Before Lucas did EVERYTHING Green Screen

[samurainoir]

[jwyblejr]

I had heard about the elephants but never seen a picture of one as a Bantha.

[Bionicfanboy66]

Glad that Abrams is going with practical effects for Episode VII.

[Bruce Banner]

Cool! That's Mardji, the female elephant who played the Banthas in Star Wars.
She didn't really like her costume, and often tried to remove it during filming!
(Footage of her walking was also taken during the filming of Empire as a reference for how the AT-ATs might walk.)
Sadly, she passed away in 1995.

[Mikey]

All it needs to do is the Hawaiian Hula dance

[Gorn Captain]

Cool! That's Mardji, the female elephant who played the Banthas in Star Wars.
She didn't really like her costume, and often tried to remove it during filming!
(Footage of her walking was also taken during the filming of Empire as a reference for how the AT-ATs might walk.)
Sadly, she passed away in 1995.

I didn't know that, that's fun information.

Did she do the convention circuit, selling autographs, like everybody who ever played "a background stormtrooper in episode IV"?

[Gorn Captain]

This is my Bantha, which I made in 1990.
I still remember it well, I had just met my future wife. And she happened to own the perfect (fake) fur coat I needed for my Bantha project!
Luckily, she liked the Bantha!


DSC01968.JPG

DSC01971.JPG

[apes3978]

Gorn,

Your Bantha looks really good...

[Gorn Captain]

Gorn,

Your Bantha looks really good...

Thanks! My wife's fur coat, on the other hand...

I built a wire armature for him, and then dressed it with pieces of fur. His four legs have padded feet. And the horns are just air-drying clay, painted up.
Much later, Hasbro released an official Bantha. I bought one, but liked mine better...

[Bruce Banner]

This is my Bantha, which I made in 1990.
I still remember it well, I had just met my future wife. And she happened to own the perfect (fake) fur coat I needed for my Bantha project!
Luckily, she liked the Bantha!

Awesome home-made Bantha!

[acrovader]

It'll be a mixture of practical effects and cgi. Probably more or less on the same level as his 2 Star Trek movies. Now remember: had the Millennium Falcon hatch had been cgi, Harrison wouldn't of broken his leg!

[Gorn Captain]

It'll be a mixture of practical effects and cgi. Probably more or less on the same level as his 2 Star Trek movies. Now remember: had the Millennium Falcon hatch had been cgi, Harrison wouldn't of broken his leg!

"CG! Harmless to septogenarians!!!!"

[mpramuk]

Nice Bantha, Gorn! And samurainoir - nice timing sharing the pic as it is hotter 'n Tatooine today!!!