A3 (Croatia)

The A3 motorway (Croatian: Autocesta A3) is a major motorway in Croatia spanning 306.5 kilometres (190.5 mi). The motorway connects Zagreb, the nation's capital, to the Slavonia region and a number of cities along the Sava River. It represents a major east–west transportation corridor in Croatia and a significant part of the Pan-European Corridor X, serving as a transit route between the European Union states and the Balkans. Apart from Zagreb, where the A3 motorway comprises a considerable part of the Zagreb bypass, the motorway runs near a number of significant Croatian cities.

The motorway consists of two traffic lanes and an emergency lane in each driving direction, separated by a central reservation. All intersections of the A3 motorway are grade separated, and the motorway comprises several large stack and cloverleaf interchanges at junctions with four other motorways in Croatia: A1, A2, A4 and A5. There is a cloverleaf interchange is on the A3 route, where the A11 motorway is scheduled to branch off. The route comprises a large number of bridges and culverts, but has no tunnels because it runs through plains. The Sava River Bridge is the most significant structure on the A3. Currently, there are 21 exits and 18 rest areas operating along the route. A large part of the motorway is tolled using a ticket system; one section uses an open toll collection system. The Zagreb bypass sections are not tolled. The toll is charged according to vehicle classification in Croatia. The A3 motorway is operated by Hrvatske autoceste.

Construction of the six-lane motorway began in 1977, initially as the Zagreb bypass, then continued in the 1980s as an expansion of the existing two-lane road between Zagreb and Belgrade. The construction was suspended in the first part of the 1990s, due to the Croatian War of Independence, and resumed in 1996. Construction of the entire route was completed in 2006; further development entails new exits, new rest areas and the reconstruction of the existing motorway. The construction cost of the A3 motorway is estimated at 7 billion Croatian kuna (approximately 958.9 million euro).

## Route description

The A3 motorway (Croatian: Autocesta A3) is a major east–west motorway in Croatia connecting the capital of the country, Zagreb, to the Slavonia region, where the motorway follows a route parallel to the Sava River and further on to Serbian and Slovenian motorway networks. As a part of the road network of Croatia, it represents a part of European route E70 Bordeaux–Turin–Ljubljana–Zagreb–Belgrade–Bucharest. The motorway has facilitated accelerated economic development in the regions it connects. The motorway also connects to a number of other motorways in Croatia (from the west to the east): the A2 at the Jankomir interchange, the A1 at Lučko interchange, the A11 at Jakuševec, the A4 at Ivanja Reka and the A5 at the Sredanci interchange.

The motorway spans 306.5 kilometres (190.5 mi) between the Bregana border crossing, located near Samobor, to Slovenia and the Bajakovo border crossing to Serbia, east of Županja. It represents the shortest and the most comfortable transit traffic route between Slovenia, northern Italy, Austria, Switzerland, and southern Germany to the west; and Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Greece, and Turkey to the east. The route serves Sisak via the D36; Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina via the D5 and Stara Gradiška border crossing; Osijek via the A5; and Vinkovci via the D55. The A3 motorway route is complete since no extensions or alterations to the route are planned by applicable legislation.

The A3 motorway consists of two traffic lanes and an emergency lane in each driving direction along its entire length. As of September 2010, the motorway has 21 interchanges, providing access to numerous towns and cities and the Croatian state road network. Almost all of the existing interchanges are trumpet interchanges, except for Lučko, which is a stack interchange, and Jankomir, Kosnica, Ivanja Reka and Sredanci, which are cloverleaf interchanges. The motorway follows Pan-European Corridor X, and forms junctions with Pan-European Corridors Vb and Vc within Croatia.

An automatic traffic monitoring and guidance system is in place along the motorway. It consists of measuring, control and signaling devices, located in zones where driving conditions may vary—at interchanges, near viaducts, bridges, and in zones where fog is known to occur. The system comprises variable traffic signs used to communicate changing driving conditions, possible restrictions and other information to motorway users.

There are numerous rest areas along the motorway, providing various types of services ranging from simple parking spaces and restrooms to filling stations, restaurants and motels. The A3 motorway is operated by Hrvatske autoceste, the state-owned company tasked with the management, construction, and maintenance of Croatian motorways.

## Zagreb suburban interchanges

The route between Bobovica and Ivanja Reka interchanges (inclusive) serves as a part of Zagreb bypass, and it is therefore not tolled. The A3 section of the bypass also comprises junctions to a number of other motorways: the A1 at the Lučko interchange, the A2 at the Jankomir interchange, the A11 motorway at the Jakuševec interchange, and the A4 at the Ivanja Reka interchange. Two interchanges east of Zagreb, Rugvica and Križ, have recently been built to fill in 20-kilometre (12 mi) gaps between the Ivanja Reka, Ivanić-Grad and Popovača interchanges, respectively. Even though the sections east of Rugvica are not parts of Zagreb bypass proper (they are tolled), the area has recently shown a rise in the population as it comprises several Zagreb suburbs and commuter towns. The consequent increase of commuter traffic volume, overall increase of the motorway transit traffic and plans for construction of a Sava River port in Rugvica warranted construction of the additional interchanges.

The A3 section of Zagreb bypass is currently the busiest section of the Croatian motorway network, with annual average daily traffic (AADT) volume exceeding 40,000 vehicles, leading to congestion of the six-lane bypass at peak hours, especially during the summer, when tourist traffic adds to the congestion. The mainline toll plazas at Bobovica and Ivanja Reka can both become bottlenecks at such times. The alternative to the bypass is going through the city via Ljubljanska, Zagrebačka and Slavonska avenues. Despite being a shorter and a more direct route, those avenues are much more congested than the bypass at rush hours and they contain at-grade intersections and traffic lights at some of their junctions.

## Toll

The A3 is a partially tolled motorway based on the vehicle classification in Croatia. The westernmost section of the motorway, spanning the Bobovica interchange and the Bregana border crossing, is tolled at Bregana toll plaza using an open toll collection system; the motorway sections east of Ivanja Reka interchange are tolled using a closed toll collection system, integrated with the A5 motorway as the two connect at the Sredanci interchange, forming a unified toll collection system. As of October 2010, Bregana toll plaza charges 5.00 kuna (0.68 euro) to passenger cars and 20.00 kuna (2.74 euro) to semi-trailer trucks. The toll charged along the A3 route between Ivanja Reka and Lipovac varies depending on the distance travelled and ranges from 3.00 kuna (0.41 euro) to 105.00 kuna (14.38 euro) for passenger cars and 10.00 kuna (1.37 euro) to 350.00 kuna (47.95 euro) for semi-trailer trucks. The toll is payable in either Croatian kuna or euros and by major credit cards, debit cards and a number of prepaid toll collection systems, including various types of smart cards issued by the motorway operator and ENC—an electronic toll collection (ETC) system which is shared at most motorways in Croatia and provides drivers with discounted toll rates for dedicated lanes at toll plazas.

The toll collected by Hrvatske autoceste along the A3 motorway from January to August 2009 was reported to comprise the largest proportion of the total toll revenue collected by the company for the period: 889.8 million kuna (approximately 121.9 million euro). Even though this figure is not further decomposed into the individual sections of motorway, it is clear from the traffic volume data analysis that the largest portion of the toll revenue is collected on the sections between Zagreb and Slavonski Brod, and especially on those sections closest to the Ivanja Reka interchange.

Summertime and holiday queues at the Ivanja Reka mainline toll plaza can be considerable, a problem exacerbated during the usual weekend-to-weekend tourist stays at Croatia's coastal resorts. In such conditions, motorway users are advised to use the Rugvica and Ivanić Grad exits ahead of the Ivanja Reka interchange to avoid the queues. As of October 2010, the westbound transit traffic approaching the Ivanja Reka interchange must exit the tolled motorway network, since the existing Zagreb bypass is not tolled, and then re-enter another tolled motorway. There are plans for the outer Zagreb bypass to be integrated into the tolled motorway network as the ultimate solution for congestion at the Ivanja Reka toll plaza. That will require reconstruction of the Ivanić Grad interchange east of the Ivanja Reka toll plaza.

## History

### Brotherhood and Unity Highway

A modern highway connecting Zagreb and Belgrade was originally designed in the late 1940s, and construction began on April 1, 1948. A substantial portion of the work was carried out by youth from Yugoslavia and abroad through youth work actions. Nearly 300,000 youth, including Yugoslav army soldiers, took part in the construction. The 382-kilometre (237 mi) road spanning the two cities, called Brotherhood and Unity Highway before the 1990s, was completed and officially opened on July 27, 1950. Despite being called a motorway (Croatian: autocesta), it was a single carriageway, two-lane road with all of its intersections at-grade. Due to a shortage of construction material, the wearing course was executed in various materials—mostly concrete slabs, with some asphalt concrete sections and even some cobblestone-covered sections.

The road was originally designed to carry approximately 9,000 vehicles per day, and the original construction plans provided for subsequent conversion of the road into a four-lane motorway. In 1971, as the road gradually became congested, the plans to build the motorway on the route were approved by the Parliament of the Socialist Republic of Croatia. Unlike the other two motorway plans approved by the Croatian government, Zagreb–Split and Zagreb–Rijeka, which were cancelled after the suppression of the Croatian Spring, the Zagreb–Belgrade motorway plans remained in place and an expansion of the existing motorway into a dual-carriageway, six-lane motorway with exclusively grade-separated intersections proceeded. The additional carriageway was to be built south of the existing road, which was in turn to be widened to accommodate two traffic lanes and an emergency lane.

### Prewar construction and wartime use

Construction of the A3 motorway in Croatia in its present form started in 1977, when the first six-lane (including emergency lanes) sections were constructed as a part of the Zagreb bypass. In 1979, the 5.85-kilometre (3.64 mi) section connecting the Jankomir and Lučko interchanges was the first to be completed. The 22.15-kilometre (13.76 mi) section between the Lučko and Ivanja Reka interchanges was opened in 1981, marking the completion of the A3 section of the Zagreb bypass. Unlike the remainder of the motorway, which was constructed by widening the existing road and adding the additional carriageway, these two sections were built entirely from scratch.

The first part of the six-lane motorway to be completed east of Zagreb was the 76.52-kilometre (47.55 mi) section between Ivanja Reka and Lipovljani, immediately to the east of the present day Lipovljani rest area; this was done in 1980. In order to maintain the flow of traffic on the Zagreb–Belgrade road during construction, the southern carriageway was completed first, and then the two-way traffic was rerouted to the new carriageway while the old, northern carriageway was widened and its pavement structure was replaced with a new one. Similarly, as the new carriageway extended further eastward, the at-grade intersections were replaced by interchanges or flyovers. In 1985, the motorway was extended by 35.82 kilometres (22.26 mi) to Okučani, and in 1986 by another 7.50 kilometres (4.66 mi) to Prvča, near Nova Gradiška. Two further extensions of the motorway happened in 1988 and 1989—those were a 40.56-kilometre (25.20 mi) extension to Brodski Stupnik and another 8.80-kilometre (5.47 mi) one to Slavonski Brod and the present-day Slavonski Brod zapad (west) interchange. In 1991, the motorway reached beyond Slavonski Brod as it was extended once more by 11.40 kilometres (7.08 mi), to the Slavonski Brod istok (east) interchange.

Further construction of the motorway was suspended by the onset of the Croatian War of Independence. In October 1991, a part of the motorway between Novska and Nova Gradiška became inaccessible to the government of the Republic of Croatia due to military occupation of the area by the forces of the so-called SAO Western Slavonia. Consequently, the Novska–Nova Gradiška section was closed to all traffic. On December 21, 1994, negotiations led to the reopening of that section for transit traffic. However, the section remained unsafe for use as intermittent violence continued until May 1995, when the area was overrun by the Croatian army. Inspection of the motorway section carried out at the time revealed damage to a viaduct carrying the motorway over the Zagreb–Sisak–Vinkovci railroad and a local road near Novska. Besides the overall lack of maintenance during the period, the pavement and a number of flyovers were damaged by artillery bombardments, and the flyover approach embankments were damaged where trenches were dug.

### Postwar reconstruction and completion

After the war, construction and reconstruction work resumed on the A3 motorway. The battle damage was the first to be addressed, along with removal of the trenches excavated in the flyover embankments. Similarly, unexploded ordnance and minefields left around the motorway had to be removed by minesweepers. The motorway pavement was seriously deteriorated, as evidenced by extensive ruts and cracks incurred during the four-year wartime period. Unlike repairs made to the viaducts and flyovers, mine clearance and pavement reconstruction took considerably more time to perform.

In 1996, the motorway was extended for the first time after the war. This 10.90-kilometre (6.77 mi) extension reached to Oprisavci, west of the present-day Sredanci interchange. In 1999, another 16.90-kilometre (10.50 mi) section was completed, stretching to Velika Kopanica. The single westward extension of the motorway came about in 2002 as the A3 motorway was extended 13.67 kilometres (8.49 mi) from Jankomir westward to the Bregana border crossing into Slovenia. The eastward advance of the A3 motorway continued in 2002, as it was extended by 25.95 kilometres (16.12 mi) to Županja, while the easternmost 30.42-kilometre (18.90 mi) section between Županja and the Bajakovo border crossing into Serbia was opened in 2006, thus completing the six-lane A3 motorway. The D4 state road was thus entirely replaced by the A3 motorway. The total investment value of the A3 motorway construction is estimated at 7 billion Croatian kuna (approximately 958.9 million euro), making the A3 the least expensive motorway in Croatia.

## Further construction

Since the A3 motorway was completed in 2006, further construction on the A3 only consists of the addition of interchanges and rest areas.

The Kosnica interchange, itself completed in May 2007, lacked access ramps to the south, to the D31 state road, which were in turn completed in November 2013.

The latest new A3 interchange, the Jakuševec interchange on the Zagreb bypass, is a cloverleaf interchange connecting the A3 to the A11 motorway and in the future the city of Zagreb via Sarajevska road. The interchange itself and the access ramps to the A11 were completed in November 2015. Further construction towards Sarajevska road is planned.

As of 2016, two additional A3 interchanges are in various stages of construction or planning: Sveta Klara and Ivanić Grad. The Sveta Klara interchange is planned to provide another connection to the city of Zagreb (via Većeslava Holjevca Avenue). The interchange is designed as a trumpet. When both the Jakuševec and Sveta Klara interchanges are completed, the Buzin interchange was scheduled to be removed.

The present Ivanić Grad interchange connects the D43 state road to the A3 motorway near the city of Ivanić Grad, however, the interchange was scheduled to be reconstructed to accommodate a new motorway planned as an outer, tolled Zagreb bypass. The reconstruction is currently in the planning stages. Two further interchanges are planned: (1) Godinjak, to be located between the existing Nova Gradiška and Lužani interchanges, connecting to Požega; and (2) Lipovljani, located between the existing Kutina and Novska interchanges. These are included in applicable spatial planning documents and their designs are in development, however funding is yet to be secured. Finally, the Andautonija rest area is planned for the A3 section of the Zagreb bypass between the Jakuševec and Kosnica interchanges. It is planned to be an "A-type" rest area, which normally comprises a filling station, a restaurant and a motel.

## Traffic volume

Traffic is regularly counted by means of a traffic census at toll stations and reported by Hrvatske autoceste. The reported traffic volume gradually decreases as the motorway chainage increases and as it passes by various major destinations and the interchanges that serve them. Thus the greatest volume of traffic is registered along Zagreb bypass, especially the Jankomir–Lučko section, with 41,549 vehicle annual average daily traffic (AADT). The busiest tolled section of the motorway is Ivanja Reka–Rugvica with 27,049 AADT and 34,543 vehicle average summer daily traffic (ASDT) figures. The traffic volume gradually decreases from that section eastward to the eastern terminus of the motorway, where the lowest AADT and ASDT figures are recorded. The traffic volume decrease is somewhat more pronounced at interchanges serving Slavonski Brod and the A5 motorway (Sredanci). The seasonal traffic volume variation ranges from a 28% increase on the busiest, Ivanja Reka–Rugvica, section to a 75% volume increase, as measured on the Županja–Spačva section. Average summer season traffic volume increase on the motorway is 55%. The AADT/ASDT ratio analysis does not include Zagreb bypass, as there are no ASDT data available for the bypass.

## Rest areas

As of October 2010, there are 18 rest areas operating along the A3 motorway, and additional rest areas are planned along the existing sections of the route. Legislation provides for four types of rest areas, designated as types A through D. A-type rest areas comprise a full range of amenities, including a filling station, a restaurant and a hotel or a motel; B-type rest areas have no lodging; C-type rest areas are very common and include a filling station and a café, but no restaurants or accommodations; D-type rest areas offer parking spaces only, possibly some picnicking tables, benches and restrooms. Even though the rest areas found along the A3 motorway generally follow this ranking system, there are considerable variations, as some of them offer extra services. The filling stations regularly have small convenience stores and some of them offer LPG fuel.

