13 Jun – The core "Star Wars" movies are not going digital. As confirmed by director Rian Johnson himself, the upcoming "Star Wars Episode 8" will also be shot on film instead of in digital format. Replying to a question on Twitter, Johnson stated that the movie will be shot on 35mm film specifically. However, when asked whether it was to be fully shot on film or will have a mixture of IMAX footage, the director only replied "not sure yet".
Meanwhile, the first spinoff "Star Wars: Rogue One", directed by Gareth Edwards, was shot with Alexa 65, according to The Hollywood Reporter. It is a large-format, 6K resolution model of ARRI's popular Alexa digital cinematography camera – also used for the upcoming "Mission: Impossible" and Zhang Yimou's "The Great Wall". "Star Wars: Rogue One" is currently slated for release on 15 December 2016 whereas "Star Wars 8" is expected to open in North American cinemas on 26 May 2017, exactly forty years and a day after the first movie, "Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope", was released back in 1977. Ahead of both movies, "Star Force: The Force Awakens", the core "Star Wars" movie before "Star Wars 8", will open in cinemas this 17 December 2015.