Steven Spielberg is one of the select few who have the new “Star Wars” movie seen well in advance. But he must not talk about it. The Oscar – award winner is the movie cosmos connected in a special way, since his friend George Lucas to him and other directors mid 70 first showed the rough cut of the first “Star Wars” movie. Spielberg was impressed – the other rather less. Since then, the 68-year-old director has always newly spun Machtspiele in a far distant galaxy as a kind of “family friend”, as he calls it, accompanied, without ever having himself directed the film.
Spielberg’s longtime producer, Kathleen Kennedy, after George Lucas retired, now director of the “Star Wars” -Produktionsfirma Lucasfilm. And the director of the new film “The Awakening of power”, JJ Abrams, was recommended by him. We meet Steven Spielberg in a Berlin luxury hotel at the Brandenburg Gate. Even if he really must not reveal about the plot, he has amazing things to say about the power structure within “Star Wars”.
The World : Mr. Spielberg, remember when the last time with your friend, have the “Star Wars” creator George Lucas, lay on a beach in Hawaii and built sandcastles?
Steven Spielberg: Oh yes, our happiness sandcastles. So we have always known it. If some time ago that George and I have dug in the sand together (laughs). These castles were a kind of ritual, with which we wanted to find out whether our films at the box office would have success or not for us. We have this luck sandcastles invented in 1977, shortly before the first part of “Star Wars” was released. George was then very nervous. The last four days before the release date, I had spent time with him and his wife to Hawaii. Superstitious as we were, we were looking for a sign. So we decided to build a sand castle near the tide line. We said: “When the sea washes the castle away, is ‘Star Wars’ a flop But if the tower remains standing in the center, the film is a success, so we have made to it, with plastic blades and kids buckets a veritable fortress.. to build from wet sand.
The World: How big was your fortress because
Spielberg: I would say at least three meters in diameter and about four feet high. After we were done, we sat there and just have the approaching flood watched. When it got dark, we went to the hotel and had dinner. The next morning I called George and asked if I would accompany him to see if the castle still standing. We went to the beach and saw that the whole wall had been torn away by the waves. But the citadel in the center stood still! Then I saw George and said, “You’ll land a huge hit!” Shortly thereafter, the producers called on, told him about the first box office: Each 10-clock in the morning-show in the US was sold out! That was the first indicator that this film would break all records. But George and I have long built no more luck sandcastles. You know that he has retired from the film business. What has not changed the fact that we are still very close friends. We are there, since we met in 1967 for the first time. And we’ll always be best friends. George says, moreover the same thing about me
The World:. According to legend, George Lucas has his first “Star Wars “movie in advance shown only some fellow filmmakers. While he was subsequently regretted and criticized by everyone else in the room, you should have been the only one who had predicted it before the sand castles a great success. Class history. Does it also
Spielberg: Yes, I was the only one who said, “This is one of the greatest films of all times. ” I feel that today as a great honor that I could be there at the time when George “Star Wars” had for the first time shown at all anybody.
The World: Who were the doubters in the round
Spielberg: I’m going to give you any names. The other colleagues had all sorts of criticisms. But the criticism of others was quite helpful. Brian De Palma had about the same name multiple vulnerabilities after the screening – I can give you his name, because he has told this story even before. Anyway, Brian said, “You, George, I have at the beginning of the film does not have a clue where I am as ever located Who is this guy with the helmet and what do all the other guys around him I understand that.? everything is not what are you doing on the screen, George “
The World:.? A rather harsh criticism.
Spielberg George did not know what to answer. Whereupon Brian de Palma proposed to open the film with a good old-fashioned signature panel, is explained on the all. That was the birth of the famous “Star Wars” -Rolltitels, invented by Brian De Palma and executed by George Lucas
The World:. You have Lucas on the set of many “Star Wars” films visited and advise …
Spielberg Not at all, but to many, yes that’s true. But as a consultant, I would not describe myself why. I’m just a friend of the “Star Wars” family.
The World: It is difficult for us to believe that
Spielberg but is so. Which does not concern me. Since I do not interfere in that sense. I am a fan of the show, I admire them. But it has, for example, never appealed to me, to be directed by “Star Wars”
The World:. You have yes also a proven working relationship with Lucas. He wrote the screenplays and produced the “Indiana Jones” movies, you were the director. And from “Star Wars” You have nevertheless completely raus and be capable
Spielberg: Well, I have some advice for “Episode III. The Revenge of the Sith” contributed, but only because the production
was in arrears in time. The World : Were ADVICE issued by the director’s chair from
Spielberg: No, I have in the storyboard department the conceptual artist helped a bit, to a total of five scenes in the film. But I will not tell you what they were
The World:. Why just this series of films for almost four decades such a success that continue from generation to generation seems
Spielberg: Childhood is by now also be measured when one has seen for the first time a “Star Wars” movie. Adults remember then, when their children have seen their first “Star Wars” movie. Parents took their children to the cinema , and their children take then later their children. It has become a generation phenomenon. The Star Wars never stops
The World:. Now it was during the last years more that the fascination did not go out of the movies – because it gave no new. Many children and young people have discovered this cosmos over toys. This is especially true for boys aged between six and 14 years. I have spent a small fortune for my sons
Spielberg:. Not only will you! Also I had to constantly buy new characters
The World: Want the filmmaker in you because no anger in the table bite when he sees that the cinema over the Merchandising and not using stories viewers are fed? Actually, it was always the other way around, right?
