Alongside human components like relative newcomers John Boyega and Daisy Ridley, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens has one more new star in the making. Glimpsed in the trailers is the chirpy little "ball-droid" BB-8, poised to become the R2-D2 for a new generation. "[It] stands almost singularly as a technical achievement that no one has yet matched," says Star Wars Creature Shop head Neal Scanlon.
Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams has been a passionate advocate of practical effects wherever possible on the film, with BB-8 a prime example of the model work and engineering wizardry that's been championed over and above CG animation this time out.
The droid began life as a quick Abrams sketch. "J.J. wanted something rolling on a sphere," so I tried a lot of different designs developing that idea,” Concept Designer Christian Alzmann tells Lucasfilm's Dan Brooks. "He would give direction on the kinds of shapes to use, and that led to a personality for the droid."
With that personality in place, the small matter of engineering became the focus. "The whole ball-bot concept is something that universities to individuals have played around with," says Scanlan. "We looked very closely at what one would consider existing technology and decided that it was not far enough advanced."
Various BB-8s were created for shooting to perform different functions: one for close-ups; a couple with stabiliser wheels; one that could be picked up and interacted with by actors; one that could be thrown into shot without tipping over; and even an old-school rod-puppet version. But while a single fully-functioning, all-purpose BB-8 remained impractical for filming, it was a challenge the design team couldn't leave alone.
"It had been sort of burning a hole in me,” says Senior Animatronic Designer Joshua Lee. "I started to design this crazy idea of one that would roam around and that we would show to the fans as well. We couldn’t do it for filming, but it had to be done! There are several ways of doing a ball robot, but there was nothing that included an articulated head or anything that could spin on the spot - and that’s one of BB-8’s signature moves. So, I started to design the prototype while Matt [Denton] adapted his existing software to make control of this new BB-8 possible.” The result made his public debut at Anaheim's Star Wars Celebration last April, and may well play a significant role in Episode VIII.
"We watch, very avidly, the forums and the discussions that people are having on ‘How did they do that?’," says Scanlon, "and no one’s yet cracked the actual problem...”
For more on BB-8, and on Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens in general, pick up the latest issue of Empire, on sale tomorrow. The film, you'll certainly be well aware, is out on December 18.
from Empire News
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