James Clyne: Designing Lando's Millennium Falcon, Kylo's TIE Silencer, and the Look of the Sequel Trilogy

James Clyne is a design supervisor and visual effects art director at Industrial Light & Magic, who has worked on the Sequel Trilogy and Solo: A Star Wars Story, as well as other incredible movies.

Highlights of his incredible career include working with Steven Spielberg on Minority Report, collaborating with James Cameron on Avatar and Alita: Battle of Angel, and of course designing for JJ Abrams on his first two Star Trek films, and then the sequel trilogy.

Whether it is the TIE SilencerLando’s Millennium Falcon, or the final battle of The Rise of Skywalker, we really delve into so much of his process and inspirations.


Michael McCormick: Sculptor, Puppeteer (Salacious Crumb, Sy Snootles, Ephant Mon)

Michael McCormick was one of the original puppeteers and sculptors of Salacious CrumbSy Snootles and Ephant Mon, who then left Return of the Jedi’s Creature Shop early into production, because of injuries.

This is a short, live, interesting interview, and I believe it’s his first Star Wars-related one ever. We touch on many subjects, some fun and some not-so-fun, but I hope you get a better understanding of Mr. McCormick from this, as well as of his life and his incredible talent.

Thank you, as always, to Zach McGinnis at Galactic Productions for setting this up: http://www.galacticproductionsevents.com/


Amy Ratcliffe: On Writing THE ART OF STAR WARS: GALAXY'S EDGE

Amy Ratcliffe is the author of the recent The Art of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, as well as a huge inspiration to me.

During our conversation, we go through her career … from her The Clone Wars blog to, after years of hard work, officially writing for Star Wars, including Women of the GalaxyA Jedi Mind, and Elee & Me.

We also delve into the creation of her “Art of” book, and the steps required to turn it into a piece of Star Wars history, working with ImagineeringLucasfilm, and Disney Parks to bring it to life.

She is truly a blueprint for creativity in fandom. Thank you to Abrams Books for coordinating and making this interview possible!

  • Purchase The Art of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edgehttps://amzn.to/2S3UQIb
  • Subscribe to her newsletter: https://amyratcliffe.substack.com/

We’ll have a special bonus episode this weekend, the first ever published Star Wars interview with Salacious Crumb creator, Mike McCormick. So start refreshing your feeds for that!


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Mick Garris: Master of Horror ... and R2-D2 Operator for The Holiday Special

Today I’m talking to one of the biggest inspirations for this show: Mick Garris.

Yes, you may know Mick as one of the most influential genre writers and directors of all time, or you may know him from his incredible podcast, Post Mortem with Mick Garris … but you may not know that his first job in film was as the receptionist at “The Star Wars Company” in 1977, where he answered phone calls and operated R2-D2 for the Chinese Theatre, the Oscars and, yes, even The Holiday Special.

This is such a special interview and it is a real honor to get to talk to a real Master of Horror.

If I didn’t say it enough, and you like horror and filmmaking even in the slightest … definitely check out Post Mortem with Mick Garris, on the Dread Podcast Network, as well as his vintage interviews on Mick’s personal website: mickgarrisinterviews.com

Upcoming interviews include: James ClyneMichael McCormick (his first Star Wars interview ever!), Amy Ratciffe and Terrence Masson.


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Tom Spina: Restoring Star Wars History and Making His Own

Today I’m talking to one of my new favorite people, Tom Spina, founder of Tom Spina Designs and Regal Robot. We talk all about his early inspirations, his experiences with the internet and growing a community, his restoring of original props at the Lucasfilm Archives … and what is coming up for Regal Robot (including a brand new, exclusive announcement)

The Dejarik chess sets are now on sale from Regal Robot, and, frankly, are jaw-dropping: https://regalrobot.com/

But, seriously, take some time, check out all of the incredible things they have in stock, and follow them on social media! He’s such an inspiration to me and it was so great getting to catch up and nerd out.


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Jim Cummings: The Voice of Hondo Ohnaka, Everyone's Favorite Pirate

Welcome to a very special, very short May the Fourth bonus episode of Talking Bay 94: my conversation with prolific voice actor, Jim Cummings.

Mr. Cummings is the voice of characters like Winnie the PoohDarkwing Duckthe Tasmanian Devil, and of course … HONDO OHNAKA.

Thank you, as always, to Zach McGinnis at Galactic Productions for setting this up: http://www.galacticproductionsevents.com/


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Lauren Mary Kim: The Stunts Behind The Armorer and Ahsoka

Stunt woman, martial artist and actor, Lauren Mary Kim has helped bring to life such beloved characters like Ahsoka Tano (The Clone Wars, Season 7) and The Armorer (The Mandalorian, Season 1).

Whether motion capture with Ray Park for The Siege of Mandalore or being on set with Jon Favreau  in The Volume for The Mandalorian, Lauren’s hard work and incredible talent has made her an integral part of some of the most iconic and badass moments in Star Wars.

Make sure you’re following her on Instagram, @LaurenMaryKim, to keep up with all of the incredible things she is doing.

Next week is my really fascinating conversation with author Alexander Freed, so you still have a few days to finish up Alphabet Squadron: Victory’s Price.


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Ray Hassett: Acting in Echo Base, as Lt. Tigran Jamiro

Ray Hassett played Lt. Tigran Jamiro on Echo Base, in The Empire Strikes Back. Of course, he is best known for his iconic barb to Han Solo: “Your Tauntaun will freeze before you reach the first marker!”

Truly one of the more unique interviews we’ve had on this show, we delve into his early improvisational work, pairing with John Ratzenberger, becoming a fire eater on the streets of London, acting in James Bond and Superman, as well as the work that he does now tying all of his skills together.

As mentioned, you can visit RayHassett.com for more information on his current work.

Thank you also to Derek Maki and Coolwaters Productions, friends of the show, who made this interview possible. To meet Mr. Hassett at an upcoming show, or purchase any autograph right now: https://coolwatersprods.com/


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David Dozoretz: Pre-Visualization of Dewbacks, Podraces and Droid Factories

David Dozoretz spearheaded the pre-visualization work on the Special Editions and the first two Star Wars prequels, as pre-vis effects supervisor. He is such an immense talent and has such incredible passion for his work, so it was a real honor.

This is such a fun episode, a deep dive into what it was like to be working at Skywalker Ranch … while they were literally changing how movies we being made forever. (Also stick around for a John Knoll egg toss picnic story.)

To see more of his work (including the effects reel from The Phantom Menace we were talking about), head to his website: https://www.daviddozoretz.com/


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Chris Bartlett: On Portraying Protocol Droids, Bounty Hunters and a Flute-Playing Kubaz

Chris Bartlett is not only is the official “Media C-3PO”, but also has had numerous roles in these first two seasons of The Mandalorian, including bounty hunter Q9-0 and the flute-playing Kubaz from the very first episode.

His story of turning his cosplaying and costume-building hobby into a profession is super inspiring, and his stories of working with people like Anthony DanielsCarl WeathersWerner Herzog …and Barack Obama, are such a delight. You’re going to love this one.