The Force is strong with the ladies of Star Wars, and Star Wars Celebration made sure to give them the spotlight they’re due.
The Celebration Stage at any Star Wars Celebration always has an absolutely thunderous atmosphere, but the Sisters of the Force panel on Saturday at Celebration Chicago had something more even before Ashley Eckstein, Catherine Taber (voice of Padmé, The Clone Wars), Amy Ratcliffe (author, Women of the Galaxy), Vanessa Marshall (voice of Hera, Star Wars Rebels), Athena Portillo (Star Wars Resistance executive producer), Suzie McGrath (voice of Tam, Star Wars Resistance) walked onstage.
Those who cosplayed as women got to come up on stage before the panel even began; the cheers were louder — and they were driven mainly by women. After all, as Eckstein emphasized: “Star Wars is for everyone […] not just men and boys, not just women and girls.”
All the same, today was about the women. First, of course, came Eckstein and Ahsoka Tano, with the first question to be sharing something that hasn’t been shared before. Ahsoka lives, as Eckstein emphasized: “She just kicks butt , fighting the Seventh Sister, fighting Darth Vader … I literally ask myself every day, ‘What would Ahsoka do?'”
Eckstein also prompted the second time that someone was serenaded after Friday’s Episode IX panel; she requested that we sing “Happy Birthday” to a childhood cancer survivor who is fighting for the fourth time. She called Miranda a “real-life Ahsoka,” who continues to inspire her.
Ratcliffe told a story about the novella collection Canto Bight — and how Derla, one of the background characters in The Last Jedi, “unexpectedly inspired her.” After all, she published Women of the Galaxy, a collection of profiles of characters big and small, from Derla to Rey to Leia. Derla, in particular, “doesn’t use that ‘could you just’ construction,” and that was what hit Ratcliffe.
Taber’s story centered around “the first person — the first fan — that I met” who really impacted her as the voice of Padmé. “It was back in 2010 and it was my first Celebration,” she began. “He was specifically a Padmé fan.” They met again and again, and it taught Taber “we have a gift” when it comes to being part of the Star Wars cast. Taber concluded, after reading a message from this fan about why he loves Padmé: “Padmé is not a Jedi, she’s not a warrior, but she is a fighter […] for the truth and the light.” (She also put out a great conspiracy theory about Padmé using a decoy in Revenge of the Sith.)
“The image that always sticks with me is when you see the Star Destroyer,” Portillo said, referring to the opening of A New Hope and how she saw it at 5 in 1977, and how it “changed her life.”
Years later, she got an internship with Lucasfilm, despite sending her application in at the last minute and arriving 45 minutes late to her first interview. Even after leaving Lucasfilm, she returned in 2006 to start with Dave Filoni on The Clone Wars. Since then, she’s been working with him.
“I never thought being an unpaid intern would get me to being executive producer,” she said. “I get to mentor them,” she added about new people joining the team, saying that “I have the opportunity to give people” all kinds of positions now, after getting that opportunity herself.
McGrath, at her first Star Wars Celebration, told a story “about my journey, and finding my voice.” Just as she started secondary school, “I developed this stutter.”
She found workarounds like tapping her leg or having her mom make phone calls. Even after some speech therapy, she had to just keep at it in order to get rid of the stutter and become a voice actor. “Never give up. We all have our hurdles. Keep dreaming,” she said in conclusion.
Last of the Sisters of the Force was Marshall. “She inspired me to fight for others,” she said of her character, Hera. She also cited a scene from Rebels about Hera’s kalikori, where Hera says that she has her family with her even though she’s lost the heirloom.
She said, “I have family all over the world today as a part of getting this role.” It’s that family that has helped her through her own issues with depression — and with a fan as well, who came out on stage to join them. “The light is stronger than the dark. We are Star Wars family. You are never alone,” Marshall concluded.
At this panel, more than any other that this writer has attended so far, there was a true sense of togetherness. We sang along during the pre-show game to hits like “Wannabe” and “I Will Survive.” We sang “Happy Birthday” for someone watching at home. We all stood and applauded for Darth Makenna, Marshall’s young friend who came out on stage. We were all sisters — and brothers — of the Force.
Stay tuned for more from Star Wars Celebration Chicago on Culturess.