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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Spotlight. I'm Patrick Woodwood.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm Megan Nolette. Spotlight uses a special English method

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<v Speaker 2>of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand no

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<v Speaker 2>matter where in the world they live.

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<v Speaker 1>It is difficult to imagine a time when no one

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<v Speaker 1>in the world had heard of the film Star Wars.

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<v Speaker 1>No one recognized the names Luke Skywalker, Han Solo or

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<v Speaker 1>Darth Vader. No one had heard the term Jedi. No

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<v Speaker 1>one had heard the expression may the be with you.

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<v Speaker 1>But all that changed nearly half a century ago. The

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<v Speaker 1>world has never been the same.

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<v Speaker 2>On today's Spotlight, we look at the impact Star Wars

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<v Speaker 2>made on the world. We discuss how it changed the

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<v Speaker 2>film industry. We look at how it expanded opportunities for

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<v Speaker 2>films to make money. We examine why the Star Wars

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<v Speaker 2>series has remained popular for so long.

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<v Speaker 1>A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away,

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<v Speaker 1>these words introduce every Star Wars film. The first Star

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<v Speaker 1>Wars film was made in nineteen seventy seven. It is

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<v Speaker 1>a science fiction film. This is a kind of story

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<v Speaker 1>that involves futuristic technology. It is about a group of

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<v Speaker 1>fighters battling for freedom. They are called the Rebel Alliance.

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<v Speaker 1>They want to stop the evil Galactic Empire's new weapon,

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<v Speaker 1>the Death Star. It can destroy an entire planet. Luke

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<v Speaker 1>Skywalker and the Rebel Alliance steel design plans of the

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<v Speaker 1>Death Star. Princess Layer, leader of the Rebel Alliance, is

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<v Speaker 1>captured by the Galactic Empire. They try to rescue Princess

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<v Speaker 1>Laya while destroying the Death Star.

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<v Speaker 2>George Lucas wrote and directed the film. Lucas knew that

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<v Speaker 2>he needed the best special effects to create a believable

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<v Speaker 2>film about a battle in space. He started his own

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<v Speaker 2>company to create new camera and lighting techniques. Lucas hired

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<v Speaker 2>talented artists and engineers. These artists made detailed models of spaceships,

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<v Speaker 2>fighter planes, planets, and alien creatures. They used special equipment

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<v Speaker 2>to control the movement of the spaceship models during filming.

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<v Speaker 2>This special equipment made the ships look more realistic. They

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<v Speaker 2>did similar things for places in the galaxy. They filmed

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<v Speaker 2>small versions of locations in ways that made them look bigger.

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<v Speaker 1>Lucas was still worried people would not like Star Wars

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<v Speaker 1>despite all the new techniques. He said, I did not

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<v Speaker 1>think the film was going to be successful.

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<v Speaker 2>The film studio did not have any faith in it.

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<v Speaker 2>Lucas flew to Hawaii when the film was released. He

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<v Speaker 2>did not want to be near the film studio when

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<v Speaker 2>Star Wars failed. But after the first weekend, he saw

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<v Speaker 2>a news story on television. It said everyone loved Star Wars.

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<v Speaker 2>Lines of people waited outside theaters to see the film

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<v Speaker 2>film it was very successful. Lucas finally believed people liked

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<v Speaker 2>his film.

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<v Speaker 1>They did not just like Star Wars, they loved it.

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<v Speaker 1>The film made seven hundred and seventy five million dollars

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<v Speaker 1>in ticket sales. It was the most money a film

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<v Speaker 1>had ever made up to that time.

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<v Speaker 2>Lucas was a great filmmaker, but he was also a

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<v Speaker 2>smart businessman. He made a deal with the film studio

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<v Speaker 2>before Star Wars was released. He agreed to get a

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<v Speaker 2>smaller salary. In exchange, he received all merchandising rights. This

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<v Speaker 2>meant he would earn all the money from sales of toys, clothing,

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<v Speaker 2>video games, posters, and more. Fellow directors did not think

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<v Speaker 2>this was wise. They believed that merchandise connected to films

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<v Speaker 2>did not sell well. But Lucas thought that even if

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<v Speaker 2>the film did not sell many tickets, children might want

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<v Speaker 2>to buy Star Wars toys.

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<v Speaker 1>Lucas was right. He made much more money from merchandise sales.

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<v Speaker 1>Children who saw the film wanted to own toy figures

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<v Speaker 1>of characters like Luke Skywalker, Hand Solo, Chewbacca, R two

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<v Speaker 1>D two, and Darth Vader. Children were able to buy

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<v Speaker 1>these toys, they could recreate the film in their homes.

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<v Speaker 2>Lucas and the film studio wanted to make another Star

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<v Speaker 2>Wars film after their great success. Lucas continued writing the

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<v Speaker 2>story of the Rebel Alliance fighting the Galactic Empire. The

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<v Speaker 2>new film was another big success. The Star Wars films

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<v Speaker 2>quickly turned into a franchise. A franchise is a collection

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<v Speaker 2>of creative works that all relate to the same story.

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<v Speaker 1>Many Star Wars movies and television series were made. People

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<v Speaker 1>also wrote Star Wars books, comic books, and sticker books.

