---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I finally got up to Industrial Light…"
description: "\"When I finally got up to Industrial Light And Magic to work on the 'Star Wars' movies as a model-maker, it felt like dying and going to heaven.\" — Adam..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg"
---

#  When I finally got up to Industrial Light And Magic to…

![“When I finally got up to Industrial Light And Magic to work on the 'Star Wars' movies as a model-maker, it felt like dying and going to heaven.” quote by Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg)

> “When I finally got up to Industrial Light And Magic to work on the 'Star Wars' movies as a model-maker, it felt like dying and going to heaven.”

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He compares the intense creative experience to a near‑death and heavenly feeling.

**In simple terms:** Working there felt both terrifying and blissful.

Key Takeaway

Embrace challenging creative work.

Themes

creativity career fulfillment intensity

Mood

excited inspired

Type

professional reflection career anecdote

When to use this quote

- design projects
- studio work
- collaborative art

Key Concepts

artistic passion professional growth

Questions to Reflect On

- What drives you to high‑risk creative jobs?
- How do you maintain balance?

A Different Perspective

Such highs can lead to burnout if not balanced.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Going to heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going-to-heaven/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Stars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stars/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War movie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-movie/)

## Related quotes

> [Back when I was a professional model-maker at Industrial Light &amp; Magic, my specialty was hard-edged construction - spaceships, miniature sets, and architectural stuff.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/back-when-i-was-a-professional-model-maker-at-industrial-light-magic/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [What you try to become is a bringer of magic, for magic and the truth are closely allied and movies are sheer magic ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-huston/what-you-try-to-become-is-a-bringer-of-magic-for-magic-and-the-truth/)

[John Huston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-huston/)

> [“Divinity is accident of nature, magic is the work of an art.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/divinity-is-accident-of-nature-magic-is-the-work-of-an-art/)

[Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/)

> [To get the medium's magic to work for one's aims rather than against them is to attain literacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-kay/to-get-the-medium-s-magic-to-work-for-one-s-aims-rather-than-against/)

[Alan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-kay/)

> [The 'Star Wars' movie is coming out. Disney has kept the details of the movie under wraps because they're not Sony.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/the-star-wars-movie-is-coming-out-disney-has-kept-the-details-of-the/)

[Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/)

> [The reason the first three Star Wars movies were so terrific, and the second three sucked so bad, is actually very simple. The first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-whittle/the-reason-the-first-three-star-wars-movies-were-so-terrific-and-the/)

[Bill Whittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-whittle/)

> [For me, Glasgow is all about the people and the spirit of the place. You have enough Greggs bakers, though, Ill say that. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-boyd/for-me-glasgow-is-all-about-the-people-and-the-spirit-of-the-place/)

[Darren Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-boyd/)

> [I've loved the "Star Wars" movies for the ride and pure fun and found that it just didn't stand up when asked for more,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-stuever/i-ve-loved-the-star-wars-movies-for-the-ride-and-pure-fun-and-found/)

[Hank Stuever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-stuever/)

> [Saying “I'll try” means our soul isn't really in it. We tell ourselves “I'll try” when our inflated egos won't come clean and admit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-powell/saying-i-ll-try-means-our-soul-isn-t-really-in-it-we-tell-ourselves-i/)

[Chris Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-powell/)

> [In the original 'Star Wars' movie, there is a small toaster-sized and shaped robot on the Death Star that guides Stormtroopers to where they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-angle/in-the-original-star-wars-movie-there-is-a-small-toaster-sized-and/)

[Colin Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-angle/)

> [Maybe the next three Star Wars movies will tell the story of how the last three Star Wars movies got so shitty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-gould/maybe-the-next-three-star-wars-movies-will-tell-the-story-of-how-the/)

[Dana Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-gould/)

> [The first Star Wars movie had come out in 1977 and had become this huge phenomenon with all the toys and everything - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-affleck/the-first-star-wars-movie-had-come-out-in-1977-and-had-become-this-2/)

[Ben Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-affleck/)

> [Well, when Kathy Kennedy, who is the president of Lucasfilm, came to me to ask if I'd be interested in working on this "Star…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-abrams/well-when-kathy-kennedy-who-is-the-president-of-lucasfilm-came-to-me/)

[J. J. Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-abrams/)

> [I'm not a sculptor; I'm a hard-edged model maker. You give me a drawing, you give me a prop to replicate, you give me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/i-m-not-a-sculptor-i-m-a-hard-edged-model-maker-you-give-me-a-drawing/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [That aesthetic of the Star Wars universe: the do-it-yourself, hotrod ethic that George Lucas exported from his childhood, is exactly the same kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/that-aesthetic-of-the-star-wars-universe-the-do-it-yourself-hotrod/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

