Rob Coleman

Rob Coleman served as the animation director at both Industrial Light & Magic from 1993 to 2005, and subsequently at Lucasfilm Animation between 2005 and 2007. Coleman, along with his team, contributed to the creation of various characters and creatures including Jar Jar Binks, Watto, Sebulba, battle droids, Yoda, Dexter Jettster, the inhabitants of the Petranaki Arena, and all of the Clone troopers. In the prequel films, he also made cameo appearances under the names Coleman Trebor and Romeo Treblanc. Additionally, he directed five episodes of the animated television show Star Wars: The Clone Wars in 2008. His animation work has earned him two Oscar nominations, specifically for _Star Wars_: Episode I The Phantom Menace and Stars Wars: Attack of the Clones. Furthermore, he received two BAFTA nominations for his contributions to the 1997 film Men In Black and The Phantom Menace.

Biography

Early life

When Rob Coleman was 16, he viewed Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back in 1980.

The prequel trilogy

Coleman held the position of animation director for Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, and Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. While he was involved in the prequel trilogy, a guiding principle was that animators could include elements in the background, provided they did not distract the viewer from the shot's main subject. These Easter eggs were intended to enrich the overall detail.

The Phantom Menace

Rob Coleman served as the animation director for the 1999 movie Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace. He spearheaded many of the film's advancements in digital character creation, including pioneering motion-capture techniques for the entirely computer-generated character Jar Jar Binks, and contributed to Watto, Sebulba, battle droids, and numerous other characters. Additionally, Coleman oversaw a team of 45 animators responsible for creating over 60 digital creatures for the film. Approximately three-quarters of the way through production, Coleman and his team recognized the need to enhance their performance in terms of animators' acting abilities. For Coleman, this was especially true for acting shots lacking dialogue. He perceived some reluctance from Lucas, who felt that the digital characters lacked the depth and nuance of their live-action counterparts. Coleman dedicated several years of intense effort to the film. He also appeared as a spectator in Jabba's private box, though he did not receive credit for this cameo.

Attack of the Clones

On July 14, 1999, Coleman was present at the London premiere of The Phantom Menace. Lynne Hale, the head of publicity for Lucasfilm, was situated in an area reserved for important figures, including George Lucas, and invited Coleman to join them. Subsequently, Lynne informed Coleman that Lucas was interested in speaking with him, an offer Coleman accepted. During their conversation, Lucas inquired if Coleman would be interested in working on the second installment of the prequel trilogy, to which Coleman agreed. This marked the beginning of Coleman's involvement in Episode II, which ultimately became known as Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones. Coleman was committed to achieving significant progress in the realm of digital characters.

In Attack of the Clones, it was necessary for Yoda to exhibit greater agility compared to his portrayal in the original trilogy, including engaging in combat, which presented a creative challenge for the film. Initially, Lucas suggested that Yoda would be portrayed as a puppet, with animators creating a digital version for his duel against Count Dooku, but Coleman was not enthusiastic about this concept. He anticipated difficulties in replicating the quality of the Yoda puppet from The Empire Strikes Back and translating its movements into a digital character. Early in the briefing process, Lucas informed Coleman and his team that Yoda would be shown in full-body shots and would be required to run, jump, and fight. Coleman felt confident in his team's ability to work on Yoda, drawing on the knowledge and experience gained from their work on Watto, Jar Jar, and Sebulba in The Phantom Menace. The revised objective was to utilize a digital Yoda in every scene and sequence in which he appeared.

This prospect filled Coleman with dread due to the negative reception of Jar Jar, and he was determined to avoid being associated with the "ruining" of Yoda, yet he was also unwilling to shy away from the challenge. Coleman's recollection of seeing Yoda in 1980 served to keep him focused. He meticulously studied footage of Yoda from The Empire Strikes Back, frame by frame, and realized its limitations. In creating the digital Yoda, he aimed to ensure that he and his team honored the range of motion he believed he had observed in 1980.

