STACK #168 Oct 2018

DVD & BD FEATURE

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Solo: A StarWars Story chronicles the formative years of stuck up, half-witted, scruffy looking nerf herder and scoundrel, Han Solo. Production designer Neil Lamont tells STACK what was involved in creating the world of this second StarWars spin-off film. Words Alesha Kolbe N eil Lamont credits producers Ally Shearmur, Simon Emanuel and Kathleen Kennedy with getting him the gig on Solo: A Star Wars Story . “I’d just finished off The LEGO Movie ; they were within a few months of finishing Rogue One: A Star Wars Story , and thought it would be good for us all to meet. Thankfully we got on well, and from there, it looked like I was in,” he recalls. “They also teamed up with James Clyne from Lucasfilm, and I got on really well with him. James and I had worked together on a couple of projects prior, so it was great to have him on board for this as well.” As production designer on Solo, Lamont was involved with the film from the very beginning; the first stage being conceptualisation. “We work with the concept and we come up with heaps of different designs, including the sets,” he explains. “Sometimes, if there’s a lot going on and we’re busy, I will give a very simple animation or sketch or plan to my supervising art team, or pass it on to our art directors, and they’ll start designing the set so it can be manufactured. These physical

everything gets the love it deserves to be considered – especially by me – a ‘finished’ set. Once we hand that set over to the shooting unit on their first day of shooting, I’ll never see it again unless there’s a problem.” In enhancing and extending the physical sets, Lamont says that CGI is an incredible tool for a production designer. “We build the sets, but we have to look at the environment and understand what the environment is first, and then be able to build the tangible set that is required for the actors to be in, the lighting to light, etc. Beyond that of course, our design runs into the set extension and the effects. So for that, CGI is a great tool. I think it’s amazing. You just have to be careful you don’t get too carried away with it.” Lamont, whose varied resume includes everything from Harry Potter to Total Recall , says that the great thing about designing a film like Solo is the retro aesthetic. “There is probably 40 years between Episode VII, Episode VIII and now Solo , and there is a massive amount of technology even within a world far, far away that changes within that time. Just look at the 20th century here on Earth, and how things progress so drastically – the same thing is happening in those worlds, too.” He adds that the designs of renowned conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie, best known for his celebrated work on the original Star Wars trilogy, were a big influence on the look of Solo . “Ralph McQuarrie, no matter what, is always in our minds. He’s always on my computer somewhere. I’ve probably got every one of his books, and they’re so dog-eared; I’ve been referencing them for years now of course, because

models are important in visualising what the finished product will look like. “We then start making white card models of the sets, but also, by this time, we have to get approval on the set design via concept or a model, and we’ll have long discussions about them. We then go into manufacturing. “What we also do is oversee the building and the finishing and the ageing [of the sets], and we make sure set decoration and the props are all right. We make sure CGI is a great tool... you just have to be careful you don’t get too carried away with it

18 OCTOBER 2018

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