credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
BEVERLY HILLS, California – On a sidewalk far, far away, outside the Samuel Goldwyn Theatre, fanboys showed up in numbers but not in costumes Monday night for the 30th-anniversary screening of Star Wars. Notably missing from the sold-out show? Wookiees and Princess Leias in metal bikinis. But the fans, though all grown up, were in good company: George Lucas, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fischer and 11 behind-the-scene collaborators who won or were nominated for Oscars for their contributions to the original Star Wars joined the party, hosted by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Following the screening of 1997’s digital version, the filmmakers took the stage and fielded questions from moderator and Academy program coordinator Randy Haberkamp. But he wasn’t the only one with questions. Wired News prowled the pre-show crowd to find out what inquiring Star Wars fans really want to know and then stuck around for the panel discussion with the bigwigs. Story by Hugh Hart Left: Young fans enjoy the Star Wars reception.
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
Getting it right =
description "I think the last time I saw the movie was when this (digital) version came out 10 years ago," George Lucas told the post-screening audience. "It was fun to see it on the big screen. I never get to do that. "The filmmaking process is naturally very sloppy. People assume that making a movie is very precise, that you lay it all out. It doesn’t work that way. You’re constantly reworking everything over and over and over again trying to make it right. There’s lots of different avenues, lots of ways of working with things. I continue to look at it that way. In fact, there was a couple of things I saw in there tonight that I could...." Before finishing his sentence with the expected "do better," Lucas pulled rerecording mixer Ray West by the arm. "It’s a joke, people!" Lucas said. 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
The sincerity of Mark Hamill =
description Even 30 years ago, Mark Hamill figured Star Wars would be a hit as long as he played it straight. "The only way to play it was to be completely convinced by it. There’s no Mel Brooks winking at the camera. Absolute conviction. I knew it would look hysterical, the more sincere we were. "I looked up all the grosses for fantasy films from, like, 1929 on, and I said, ’I think this will be more successful than Planet of the Apes.’ That was my prediction." Besides, he said, "I thought, If this thing bombs and nobody gets it, it could become a cult thing like Rocky Horror on college campuses because it’s so damn funny. I thought of it as this unbelievable comedy, an affectionate homage." 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
Genius Effects =
description Richard Edlund won a fistful of Oscars as head of the Star Wars miniature and optical effects unit. "It was a lot of being in the right time at the right place with the right chops," he said. "A bunch of us were experimenting with robotic photography – it was a wonderful opportunity to stretch out and have a budget to do it." 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
The suit =
description Alan Ladd Jr., who ran Fox and gave the green light to Star Wars, was on hand for the very first public screening at the Northpoint Theatre in San Francisco. "When the spaceship went overhead, the audience started screaming – going wild," Ladd said. "I got cold chills and that’s when I said, ’Jeez, I think we’ve got something here beyond the realm of just a great science-fiction movie.’" 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
The producer =
description Gary Kurtz, who previously co-produced American Graffiti with George Lucas, served as the go-between for the Hollywood execs and the visual effects crew. He’d keep the studio calm while pushing the visual effects team to complete the film on schedule. "(Industrial Light & Magic) was, at that time, very weird, as far as Fox was concerned," said Kurtz. "We hired all these guys who hadn’t really worked on features. Commercials, model builders (who) had built architectural models.... We were trying to put together people who hadn’t worked in a special effects house who would do things quite differently. Fox didn’t really believe we could do that. When I sent the script to the Fox visual effects people, they came back with a budget that exceeded my budget for the entire film – just for the visual effects." 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
When Lucas met Mark Hamill =
description George Lucas joked about how he cast then-obscure actors Mark Hamill and Carrie Fischer. "When you cast relative unknowns you see thousands of people," he said. "You see them for five minutes, they do readings, you tape them, then film tests, and you do it over and over again for years until you finally get to a point where you throw a dart at a dart board covered with 8-by-10s, and pick one. I got very lucky." Always the kidder, Fischer got the biggest laugh of the night. Sitting at the side of the stage with Hamill, she joked about how she convinced Lucas to give her the part. "I slept with him!" she said. 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
Leia impersonator? =
description Despite appearances, Sarah Shere said she’s not that big a fan of Princess Leia. "I got these earmuffs at Disneyland – they were only $10. I just thought they were so cool." 
credit Photo: Orrin Anderson
Shady character =
description Paul Finley is a "huge fan" of the books, comics and video games spawned by the Star Wars saga. "I’m just wondering if Star Wars is ever going to end," Finley said. "At some point, is George Lucas’ dozens of people putting out these stories under George Lucas’ supervision? And presumably this could continue on after he dies. I’m really curious about that. "Is he ever going to say, ’That’s it, it’s finished – I don’t want anyone to expand the story beyond where it is.’"
