After a two-year wait, Star Wars fans can start getting excited for the upcoming season of The Mandalorian, with the release of a new trailer.
Spoilers for previous seasons and The Book of Boba Fett are incoming, you’ve been warned. When we last saw our dynamic duo of Grogu and The Mandalorian they were rescued by the one and only Luke Skywalker. We then witnessed the separation of Mando and Grogu as Luke took Grogu away to Tatooine.
However, as we saw from the events of The Book of Boba Fett little Grogu was given a choice. To remain with Luke Skywalker and train to be a Jedi or to return to his pal the Mandalorian. Fans were happy to see that Grogu decided to return to his friend and the duo is back in action!
The Mandalorian season 3 action
Season three looks to be back with a bang in the new trailer. The scenes on display show that we will be following the pair across a new galactic adventure, one that will take them to the home of the Mandalorians, Mandalore. As we know from previous seasons, Mando removes his helmet which no Mandalorian is supposed to do, so he’s heading home to ask for forgiveness for past transgressions.
That’s only scratching the surface. It looks like we will be seeing more Mandalorians, Imperial Remnants, and what appears to be a look at Order 66. Din’s return to Mandalore should prove interesting now he holds the Darksaber, and we are sure to be treated to some precious moments between Mando and Grogu. Speaking of Grogu, we get to see some force welding action. The wait is almost over as the show airs on March 1, 2023.
Our Mandalorian, who is played by Pedro Pascal, seems to have an affinity for roles where he plays the caretaker of a special child. The hit video game The Last of Us has been turned into an HBO show with Pascal in the leading role of Joel. The season aired its first episode to high acclaim on January 15.
Using Unreal Engine
The Mandalorian is one of the TV series that is looking to change the way shows are created. In previous seasons the crew has utilised the power of Unreal Engine to streamline the filming process. Unreal Engine has been used in unison with Industrial light and magic to create some of the settings for the show.
Huge curved LED walls are used to help create the set where the world’s environments can then be projected. These landscapes or interiors can be edited in real-time using Unreal. Another positive of this process is that it gives the actors a better sense of scale and space. Rather than working on green or blue screens, the actor can visually see the environment they are in.
By using Unreal Engine the show has been able to create real-time rendered backdrops. These scenes are then able to feel three-dimensional and help create better performances. Rather than filming the show and then the world and additional lighting being added in post, this process means it can all be considered in the moment.
Future potential
Unreal makes it so that the show can have a dynamic shoot with real visuals. The environments can even be changed on a whim. Don’t like where that mountain is positioned? No problem, you can simply move it. Not only can the production team play around with the environments more but they have access to more than just one environment. This means multiple shoots can be done in one day and day/night time constraints are no longer an issue.
The Mandalorian isn’t the only show to make use of Unreal Engine. HBO’s Westworld has also explored using the popular game engine. Last year a documentary filmmaker traded in traditional filmmaking techniques for the capabilities of Unreal. It will be interesting to see if TV and movie productions look to use the platform more often with the launch of Unreal Engine 5.
Paige Cook is a writer with a multi-media background. She has experience covering video games and technology and also has freelance experience in video editing, graphic design, and photography. Paige is a massive fan of the movie industry and loves a good TV show, if she is not watching something interesting then she's probably playing video games or buried in a good book. Her latest addiction is virtual photography and currently spends far too much time taking pretty pictures in games rather than actually finishing them.