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Star Wars Fan Film Awards Nixed

Rebelscum is reporting that the Fan Film Awards have been cancelled. I have to say I'm not disappointed by this, though I would leave the door open for them in the future. There's such a glut of fan films that having a regular award for them rewards the mediocre in addition to the excellent. I always advocate Star Wars Celebration playing a loop of fan generated media, but I don't think it's all prize-worthy. 

we now rejoin Star Wars Weekends, already in progress...

Star Wars Celebration 86'd!   No, it's nothing bad- it's something good. In 86 short days Celebration VI will return to the Orange County Convention Center and we'll be hanging out with 35,000 of our best friends. I'm excited, but I won't say I can't wait. That's partly because I'm not a fan of that particular hyperbole (you almost always can, and will ,wait) but it's also because there is a lot to do between now and then.

First off we're smack dab in the middle of Star Wars Weekends at Disney's Hollywood Studios. I never can get used to that name. Too bad they didn't go with Disney-Pixar Studios. Even Disney Movie Studios. Something about that apostrophe s that sticks in my throat and makes me happy that some of my closest friends and castmembers just call it DHS. But enough digression: well, at least of this digression.

I was able to attend the first Saturday and I missed this Memorial Day Weekend. Odds are looking good that I'll be at the final two Saturdays. I was able to procure a couple of autographs, so that was fortunate that first weekend. Turns out I'd gotten one from Andy Secombe (the voice of Watto) eight years prior but I'd forgotten and it was a pleasure to visit a gracious star. He had raced to come a week early, replacing Jerome Blake who had Visa challenges, but was very happy to have an extra week in the Florida heat. My other autograph was a walk-up from Dee Bradley Baker. It was my first time meeting him and I wasn't particularly prepared so I didn't really interact with him. I generally like to prepare some specific question for the celebrity so I can remember something about the encounter, but in this rare instance nothing came to mind.

The celebrities, and the "Stars of the Saga" talk show are a high point of Star Wars Weekends for me, but they only slightly edge out the exclusive merchandise. This year I was very happy with the selection, but was just fine that little of it seemed a necessity. One of my focuses are Star Tours and SWW pins. I only had my heart set on two this go around but even that was too great a goal for someone that came on day two. The Piece of the Death Star pin sold out on the first Friday so I'll have to find it on eBay. I did, however, score the Chewbacca Bandolier lanyard, which was actually more limited.

Other than that my favorite new item was the Star Tours nametags. These are personalized in Aurabesh with your name and list the home planet of your choice from a dozen options. (The Death Star, "that's no [planet], it's a space station," is among these.) I heard a Disney rumor that more varieties of these [think Imperial cogs and Rebel Symbols] will follow based on the success of this initial offering. Personally, I'd like to see Tatooine Traders drop the "add your face to the scene" photo shop and add a permanent name tag maker. You can't beat a personallized, iconic souvenir for $8.95.

And when I say favorite, I'm not even considering the awesome new Droid Factory experience offered at Tatooine Traders. It's a bit crowded for me to build my own at the moment, but that's here to stay and has met with great popularity since its introduction 11 days ago. I'll get to it soon enough.

See you real soon.

Show Your Alliance: Official SWGFA Badges are coming!

The Star Wars Grand Florida Alliance is proud to announce exclusive new customized name badges. For $20 you get both the 3¾" x 2½" badge AND a 1" x 2" logo pin (also sold separately). Pins can be picked up at the next SWGFA Event.

You can put up to three lines of text on your badge (four if your name takes up 2 lines). You may choose what goes on each (subject to approval), but generally we suggest the following format:
line #1 - Real name
line #2 - City
line #3 - User Name, title, club name, etc. Take a look at the photo to get an idea of what size fonts can be used based on the length of your text.

Payment may be made by Paypal* to sabacc72@msn.com. $20 gets both the badge and the pin, or you can purchase a badge ONLY for $17 or the pin alone for $4. For each badge, make sure to send the text as you want it inscribed. We'll accept orders through Sunday, March 18th, 2012.