The primary motorway operator, Hrvatske autoceste (HAC), leases the A, B and C type rest areas to various operators through public tenders. As of October 2010, there are three such rest area operators on the A3 motorway: INA, Nafta Promet and INA Osijek Petrol. The rest area operators are not permitted to sub-lease the fuel operations. Most of the A3 motorway rest areas are accessible to both directions of traffic. There are however rest areas which are available only to the eastbound traffic (e.g. Lužani and Brodski Stupnik rest areas) or to westbound traffic only, like Slaven and Staro Petrovo Selo rest areas. Furthermore, some rest areas offer different types of amenities to each direction of the traffic. The rest areas normally operate 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, except Stari Hrastovi (eastbound) rest area, which is open from 7 am to 6 pm.

## Exit list

These are the exits on the A3 motorway, including those under construction.

## See also

- International E-road network
- Transport in Croatia

Motorway in Croatia

Buildings and structures in Brod-Posavina County


Special effects of The Empire Strikes Back

The Empire Strikes Back (also known as Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back) is a 1980 American epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner, with a screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas. It is the sequel to Star Wars (1977), the second film in the Star Wars film series, and the fifth chronological chapter of the Skywalker Saga. Set three years after the events of Star Wars, its story follows the battle between the Galactic Empire led by Emperor Palpatine and the Rebel Alliance led by Princess Leia. Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker trains to master the Force so he can confront the Sith lord Darth Vader. The ensemble cast includes Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, and Frank Oz.

The development of the film began in 1977, shortly after the release of Star Wars. Lucas's own special effects company had effectively ceased to exist following the production of Star Wars and he decided to re-establish the company, moving it from central to northern California and building a new facility as its base. Construction began in mid-1978, and the crew operated out of the incomplete building to keep pace with Empire's filming schedule. Up to 100 people worked on the nearly 600 effects required for the film, which included miniatures, matte paintings, stop motion, articulated models, and full-size vehicles. Special effects-related expenses totalled \$8 million, and the team was led by Richard Edlund and Brian Johnson to complete the effects.

## Development

### Founding an effects studio

Development of The Empire Strikes Back began in 1977, shortly after the release of Star Wars in May. Creator George Lucas planned to use his earnings from that film to independently fund the sequel. However, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), a makeshift special effects company formed by Lucas exclusively for Star Wars had shuttered after its release because Lucas had no immediate use for its equipment or staff. Most of the staff and equipment were used to found a separate effects company, Apogee, Inc., under Star Wars effects supervisor John Dykstra. Lucas had to re-establish ILM and completely re-staff it while managing his burgeoning production firm Lucasfilm. He also wanted to move ILM from southern California to San Rafael in the north. He liked the area, but it was a substantial distance away from the busy film activity and experienced crew in Los Angeles.

Recruitment occurred over several months from late 1977 onwards. Fewer than 20 Star Wars special effects crew members followed ILM's move to San Rafael, seven of whom were key, including Richard Edlund and Dennis Muren. Empire's producer Gary Kurtz hired crew including production designer Norman Reynolds, consultant John Barry, makeup artist Stuart Freeborn, and first assistant director David Tomblin. Lucas brought back artists Ralph McQuarrie and Joe Johnston to maintain visual consistency with Star Wars, and the trio began to conceptualize the snow battle in December. Lucas found concept work easier for Empire because the crew did not need to create completely new cultures or worry about "what sort of coffee cups they would use". Even so, pre-production progressed slowly because Lucas operated out of north California and the crew had not moved closer to him, which made it difficult for him to check their work.

Construction of the ILM facility began in mid-1978, and crew began to work out of it from September while it was still in progress. Muren recounted that the walls were still being installed and there was no electricity. It took eight months to complete the facility, while crew operated the only two cameras available for filming under makeshift lighting. By late 1978, Phil Tippett, Nilo Rodis-Jamero, Paul Huston, and Steve Gawley were added to the team. The facility was eventually staffed with 90–100 people sometimes working 15-hour shifts as they attempted to meet Lucas's shifting design ideas. Tippet admitted that he and many of the crew were burnt out towards the end of the project.

Muren, Ken Ralston, Don Dow, and Jim Veilleux, among others, began filming effects work in full from February 1979 while ILM's electricity was being installed. Work on the film's approximately 600 special effects shots (compared to 360 on Star Wars) had to be completed by March 31, 1980, ready for the film's May release. In total, ILM accounted for \$8 million of the film's \$30.5 million budget.