Spielberg I think that’s not bad at all, quite the contrary. It’s great that there are those “Star Wars” stories in our lives. Regardless of whether we now see as a movie or empathize with the toy figures in these stories. Such role playing fueling our imagination. One can not say otherwise. George has just hit the jackpot when he invented the “power”
The World: The now mainly an enormous commercial power
Spielberg. But This is not the core. The power is even a theological principle, because many children learn that there is such a thing as faith, believing in something you can not see.
The World: Have not you the seventh installment of the saga,” The awakening of the power “, already seen
Spielberg In addition I can not talk
The World:. Let’s try it another way: Imagine, you would be government spokesman and would on this subject with a high level of secrecy stance. Could you there are a bit more specific
Spielberg: (Laughs) I think in this case I would tell you this “I feel obliged to support my close friend, director JJ Abrams in his desire that the public should make this great discovery itself.”
The World: Angela Merkel’s spokesman could not have better formulated
Spielberg (Laughs) Very nice. No, seriously: I have J.J. expressly promised never to reveal anything about his new “Star Wars” movie
The World:. You have JJ Abrams promoted for many years and in 2011, his science fiction film “Super 8″ produced.
Spielberg Yes. Ultimately, he has me by the director’s chair for getting “The awakening of the power.” I have Kathleen Kennedy, the producer suggested it,
The World:. Kennedy was again since the mid-80s your right hand. As Lucas retired three years ago, he made it to the boss of his company Lucasfilm. Was that in your interests
Spielberg: Kathy was only my secretary, later my producer and, finally, the managing director of my production company. And she’s one of my closest personal friends. You stood by me under contract – until one day George phoned and asked me to do him a big favor. We were just with the post of “Lincoln” busy when George told me that he would withdraw from the cinema. And he wanted to give his company Lucasfilm in the hands of Kathy
The World:.? Why it
Spielberg because he trusted her, and because he knew that I trust her. “It is the best choice,” he told me and asked if I would please them released from the contract with me? I asked him if Kathy wants to do this job at all. He said he had not asked her, but if I gave the green light, then he would ask. Of course I said yes. That was a huge opportunity for them. So she Lucasfilm taken and done a great job so far. All his life, George had asked me only two favors. This was one of them
The World:. What was the other
Spielberg: rotate that he asked me, “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” the third installment in the series. And do it now, I should stand by and let anything lie. Unfortunately, I was at the time just about to begin the shooting of another great film. George asked me – for personal reasons – fervently to step in with “Indiana Jones” and to drop my other film
The World: <. / strong> What movie have you canceled
Spielberg: “Rain Man”
The World: The road movie about an autistic, which was then made into a film by Barry Levinson
The World:. That Kathleen Kennedy’s successor George Lucas was, was for him a win and for you …
Spielberg … for me it was a loss, yes. After all: Kathy has produced yet my next film “The BFG”
The World:. The adaptation of the Roald Dahl- . children’s book “The BFG”
Spielberg Yes. Next summer he will be released in
The World:. Has George Lucas also asked his best friend for advice, whether he should sell his “Star Wars” -Imperium for four billion dollars to Disney
Spielberg: No, he has not. When George called me because Kathy, I thought he would just retire and handed over his company in competent hands. That he sold equal to his kingdom at Disney, I learned from the media on the same day – as the rest of the world
The World. : Lucas has with the sale of “Star Wars” now completely retired from the film world – or he will send with you and Harrison Ford once Indiana Jones into the race
Spielberg As George designed his retirement exactly is entirely up to him. He is a philanthropist. He is involved heavily in private initiatives that have set themselves the aim of improving the education of children in the United States. He has provided a large part of the money from the sale to Disney for. George will therefore change the world in this manner a second time
The World:. Now that you have not responded, if there is another adventure of Indiana Jones with Ford, Lucas and give you
Spielberg:. Ehrlich: I know it not yet. The time is not yet ripe
The World:. Have you ever thought to follow your friend in the pension?
Spielberg No. I’ve never thought about retiring. I have not even for one second considered. For this I love this crazy business of filmmaking too much
The World:. Then let us end on a crazy Jugendsünde you talk
Spielberg:. What do you think
The World: few people know that you once had a very strange guest appearance as an actor: as stodgy cashier with a mustache and POS frame in the movie “Blues Brothers”. Look at the now and again to
Spielberg: I have this scene, frankly, too often seen , rather, must view. Not the whole movie, but only this one scene …
The World: in the from John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd be lifted up and very rudely put on a table
Spielberg:. Yes. When my children were younger, they came every time in my room fell when this scene was shown in any channel on television. “Dad, you’re already on TV,” she cried then. Sometimes they took me on my hand into the living room, put a VHS tape into the VCR, then we still had, and engraving sparkled: “Dad, you’re really, the guy with this mustache?” And I: “Yeeeeaaas, that’s me.” “Dad, you look but really terribly with this mustache made.” “I know, I know.” This went over again from the beginning. (laughs)
The World: In the meantime, the technological developments are so far advanced that you could can retouch the mustache .
Spielberg Now that’s a good idea: way with this horrible mustache. I let me miss a comupteranimierten Beard subsequently in “Blues Brothers”.
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