This is the first in a series of articles, each one covering five “must-see” fan films. After all, there’s so many flicks out there—how do you find the good stuff? Try these! Some are classics, others are just cool, but either way, you’ll be entertained.
This time out, we cover some of the shorter, classic Star Wars fan films. Ever since George Lucas’ saga debuted in 1977, fans have been creating their own amateur takes on his space opera. Here, then, are a few of the fan efforts that are widely considered to be classics.
SEE ALL FIVE AWESOME STAR WARS FAN FILMS AFTER THE JUMP!
Hardware Wars (1977)
It’s not really a fan film, since it was made by professionals aiming to at least break even on their budget, but many people thought it was an amateur flick due to the low-rent style. Since then, it’s gone on to become the highest-grossing short film ever, and Lucas himself says it’s his favorite parody. Guess what? One of the filmmakers says Lucas is lying (Don’t believe it? Check out my book).
Troops (1997)
This funny fan film by Kevin Rubio kicked off the modern fan film era. Using the “you are there” style of COPS, it follows stormtroopers on Luke Skywalker’s home planet of Tatooine as they look for stolen droids and break up domestic distrubrances. Read between the lines and this is a radical plot twist for the first Star Wars movie!
George Lucas In Love (1999)
Covering Lucas’ college days at USC, this clever flick parodies Shakespeare In Love, although you don’t have to see that film to enjoy this. Although it was never intended to be sold, the film didn’t break any copyrights so it wound up being commercially available on DVD for a while. Its director, Joe Nussbaum, went on to direct the feature films Sleepover and American Pie: The Naked Mile
Duality (2001)
A flick made by karate instructors Mark Thomas and Dave Macomber, who wanted to make the ultimate lightsaber duel—and they basically succeeded. They did all the effects themselves, self-taught, with home computers; the result looks gorgeous and has less plot than this paragraph.
Tatooine Or Bust (1997)
This little fan-made documentary isn’t well-known, but it’s a hoot. Director Jason Wishnow sent five video crews out across the U.S. to record fans waiting on line for the Special Edition re-releases. The results are amusing, and at 10-minutes, the short doesn’t wear out its welcome. Wishnow went on to make a you-gotta-see-it-to-believe-it animated version of Oedipus starring vegetables, complete with a voice cameo by Lando himself, Billy Dee Williams.
Think I left something out? Share your favorites in the comments below!
Those were great! Here’s a hilarious short SW flick:
Thanks for the shout out. But I recommend going here for “Tatooine or Bust” so you don’t have to watch it split into two youtube files – I don’t know who uploaded those – http://www.wishnow.com/starwars or -