Questions? Post them here or write us at SWGFA77@gmail.com.

*Payments via Paypal should be made as a normal purchase, not as a "gift."

The Phantom Menace returns to Theaters- this time in 3D!

Twenty-nine years after we saw Return of the Jedi, Dad and I returned to the theater, joined by SWGF-Ally SkyWalter and my wife.I bought tickets for the earliest show (1pm) at our local Cinemark but was surprised when I arrived, that they'd added two additional shows. I was fortunate to have gotten the earlybird price anyhow, so that was a nice bonus- especially since it's my 40th birthday. We got the best seats in the house. We expected a busy showing, like I'd seen at the opening last month at Red Tails, but unbelievably, there were only two other people in the theater. It made for an uninterrupted viewing, but was quite an oddity in my first day showings to be in a theater with only half a dozen fans.

I loved seeing The Phantom Menace on the bigscreen again. I recently watched a commentary for it on Blu-ray so my eyes were keen to see all the detail magnified. However, I was distressed to find that more than popping off the screen, many of the backgrounds were now just blurry. If I go again while its in theaters- I'd like to- I'd see it in 2D. At the moment, I really hope they expand the 2D screenings next year for Attack of the Clones. I think the format is not the point here- the point is seeing Star Wars in it's eye-popping, ear-candy bigscreen glory again. I truly don't want to tear the release down, but the absolute best use of the 3D form here was seeing the classic crawl float from just in front of me to the starfield beyond.

I've debated the future of 3D and this did not encourage me- especially for movies not made in the format. I'll likely see all the Star Wars movies in 3D as they're released, but I wouldn't be disappointed if they just have theatrical re-releases in 2D. I think it would be amazing to do this every decade or so so kids of all ages can enjoy them for the first time or one more time.

A 1999 Episode I hat, a -shirt of Han's blaster, and a free poster (lightsaber) made up my fanboy attire.

The Adventure Has Continued for 25 Years

Twenty-five years ago today, Star Tours, a collaboration between George Lucas and the Disney Imagineers opened for business at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

The ride vehicle, a Starspeeder 3000, was a cutting edge simulator meant to take "passengers" on a journey to Endor. Unfortunately, hijinks ensued as the bumbling rookie pilot- your captain, Rex, voiced by Paul Reubens- came out of hyperspace too late and took the ship through a comet and inadvertently participated in the destruction of the first Death Star. The motion on the screen matched the motion of the seats so jostled park attendees got the feeling they had physically entered the world of Star Wars.

Star Tours became one of the park's most popular attractions so the mission to spread it to other parks began. In July of 1989 a second Star Tours debuted at Tokyo Disneyland and later that year Star Tours was opened at the fledgling Disney MGM Studios (now Disney's Hollywood Studios) in Orlando. In 1992 a fourth came to Disneyland Park in Paris.

A Starspeeder 3000 at Disneyland Tokyo

Rumors of an update to the attraction began going public in the late 90s as the film seen in the Starspeeder that had been state of the art in 1987 looked increasingly dated. As Star Wars: Episode I came to theaters there was hope that a podrace might be the setting for a new version of the ride. Star Tours remained a top attraction at each park so Disney executives decided to leave well enough alone and didn't fully commit to any change for almost a decade.

The end of an era

This finally changed in 2010 and the event was commemorated in Florida during Star Wars Celebration V at The Last Tour of Endor. Between July and September Star Tours in California and Florida were closed to begin a complete renovation of each attraction.

The new Starspeeder 1000

The ante was upped this time around and when Star Tours: The Adventure Continues opened at both parks last May it featured different destinations and segments that could take each group of guests on one of 54 different combinations, all in 3D with upgraded motion simulation.

The original Star Tours is slated to be be updated in Tokyo later this year with Disneyland Paris following eventually.

Princess Leia and the Beatle

At the tender age of 21, Carrie Fisher was still playing a teenager. From a certain point of view. During the period when she was dating Paul Simon she appeared in a television special for another musical luminary, Ringo Starr. In this rather creative 1978 short, Ringo dances around with Fisher covering the song made famous by Johnny Burnette in 1960.



