Apple reveals the Macs’ role in creating the iconic sounds in Star Wars

May the 4th be with you

When travelling through galaxies and beyond in the Star Wars franchise, it’s not just the visuals, but also what we hear that has left a lasting impression. Very few will find it hard not to recognise the distinct hum of a lightsaber or the pew-pew of a blaster. Apple is now taking us behind the scenes, revealing how its Macs have played a part in bringing those iconic sounds to life.

‘Behind the Mac: Skywalker Sound’ is a short film by Apple that gives us a glimpse at the workings of Skywalker Sound. Lucasfilms’ highly decorated sound division operates out of the Skywalker Ranch, and its employees are seen using over 130 Mac Pro racks, 40 iMacs, 50 MacBook Pros, and 50 Mac mini computers running Pro Tools.

This division boasts of a sound library, called Soundminer, with over 7,00,000 recordings, and as per the video, many of the iconic sounds we associate with Star Wars have been recorded in nature. Since inspiration can strike anywhere and at any time, having a powerful MacBook Pro helps.

“We can bring the Pro Tools session with us in the field and watch and record and quickly put it together, to test whether it works or not,” supervising sound editor Baihui Yang is quoted as saying. “If you bring all the recordings back to the studio, you don’t know if you’ve missed the moment.”

Ben Burrt, sound designer for the Star Wars franchise recalls one such instance that led to an iconic sound in a movie. A contractor on the lookout for unique sounds came across a broken ceiling fan making an odd sound. Burrt recorded the sound, which later transformed into the sound of the laser gates dividing Qui-Gon Jinn and Darth Maul during the climactic lightsaber duel in Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace.