Rife with political intrigue, danger, tension, and high stakes, Lucasfilm’s Andor is a prequel to 2026’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, setting the clock back five years before the events of the feature film to tell the story of hero Cassian Andor and his transformation from a disinterested, cynical nobody into a rebel hero on his way to an epic destiny. Season 2 of Lucasfilm’s hit Disney+ series intensifies the relationships of its characters as the horizon of war draws near and Cassian becomes a key player in the Rebel Alliance. Everyone is tested and, as the stakes rise, the betrayals, sacrifices, and conflicting agendas become profound.
ILM’s work on Andor Season 2 won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Season or Movie and a VES Award for Outstanding Environment in an Episodic, Commercial, Game Cinematic, or Real-Time Project, as well as received additional nominations from the VES Awards, Royal Television Society, and Astra Film & Creative Arts Awards.
Industrial Light & Magic created over 1,000 visual effects shots for Andor Season 2. Live action plate photography for locations like Chandrilla, Ghorman, and Coruscant was captured in Italy and Spain, among other locales. For Coruscant, in particular, ILM worked to integrate multiple locations that collectively served as the Imperial Senate. Additional environment extensions, effects simulation, and compositing helped to realize the horrific massacre on Ghorman.
Also new in Season 2 was ILM’s recreation of the droid K-2SO in collaboration with Alan Tudyk, who performed using the IMocap system. Additionally, the season’s memorable opening sequence, when Cassian steals a TIE Avenger from a secret Imperial base, proved an exciting challenge.
As production visual effects supervisor, ILM’s own Mohen Leo collaborated with ILM visual effects supervisor Scott Pritchard and ILM associate visual effects supervisor Tania Richard. Work was centered at the London studio with additional support from teams in Vancouver and Mumbai.
Read more about Andor Season 2 on ILM.com:
“Let the Experts Be the Experts”: TJ Falls and Mohen Leo on the Visual Effects of ‘Andor’ Season 2
Assembling a Starfighter: Exploring ILM’s Role in Creating the TIE Avenger from ‘Andor’
Ariel Kleiman
Janus Metz
Alonso Ruizpalacios
Mohen Leo
TJ Falls
Scott Pritchard
Tania Richard
Daniel Schmid-Leal
Mathieu Vig
Michael Dharney
Stefan Drury
Adele Jones-Venables
Duncan Ramsay