NEWS - Thursday, April 4, 2002
SW: Starfighter Campaign Unveiled
LUCASARTS UNVEILS "FORCE POWERED" TV AD CAMPAIGN FOR NEW STAR WARS: EPISODE II GAME, STAR WARS JEDI STARFIGHTER Foote, Cone & Belding, Industrial Light & Magic, Skywalker Sound Contribute to Production of Broadcast Spot Set to Debut Nationally Week of April 1 SAN RAFAEL, Calif. -- April 4, 2002 -- LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC, a leading developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software, will premiere a new television advertising campaign nationally the week of April 1 for its new Star Wars: Episode II-related PlayStation( 2 game Star Wars Jedi Starfighter. The campaign was conceived by Foote, Cone & Belding Worldwide (FCB) San Francisco, and produced in association with LucasArts' sister companies, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) and Skywalker Sound. The 30-second "Force Powered" commercial features the sleek new Jedi starfighter from the upcoming motion picture Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, which also is the main ship available for players to pilot in the LucasArts game. The spot, through ingenious lighting and other special effects techniques, cleverly leads viewers to believe they're watching a commercial for an upscale luxury automobile. The actual full-scale Jedi starfighter from the movie was used in the production of the ad. "The production of the Star Wars Jedi Starfighter commercial presented a wonderful opportunity to work with our sister companies, Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound, whose talents are world renowned," says Mary Bihr, vice president, worldwide sales and marketing for LucasArts. "With the combined expertise of the two Lucas companies, together with the tremendous creative talents of Foote, Cone & Belding, who developed the concept for the spot, game players will see in a very dynamic way just how fun and amazing Star Wars Jedi Starfighter is." The spot opens with a slow close-up pan of what appears to be the gleaming exterior and the high-tech interior instrumentation of an automobile. Over the strains of elegant chorale music a distinguished, British-accented male voice quietly intones, "It's finally here... with a sleek aerodynamic design... state-of-the-art navigation system... and the most powerful engines in its class." A darkly cloaked Jedi Knight unexpectedly appears, turns off his lightsaber and waves a hand toward the vehicle, summoning the Force. The voice-over continues, "The most anticipated vehicle of the year... now comes with optional Force powers." A droid unit suddenly beeps to life, and the image dramatically widens to reveal the Jedi starfighter. The ship's powerful engines ignite, and the spot segues to dynamic footage from the videogame of the speedy craft engaged in furious space battle. The spot climaxes with the Jedi starfighter scoring a direct hit on an enemy ship, filling the screen with a spectacular explosion. Over this imagery the voice-over resumes with, "Fly the ship from Star Wars: Episode II. And unlock the power of the Force... with Star Wars Jedi Starfighter." The game's logo then momentarily appears, and wipes to a front view of the Jedi starfighter, as lightning dances over its surface. The spot ends with the voice-over concluding, "Force powers optional." The Star Wars Jedi Starfighter broadcast campaign will begin April 1, with a focused cable television buy on MTV, Comedy Central, ESPN, ESPN 2, FOX Sports, USA Network, TBS, Sci-Fi Channel, TNN, and Cartoon Network.Source: http://www.lucasarts.com/
