lost. That is, until an archivist at Universal Studios surprisingly found a negative in December 2011.
33 years later, in October 2013, a digitally restored Black Angel returned to theaters as the closing film of the Mill Valley fest. It was also screened last week at the Glasgow Film Festival in Scotland. Next, Christian hopes to release the short film this year, “possibly through iTunes or Netflix and maybe even as part of a DVD re-release of ‘The Empire Strikes Back.’ ”
While maybe not an actual part of the franchise, Black Angel was commissioned by Lucas and paired with perhaps the most beloved Star Wars film of all time. So for hardcore fans wanting to experience every part of the franchise, the short film should serve as a unique appetizer to hold them over until the next main course.
There’s currently no release date for Black Angel.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2IGuyCqQ-kA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Lost ‘Star Wars’ Short Film ‘Black Angel’ Releasing Soon
Published 1 hour ago by Araceli Roach
The power of Star Wars knows no bounds. From two film trilogies to numerous animated series (including this fall’s Star Wars Rebels) and the upcoming sequels (the first of which will be directed by J.J. Abrams) – as well as an untold number of books, comics and video games – the billion dollar franchise has existed in some form or another for the last 37 years.
The franchise’s success is all due to its insatiable fans, who have devoured every new entry released, whether it features their beloved characters or has any relation to the main films at all. Until recently, it was thought that no stone had been left unturned in terms of Star Wars content, but fortunately that’s not the case.
These days we get an endless amount of previews shown before movies, but back when the original trilogy premiered, short films were created to introduce a picture instead. In 1979, George Lucas was searching for one that would pair well with the tone of his newly completed The Empire Strikes Back.
Set decorator Roger Christian, who had won an Oscar for A New Hope, was awarded that esteemed honor after Lucas read and approved his fantasy script Black Angel, about a knight (Tony Vogel) who returns from the Crusades, only to be transported to a fantasy world to rescue a princess. Already well versed in working under a tight budget after finding creative ways to use the first Star Wars film’s cool $4 million, Christian was granted $50,000 to direct a 25-minute short film.
Black Angel was attached to screenings of The Empire Strikes Back in Europe and Australia, and everyone loved it, even Steven Spielberg who said it was “one of the most enigmatic films he’d ever seen.” Then, somehow, all copies of the short film were lost. That is, until an archivist at Universal Studios surprisingly found a negative in December 2011.
33 years later, in October 2013, a digitally restored Black Angel returned to theaters as the closing film of the Mill Valley fest. It was also screened last week at the Glasgow Film Festival in Scotland. Next, Christian hopes to release the short film this year, “possibly through iTunes or Netflix and maybe even as part of a DVD re-release of ‘The Empire Strikes Back.’ ”
While maybe not an actual part of the franchise, Black Angel was commissioned by Lucas and paired with perhaps the most beloved Star Wars film of all time. So for hardcore fans wanting to experience every part of the franchise, the short film should serve as a unique appetizer to hold them over until the next main course.
There’s currently no release date for Black Angel.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2IGuyCqQ-kA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
03-06-14, 10:07 AM
#10
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
A DVD re-release of ESB? Have I gone back in time?
05-12-15, 05:55 PM
#11
Banned
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Formerly known as "Solid Snake PAC"/Denton, Tx
Posts: 39,239
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes
on
4 Posts
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
<iframe width="660" height="415" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5L8pHKP-vv4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
05-12-15, 06:57 PM
#12
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
Thanks Snake, that was pretty cool to see.
I could definitely see a feature length film about a medieval knight who falls into a lake only to come out in a fantastical land to save his love from a supernatural evil knight. A story like that damn near writes itself and practically has Terry Gilliam's name all over it!
I could definitely see a feature length film about a medieval knight who falls into a lake only to come out in a fantastical land to save his love from a supernatural evil knight. A story like that damn near writes itself and practically has Terry Gilliam's name all over it!
05-12-15, 07:04 PM
#13
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 688
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Re: Black Angel (D: Roger Christian), lost short that played before ESB in 1980
That was great. Love that old-school anamorphic photography.
I wish movies were shot with that kind of eye today. That's what I was hoping for out of the Lord Of The Rings movies, not the visual mess we ended up with.
I wish movies were shot with that kind of eye today. That's what I was hoping for out of the Lord Of The Rings movies, not the visual mess we ended up with.
