Behind the scenes photo of Star Wars Episode IV

This old original Star Wars photo looks pretty good. A heap of Star Wars stortrooper actors and a … actually what is the creature called, it’s not a Tauntaun because they were on the ice world Hoth and this is the planet Tatooine. Now I know, the creature is a Dewback, isn’t and from episode 4.

When the original Star Wars Ep IV movie was being made, the Dewback creature was, of course, a huge mechanical kind of puppet that could not move easily. With the weather and sand at Tunisia it would not work properly, so it was always moved to back and hidden away in the background of scenes rather than seen close-up. A single Dewback could be seen during the Imperial search for the droids and this is what this old photo is from. The same Dewback puppet was used outside the Mos Eisley Cantina.

When George Lucas remade the newer version of Episode IV Special Edition he had the Dewback changed and made the Dewback much more mobile. He got GCI artists to make computer generated Dewbacks and put them in the scenes. They even added computer made Stormtrooper riders. I think I have mentioned I don’t like the CGI changes at all, they look even worse and stand out more than the cool star wars puppets.

star wars iv R2D2 and lucas behind the scenes

This photo, behind the scenes during the making of Star Wars Episode IV (the best episode), shows George Lucas standing next to R2D2. I am not sure if it is RD-D2 or some other model. Maybe it is a R2-D2 prototype mock-up?

Cool Star Wars fun fact: Tauntaun is a cold -weather beast that resembles a fur covered lizard that walks on its back legs plus has curled horns. Belonging to the ice planet Hoth, these beasts are frequently found inside huge herds, rushing around the icy plains on their big, three-toed paws. They boast tough, coarse lips so as to let them to graze lichens plus moss off open rocks for food. This is not the only type of food they eat they sometimes eat small rat like creatures as well. At night they search for night-time shelter inside caves, because they are not able to stay alive in the tough night weather.

They had been used with the Alliance as a type of horse throughout their occupancy on Echo Base. The Tauntaun has a distinctive, arctic hardy blood that  makes it possible for it to stay alive on the Hoth landscape. There are a few varieties of Tauntaun on Hoth but they all possess the same distinctive blend of reptile and mammal qualities. The Tauntaun is the Wampa ice creatures preferential supply of food.