Factory Workshop

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This article is non-canon within the canon continuity.

This article covers a subject from a Star Wars: Visions story that Lucasfilm declared is set in an alternate history within a reimagined galaxy.

"Daal. what are you doin'?"
"I'm gettin' out of here, Baython."
―Daal tells Baython that she is leaving the workhouse[1]

The Factory Workshop was an Imperial workhouse that was located on a planet. The building was dark gray with yellow strips of light and guarded by multiple droids. It had multiple floors, including a room with rows of bunk beds for child workers, a floor where workers dumped black rocks into a crucible, and a room where workers moved metal cubes out of a machine and onto a conveyor belt. Above the rooms was a walkway where workers in protective uniforms turned wheels on steam pipes.

At one point, one of the workers—a human named Daal—caused a pipe to burst. She then stormed out of the workhouse and was followed by two of her friends, Baython and Quinn. Baython asked Daal what she was doing, to which she explained that she was leaving the workhouse. Quinn became excited that they were leaving. After Baython told Daal how long the walk would be, Quinn suggested stealing some speeders. Another fellow worker named Keena approached the trio and asked what was happening, and Baython invited her to join them. The group then stole speeders from the workhouse and left it behind.

Description

"Why walk when we could steal some speeders?"
―Quinn suggesting the group steals speeders from the workhouse[1]
The many workers slept in long rows of stacked bunk beds on a lower floor

The many workers slept in long rows of stacked bunk beds on a lower floor

The Factory Workshop[2] was an Imperial[3] workhouse located on a gray mucky field on[1] a planet.[3] The building was guarded by many hovering droids with spotlights. The outside of the building was dark gray with yellow strips of lights lining the sides of the walls. Near the building, multiple speeders were chained together. Further away from the building, a few workers used three-legged machines to walk around the muck. The workhouse released black smoke from pipes leading to the interior.[1]

Inside, the building had multiple floors[1] where workers faced challenging conditions.[4] A lower floor contained many rows of multi-layered stacked bunk beds where many[1] child workers[5] slept, some beds were used by more than one being. When it was time to work, a droid woke the workers up. The floor above had tracks where mine carts containing black rocks were pushed by workers to be dumped into a crucible, at least one droid guarded this floor. The next floor contained machines that dispensed glowing metal cubes that workers removed with tongs and placed on slow moving conveyor belts. The room also contained pillars with buttons connected to the floor above that were pressed by a hovering droid. Overhead, walkways above these rooms had steam pipes with wheels that were turned by workers wearing protective black suits. Throughout the workhouse were many steam vents.[1]

History

"What if you didn't have to go back to the workhouse? The farms. All of this. If you could just keep going, would you?"
―Daal, asking Baython what he would do if he could leave[1]
The four children stand outside of the factory

The four children stand outside of the factory

At some point, a young human worker named Daal was turning a wheel connected to the steam pipes too quickly, causing steam to erupt from the pipe and cause a red button to flash in the floor below as a hovering droid frantically pressed it. Aggravated, the young human stormed out of the workhouse[1] for a breath of fresh air. In the quiet of the outdoors, she dreamt of escaping.[4] Followed by her friends Baython and Quinn, Baython asked Daal what she was doing.[1]

She told her friends that she was leaving the workhouse, to which Quinn celebrated. Daal explained that she was headed to Screecher's Reach, a mountain that was believed to be haunted by a ghost. Baython told Daal that the journey to the mountain was a three day walk, and Quinn pulled out a device and suggested they could steal some speeders instead. A younger worker, Keena, asked the trio what they were doing and Baython invited her to join them in leaving. She accepted and the group stole three speeders and left the workhouse behind, speeding through fields and knocking over a worker in a machine. Daal and Baython later reflected on what they could do if they left the workhouse forever.[1]

Behind the scenes

Development

"So we start off in a workhouse. There was workhouses in Ireland which were not a pleasant part of our history, where lots of people were made to work in very poor conditions."
―Director Paul Young, describing the inspiration for the Factory Workshop[5]
The team at Cartoon Saloon designed the Factory Workshop to create a feeling of oppression.

The team at Cartoon Saloon designed the Factory Workshop to create a feeling of oppression.

The Factory Workshop appeared in "Screecher's Reach," a non-canon short film released as part of the second volume of the Star Wars: Visions series directed by Paul Young. The animated short, produced by Cartoon Saloon, was released on Disney+[1] on May 4, 2023.[6] Prior to its appearance, the workhouse was first mentioned in an article on StarWars.com recapping the reveals at the Star Wars: Visions panel featured at Celebration Europe on April 10 of the same year.[7]

The workhouse was identified as the Factory Workshop in the short's episode guide posted on StarWars.com. The episode guide also confirmed that concept art for the workhouse was created by Leo Weiss, Maria Pareja, Almu Redondo,[2] and Federico Pirovano. Pirovano designed the workshop as an orphanage, and created multiple possible designs for the factory before one was settled on.[8] Weiss created multiple pieces of concept art showcasing the interior and exterior of the workshop, including shots of scrapped scenes.[9]

Inspiration for the workshop came from the workhouses in Ireland, which were considered an unpleasant part of the country's history by Paul Young. According to art director Almu Redondo, in creating the workhouse the team at Cartoon Saloon attempted to create a huge feeling of oppression. Revealing the kids as workers in the workshop were compared by Redondo to a little colony of ants working in a huge machine city.[5]

Concept art gallery

"Screecher's Reach"
Storyboards Concept art Digital renderings In-progress artwork

Appearances

Sources

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 Star-Wars-Visions-series-logo-short Star Wars: Visions — "Screecher's Reach"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 StarWars.com "Screecher's Reach" Concept Art Gallery | Star Wars Visions Volume 2 on StarWars.com (backup link) (Slide 9)
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 StarWars.com Meet the Visionaries: Paul Young on the Irish Folklore-Inspired Tale of "Screecher's Reach" on StarWars.com (backup link)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 StarWars.com "Screecher's Reach" Story Gallery | Star Wars Visions Volume 2 on StarWars.com (backup link) (Slide 1)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Star-Wars-Visions-series-logo-short Star Wars: Visions Filmmaker Focus — "Screecher's Reach"
  6. ↑ StarWars.com Star Wars: Visions Volume 2 Release Date, Studios Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
  7. ↑ StarWars.com SWCE 2023: Star Wars: Visions Volume 2 Trailer, Key Art, and Cast Revealed on StarWars.com (backup link)
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Premium-Era-real Star Wars Visions Season 2 — Federico Pirovano on federicopirovano.com (backup link)
  9. ↑ 9.00 9.01 9.02 9.03 9.04 9.05 9.06 9.07 9.08 9.09 9.10 9.11 9.12 9.13 Premium-Era-real Screecher's Reach — Leo Weiss on leo-weiss.com (backup link)
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