We here at Comingsoon.net could not be more excited about Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker coming this December. As anticipation builds here — and across the known galaxy — we have elected to compile a list short films that inspired Star Wars‘ founding father George Lucas a long time ago in a southern California film school far, far away. Be sure to check out our slideshow below!
It is sometimes difficult to keep in mind that cinematic greats weren’t born as masters but instead as more humble beings. Like many of us, they had to start at the bottom. George Lucas would go on to make the films THX-1138 and American Grafitti before creating his coup de grace: the space fantasy franchise we know as Star Wars that continues to be gigantic even today. Yet even he began his life as a filmmaker at the University of Southern California’s film school, back when going to school for filmmaking was a relatively new concept.
While at the University of Southern California, Lucas was able to watch many films he had never before seen because of the lack of access to many films in the pre-digital age. Among these films were a number of interesting shorts from filmmakers he had never heard of. We all know where Lucas’s career ended up, but it can be nice to also see where it began. Below you’ll find five short films he cited as inspirational to him.
(Photo Credit: Getty Images)
5 Short Films That Inspired George Lucas
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'Forest Murmurs'
Slavko Vorkapich was an auteur who spoke to Lucas as a fledgling film student. One piece, in particular, was his short Forest Murmurs, which paired hypnotic shots of the wilderness with Richard Wagner's composition of the same name.
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'Moods of the Sea'
Moods of the Sea is yet another of Vorkapich's pieces that impressed Lucas and influenced his early work. He spent much of his student career making projects he called "tone poems" which are reminiscent of this non-narrative short film.
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'The Life and Death of 9413: A Hollywood Extra'
It is easy to see how another of Vorkapich's works, The Life and Death of 9413: A Hollywood Extra, influenced the work of Lucas. The work with miniature models is both expressive and remarkable.
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'21 87'
Arthur Lipsett's 21-87 is a bizarre, engrossing montage film. Its influence on Lucas is so well-known that J.J. Abrams referenced it in Star Wars: The Force Awakens with Finn (John Boyega)'s ID number: FN-2187.
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'60 Cycles'
Jean-Claude Labrecque's 60 Cycles, a documentary short on the so-called Tour of New France (Canada) is simply mesmerizing. The movie, which features from Booker T. and the MG's, inspired Lucas to make an avant-garde documentary short of his own while he was at the University of Southern California.
