Star Wars Unseen Clips

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http://news.sky.com/story/1160972/star-wars-unseen-clips-uploaded-to-facebook

 

https://www.facebook.com/rotjeditdroid

 

A Star Wars super fan has posted a series of never-before-seen clips from Return of the Jedi on Facebook.

 

The rare footage, which includes Yoda's death and R2D2 repairing an X-Wing spacecraft, were found on a 1980s Laserdisc that sold on eBay for $699 (£435).

 

It is thought the 30-minute disc was put together to showcase the computerised EditDroid editing system developed by Star Wars production company Lucasfilm.

 

Only a handful of Laserdiscs were ever produced and the technology was eventually sold to Avid in 1993.

 

More than 20,000 people have already liked the unnamed fan's Facebook page, which features several short clips shot during production for Return of the Jedi.

 

A screengrab from previously unseen footage of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Another clip shows R2D2 fixing Luke Skywalker's X-Wing

The raw takes show cameramen using clapperboards to cue up scenes, while directors can be heard shouting "action" before actors reel off their lines.

 

In a series of posts, the fan who uploaded the clips hails the footage as "really great stuff" and praises Franz Oz, the English-born film director, puppeteer and actor who controlled and voiced Yoda, for his "amazing skill".

 

Directed by Richard Marquand, Return of the Jedi saw Luke Skywalker rescue Han Solo, as Darth Vader and the Galactic Empire built a second Death Star.

 

The film, which starred Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and David Prowse, took more than $300m (£185m) at the box office when it was released in 1983.

 

Earlier this year, Disney, which bought Lucasfilm in 2012, announced it will film the next instalment of the cult sci-fi series in Britain.

 

Star Wars: Episode VII will be made by Emmy award-winning director JJ Abrams and is planned for release in 2015.