Captain EO
Captain EO is a 1986 American 3D science fiction short film shown at Disney theme parks from 1986 until 1998. The movie, starring Michael Jackson, was written by George Lucas, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola (who came up with the name "Captain EO" from the Greek, cf. Eos, the Greek goddess of dawn). The film was shown as part of an attraction with in-theater effects. The attraction returned to the Disney Parks in 2010 as a tribute after Jackson's death. The film was shown for the final time at Epcot on December 6, 2015.
Captain EO | |
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Directed by | Francis Ford Coppola |
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Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Peter Anderson |
Music by | James Horner |
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Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures |
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Running time | 17 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $23.7 million ($63 million in 2022 dollars) |
The film's executive producer was George Lucas. It was choreographed by Jeffrey Hornaday and Michael Jackson, photographed by Peter Anderson, produced by Rusty Lemorande and written by Lemorande, Lucas and Coppola, from a story idea by the artists of Walt Disney Imagineering. Lemorande also initially designed and created two of the creatures, and was an editor of the film. The score was written by James Horner and featured two songs ("We Are Here to Change the World" and "Another Part of Me"), both written and performed by Michael Jackson.
Cinematographer Vittorio Storaro was the lighting director during much of the principal photography. Captain EO is regarded as one of the first "4D" films (4D being the name given to a 3D film that incorporates in-theater effects, such as lasers, smoke, etc., synchronized to the film).