10 Secrets From The Set Of "Rogue One"

    BuzzFeed Mexico spoke with Diego Luna (aka Cassian Andor) and director Gareth Edwards and they shared a few anecdotes from the set of Rogue One.

    Baxter
    by Baxter

    BuzzFeed Founding Editor, Mexico

    1. The pressure of featuring a new Star Wars movie is overwhelming.

    Lucasfilm

    According to Diego Luna: “You're playing around as if you were four years old and suddenly you realize that you're making a movie that will premiere around the world and that will be bigger than anything you've ever done before.”

    2. They didn't agree, but...

    Lucasfilm

    J.J. Abrams, director of The Force Awakens, and Gareth Edwards, director of Rogue One, spoke only twice during the shooting of each of their films. Despite that, the aesthetics of both films is surprisingly similar. Both directors based the look of their film on the aesthetics of the original trilogy.

    3. One day, during shooting, Mark Hamill showed up in the set and essentially shut down shooting for the day.

    Lucasfilm

    Gareth Edwards: “He was my hero when I was a boy. I had to interrupt Felicity to go meet Luke Skywalker. When I approached him, I noticed that Mark had on a Godzilla t-shirt, the movie I had just directed. He told me he had liked my movie very much.”

    4. Diego Luna watched A New Hope repeatedly to get deeper into Cassian Andor, the character he plays in Rogue One.

    Lucasfilm

    It didn't hurt that it's his favorite movie in the saga.

    5. “Everyone on set becomes a four year old when Darth Vader walks into the room.”

    Lucasfilm

    According to Gareth Edwards.

    6. Making Vader's lighting and costume look and feel like the original film was a titanic feat.

    Lucasfilm

    Gareth Edwards: “It's like lighting an automobile. He needs special lights everywhere, even up in the helmet so that it reflects well.”

    7. The toughest thing about shooting a new Star Wars film is that you can't tell anyone.

    Lucasfilm

    Gareth Edwards: “You meet up with friends, and they ask what you're up to and inside you're screaming: 'I FILMED DARTH VADER TODAY,', but you reply: 'Oh, I'm OK. You know, life's going on’.”

    8. Peter Jackson visited the set during a very important scene was being filmed for the movie. No one paid any attention to him, because everyone was engrossed by Darth Vader.

    Fiona Goodall / AFP / Getty Images

    9. “Star Wars is a vehicle for social commentary.”

    Lucasfilm

    Diego Luna elaborated: “It begins from the moment you say ‘A long time ago in a galaxy far far away...’. In this case, the movie is about the people taking control, about heroes of flesh and bone. There are no Jedis–just rebels and they're characters who understand that if you work together, you can achieve great things.”

    10. The best thing about starring in a Star Wars movie is getting the chance to pilot an X-Wing.

    Lucasfilm

    Diego Luna: “The ships actually move and react to your movements. Piloting the ships, and shooting down stormtroopers. Those were the highlights."

    This post was translated from Spanish.