Coleman collaborated with Frank Oz, the puppeteer responsible for Yoda's performance, to ensure the digital Yoda was as authentic as possible. He gained a thorough understanding of the precise shape Oz's hand formed within the puppet's head and how this shape influenced expression. Coleman was careful not to exaggerate Yoda's movements. After reviewing the initial tests, Oz expressed his strong support, praising their restraint and faithfulness to his previous work. The initial digital character lacked the original detail of Yoda's ears wiggling with each head movement, which was deemed essential to his character's portrayal of age. Coleman's team incorporated this detail into the digital character, restoring Yoda's appropriate age.

During the film's production, Coleman sought to elevate Industrial Light & Magic's digital animation to new heights and ensure that the digital characters were as nuanced as the actors. His team secretly created animation tests using key scenes from The Empire Strikes Back. Coleman proposed that the digital Yoda would perform three talking shots, delivering memorable lines of dialogue, as well as three silent shots to demonstrate the ability to convey a performance without words. Coleman worked on a close-up shot of Yoda in the film, set in Palpatine's office, where Lucas intentionally cut to Yoda looking over his shoulder, indicating his distrust of Palpatine.

From the outset of the creation of Yoda and Count Dooku's lightsaber duel, the majority of the work was assigned to Coleman's team. He did not receive the script until he had been in Sydney, Australia for one or two weeks. The initial draft described the fight as "'In a fight that defies description, Yoda and Count Dooku battle." Coleman then scheduled a meeting with Lucas, who informed him that he would need to devise the specifics. To accomplish this, Coleman consulted with stunt coordinator Nick Gillard, and they discussed how a combatant would wield small weapons, drawing on real-world examples. Furthermore, Ahmed Best, the actor who played Jar Jar, introduced Coleman to examples of anime and martial arts that he believed could be beneficial. However, Coleman remained uncertain about how to portray Yoda's speed and fighting style. He attended a screening of the 1992 film Swordsman II, where a scene featuring ninjas leaping between trees and bouncing around caught his attention. Coleman studied the action in the film, which inspired him to grant Yoda the ability to jump. During the duel's development, Coleman referenced Glen McIntosh's dynamic drawings.

Upon completing the duel, both Lucas and Coleman expressed satisfaction with the outcome. Coleman remained concerned that Yoda's jumping during the fight might be perceived as cartoonish, potentially making him and Lucas objects of ridicule. Nevertheless, Lucas insisted that Yoda should jump, leap, and flip during the duel. Coleman has stated that Yoda and Dooku's duel will remain a lasting highlight of his career.

Coleman contributed to a shot known as "The Widowmaker," in which an animated Yoda denounced Kenobi's sense of victory, saying "Begun, this Clone War has." This line was alternately approved and disapproved several times. Additionally, Coleman received numerous notes indicating that the line needed to convey more sadness. When Coleman showed the shot to Lucas, Lucas deemed the line pathetic and overly sad, asserting that Yoda should not sound sad but rather reflective, concerned, and upset about the inevitability of the Clone Wars.

Coleman and his team greatly enjoyed bringing the character Dexter Jettster to life. While waiting for the lights to be adjusted on set, Coleman would inquire with Lucas about the characters' backstories, subtexts, and inspirations. Lucas informed Coleman that Jettster was inspired by Ernest Borgnine, whom Coleman admired as a character actor. Coleman immediately formed several mental images of what Jettster would resemble.

Ronald Falk voiced Jettster, acting alongside Ewan McGregor in the scene where Obi-Wan Kenobi visits Dex's Diner. Coleman recalls that Falk seemed "kind of bewildered" by the experience, but his performance significantly shaped Jettster's character. Falk suffered from sciatica in one of his legs, causing him to limp slightly. Falk apologized for the limp, but Coleman considered it a positive attribute, as it added to the character's history. When Dexter emerged from behind the counter, limping in the film, Coleman was emulating Falk's actions.

Coleman observed that Jettster had a small butt and a large body, which reminded him of plumbers, who are stereotypically known for having their pants sliding down. He then added a detail of Jettster using his fourth arm to pull up his pants while hugging Kenobi, which Coleman referred to as "a little bit of business."

