BEHIND THE SCENES: SMALL SCENE, BIG CREW!

Watching the original Star Wars is such a mesmerising experience that we often forget the huge amount of logistics, work and manpower needed to get just one scene captured on celluloid over a day's shooting duration, especially when the film is on location shooting in a far away country like Tunisia, then an almost different world in comparison to working in the UK and US. Here is a great scene showing a big crew at work within the country's now infamous Star Wars Canyon, having captured the ultimately deleted moment where Obi-Wan and Luke carry the Sandpeople-attacked Threepio back to the Landspeeder. Note the three-legged remote control Artoo on standby in the bottom left corner.

'STAR WARS' AT 40: THIS MAN NAMED 'OBI-WAN'?

Thankfully not dead, Luke Skywalker is saved from the Sandpeople due to the fortunate arrival of a mysterious yet kindly old man cloaked in tattered brown rags, soon administering a wake-up call to the boy's consciousness and ultimately introducing himself as Obi-Wan Kenobi, the very person whom the dedicated Artoo has been looking for since touchdown on Tatooine.

George Lucas supervises Sir Alec Guinness and Mark Hamill's first scenes together on location in Tunisia, during March 1976.

Alec Guiness Interview On Set Of Star Wars 1977 - YouTube

In the Alan Dean Foster novel of the film, using one of the revised filming drafts, Kenobi actually made two Krayt Dragon calls to scare off the Sandpeople, not the singular effort seen on screen..

BEHIND THE SCENES: ENCLOSED WORLD!

In Star Wars Canyon, Tunisia, during March 1976, a slightly wary looking Kenny Baker is strapped/installed within the Artoo Detoo shell, still getting used to its operation, for an upcoming scene with Sir Alec Guinness. Thankfully, by the time he's in the small fishing village of Jerba, Kenny looks a lot happier, continuing to be a lively presence for cast and crew during EPISODE IV's filming, as seen in this pic below.

STAR WARS AFICIONADO sends the merriest of Happy Birthday greetings out to the one and only Kenny Baker today!

CLASSIC IMAGE: INSIDE THE DANGER ZONE...

"I've never been out in this direction this far from the farm before. There are some awfully strange things living out here. Not all of them have been classified. It's better to treat anything as dangerous until determined otherwise. Of course, if it's something utterly new..."

Luke Skywalker - deleted script dialogue - 1975/76

Entering the harsh realm of the Jundland Wastes, Luke Skywalker and See-Threepio finally catch up with the rogue, mission-set Artoo Detoo before encountering the Sandpeople, in this scene rehearsal filmed on location at the later named STAR WARS Canyon in Tunisia, March 1976. Note that, to keep warm on a unseasonably chilly day, Hamill is wearing the poncho he later acquires at Mos Eisley spaceport.

With thanks to Ian Trussler for the image.

CLASSIC IMAGE: TUSKEN SNIPERS!

Above the legendary STAR WARS CANYON in Tunisia, a small second unit gets ready to film the unhappy Tusken Raiders shooting downwards at the Boonta Eve Classic podracing pilots, in a quirky moment from EPISODE I.

'STAR WARS' AT 35: THAT PONCHO...

In the then coldish March/April 1976 climes of the Star Wars Canyon in Tunisia, West Africa, actor Mark Hamill wears a brown lined poncho over his distinctive costume whilst in preparations to film a scene alongside Anthony Daniels as See-Threepio and Kenny Baker inside the squat Artoo Detoo shell. Hamill wears the distinctive apparel several other times in posed stills taken during the location filming, though he doesn't wear it in those actual filmed scenes of the completed movie. 

On a cold day, Sir Alec Guinness and the poncho-wearing Hamill join Anthony Daniels within the now infamous 'Star Wars Canyon' location during March, 1976.

It's interesting to note that the poncho does not officially appear in the first STAR WARS movie until later in the film, where it looks like Luke has purchased it within the Mos Eisley spaceport (perhaps as part of an attempt to not stand out in the crowds-from a further missing scene or line of dialogue?) whilst selling the Landspeeder to Wioslea the speeder dealer. From then on, he wears it whilst heading to Docking Bay 94 and on his arrival at Yavin IV with Princess Leia. After that, it's never seen again in the film series (and I'm not even sure if the item exists within the hallowed halls of the Lucasfilm Archives).

Hamill wearing the poncho for a mid-1977 posed photo shoot taken by famous cameraman Bob Seidemann.

Whether or not the Poncho was always originally planned as a costume design for Luke is not known for sure. I personally reckon it was an acquired item whilst the location filming was happening in Tunisia or about to happen (possibly from the London-based Bermans and Nathans, the film's primary costumer?), either by Hamill himself (if he originally purchased it, he may, perhaps, have kept it after filming?) or by costume designer John Mollo, which then later found its way into being part of the film when the shoot transferred back to London. If anyone could provide any further information or confirmation on this bit of STAR WARS costume history, please get in touch...

CLASSIC IMAGE: "SANDPEOPLE...OR WORSE!"

Atop a canyon, and with rifle ready, a careful Luke, with the Protocol Droid See-Threepio behind him, surveys the valley below looking for the fearsome Sandpeople. The young farm boy, however, in unaware that they have already found him!

CLASSIC IMAGE: A JAWA TROPHY

With several additional/re-shoot scenes filmed in Death Valley, USA in early 1977, as well as a small amount of original footage the year before in Tunisia (the above shot filmed there in STAR WARS CANYON (the large rock, behind the Jawas, was, I'm sure, in the finale of RAIDERS, too!)), here's the classic scene audiences loved upon the films original release, where Artoo is sneakily captured by those little scavengers of the Tatooine desert: the Jawas!

CLASSIC IMAGE: HIGH ABOVE MOS EISLEY!

March/April 1976: On a Tunisian mountain within whats now known as STAR WARS Canyon, Mark Hamill, Sir Alec Guinness, and Anthony Daniels get ready to film a scene where our heroes look down towards the wretched hive of "scum and villainy" that is Mos Eisley space port (note Stills Photographer John Jay taking vista shots of the canyon, presumably for possible matte painting/photo background reference). The camera angle looking forwards from Luke's Landspeeder never made the final cut, instead replaced with a matte composite plate shot put over a wide image of California's Death Valley, filmed by Lucas and a small Second Unit later in STAR WARS 1977 Post-Production.

As seen from the other side: note Gary Kurtz taking the photo and John Stears laying besides Artoo. Image: via Filmumentaries site.

Angle as seen from rear camera, not in finished film. If used, the Mos Eisley matte would have replaced the foreground.