With my previous research on Ralph McQuarrie and the his amazing art that brought Star Wars to life, I decided to dig deeper into what gave him those initial ideas for the vehicle designs. In the 1970's Sci-Fi was really starting to become a popular genre and so new filmmakers had source material they could work from. George Lucas ,the director of Star Wars, wanted the Starships and land vehicles to have their own unique aesthetic; being futuristic yet 'battle-worn'. By working closely with the model makers and editors George Lucas and Ralph McQuarrie created some of the most iconic vehicles in film history.
Using a combination of preexisting Sci-Fi ideas, aircraft's/ships, and pure imagination the Star Wars Vehicles started to come to life. Being the main protagonists' ship; the Millennium Falcon started as a thin looking rocket but as time passed, it included more naval and aircraft characteristics. When another Sci-Fi competitor; Space 1999 released their TV series, the main vehicle called the Eagle Lander had a very similar design to this. Lucas wanted the Falcon to be something completely original and so the first design was used to make Princess Leia's Tantive IV, and the Falcon was completely re-done. It ended up being based on a flying saucer, but with a part removed; George Lucas described its design as "kind of like a bitten hamburger".
The imposing Star Destroyer was based on modern battleships and was actually built from a
model kit of one with a highly modified exterior and formed into an arrow-head shaped vehicle. In the image below you can see a cross-section of a Star Destroyer showcasing the shear size of the ship if it were to be full scale. I love seeing all of the detail that designers put into parts of the vehicles that wont even be seen on screen as it just shows the amount of care and thought that went into the design.
Many of the smaller attack-class star fighters were based of real military vehicles. Luke Skywalker's signature X-wing was designed to look like a modern fighter plane, but with alternative wings to make it appear streamline and more alien. Y-wings combined the booster rockets of a space shuttle with the cannons and features of World War 2 bombers.
Other designs are down to the pure imagination from Ralph McQuarrie; the TIE fighters were just conceived on the spot with the ship having two panels joined to a center ball to create the distinctive appearance. The B-wing is a very asymmetrical ship with the wings revolving around the cockpit. These two vehicles are two of my personal favourite star fighters for their unique, yet iconic look.
This research has allowed me to really reflect on my favourite characteristics of the Star Wars vehicle designs. With my final major project half-way complete I am going to start planning and experimenting for my final piece which I will create in Fusion 360.
Harvard Referencing:
“Empire at 40 | the New Vehicles of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.” StarWars.com, 23 June 2020, www.starwars.com/news/empire-at-40-new-vehicles
“List of Star Wars Air, Aquatic, and Ground Vehicles.” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Wars_air,_aquatic,_and_ground_vehicles
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