Could there be an impending creative shuffle at Disney-owned Lucasfilm? And could this mean more changes are coming at the top of the Star Wars studio? Could the rumors of Kathleen Kennedy’s pending exit be true?
The word of Filoni’s apparent promotion seems to have originated from this reddit thread.
Dave Filoni, the primary creative force behind animated series The Clone Wars and Rebels, has seemingly been promoted to Executive Creative Director, per Star Wars fan site Fantha Tracks. He shares the role with SFX legend John Knoll and Prequel Era Concept Artist Doug Chiang. Filoni is also instrumental in The Mandalorian, a show he is credited on as an executive producer.
Fantha Tracks cites the official Star Wars site as the source of the promotion news, but going to the site now indicates its traffic is being hammered and yields a 503 Bad Gateway error.
However, they did manage to snag what is purported to be Filoni’s revised bio. You can read it below…
“DAVE FILONI
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER / EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Dave Filoni realized a lifelong dream in 2005 when he was selected by George Lucas to help build Lucasfilm’s animation studio from the ground up and create the company’s first series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Over a span of seven seasons, and more than 100 episodes, The Clone Wars (2008-2020) pushed the boundaries of television animation, receiving acclaim not only for its technical achievements, but its complex and compelling storylines. The series won four Emmy® Awards, including Outstanding Special Class Animated Program two years in a row, and introduced countless fan favorite characters to the Star Wars saga.
Filoni’s follow-up series, the Emmy® nominated Star Wars Rebels (2014-2018), similarly received universal praise for building upon the Star Wars saga and expanding on the lore and mythology first introduced in 1977. His third animated series, Star Wars Resistance, received Emmy® nominations two years in a row in the category of Outstanding Children’s Program (2019, 2020).
Filoni is executive producer, episodic director and writer on the Emmy award-winning series The Mandalorian, and is currently in production on the new series The Book of Boba Fett. He is also the creator and executive producer of the new animated series Star Wars: The Bad Batch on Disney+.”
Filoni was often thought to be a front runner for the new head of Lucasfilm by Star Wars fandom, as most of his projects have been very well-received for the most part. However, it does seem that he’s more focused on the creative side of the industry rather than the business side of it.
It’s worth watching for movement over at Lucasfilm. Clearly something is up, and changes might be afoot.
[Source: Fantha Tracks]
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