Lucasfilm facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC

Lucasfilm headquarters at the Letterman Digital Arts Center
Trade name	Lucasfilm Ltd.
Formerly	Lucasfilm (1971–1977) Lucasfilm Ltd. (1977–2012)
Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Film Television Animation
Founded	December 10, 1971; 53 years ago (1971-12-10), in San Rafael, California, U.S.
Founder	George Lucas
Headquarters	Letterman Digital Arts Center, San Francisco, California , U.S.
Number of locations	6
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Kathleen Kennedy (president) Lynwen Brennan (president & general manager, Lucasfilm Business) Carrie Beck (EVP) Dave Filoni (EVP) / (CCO) Momita SenGupta (EVP)
Brands	Star Wars Indiana Jones
Number of employees	2,000 (2015)
Parent	The Walt Disney Studios (2012–present)
Divisions	Industrial Light & Magic Skywalker Sound
Subsidiaries	Lucasfilm Animation Lucasfilm Games

Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC is a famous American company that makes movies and TV shows. Filmmaker George Lucas started it on December 10, 1971, in San Rafael, California. Later, in 2005, the company moved to San Francisco.

Lucasfilm is best known for creating the amazing Star Wars and Indiana Jones stories. They are also leaders in making special effects, sound, and computer animation for films. Since 2012, Lucasfilm has been part of The Walt Disney Studios. Disney also owns Pixar, another company that used to be part of Lucasfilm.

Many of Lucasfilm's movies are among the highest-earning films ever made. These include Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). The Force Awakens even became the highest-grossing film in the United States and Canada.

The Story of Lucasfilm

Starting Out: The Independent Years (1971–2012)

Lucasfilm began in 1971 with George Lucas. He wanted to make his own independent films. In the mid-1970s, the company had offices at Universal Studios Lot. George Lucas also created a special company called Star Wars Corporation, Inc. This company handled the legal and money parts of the first Star Wars movie (1977). It also managed the rights for sequels and toys.

In 1980, the second Star Wars movie, The Empire Strikes Back, came out. It was a big hit. Between 1981 and 1989, three Indiana Jones movies were released. George Lucas wrote the stories, and Steven Spielberg directed them.

While making Return of the Jedi (1983), George Lucas decided he wouldn't make more Star Wars films for a while. He also created a company called THX in 1983. THX helps make sure movies sound great in cinemas. Lucasfilm also produced other films like Twice Upon a Time (1983), Labyrinth (1986), and Willow (1988).

In 1992, George Lucas saw amazing computer-generated imagery (CGI) tests from Industrial Light & Magic (ILM). This made him want to make new Star Wars movies. He planned the Prequel Trilogy. These films, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, were released between 1999 and 2005.

In 1989, Lucasfilm created a new group called Lucasfilm Entertainment Group. This group brought together different parts of the company. These included Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) for special effects, Lucasfilm Games for video games, and Skywalker Sound for sound design.

In 2005, Lucasfilm opened a new studio in Singapore. This studio focused on animation. They started making a 3D animated Star Wars TV show called Star Wars: The Clone Wars. This show was very popular with fans and won many awards.

Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic Foyer (Presidio Complex)

In 2012, George Lucas announced he would retire from making huge blockbuster films. He wanted to focus on smaller, independent movies. Kathleen Kennedy, who worked on the Indiana Jones films, became the co-chair of Lucasfilm. She later became the company's chairperson in 2013.

Many Lucasfilm teams, like marketing and online groups, moved to the new Letterman Digital Arts Center in San Francisco in 2012. This is where Industrial Light & Magic is also located. Skywalker Sound is still based at the Skywalker Ranch.

Becoming Part of Disney (2012–Present)

The Big Deal: Disney Buys Lucasfilm

In May 2011, George Lucas met with Disney CEO Bob Iger. Lucas told Iger he was thinking about retiring and selling Lucasfilm. This included the Star Wars and Indiana Jones stories. On October 30, 2012, Disney announced they would buy Lucasfilm for about $4.05 billion.

Kathleen Kennedy became the president of Lucasfilm. She also became the brand manager for Star Wars. This means she helps make sure all Star Wars projects work together. Disney also announced that new Star Wars films would be made, starting with Episode VII: The Force Awakens in 2015.

With this deal, Disney gained ownership of Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and all of Lucasfilm's businesses. This included making live-action films, toys, video games, animation, and special effects. Lucasfilm employees stayed in their jobs. The deal was completed on December 21, 2012. Lucasfilm officially became a part of Disney.

In 2013, Disney bought the rights to distribute future Indiana Jones films from Paramount Pictures. This meant that Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023) was the first Indiana Jones film co-produced by Walt Disney Pictures.

Kathleen Kennedy's Leadership (2012–Present)

In early 2013, Disney CEO Bob Iger shared plans for Lucasfilm. They would release new Star Wars films that were not part of the main story. These are called "standalone" films. Rogue One came out in 2016, and Solo: A Star Wars Story followed in 2018.

On April 3, 2013, LucasArts, the video game part of Lucasfilm, closed down most of its operations. Disney then made a deal with Electronic Arts (EA) to create Star Wars games. However, this exclusive deal ended in January 2021.

In January 2014, it was announced that Marvel Comics, another Disney company, would start publishing Star Wars comics in 2015. Also, Lucasfilm decided that only the six main Star Wars movies and The Clone Wars TV show would be considered the official story, or "canon." Other stories became part of "Star Wars Legends."

Lucasfilm continued to grow globally. In 2014, they opened a new office in Singapore. Between 2015 and 2018, Lucasfilm released several successful movies like Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Rogue One.

After Solo: A Star Wars Story didn't do as well as expected, Disney decided to slow down new Star Wars movies. Lucasfilm then focused on making shows for Disney+. This included the very popular series The Mandalorian.

In November 2023, Dave Filoni was promoted to chief creative officer at Lucasfilm. He now helps plan future Star Wars films and other series.

How Lucasfilm is Organized

Lucasfilm has several important parts:

• Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) – This team creates amazing visual effects for movies. They have offices in places like Vancouver, London, Mumbai, and Sydney.
• Skywalker Sound – This group designs and mixes all the sounds for films.
• Lucasfilm Games – This part of the company makes video games.
• Lucasfilm Animation – This team creates animated movies and TV shows.
• Lucas Licensing – This group handles all the toys, clothes, and other products related to Lucasfilm's stories.
• Lucas Books – This is a part of Del Rey Books that publishes Star Wars and other Lucasfilm books.
• Lucasfilm Story Group – This team, started in 2012, helps keep all the stories consistent across different movies, shows, and books.

Past Parts of Lucasfilm

Some companies used to be part of Lucasfilm:

Lucasfilm's Movies and Shows

Popular Stories (Franchises)

Lucasfilm is known for these big story worlds:

Top Earning Films

Here are some of Lucasfilm's highest-earning movies:

See also

In Spanish: Lucasfilm para niños