Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy revealed that the new "Star Wars" film would focus on character development and would also curtail the use of CGI effects.
Speaking at Star Wars celebration in Europe, Kennedy stated that the company is fast at work developing the characters.
While the original trilogy was revered for its memorable characters, the more recent trilogy of Episodes one through three was heavily criticized for its emphasis on visual effects and its lack of truly resonant characters.
"The story and characters are all we're talking about right now," said Kennedy. "We have an amazing team at ILM, who can create fantastic effects, but if we don't have a great story and characters, the effects mean nothing."
In addition to assuring fans that characters are the most important aspect of the project, the Lucasfilm head also noted that the use of CGI would not be as preponderant as it was in the last three "Star Wars" movies.
"It's using model makers; it's using real droids; it's taking advantage of artwork that you actually can touch and feel. And we want to do that in combination with CG effects. We figure that's what will make it real."
She also noted that the production will take place on location as opposed to relying studio shooting; most of "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" was shot in a studio in front of green screen.
"So we're going to find some very cool locations that we're going to use in support of 'Episode VII,'" added Kennedy. "And I think we're probably going to end up using every single tool in the toolbox to create the look of these movies."
The film is slated for a summer 2015 release date.
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