The Mandalorian: 10 Facts You Didn't Know About The Razor Crest
9. Exterior Shots Are Primarily A Practical Model, Enhanced With CGI
Jon Favreau is an admitted Star Wars nerd, so much so that he made the decision to use practical models for as much of the Razor Crest as possible, something that is increasingly rare in movie-making since the rise of CGI in the 1990s but made up the bulk of ship flight and combat in the original trilogy.
The first plan was to build a model Razor Crest simply to test and simulate lighting patterns for CGI modelling and textures. The 3D printed model, however, came together so smoothly and in such detail that Favreau decided to use it in as many shots as he could, enhanced with CGI where needed.
The shooting model has a plastic frame covered in real aluminum and other metals and ended up sitting at roughly two feet long, filled with LED lights to simulate internal systems and engine glow. Model makers at ILM were thrilled to have a chance to work on something so new, yet so old, as model building for movies has become somewhat of a lost art.
Although Favreau won't definitively answer one way or another, there is a very good chance that when not being used, the model sits proudly on his desk.