## More by Adam Savage

> [I believe that inside every tool is a hammer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/i-believe-that-inside-every-tool-is-a-hammer/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [If I had any dignity, that would have been humiliating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/if-i-had-any-dignity-that-would-have-been-humiliating/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [I'm always going to be making costumes. It's one of the ways I relax my brain. In addition to the pleasure of having the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/i-m-always-going-to-be-making-costumes-it-s-one-of-the-ways-i-relax/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [Am I missing an eyebrow?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/am-i-missing-an-eyebrow/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [I am incrementally a pessimist, but I see the international debate that Edward Snowden has engendered, and I think this is exactly where the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/i-am-incrementally-a-pessimist-but-i-see-the-international-debate/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [There are women who are wishing that they were that piece of tape right now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/there-are-women-who-are-wishing-that-they-were-that-piece-of-tape/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [We're allowed to explore the world at large on these things; the urban-legend aspect of it is just kind of an excuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/we-re-allowed-to-explore-the-world-at-large-on-these-things-the-urban/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [That was cool and that sucked all at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/that-was-cool-and-that-sucked-all-at-the-same-time/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [That's our job - to strap rockets onto everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/that-s-our-job-to-strap-rockets-onto-everything/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [We don't necessarily stand by our faults every time, but we will always stand by our methodologies and ethos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/we-don-t-necessarily-stand-by-our-faults-every-time-but-we-will/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [We didn't set out to be educators or even scientists, and we don't purport that what we do is real science but we're demonstrating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/we-didn-t-set-out-to-be-educators-or-even-scientists-and-we-don-t/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [The coolest toys don't have to be bought; they can be built. In fact, sometimes the only way they'll ever exist is if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/the-coolest-toys-don-t-have-to-be-bought-they-can-be-built-in-fact/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [Mostly I make lists for projects. This can be daunting. Breaking something big into its constituent parts will help you organize your thoughts, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/mostly-i-make-lists-for-projects-this-can-be-daunting-breaking/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [In theory, cars are fairly simple. If they don't start, it's either the fuel system or the electrical system. Teach yourself about the path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/in-theory-cars-are-fairly-simple-if-they-don-t-start-it-s-either-the/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

> [I just had one of those 'what the hell are we doing' moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/i-just-had-one-of-those-what-the-hell-are-we-doing-moments/)

[Adam Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

[Explore all 107 Adam Savage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/)

## More Dying quotes

> [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/)

[Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/)

> [Just living my life till I die...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-mixer/just-living-my-life-till-i-die/)

Willie Mixer

> [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/)

[Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/)

> [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/)

[Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/)

> [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/)

[James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/)

> [I don't want to just die a normal death, I wanna be killed twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/i-don-t-want-to-just-die-a-normal-death-i-wanna-be-killed-twice/)

[Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/)

> [Poor David Hume is dying fast, but with more real cheerfulness and good humor and with more real resignation to the necessary course of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/poor-david-hume-is-dying-fast-but-with-more-real-cheerfulness-and/)

[Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/)

> [Got to say, dying would really wreck my best day. Been there, done that, and now that I think about it, Artemis forgot to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/got-to-say-dying-would-really-wreck-my-best-day-been-there-done-that/)

[Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/)

> [“There is more to living than not dying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/there-is-more-to-living-than-not-dying/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

> [I want people to think they can't die until they see me play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-williams/i-want-people-to-think-they-can-t-die-until-they-see-me-play/)

[Ricky Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-williams/)

> [... there are far, far worse things in the living world than dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling-2/there-are-far-far-worse-things-in-the-living-world-than-dying/)

[J. K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling-2/)

> [Life has no guarantees, though. What good is living if all you think about is dying?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracey-garvis-graves/life-has-no-guarantees-though-what-good-is-living-if-all-you-think/)

[Tracey Garvis-Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracey-garvis-graves/)

> [“And if you can’t say yes, answer anyway. Because I’d rather live with the answer than die with the question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ellis/and-if-you-can-t-say-yes-answer-anyway-because-i-d-rather-live-with/)

Jon Ellis

> [If you feel like you want to die, it's time to sit down and make a list of all the things you haven't done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deacon-jones/if-you-feel-like-you-want-to-die-it-s-time-to-sit-down-and-make-a/)

[Deacon Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deacon-jones/)

> [Lord, send Your life throughout the entire church. Visit Your church; restore sound doctrine and holy, earnest living. Take away from professing Christians their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/lord-send-your-life-throughout-the-entire-church-visit-your-church/)

[Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/)

Browse all 6,374 Dying quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "When I finally got up to Industrial Light And Magic to work on the 'Star Wars' movies as a model-maker, it felt like dying and going to heaven.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Adam Savage"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-light-and-magic-to-work-on-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Dying"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-light-and-magic-to-work-on-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/adam-savage-4716_dying_when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-ligh_809581.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“When I finally got up to Industrial Light And Magic to work on the 'Star Wars' movies as a model-maker, it…” — Adam Savage",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Adam Savage",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-savage/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "When I finally got up to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-light-and-magic-to-work-on-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-savage/when-i-finally-got-up-to-industrial-light-and-magic-to-work-on-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
