While George Lucas has always been a forward-thinking filmmaker, especially with Star Wars, some fans might not realize how much Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace changed the way movies are shown in theaters.
Today, if you go to the movies, you’re almost guaranteed to see a film projected digitally unless you visit one of the few theaters that still use film for special showings, like when Oppenheimer was projected on IMAX 70mm film in just 30 theaters worldwide.
However, 25 years ago, things were different. Digital projection was new and not widely used in cinemas. The idea of theaters showing movies digitally on a large scale seemed far-fetched.
Everything started to change in 1999 when Star Wars returned to the big screen.
Digital Projection Was Used to Show The Phantom Menace.
The shift to digital projection in mainstream theaters began with The Phantom Menace, the first widely released movie to be shown digitally.
In 1999, The Phantom Menace was projected digitally in two theaters in Los Angeles and two in New York.
It is actually amazing because, back then, digital projection was a new concept. However, today, it’s the standard, and film projection is now the rare, special option.
Producer Rick McCallum agreed, pointing out that digital projection ensures every audience sees the movie just as the filmmaker intended, without the wear and tear that film prints suffer.
Lucas Focused on Film quality.
Considering George Lucas’ history of pushing the boundaries of filmmaking technology, it’s no surprise he supported digital projection.
He invested a lot, about millions to restore the original Star Wars movies for the 1997 special edition and later oversaw the digital restoration for the 2004 DVD release.
Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones was the first major film shot entirely with digital cameras.
Lucas even encouraged people to watch it in theaters with digital projectors.