Season 2 of Light & Magic arrives on Disney+ this Friday, April 18, 2025, continuing the legacy of Lucasfilm’s award-winning visual effects studio, Industrial Light & Magic. This season, with Joe Johnston directing and Ahmed Best front and center, explores how ILM redefined moviemaking from Jurassic Park through the Star Wars prequels.
ILM’s Story from the Inside
Joe Johnston, who joined ILM during A New Hope, opens the season with Jurassic Park, the moment digital effects truly came alive. Johnston’s goal? To spotlight George Lucas’ role in pioneering digital tools and the entire language of modern effects-driven cinema.
Viewers will see how Lucas inspired new technologies and mentored the next generation of filmmakers through ILM.
Jar Jar Binks and a Digital Revolution
Ahmed Best, the actor behind Jar Jar Binks, calls his character “the first step” in a long journey to fully digital performances. Jar Jar paved the way for Gollum in The Lord of the Rings and the Na’vi in Avatar. Best collaborated with ILM artists to bring the character to life through early performance capture technology.
“What you’ll see in this season,” Best says, “is the emotional core behind the tech. It was all about service to story.”
A Time Capsule for ILM Creators
Animation director Rob Coleman reflects on seeing old footage of himself in his 30s: “It’s surreal. This feels like a time machine.” Coleman wasn’t alone. Artists like Doug Chiang and John Knoll share personal moments that reveal the pressure and passion of working on the Star Wars prequels.
This season of Light & Magic highlights over a decade of ILM’s evolution. Every frame required innovation, from building crowd simulation software to animating massive battle scenes. George Lucas’ leadership and faith in his team fueled the work.
ILM’s Janet Lewin adds, “The cameras captured every meeting, every idea. We get to see how groundbreaking moments actually happened.”
Final Thoughts
Light & Magic Season 2 doesn’t just tell the story of ILM—it tells the story of filmmaking’s most dramatic shift. From the dawn of digital effects to the rise of performance capture, it’s a masterclass in creativity, collaboration, and persistence.
