In the "Future of Cinema" discussion Lucas was asked questions (by Ben Mankiewicz of At the Movies) about his accomplishments, but also about his drive to innovate new film technology (if you don't know Lucas has started a handful of film companies). "I had to invent what I didn't have," Lucas said. That technology included the ability to pan scenes of flying ships in Star Wars. "I wanted to simply pan around, so we had to invent a way of doing that. I was up there with Silicon Valley pushing that end of it," he added.

It was then that Mankiewicz asked him how he feels about our technology getting "cheaper, better, faster." Lucas rambles a bit about how TV has to be developed differently than DVD or big screen movies, and Mankiewicz, as shown in this clip, leads him to the question, of whether he'd make movies for phones, to Which Lucas says, without hesitation, yes. He makes movies to be watched, no matter what devices people watch them on. That sentiment is a bit different than David Lynch's opinion. Of course, Lucas has also been a proponent of beaming movies into living rooms as soon as they hit theaters.

Excuse the film quality, the suits took all the good seats.

As for whose work he notices and the company he thinks is really excelling, Lucas answered none other than Apple. "Steve Jobs is really amazing," he remarked. "Who would have thought 20 years ago they would have been making cellphones and doing it well?" I'll tell ya, Yoda didn't. [World Business Forum]

On the left, Lucas surrounded by a ton of stuff from the first Star Wars trilogy, which ended with 1983's Return of the Jedi. On the right, Lucas surrounded by the only object that mattered in his second Star Wars trilogy, finishing with 2005's Revenge of the Sith: A green chroma screen.

There's something about real objects that—no matter how hard they have tried so far—3D computer graphics still have failed to capture. Yes, synthetic images have been evolving as fast as computing power, with new techniques that sometimes fool the eye. But while 1983 Star Wars may look bad at times compared to JJ Abrams' Star Trek, the former still feels... more real even while it looks less realistic, perhaps? I don't know how to define it, but it just feels better.

Certainly better than 2005 Star Wars, and not only because of the awful script. [Uberpix—Thanks Genevieve]

I got this tattoo about 8 months ago. I believe it perfectly sums up my feelings towards George [Lucas]. I love Star Wars, but I wish George would retire and leave the series in better hands. Just thought you should see it. I love you guys! Keep up the good work at Giz!

Kevin sent us that message along with the photo of his tattoo when he saw our Should Goerge Lucas Be Condemned for Crimes Against Our Childhood post. I edited the really harsh words out of his message, but I share the feeling completely. [Thanks Kevin G]

My verdict: Exile in Dagobah. Or failing that, Albuquerque. Plus a remake and rewrite of the prequels, Indy 4, and Return of the Jedi-to get rid of the fraking Ewoks. And let JJ Abrams do this, or Jon Favreau, or Zack Snyder.

What do you think? What's your verdict? And who should re-write and redirect the damn trilogy and ROTJ? Tell us in the comments. [io9]

Apparently, the cost of converting a traditional 2-D movie into 3D is between $50,000 and $100,000 per minute. I'm sure that Lucasfilm will make their money back and then some, but is it really worth it? Does anyone care to see this or is it just another case of Lucas screwing around too much with the franchise? [Comingsoon via io9 via Wired]

A free FX Lightsaber, according to the site. It looks like you'll get your money's worth, as the outfit is fashioned with cast iron, injection-molded pieces, ebony twill, real and faux leather, and even LEDs. Both standard and extra large sizes are available. This is really about as close as it gets to really being Vader. The only thing that's missing is a built-in stereo playing the Imperial March. [CB Swords via Luxury Launches]

Stay tuned for more All Things D coverage as our main man Brian Lam tackles All Things Mossberg. Not literally. We hope. – Wilson Rothman

"Exclusive" D5 Party Photos [All Things D]

True fans will recognize the above action figures immediately. They are based on the Fritz Lang-inspired original Star Wars concept art by Ralph McQuarrie. You can read more in the text above, but suffice it to say, I'm glad that guy is finally getting some recognition: nearly every one of his original drawings was revamped by someone else before shooting began.

Next up are the exclusive gadgets; which are a little underwhelming. I like the idea of a mechanical pen with both blue and red beams, but what would be really cool is if they were both lasers. Optics geeks, let me ask you: How far off are we from having true blue lasers in laser pointers? Or are we stuck with blue LEDs for reasons of health, energy or Sony-hoarding? And is that collectible frame superlame? Or am I missing something?

In case you want to see what else will be popping up on eBay in the days to come, you can download a very large (nearly 30MB) PDF at the page made for the open-24-hours-but-not-for-you Celebration Store. If you don't want to blow your inheritance on a collectible hoodie, there are always commemorative stamps. The US Postal Service's Star Wars 30th Anniversary stamps winner will be announced tomorrow. Yoda or Darth Vader? I vote Darth, to remind recipients of my snailmail correspondence that they should never, under any circumstances, underestimate the power of the Dark Side. – Wilson Rothman

The Official Star Wars Blog [Star Wars]