### Crew

The film crew for The Empire Strikes Back included:

- Nick Allder (Mechanical effects supervisor)
- Jon Berg (Stop motion animation)
- Doug Beswick (Stop motion animation)
- Ben Burtt (Sound design/supervising sound effects)
- Leslie Dilley (Visual effects art director)
- Richard Edlund (Special visual effects)
- Harrison Ellenshaw (Matte painting supervisor)
- Michael Ford (Visual effects art director)
- Stuart Freeborn (Makeup and special creature design)
- Wendy Froud (Yoda fabrication)
- Steve Gawley (Modelshop foreman)
- Jerry L. Jeffress (Electronic systems design)
- Brian Johnson (Special visual effects)
- Joe Johnston (Visual effects art director)
- Michael Kelly (Visual effects editor)
- Peter Kuran (Animation/rotoscope supervisor)
- Harry Lange (Visual effects art director)
- Ralph McQuarrie (Design consultant/conceptual artist/matte painting artist)
- Dennis Muren (Miniature/optical effects photography supervisor)
- Bruce Nicholson (Optical photography supervisor)
- Michael Pangrazio (Matte painting artist)
- Lorne Peterson (Chief model maker)
- Ken Ralston (Optical effects cameraman)
- Norman Reynolds (Visual effects editor)
- Nilo Rodis-Jamero (Assistant art director)
- Tom St. Amand (Stop motion animation)
- Peter Sutton (Sound design/supervising sound effects)
- Phil Tippett (Stop motion animation)
- Alan Tomkins (Visual effects art director)

### Sets and technology

Real locations were scouted for the film, including Central Africa and Kenya for the bog planet Dagobah, and Scandinavia for Hoth. To avoid the difficulties of shooting in distant locations, Lucas invested in practical sets; he funded the construction of a 1,250,000 cubic feet (35,000 m3) "Star Wars stage" at Elstree Studios, London. Construction began at the end of August 1978 at a cost of \$2 million. As principal photography was about to begin in January 1979, a fire on Elstree's Stage 3—where The Shining (1980) was being filmed—destroyed the planned space for Empire's sets. The impact was significant: it removed essential space and the production was forced to give up two more stages so The Shining could continue filming. Sixty-four sets had to be moved through nine stages and the timeline had to be rescheduled. Construction of the Star Wars stage was also impeded by poor weather, delaying construction of sets and necessary props. Sets were the single biggest budget expense at \$3.5 million. The production was so expansive that by June 1979, the executive team had to ration the labor they could expend on building sets as there were no other tradespeople available in the industry, and it considered bringing workers in from Italy or Spain.

There was little equipment left to bring to the new ILM facility, including an optical printer, tracking camera, and a matte camera. About \$1 million was spent setting up the facility, including \$180,000 for construction, \$27,000 for a high-speed VistaVision camera, and \$50,000 for the design and construction of optical lenses. A further \$1 million and about a year was spent on designing and building a state-of-the-art optical printer. Edlund believed it was essential to work on Empire and an investment in ILM's future technology, and he worked with George Rando and David Grafton to design the custom printer which is used for compositing images—for example, if there are three ships chasing the Millennium Falcon, all four crafts are filmed separately and composited together into a single scene. Edlund said that standard printers did not offer the visual quality they wanted and were more designed for basic effects like fades and dissolves. The printer's main feature was the four projector heads it had instead of the normal two, allowing more elements to be composited at once, which saved time and reduced the loss of quality over multiple passes of the same image. The printer lenses presented a clearer image than expected and they had to intentionally degrade about 35% of the shots to hide the now obvious effects.

There was a custom VistaVision camera built by the Mitchell Camera Corporation dubbed the "Empireflex" that produced footage twice the size of normal 35mm systems without the need to use 65mm film, which required more cumbersome equipment. Edlund said that starting with a larger image meant less quality was lost during compositing. It was small and portable, and could be programmed for certain motions, such as panning and tilting. It also had a specific stop motion mode that could hold on the current image and advance a frame while the shutter was open to create a blur effect. The majority of still shots or those with slight pans or tilts were performed with the Empireflex, while those with a lot of movement were done with a Dykstraflex because it had a mechanical arm that let the camera capture footage as if from the point-of-view of the Rebel spaceships.

Various techniques, including miniatures, stop motion, articulated models, full-size vehicles, and matte paintings, were used to create Empire's various effects. McQuarrie was responsible for over half of the matte paintings used in Empire, with the rest provided by Ellenshaw and Pangrazio. These were often done on glass and were being worked on as late as January 1980. The crew often worked up to 11 hours a day on mattes alone to generate the nearly 70 paintings required. Explosions were filmed at the San Francisco armory in Mission District. The building offered 80-foot (24 m) tall rooms that the crew built custom black ceilings in. The explosions were filmed at a high frame rate and composited into scenes where necessary.

