The Lost Short That Played before Empire Strikes Back Is Becoming a Feature Film

If you’ll recall, a few weeks ago a 25 minute short film by Roger Christian was released online titled Black Angel. Originally, it had played before screenings of The Empire Strikes Back in England, Scotland, and Australia at George Lucas’ behest. Until it resurfaced online, however, it fell into obscurity.

But now?

Well, the film’s been circulating around the media and getting a lot of attention. Wisely, the filmmakers behind it are running an IndieGoGo campaign to gain some supplemental financing to help turn that 25 minute short into a feature length film.

How’s the IndieGoGo campaign going?

Very well, actually. After just one day, they’ve raised more than $33,000 of their $100,000 goal. Hopefully, they’ll not only meet their goal but exceed it and hit as many stretch goals as possible.

What will the film be about?

Well, they go into in depth on the campaign page, but in a nutshell Black Angel is a hero’s journey tale that follows a knight determined to fight the Black Angel, the Demon Kings commander in the lands of Serandal. The knight is aided by a sorcerer and the daughter of a rival king. If you want to get a general feel for the feature, just check out the short below:

Who’s staring in it?

At the moment, Laura Weissbecker, John Rhys-Davis (Lord of the Rings) and Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner) have joined the cast, which is very good news.

What will it look like?

We don’t know the exact look the final film will be going for, but this concept art by Richard Anderson (Guild Wars, Prometheus) and Lamin Martin (Game of Thrones Ascent) should give us some indication:

Are they shooting this practically or using a lot of green screen?

Well, it would be naive to think there would be no green screen used, but they seem to want to stick to the old school aesthetic of the original as much as possible. Production is set to commence in Hungary, Belgium, Morocco, and Scotland.

It’s a safe bet to say that Black Angel will be a return to the dark 80’s fantasy we’ve missed for a while, so assuming this project is made it’ll be a welcome return of the genre.

What kind of goodies do I get for contributing?

Aside from the usual stuff like T-shirts and a copy of the film, the higher tiered contributors can be extras, attend the red carpet premiere, and if you’re willing to shell out $20,000 you can even get a piece of the original negative of Star Wars: A New Hope.

But, perhaps more worthwhile than all of these perks is a mentorship program. Six backers will be able to work as a trainee with an experienced member of the following departments:

• Costume Department
• Art Department
• Production Assistant
• Camera Department
• Editing Department
• UrbanPost Audio

At the very least, it should look fantastic on a resume. At most, you’ll be getting some worthwhile hands-on experience on the set of a cool movie.

Awesome! How do I contribute?

Check out the Black Angel IndieGoGo campaign here.