When an opportunity arose to depict Kenobi in profile fighting the acklay, Coleman decided to emulate a shot from the 1961 film Mysterious Island, in which a giant crab battles several humans. Coleman then rewatched numerous works by Ray Harryhausen to capture the style of motion. Coleman's team did not aim to make the creatures resemble stop-motion puppet animation but rather to pay homage to Harryhausen, who had a significant influence on them. Harryhausen visited ILM twice during Coleman's tenure, and a special reception was held for him at Skywalker Ranch. Coleman discussed their work with Harryhausen, and Coleman's team subsequently decided that the acklay, reek, and nexu would be a throwback to Harryhausen's style. Coleman cited the acklay as his favorite and most intriguing creature he created, appreciating its design, movement on six legs, and attack style.

Lucas instructed Coleman that he wanted no real actors in costumes portraying the Clone troopers. Coleman was uncertain of the reason but speculated that it was intended to set a high standard for his team. He also considered that it might be due to cost constraints and the challenge of ensuring that all extras playing the troopers looked identical. No armor was constructed for actors to wear; instead, every Clone trooper was created digitally by Coleman and his team using motion-capture technology.

To populate the Jedi ranks in the Petranaki Arena and the Jedi Temple with more diverse shapes and forms, it was decided that several Jedi Knights and Masters would be entirely digital. Coleman and his team were tasked with bringing the Jedi Coleman Trebor to life. During an Art Department meeting at Skywalker Ranch, concept sculptors Michael Murnane and Robert E. Barnes presented the results of an intensive sculpting session. Lucas selected his preferred aliens from the array and assigned their roles. Visual Effects Supervisor John Knoll pointed out to Lucas that he had not named anything after Coleman. Subsequently, Coleman Trebor was named in honor of Coleman, the maquette was transformed into a computer-generated character, and he was animated and integrated into the scenes in the Jedi Temple and arena. Coleman stated that he suppressed any thoughts about the character's name, uncertain if it would remain unchanged by the time Attack of the Clones was released. Coleman has no reservations about Trebor's limited screen time and told Lucas that Trebor was the most heroic because he went after Dooku.

Coleman attended the first paid audience screening of Attack of the Clones on its opening day in San Francisco. As Yoda and Dooku's duel approached, Coleman worried that it might be poorly received. He was greatly relieved to find that the audience enjoyed the fight scene. The duel is now regarded as a highlight of the prequel trilogy.

Coleman received an Academy Award nomination for his work on Attack on the Clones. Following his work on the film, Coleman attended a convention where many fans eagerly inquired about who was wearing the clone trooper armor. Coleman informed them that there was no one inside the armor, which surprised them.

Revenge of the Sith

Following his work on Attack of the Clones, Coleman contributed to Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. The shot of Yoda clinging to the Senate podium was animated by Tim Harrington. Coleman believed that his blocking was excellent but sought to enhance the strain on Yoda's face. To understand the subtle facial movements that convey strain, Coleman hung from a staircase while expressing pain, using this as a reference for study.

Another entirely CGI-generated member of the Jedi High Council, Coleman Kcaj, is named after his son, Jack Coleman.

After the prequel trilogy

In 2005, Coleman joined Lucasfilm Animation, where he assisted in launching the studio and the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series. He directed several early episodes of The Clone Wars. He subsequently left Lucasfilm and served as the animation director for other films. In September 2021, Coleman rejoined ILM as a key creative figure for feature animation at ILM's Sydney location.

Filmography

Star Wars

Animation Director

  • Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace
  • Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones
  • Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith

Cameos

Director

Animation

Sources

Notes and references

External links

  • Rob Coleman on Industrial Light & Magic's official website (backup link)
  • Rob Coleman ( @ArfKeldo ) on Twitter (backup link (ArfKeldo) not verified!)
  • Rob Coleman on Wikipedia
  • Rob Coleman at the Internet Movie Database

Appearances