## Hoth

### On location

To portray Hoth's exterior, scouts looked at areas in Northern Europe such as Finland, Sweden, and the Arctic Circle. The locations needed to be free of trees and near populated areas for amenities. A 20th Century Fox employee recommended Finse, Norway. The recce crew, including Kurtz, Reynolds, and Kershner, flew to Finse on January 25, 1979, to begin receiving equipment containers sent by train or air. The construction crew arrived later, on February 25, to dig trenches for battle scenes. Filming the Hoth scenes on a set was considered, but had been deemed inauthentic. However, location filming coincided with the area's worst snowstorm in half a century, impeding the production with blizzards, 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) winds, and temperatures around −26 to −38 °F (−32 to −39 °C). The weather cleared only twice while filming; some days filming was impossible. The frigid conditions made the acetate film reel brittle, camera lenses ice over, and effects paint freeze in the tins. Snow also seeped into equipment. To counter this, lenses were kept cool, but the camera body was warmed to protect the film, battery, and the camera operators' hands. The crew was outside for up to 11 hours, subjected to thin air, limited visibility, and mild frostbite; one crewman slipped and broke two ribs.

Avalanches blocked direct transport links and quickly filled dug trenches with snow. Scenes could only be prepared a few hours in advance, and many scenes were filmed just outside the crew's hotel as the changing weather regularly altered the scenery. Production returned to England after a week, but the second unit remained through March to film explosions, incidental footage, and battle scenes. The opening sweeping shot of the area was captured by flying a helicopter 15,000 meters (49,000 ft) high and performing a controlled drop at a rate of 30 miles per hour (48 km/h) or 2,500 meters (8,200 ft) a minute. The shot was delayed four weeks to construct a heated shelter for the helicopter. The second unit, scheduled to be in Finse for three weeks, was there for eight. When the crew returned to London, they had only half the planned footage, including background plates for special effects shots that were uneven. The inconsistent weather meant some of the footage was overcast and some clear-skied.

### Sets and costumes

Although the Star Wars stage was completed in early May 1979, it was too small to house the full-scale Rebel hangar and Dagobah sets, and an extension had to be funded and built. The hangar scene involved 77 Rebel extras, costing £2,000 per day. Around fifty tons of dendritic salt mixed with magnesium sulfate for a sparkle effect were used for the wintery set; the combination gave the cast and crew headaches. The medical unit where Luke recuperates was built by British Aerospace. It contained 400 US gallons (1,500 L) of chlorinated water and Hamill used a scuba-like apparatus to breathe. Cinematographer Peter Suschitszky wanted the tank to be the scene's main illumination point and positioned an army searchlight below it and a mirror above. After a few days of filming the heat shattered the mirror, sending a large shard through the water only moments before Hamill entered it.

The 9-foot (2.7 m) to 10-foot (3.0 m) tall Wampa beast costume was worn by Des Web using stilts; he had to be given air through a tube. Web filmed scenes on location and on sets but struggled to take more than a few steps in the suit before falling over. Deleted scenes depicted Wampas invading the Rebel base and attacking the Rebels and Imperial troops. A shot of a Wampa breaking through an ice wall failed because Web's arms reached only mid-way down those of the costume and he could not put enough strength into them to break it. They decided to remove the bottom of the wall so it would break easier, but lost control over how it would break. During post-production in January 1980, the rough cut of the Wampa's initial attack on Luke was deemed unacceptable; Ralston described the head built by Elstree as like a cuddly "owl" instead of something scary. Tippett built a miniature Wampa head and the team filmed it on a vacant lot with open sky as a background.

### AT-AT Walkers

Lucas and Kurtz knew there would be a battle on Hoth but had not considered what equipment the Empire would use. Lucas suggested using modified Norwegian army tanks and Joe Johnston based his early designs around them, but found them harder to disguise than a modified conventional vehicle. Johnston came across a U.S. Steel brochure about future applications of steel, featuring a walking tank design by Syd Mead. He suggested a bipedal tank but Lucas wanted something bigger. Johnston created new variations based on Mead's work, designs by McQuarrie, and was inspired by The War of the Worlds (1953) and the 1965 Walking Truck created by General Electric. He militarized his designs by giving the Walker a head and mounted weaponry. Lucas picked his preferred features from the designs, which led to Johnston finishing the AT-AT Walker.

