Editing Star Wars (section)

=== Industry ===
The original ''Star Wars'' film was a huge success for [[20th Century Fox]], and was credited for reinvigorating the company. Within three weeks of the film's release, the studio's stock price doubled to a record high. Prior to 1977, 20th Century Fox's greatest annual profits were $37&nbsp;million, while in 1977, the company broke that record by posting a profit of $79&nbsp;million.<ref name="EmpireOfDreams" /> The franchise helped Fox to change from an almost bankrupt [[production company]] to a thriving media conglomerate.<ref name=Cook>{{cite book|last1=Cook|first1=David A.|title=Lost Illusions: American Cinema in the Shadow of Watergate and Vietnam, 1970–1979|date=2000|publisher=University of California Press|location=Berkeley|isbn=978-0-520-23265-5|edition=1st paperback print.}}</ref> With over $10.3 billion in worldwide box office receipts, ''Star Wars'' is the [[List of highest-grossing films#Highest-grossing franchises and film series|second-highest-grossing film franchise]] of all time.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=Star Wars – Box Office History |url=https://the-numbers.com/movies/series/StarWars.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822054739/http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Star-Wars |archive-date=August 22, 2013 |access-date=January 5, 2020 |website=The Numbers}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=Movie Franchises |url=https://the-numbers.com/movies/series/franchisesW.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822015623/http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchises/sort/World |archive-date=August 22, 2013 |access-date=January 3, 2013 |website=The Numbers}}</ref>

''Star Wars'' fundamentally changed the aesthetics and narratives of [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]] films, switching the focus of Hollywood-made films from deep, meaningful stories based on dramatic conflict, themes and [[irony]] to sprawling special-effects-laden [[blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbusters]], as well as changing the Hollywood film industry in fundamental ways. Before ''Star Wars'', special effects in films had not appreciably advanced since the 1950s.<ref name=Bigsby>{{cite book|last1=Bigsby|first1=Christopher|title=The Cambridge Companion to Modern American Culture|date=2006|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-0-521-84132-0|edition=[Online-Ausg.].}}</ref> The commercial success of ''Star Wars'' created a boom in state-of-the-art special effects in the late 1970s.<ref name=Cook /> Along with ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'', ''Star Wars'' started the tradition of the summer [[Blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbuster]] film in the entertainment industry, where films open on many screens at the same time and profitable [[Media franchise|franchises]] are important.<ref name="chicago">{{Cite news |last=Caro |first=Mark |date=May 8, 2005 |title=The power of the dark side |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/chi-0505080390may08,0,5905863,full.story |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522062851/http://www.chicagotribune.com/chi-0505080390may08,0,5905863,full.story |archive-date=May 22, 2011 |access-date=June 13, 2016 |work=Chicago Tribune}}</ref><ref name="pbs" /> It created the model for the major film trilogy and showed that merchandising rights on a film could generate more money than the film itself did.<ref name="msn" />

Film critic [[Roger Ebert]] wrote in his book ''[[The Great Movies]]'', "Like ''[[The Birth of a Nation]]'' and ''[[Citizen Kane]]'', ''Star Wars'' was a technical watershed that influenced many of the movies that came after." It began a new generation of special effects and high-energy motion pictures. The film was one of the first films to link genres together to invent a new, [[high-concept]] genre for filmmakers to build upon.<ref name="Legacy" /> Finally, along with [[Steven Spielberg]]'s ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'', it shifted the film industry's focus away from personal filmmaking of the 1970s and towards fast-paced, big-budget [[blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbusters]] for younger audiences.<ref name="EmpireOfDreams" /><ref name="GreatEbert">{{cite web |work=Chicago Sun-Times |publisher=Sun-Times Media Group |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |date=June 28, 1999 |title=Great Movies: Star Wars |url=https://rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-star-wars-episode-iv-a-new-hope-1977 |access-date=October 1, 2006 |archive-date=April 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413113345/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-star-wars-episode-iv-a-new-hope-1977 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Shone">[[Tom Shone|Shone, Tom]] (2004). ''[[Blockbuster (2004 book)|Blockbuster: How Hollywood Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Summer]]''. London: Simon & Schuster. p. 64. {{ISBN|0-7432-6838-5}}.</ref>

