Vader Episode I: Shards of the Past

The film takes place eight months after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, and focuses around one of the main villains of the Star Wars saga, Darth Vader. Fighting between the loss of Padmé, and the new cursed life he now leads, Vader must do what must be done when a surviving Jedi Master from Order 66 has lured him to the home planet of his late wife's tomb.{{cite web |url=https://www.starwarstheory.com/2018/12/23/watch-vader-episode-1-shards-of-the-past-a-star-wars-theory-fan-film/|title=WATCH VADER EPISODE 1: SHARDS OF THE PAST – A STAR WARS THEORY FAN-FILM|date=December 23, 2018|website=StarWarsTheory.com|access-date=February 13, 2019}}

• Dupree Jones as Darth Vader
• Jesse Gomez as the voice of Darth Vader
• Star Wars Theory (Neo) as unmasked Darth Vader
• Marik Knight as Young Anakin Skywalker
• Steven Bartlett as Emperor Palpatine
• Bradley Klein as the voice of Emperor Palpatine
• Catherine LaSalle as Padmé Amidala
• Andrew Branch as Commander Fox

Prior to the film's release, Star Wars Theory exchanged emails with Lucasfilm asking permission to crowdfund the short film or make any revenue from it. Lucasfilm permitted its creation, but with no crowdfunding or revenue.{{cite episode|title= LUCASFILM SUPPORTS MY VADER FAN FILM!! BUT... - Star Wars Theory Fan Film|series=Star Wars Theory|date=June 21, 2018|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJLT5fKDdPA&t=96s|network=YouTube}}

After its release, Warner/Chappell Music gave the film a copyright claim on YouTube about its soundtrack. Star Wars Theory had hired a composer to make an original soundtrack, which was inspired by the Star Wars score. Instead of the video being unmonetized as Lucasfilm requested, it would generate ad revenue for Warner/Chappell. Star Wars Theory explained, "It's not about the money, it's the principle. When [Lucasfilm] come to me with these rules… but then someone goes in there and manually claims it… to me, that’s very vindictive and very rude. Disney makes billions of dollars. This is pennies to them. It seems that they really don't respect anything at all for the fandom."{{cite episode|title= Disney Files CLAIM on Vader fan film and is making money from it now...|series=Star Wars Theory|date=January 14, 2019|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acPFPu_UZWE&t=13s|network=YouTube}}{{cite web|last=Katzowitz|first=Josh|url=https://www.dailydot.com/upstream/star-wars-theory-youtube-copyright-claim-disney/|title= Disney files copyright claim on YouTuber's Darth Vader film—and the creator is devastated|publisher=The Daily Dot|date=January 15, 2019|access-date=February 2, 2019}}

Over the Internet, Star Wars Theory received support including from Newsweek,{{cite web|last=Asarch|first=Steven|url=https://www.newsweek.com/star-wars-theory-disney-youtube-claim-copyright-reddit-1293172|title=YOUTUBE STAR WARS THEORY HAS VADER FAN FILM STRUCK DOWN BY DISNEY MUSIC PUBLISHER (UPDATE)|publisher=Newsweek|date=January 15, 2019|access-date=February 16, 2019}} Syfy Wire,{{cite web|last=Young|first=Bryan|url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/star-wars-weekly-john-boyegas-bloody-episode-ix-tease-and-some-fan-film-drama|title=STAR WARS WEEKLY: JOHN BOYEGA'S BLOODY EPISODE IX TEASE AND SOME FAN FILM DRAMA|publisher=Syfy Wire|date=January 18, 2019|access-date=February 16, 2019|archive-date=September 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190922101336/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/star-wars-weekly-john-boyegas-bloody-episode-ix-tease-and-some-fan-film-drama|url-status=dead}} fans, and other YouTubers. On January 16, 2019, Star Wars Theory announced that Lucasfilm had forced the copyright strike to come down, restoring the video to its original state.{{cite episode|title= LUCASFILM STEPS IN! ORDERS THEM TO REMOVE CLAIM! JUSTICE!!|series=Star Wars Theory|date=January 16, 2019|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wn2jYlmvy4&t=18s|network=YouTube}}

