The cast is selected and cameras are rolling on Star Wars Episode VIII, a portion of which is being filmed in Dubrovnik, Croatia, which was paid $38 million to host the filming. While there will be the occasional leaked photo from the set, Disney is rumored be going to extreme measures in order to prevent unauthorized filming of the movie, using anti-drone technology in addition to an army of guards.
According to MosCroatia, Episode VIII director Rian Johnson has hired a special team of drone operators to combat unauthorized drones attempting to steal footage of the filming. “In addition to considering Dubrovnik, there is a special team with drones that will remove the uninvited drones so that no recording would be made public,” claims MosCroatia. Details on how the permitted drones will chase off the un-permitted ones is not known, but the thought of some drone-versus-drone combat taking places in the skies above the set is exciting.
Besides potentially using drones to secure the set, MosCroatia also reports that Disney will employ more than 600 local field guards to keep onlookers away from the Episode VIII set. Unlike previous Star Wars movies, Episode VIII reportedly focuses on live-action scenes instead of the CGI George Lucas used in previous episodes. This reliance on filming the action scenes makes securing the set even more important for both the integrity of the film and the safety of the actors, who may be filming intense scenes.
Dubrovnik was chosen as a location because of the city’s medieval architecture and its cloistered design which makes securing the set much easier. This location is much different from the previously used Greenham Common, which was the set for the Resistance base in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Greenham Common was in a public area which made it difficult to secure the set from people wanting to sneak a peek of the unreleased blockbuster film.
Dubrovnik also has a history of working with movie and television studios. City officials allegedly are amicable and receptive when it comes to studio demands. They also offer tax incentives that make it attractive to studio heads who are watching the bottom line. Besides Star Wars Episode VIII, Dubrovnik also is home to the hit HBO series Game of Thrones.