Some critics have blamed ''Star Wars'' and ''Jaws'' for "ruining" Hollywood by shifting its focus from "sophisticated" films such as ''[[The Godfather]]'', ''[[Taxi Driver]]'', and ''[[Annie Hall]]'' to films about spectacle and juvenile fantasy, and for the industry shift from stand-alone, one and done films, towards blockbuster franchises with multiple sequels and prequels.<ref name="American">{{cite news |work=Decent Films Guide |author=Greydanus, Steven D. |title=An American Mythology: Why Star Wars Still Matters |url=http://www.decentfilms.com/articles/starwars |access-date=October 1, 2006 |archive-date=February 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120206024753/http://www.decentfilms.com/articles/starwars |url-status=live }}</ref> One such critic, [[Peter Biskind]], complained, "When all was said and done, Lucas and Spielberg returned the 1970s audience, grown sophisticated on a diet of European and [[New Hollywood]] films, to the simplicities of the pre-1960s [[Classical Hollywood cinema|Golden Age of movies]]... They marched backward through the looking-glass."<ref name="American" /><ref name="Biskind">[[Peter Biskind|Biskind, Peter]] (1998). "Star Bucks". ''Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-and-Rock 'N' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood''. New York: [[Simon & Schuster]]. pp. 336–337, 343. {{ISBN|0-684-80996-6}}.</ref> In an opposing view, [[Tom Shone]] wrote that through ''Star Wars'' and ''Jaws'', Lucas and Spielberg "didn't betray cinema at all: they plugged it back into the grid, returning the medium to its roots as a carnival sideshow, a magic act, one big special effect", which was "a kind of rebirth".<ref name="Shone" />