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<v Speaker 1>They created hundreds of Star Wars video games. Star Wars

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<v Speaker 1>toy sales have earned billions of dollars.

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<v Speaker 2>Currently, the Star Wars franchise has made more than forty

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<v Speaker 2>six billion dollars. It is one of the most successful

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<v Speaker 2>film franchises in history.

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<v Speaker 1>But why why has the Star Wars franchise remained so

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<v Speaker 1>popular for so long? Many Star Wars followers today were

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<v Speaker 1>not even born when the first film came out. How

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<v Speaker 1>did Lucas do it? How did he interest people? For

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<v Speaker 1>so many years?

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<v Speaker 2>Lucas filled the world of Star Wars with interesting characters

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<v Speaker 2>and stories. The Rebel alliance struggle against the Galactic Empire

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<v Speaker 2>was exciting. New character and filming techniques were added to

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<v Speaker 2>later films. Lucas took his time telling the entire story.

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<v Speaker 2>He spread it out over many films. He was excellent

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<v Speaker 2>at creating something people could look forward to. He decided

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<v Speaker 2>to call his second Star Wars film star Wars Episode five.

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<v Speaker 2>The third film was called Star Wars Episode six. He

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<v Speaker 2>also changed the name of the first film to Star

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<v Speaker 2>Wars Episode four. This way of numbering the film lms

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<v Speaker 2>told followers that they were part of a larger series.

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<v Speaker 2>It kept the followers interested while waiting for the next film.

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<v Speaker 2>It also meant Lucas would have to write the series beginning.

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<v Speaker 2>He would have to make the first three episodes because

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<v Speaker 2>he started with the fourth. This was a unique idea

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<v Speaker 2>that worked perfectly. Writer Nathaniel Rourke said.

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<v Speaker 1>Lucas wanted Star Wars to feel like a story.

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<v Speaker 3>People were coming into the middle.

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<v Speaker 1>Of Lucas made episodes four, five, and six in the

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<v Speaker 1>Star Wars series. He directed the first three films. Many

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<v Speaker 1>years later. People were incredibly excited to see these films,

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<v Speaker 1>sometimes called the prequel trilogy. Lucas wisely waited twenty two

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<v Speaker 1>years before making these episodes. This made people even more

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<v Speaker 1>interested in what stories he would tell. It gave followers

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<v Speaker 1>the chance to rewatch episodes four, five, and six. Many times,

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<v Speaker 1>young followers grew up, they started families. They showed episodes four,

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<v Speaker 1>five and six to their children. They passed down their

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<v Speaker 1>love of the Star Wars franchise.

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<v Speaker 2>Other filmmakers released episodes seven, eight, and nine ten years

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<v Speaker 2>after episode three. These were the final episodes of the story.

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<v Speaker 2>These films introduced a new generation to the Star Wars franchise.

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<v Speaker 2>These new followers could then go back and watch the

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<v Speaker 2>first six films.

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<v Speaker 1>One of the central storylines in Star Wars films is

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<v Speaker 1>the relationship between fathers and their children. In the first

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<v Speaker 1>few Star Wars films, viewers learn that Darth Vader, one

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<v Speaker 1>of the leaders of the Galactic Empire, is actually the

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<v Speaker 1>father of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. In later films,

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<v Speaker 1>viewers discover that Han Solo's son now fights against him

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<v Speaker 1>and the Rebel alliance.

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<v Speaker 2>Cass Sunstein wrote a book about people's fascination with Star Wars.

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<v Speaker 2>He said.

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<v Speaker 3>That Star Wars films are all about father's and how

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<v Speaker 3>much their children need them. Any struggling father can be

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<v Speaker 3>saved so long as his child loves him.

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<v Speaker 1>Star Wars films have brought parents and children together for

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<v Speaker 1>many years. A father sits with his son. They watch

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<v Speaker 1>Luke Skywalker swing his glowing blue light sword at Darth

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<v Speaker 1>Vader Vada blocks him with his red light sword. The

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<v Speaker 1>father wraps his arm around his son. He smiles seeing

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<v Speaker 1>his son so excited. The father reacted the same way

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<v Speaker 1>his son was reacting. He had reacted this way when

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<v Speaker 1>he first watched the film at a younger age with

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<v Speaker 1>his own father.

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<v Speaker 2>Have you ever seen any of the Star Wars films?

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<v Speaker 2>Which is your favorite? Do you have a favorite character?

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<v Speaker 2>You can leave a comment on our website at www

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<v Speaker 2>dot Spotlight English dot com. You can also find us

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<v Speaker 2>on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and x You can also

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<v Speaker 2>get our programs delivered directly to your Android or Apple

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<v Speaker 2>device through our free official Spotlight English app.

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<v Speaker 1>The writer of this program was Peter Anderson. The producer

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<v Speaker 1>was mitchyo Ozarki. The voices you heard were from the

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<v Speaker 1>United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes were adapted

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<v Speaker 1>for this program and voiced by Spotlight. No AI or

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<v Speaker 1>artificial intelligence was used in this program. Spotlight programs are written, voiced,

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<v Speaker 1>and produced by real people for real people, no matter

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<v Speaker 1>where in the world they live. This program is called

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<v Speaker 1>Star Wars.

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<v Speaker 2>We hope you can join us again for the next

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<v Speaker 2>Spotlight program. Good Bye er