'Star Wars' Episode 8 started production in Ireland; Skellig Michael is Luke Skywalker's hideaway?

By Staff Writer

Sep 11, 2015 08:41 PM EDT

Recently, reports that "Star Wars" is returning to the island of Skellig Michael were confirmed. But, it was not confirmed whether they are referring to "The Force Awakens" or to any other Star Wars episode.

However, Entertainment Weekly confirmed that Lucasfilm's "Star Wars episode VIII" would start shooting in Ireland this month. The report also explained that when Lucasfilm announced the schedule for filming, it simply referred to the name "Star Wars" in order to keep the shoot under control.

In fact, however, the new plan is the development of the Episode VIII. Now, Slashfilm reported that it does not matter if this will be their second-unit filming before the production or the official beginning of production. But, Minister of Arts imposed some guidelines and some official groups are tasked to protect the local lush vegetation and the archaeological environment.

Ian Lumley, An Taisce, intended to know how the production will use the island, according to RTE. Also, he was particularly concerned about the possible effect on flying birds due to the prevalence of helicopter flights. Nevertheless, he said he understood the doubling numbers of flight scenes this year compared to last year's shooting.

"We very much appreciate their help and cooperation in bringing arrangements for this short visit to a satisfactory conclusion," Lumley stated.

And while fans wait for the release of "The Force Awakens", speculations insists that the ruins of Skellig Michael is the hideaway of Luke Skywalker. This will be proven once the said movie will be out on December this year.

Skellig Michael is a World Heritage site with monastic ruins from the late 12th century.  It is an island with sharp-edged rocks elevated in 715 feet above sea level, covered with lush, green flora. It is also a home to different kinds of birds, some are endangered. The place is extremely restricted to the tourists due to the potential damage to the landscape.

Meanwhile, Lucasfilm is preparing to produce a Star Wars film once a year. Even with that in mind, the production for the "Star Wars Episode VIII" is way advance to the expected production schedule.

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