Vader Episode I: Shards of the Past has received positive critical reviews.{{cite episode|title=I think they liked it...Vader Fan-Film Reaction End Credits|series=Star Wars Theory|date=December 21, 2018|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzY4P2BFRD0|network=YouTube}} Luke Y. Thompson of Nerdist gave it a positive review, calling it "impressive", as he said Vader would have put it.{{cite web|last=Thompson|first=Luke Y.|url=https://nerdist.com/star-wars-darth-vader-fan-film-vs-palpatine/|title=STAR WARS DARTH VADER FAN FILM SEES HIM BATTLE PALPATINE|publisher=Nerdist|date=December 27, 2018|access-date=January 16, 2019}} Ryan Chichester of Comic Book Resources stated, "The film boasts a high level of production, voice impersonations of multiple Star Wars characters, and an intriguing story".{{cite web|last=Chichester|first= Ryan|url=https://www.cbr.com/star-wars-fan-film-tortured-darth-vader/|title=Dark Star Wars Fan Film Explores the Tortured Mind of Darth Vader|publisher=Comic Book Resources|date= December 24, 2018|access-date = January 16, 2019}} Julie Muncy of io9 said, "...the star here is the visual design, which captures a live-action Star Wars look perfectly. It's particularly thrilling to see Clone Wars-style clone armor in live action. It's well worth a watch for that alone."{{cite web|last=Muncy|first=Julie|url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/this-dark-star-wars-fan-film-perfectly-captures-the-fee-1831286475|title=This Dark Star Wars Fan Film Perfectly Captures the Feel of Darth Vader's World|publisher=io9|date=December 23, 2018|access-date=January 16, 2019}} David Pountain of We Got This Covered says, "...with this unofficial new Darth Vader movie, we see a testament to the dedication of the [Star Wars] franchise's followers."{{cite web|last=Pountain|first=David|url=https://wegotthiscovered.com/movies/impressive-star-wars-fan-film-explores-early-years-darth-vader/|title=New Star Wars Fan Film Explores The Early Years Of Darth Vader|publisher=We Got This Covered|date=December 31, 2018|access-date=March 3, 2019}} Corey Chichizola of Cinema Blend claims, "It helps make [Darth Vader's] actions in Return of The Jedi make more sense, and expands the franchise's signature character in a fascinating way."{{cite web|last=Chichizola|first=Corey|url=https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2464281/fan-made-darth-vader-movie-is-chilling-and-epic|title=Fan Made Darth Vader Movie Is Chilling And Epic|publisher=Cinema Blend|date=December 31, 2018|access-date= January 20, 2019}} Kristian Harloff of Collider said that the film encapsulated the spirit of Star Wars extremely well and expressed interest in wanting a second part. He also called the writing and dialogue being a bit weak. Ken Napzok, who was with Harloff at the time of recording, noted the amount of passion Star Wars Theory put into the film, and said that the film reminded him of other Star Wars fan films{{mdash}}in particular, Troops and Hardware Wars.{{Cite episode|title= Thoughts on the Vader Fan Film|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsxZegGYd68|access-date= February 18, 2019|series= Jedi Council|network= Collider|via= YouTube|date= January 3, 2019}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Wikiquote}}

• {{YouTube|id=Ey68aMOV9gc|title=Vader Episode I: Shards of the Past}}
• {{YouTube|id=gEL8aHfSk-4|title=Vader Episode 2: Mace Windu Returns - The Amethyst Blade Cinematic}}
• {{YouTube|id=FlAPFzj6zy4|title=Vader Episode 2: Anakin Skywalker Cinematic}}
• {{IMDb title|8918876}}
• {{Official website|starwarstheory.com|name=Star Wars Theory's official website}}

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