The original ''Star Wars'' trilogy is widely considered one of the best film trilogies in history.<ref>For a sampling of the reviews, read the following:
* {{cite web|title=The 33 Greatest Movie Trilogies &#124; 2. The Original ''Star Wars'' Trilogy|url=https://www.empireonline.com/features/trilogy/default.asp?film=2|work=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]|publisher=[[Bauer Media Group]]|access-date=May 20, 2014|archive-date=December 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222052758/http://www.empireonline.com/features/trilogy/default.asp?film=2|url-status=live}}
* {{cite web|last=Gibron|first=Bill|title=The 10 Greatest Motion Picture Trilogies of All Time|url=https://popmatters.com/post/148823-the-10-greatest-motion-picture-trilogies-of-all-time/|work=[[PopMatters]]|access-date=May 20, 2014|date=September 21, 2011|archive-date=December 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151223014531/http://www.popmatters.com/post/148823-the-10-greatest-motion-picture-trilogies-of-all-time/|url-status=live}}
* {{cite news|last=Griffin|first=Michael|title=Good Things Come In Threes: Great Movie Trilogies|url=http://www.hollywood.com/news/movies/55027259/best-five-movie-trilogies|work=[[Hollywood.com]]|access-date=May 20, 2014|date=September 11, 2013|archive-date=May 21, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521031228/http://www.hollywood.com/news/movies/55027259/best-five-movie-trilogies|url-status=live}}
* {{cite news|title=10 of the best movie trilogies of all-time &#124; 1. ''Star Wars'' Episodes IV – VI|url=http://www.hitfix.com/galleries/10-of-the-best-movie-trilogies-of-all-time/11|work=[[HitFix]]|access-date=May 20, 2014|date=April 25, 2013|author1=Ellwood, Gregory|author2=Eggersten, Chris|author3=Fienberg, Dan|author4=McWeeny, Drew|author5=Lewis, Dave|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521031520/http://www.hitfix.com/galleries/10-of-the-best-movie-trilogies-of-all-time/11|archive-date=May 21, 2014}}</ref> Numerous filmmakers have been influenced by ''Star Wars'', including [[Damon Lindelof]], [[Dean Devlin]], [[Roland Emmerich]], [[John Lasseter]],<ref>{{cite web|last=Pond|first=Steve|title=Why Disney Fired John Lasseter&nbsp;– And How He Came Back to Heal the Studio|url=https://thewrap.com/john-lasseter-disney-fired-frozen-healed-studio-oscarwrap-down-wire|work=[[TheWrap]]|publisher=The Wrap News Inc.|access-date=May 10, 2014|date=February 21, 2014|archive-date=May 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140508200853/http://www.thewrap.com/john-lasseter-disney-fired-frozen-healed-studio-oscarwrap-down-wire|url-status=live}}</ref> [[David Fincher]], [[Joss Whedon]], [[John Singleton]], [[Kevin Smith]],<ref name="Legacy">{{Cite video|title=The Force Is With Them: The Legacy of Star Wars|publisher=Star Wars Original Trilogy DVD Box Set: Bonus Materials|date=2004}}</ref> and later ''Star Wars'' directors [[J.&nbsp;J. Abrams]] and [[Gareth Edwards (filmmaker)|Gareth Edwards]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/feb/27/gareth-edwards-monsters-star-wars|title=The film that changed my life: Gareth Edwards|author=Hopkins, Jessica|date=February 27, 2011|access-date=May 10, 2014|work=[[The Guardian]]|archive-date=May 5, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140505015532/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/feb/27/gareth-edwards-monsters-star-wars|url-status=live}}</ref> Lucas's concept of a "used universe" particularly influenced [[Ridley Scott]]'s ''[[Blade Runner]]'' (1982) and ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]'' (1979), [[James Cameron]]'s ''[[Aliens (film)|Aliens]]'' (1986) as well as ''[[The Terminator]]'' (1984), [[George Miller (director)|George Miller]]'s ''[[Mad Max 2]]'' (1981), and [[Peter Jackson]]'s [[The Lord of the Rings (film series)|''The Lord of the Rings'' trilogy]] (2001–2003).<ref name="Legacy" /> [[Christopher Nolan]] cited ''Star Wars'' as an influence when making the 2010 blockbuster film ''[[Inception]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Christopher Nolan's Star Wars Inspiration |url=http://hub.contactmusic.com/news/christopher-nolans-star-wars-inspiration_1153625 |publisher=ContactMusic.com |date=July 16, 2010 |access-date=September 24, 2010 |archive-date=December 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219064444/http://hub.contactmusic.com/news/christopher-nolans-star-wars-inspiration_1153625 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Fan works ====
{{Main|Star Wars fan films}}
The ''Star Wars'' saga has inspired many fans to create their own non-canon material set in the ''Star Wars'' galaxy. In recent years, this has ranged from writing [[fan fiction]] to creating [[fan film]]s. In 2002, Lucasfilm sponsored the first annual [[The Official Star Wars Fan Film Awards|Official ''Star Wars'' Fan Film Awards]], officially recognizing filmmakers and the genre. Because of concerns over potential [[copyright]] and trademark issues, however, the contest was initially open only to [[parody|parodies]], [[mockumentary|mockumentaries]], and documentaries. Fan fiction films set in the ''Star Wars'' universe were originally ineligible, but in 2007, Lucasfilm changed the submission standards to allow in-universe fiction entries.<ref>{{Cite news|access-date=March 28, 2008|url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-25279212_ITM|title=Filmmaker Kevin Smith Hosts 'The Official Star Wars Fan Film Awards' on SCI FI Channel; George Lucas to Present Special Honor|publisher=[[Business Wire]]|date=April 23, 2002|archive-date=June 29, 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120629011859/http://www.accessmylibrary.com/search/?q=Filmmaker%20Kevin%20Smith%20Hosts%20%60The%20Official%20Star%20Wars%20Fan%20Film%20Awards'%20On%20SCI%20FI%20Channel;%20George%20Lucas%20to%20Present%20Special%20Honor.|url-status=live}}</ref> Lucasfilm has allowed but not endorsed the creation of fan fiction, as long as it does not attempt to make a profit.<ref>{{Cite news|first= Sarah|last= Knapton|title= Court to rule in Star Wars costume battle|url= http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2271561,00.html|work= The Guardian|location= UK|date= April 7, 2008|access-date= April 15, 2008|archive-date= April 11, 2008|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080411061922/http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2271561,00.html|url-status= live}}</ref>