Interestingly, the song was written by the Sherman Brothers, the Disney collaborators responsible for the songs from movies like Mary Poppins and The Jungle Book. The original version of the song was also featured in George Lucas's second movie, American Graffiti.

Palm Con is coming and the SWGFA is too!

As Indiana Jones once said, "I'm like a bad penny. I always turn up."

And that's just what we'll be doing at the first Palm Con in Lake Worth on September 17th. For less than the price of an action figure, you can take the whole family to this Palm Beach County Comics and Collectibles Show. Come on out, meet members of the 501st, chat with the good folks of The SWGFA, and scope out this intimate show for and by the fans.

The SWGFA Summer Outing

In a departure from our seasonal Events, a good sized contingent of the Alliance will be heading over to Fantasy of Flight on Saturday, August 13th for the first annual SWGFA Summer Outing. Most importantly, you're invited! Best of all, we're able to take advantage of their Florida Resident Summer Special- Buy One, Get One Free Admission. The complimentary admission is valid when accompanied by a guest purchasing a paid admission ticket of equal or greater value so it's available to adults and children alike.

We're meeting at 10:00am in the parking lot of Fantasy of Flight. To give everyone a chance to arrive, we'll wait until 10:30am and then enter the museum together as a group. If you're attending by yourself, fear not, we'll do our best to match you up with someone that morning so everyone can take advantage of the deal. If you've got a Star Wars t-shirt, please wear it! We'll be able to recognize each other as we roam around the museum and it will help represent our group.

                   

As many Star Wars fans share a love for George Lucas' adventuring archaeologist we're particularly excited to see the actual Ford Tri-Motor that was used in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. It doesn't sport the Lao Che logo anymore, but the plane is unmistakable all the same.

Dr. Jones and company fly the hostile skies.

There's also an exhibit dedicated to the Tuskegee Airmen, the heroic African-American pilots that we'll see in the next Lucasfilm, Red Tails. Over 40 restored airplanes can be seen including walk-through exhibits, airshows, simulators, and demonstrations.

We'll leave Fantasy of Flight at 3:30pm and head to Applebee's Neighborhood Grill located at 230 Arteva Drive Lakeland, FL 33809 to meet up for dinner at 4:00pm. Brush up on your Star Wars trivia knowledge because we'll see the return of our trivia challenge. Razors Edge Collectibles is sponsoring it so there will be some cool Star Wars prizes available.

For those that can't or simply do not wish to join us at the museum, you are welcome and encouraged to join us for dinner at Applebee's at 4:00pm. VERY IMPORTANT! We will need an exact number of attendees for dinner! If you will be joining us, please send an email to swgfa77@gmail.com with your name and how many people will be in your party so we can call ahead to reserve space for the group. If you do not let us know in advance, you may not get to sit with the group. We will take RSVP's from now until Friday, August 12th at 8:00pm.

Fantasy of Flight is located just off of I-4 at 1400 Broadway Blvd. S.E.Polk City, FL 33868. We'll see you there!

Sansweet is Forever

Unfortunately, it's no April Fool's joke. Steve Sansweet is turning the page in his career: moving out of the Lucasfilm nest. In cooperation with TheForce.net and Rebelscum we'd like to salute the man that's linked the corporate to the fan on the street.

 Steve Sansweet’s 1992 book “Star Wars: From Concept, To Screen, To Collectible” was a beacon of light at the end of the dark ages. His passion for the films resonated off of every page, and touched us deep in our cores. When he became Lucasfilm’s Director of Content Management and head of Fan Relations in 1996, he took that passion to the masses and the Star Wars Generation finally had a voice.

Today marks the last day in this chapter of Steve’s life, and while we will all miss the positive energy and genuine love for the franchise he brought with him on stage, we are very excited to see what he has planned from this point forward. One thing is for certain he will always remain the true voice of The Star Wars Generation