5 Reasons It's Time To Love George Lucas Again

By Brent DiNunzio / November 19, 2012

3. He Changed The Industry And How Movies Are Made

As I mentioned briefly in the last section, George Lucas revolutionized the way movies were forever made when Star Wars came out. He not only brought visual effects to the big screen that had never been witnessed before but he created those effects! Lucas was able to transform things that only the mind could see in our imaginations and brought them to a whole new reality. I think of Star Wars and the opening scene with the Rebel blockade-runner being pursued by the massive Star Destroyer. I witnessed this for the first time years after the original release and was still blown away. Imagine being there in 1977! This scene alone was a representation that things had changed in cinema with Star Wars. Lucas presented the audience with effects that had never been seen before then. This was only the first scene in a film that would be full of unbelievable special effects shots that would blow the audiences mind. If you ever have the time, go back and watch the original release version of Star Wars and you can still hold it up to the standards of today 35 years later.

Its amazing to think that George Lucas fought and won against the corporation in the early days when he was trying to get Star Wars going. In the 2004 documentary Empire of Dreams, Lucas is quoted as saying that "what I was trying to do was stay independent so that I could make the movies I wanted to make, but now I've found myself being the head of a corporation ... I have become the very thing that I was trying to avoid."

Whats amazing is not only did George Lucas create an entire world; hes also a pioneer in the film industry. Although I wouldnt quite compare Lucas to Ford or Edison, in the realm of film making his creations and industry pioneering technology have evolved the way the entire industry functions. Think of the movies that you see and love today in 2012 and movies since Star Wars originally came out. With Lucasfilm, ILM, Pixar and LucasArts just to name a few, George Lucas invented the methods that are used today all across Hollywood and inside of the classrooms of aspiring filmmakers all across the globe, not to mention what he has accomplished in the realm of video games. Special effects and the way theyre created has never been the same since because of the industrial innovations that George Lucas has pioneered.