Alumnus dwells in a galaxy far, far away

When Mike Murnane was nine years old, he made his mother and brother sit through two straight showings of the first "Star Wars" movie.

As audiences marveled at Rebel Alliance heroes Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Murnane was busy deconstructing the shapes of creatures named Gran Moff Tarkin and the Jawas.

"The aliens were what I really loved, that was what drew me in to the movie," said Murnane, a Cal State Long Beach alumnus and a recent concept sculpture for the yet-to-be-titled "Star Wars Episode II."

In 1999, the design director for "Episode II," Doug Chiang, hired Murnane to help create the new storm troopers. For 10 months he worked at the "Episode II" ranch, occasionally rubbing shoulders with George Lucas.

"Lucas comes in every Friday and we'd kneel down," Murnane said. "It's crazy. You're designing stuff that he's using for the next ëStar Wars'."

Murnane had the task of utilizing revolution technology to create a world that is supposed to happen before the first trilogy, which had less advanced resources.

"It had to be an evolutionary process, you're still trying to stay in the same world but you want something with some sophistication," he said.

He described the experience as "a weird mind trick."

And yet, being that close to the man responsible for the "Star Wars" world was not something that Murnane envisioned for his future.

After graduating from CSULB with a bachelor of fine arts degree in illustration in 1992, Murnane -- a self-proclaimed "all over the place kind of guy" -- tended to stray off course. Among the skills he collected were wax sculptures, clay sculpture, model making, stop-motion models and illustrations. Lately he has even dabbed in a bit of acting of filmmaking.

But his true love, ironically enough, has nothing to do with art.

"After a good surf day my mind is at its peak," Murnane said. "The experience is more like sex. Your soul is totally awake."

Listening to Murnane talk about his life is similar to listening to a Kung Fu movie with your eyes closed. The sequence of sentences weave together like a fine-tuned, bare-knuckled, death battle scene. The action never stops.

Two months into working at a toy designing company he was fired for being "too much of a rebel." After completing work on an animated "Frankenstein" movie, the project was canceled before release. He then worked at an experimental theater where the walls were covered in aluminum foil.

"I am striving for individuality, that's your biggest weapon," Murnane said.

Murnane's first big break came when he worked on the stop-motion animation television series "Bump In The Night" for two-and-a-half years before quitting because he was "tired of the politics of work." Prior to that he created toys for Galoob and worked on CD-ROMs.

Working for "Episode II" was enjoyable because each day was a new project whether drawing, sculpting or just "sitting in one room all day brainstorming," he said.

The job came through an acquaintance with another CSULB alumnus Richard Miller.

"Richard and I clicked on the Long Beach connection -- talking about old teachers."

Among the professors he greatly admired at CSULB was Nick Oden, one of the founders of the illustration programs. Oden claimed to know his students' work from any professional portfolio, according to Murnane.

Now that Murnane's work on "Episode II" is finished, a black and white, futuristic spaghetti western movie tentatively titled "Ride the Hard Line," is the next project.

He explained the concept.

"The story is about a bunch of outlaws who run across ancient sacred pieces from a futuristic world. One gets a cursed on and hunts the rest down. We want to have this cool soundtrack. It's going to be crazy."

In another breath he reveals, "It's a comedy."

Although edgy and arty movies may not depict real life, he stresses that character expressions are what make certain projects fulfilling. Whether he is involved in the "Star Wars" empire or working alone on his sketches, the faces of the individual characters help stir his imagination.

"It's in the faces," Murnane said. "You can get so much from them."

One can only imagine how much of this will be evident when audiences see the new storm troopers on May 22, 2002, the scheduled opening date for "Episode II."

So where does the ambitious Renaissance man see himself in five years?

"Hopefully doing the same thing on my own, working on movies," he said. "I need a benefactor to pay me to do my own designs -- films or art."

He thinks the best title for a movie on his life would be "How Surfing and the Art World Go Together."

The galaxy has a bright future.

Courtesy of Britt Anderson
Mike Murnane as "The Tracker," from the movie tentatively titled, "Ride the Hard Line."

Courtesy of Britt Anderson
Mike Murnane as "Coot."