Import the clip into the time line of your movie in Premier. Select the work area and export your file by choosing "File" and then select "Export Movie." Press the "Settings," "General Settings" and then select "Filmstrip" as the file type and set the range to "Work Area." Select "Video Settings" and select the frame size and rate for your footage. Name the file "unedited footage" and select "OK" to create your film strip.
Begin editing the first layer by opening the Premier file in Photoshop and saving it under the name "Blades One". (Make sure to save it as a Photoshop file, not a filmstrip.)
Create a new layer by selecting "Windows," "Layers," and then saving the layer under "Rods."
Select "Layers," then "New Layer" and name it "blades two." Highlight the "blades two" layer and begin rotoscoping.
Select the foreground color (the biggest colored square in the toolbar at the bottom of the window) and set your color to 255,255,255 (pure white) to edit your lightsabers.
Select the magnifying tool and click it over the layer you are editing--"blades two"--until Photoshop says you're editing at 400 percent. Editing at this magnification will be much easier and you'll get a better result.
Double click on the line tool and select a thickness which is half to two-thirds as wide as your lightsaber when it is completely still. Use the line tool to draw a line over every lightsaber in the frame.
Edit your fanned lightsabers by selecting the polygonal lasso tool and drawing a polygon around the area that the fan is covering. Next, select "Edit" then "Fill" to fill the polygon with the white of the blade. You must repeat these steps for every frame of the filmstrip.
Once you've rotoscoped all the frames, click once on the background layer, then select "Image," "Adjust" and "Levels." Change the upper output level to "0," this creates a black background with the lightsabers showing. Save the file as "Lightsabers with Auras."
Add the lightsaber blur to the file by opening "Lightsabers with Auras" in Photoshop. Select "Filters" and then "Gaussian Blur"; set the blur to your line width established in Step 4. Select "Image," "Adjust" and "Levels," then set the lower input level to "30" and the upper input level to "50." Finish by clicking "OK."
Select "Layer" and "Duplicate" to create a background layer. Name the layer "Background Auras." Select "Filter," "Blur," "Gaussian Blur" and set the line width to twice the size of your line width. Click "OK."
Next you're going to add in the lightsaber color: Again, select "Filters," "Gaussian Blur" and choose a line width twice your line size. Select "Image," "Adjust" and "Levels" then change the green and blue upper output levels to "0."
Create a green blade by changing the middle input level to "255" and changing the lower input level to "0." Create a blue blade by changing the middle input level to "127" and the bottom input level to "255." Finish by clicking "OK."
Select "Image," "Adjust" and "Levels" and change the upper output level to "127." Click "OK." Double click on the background level and rename it "Blades" and move it to the top of your layer list. Make sure it has been selected before proceeding.
Create a duplicate layer by selecting "Layer" and "Duplicate." Rename the file "Tight Auras" and make sure that it is selected before proceeding.
Add the soft blurred edge to the lightsaber by selecting "Filter," "Blur," and "Gaussian Blur." Then select a line value that is equal to 1/2 of your original line. Select "Image," "Adjust" and "Levels" and change the upper output to "10" and click "OK."
Select "Filter," "Blur" and "Gaussian Blur" and then choose a line value equal to your original line and click "OK." Change the red, blue and green levels exactly the same way as you did in Steps 12, 13 and 14.
Move "Blades" to the top of the layer list and make sure it has been selected. Again, select "Filter," "Blur" and "Gaussian Blur" and then choose a line value equal to three-eighths of your original line. Click "OK."
Flatten your images: Change the "Blades" layer mode from "Normal" to "Screen." Select "Tight Auras" and change the layer mode from "Normal" to "Screen." Select "Layer" and "Flatten Image," then select "File" and "Save."
Composite the animated lightsabers onto your original film footage. Choose "Select" and "All," then "Edit" and "Copy." Open the "Blades One" file and select "Edit" and "Paste."
Change the top layer's mode to "Screen" and the lightsaber effect will be composited onto the original footage. Select "Layer" and "Flatten Image." Save the file as a Filmstrip (not Photoshop) and rename it "Lightsaber Clip."