Stop motion was chosen as the best option for animating the Walkers. In early February 1979, Tippett, Muren, and others spent \$3,500 to film animals at a San Francisco zoo for movement references. An elephant served as the basis for the Walker animation, though Johnston wanted to retain some mechanical movement. Jon Berg was primarily responsible for building and animating the Walkers. He spent approximately 13 months working up to 14 hours a day to build the prototype in his own workshop, as ILM remained unfinished. He modified Johnston's designs where it would make the model difficult to manipulate and developed a series of pistons and cams concealed within the Walker legs that would make it easier to animate. Berg also added design embellishments such as guns with recoil.

Tom St. Amand built three main armatures from the prototype; each measured about 18 by 20 inches. The main body was cast in urethane and painted by Nilo Rodis-Jamero. The joints were secured tightly to compensate for the models' weight, but had to be loosened to animate it. Each joint was designed to move very slightly: approximately a fraction of an inch per frame. The Walkers were secured to the set with a pop-pin system that provided structural support and was quicker to release compared to a traditional tie-down system—threaded rods and wing nuts that lock the model to the surface. A small bipedal version dubbed the "chickenwalker" was built by Johnston out of plastic. Lucas liked it, but time constraints prevented them from building a detailed model, so parts of Johnston's model were glued to an armature built by Berg and Amand. \$80,000–\$100,000 was spent on the Walkers' development and build.

In July 1979, Muren began storyboarding the Walker scenes. Phil Tippett assisted Berg during the animation of up to three Walkers. Doug Beswick also helped once it became clear the task was too much for only two animators; Beswick animated Walkers near the background of shots. Some of the distant Walkers were 8×10 polaroid cutouts with minor articulation in the legs, as it was a quicker alternative to spending a week making a full model. Beswick spent five days working up to six hours to produce about a second of footage per hour. Berg and Tippett employed a Lyon-Lamb Video Animation system that recorded one frame at a time and could be played back immediately to quickly identify any flaws. Edlund filmed high-speed camera scenes such as the Walker falling over at about 96 frames per second to make the falling machinery seem heavier.

One of the most complex shots was a view of the Walkers through binoculars. The Walkers were filmed in VistaVision with a telephoto lens and the footage was projected onto a six-foot screen and photographed on tape using a Sony video camera, which added blurs and zooms. The tape was transferred back to film and a binocular-shaped matte, and digital readings were superimposed. Peter Kuran animated the ropes tying up the Walkers and Ralston animated the scene of Luke rappelling up to a Walker using a puppet. John van Vliet had hand-animated the sequence before they decided to use a puppet. A full-scale Walker underside was built for the following scene in which Luke throws an explosive into its body. A larger miniature, about 4 feet (1.2 m) tall and weighing 90 pounds (41 kg) was used for the explosion. Animating it was difficult because the legs were not strong enough to support the body's weight. A ratchet system that could electronically release and collapse the Walker was installed in the legs, but its weight broke the ratchets. There were three planned shots of the Walker falling, but difficulties resulted in only two being filmed. The scene was not the intended end of the Walker segment, but because the footage of Luke running towards the Walker had been shot in overcast weather, a decision was made to end it there to maintain consistency with the weather in earlier scenes.

Rodis-Jamero was mainly responsible for constructing the miniature snow set. Baking soda was used for snow because Berg wanted it to crunch below the Walkers. The soda made the surface easily disturbed, and the animators had to be careful not to bump the set or risk creating inconsistencies. Surgical masks were worn to reduce inhalation. Trap doors were built for the animators to reach the models and concealed with glued-on baking soda. Bluescreen was considered for the miniature backgrounds, but the Finse footage was unorganized, and only about 20 shots had been filmed when 80 were needed between the Walkers and speeders. Ralston tried cutting pieces of the footage together, but he could not conceal the matte lines. Rear projection likewise was rejected because it had potential technical issues. Muren used painted backgrounds, apart from some bluescreen shots used for people running in the foreground. A scene of Rebels running away from Walkers in the background was difficult to accomplish. The crew started with the footage of people running towards the camera to determine the appropriate angle for the background Walkers; Kuran provided some ground mattes to ensure it looked like the Walkers were touching the ground. Pangrazio painted about 15 backgrounds measuring up to 35 feet (11 m) wide and 12 feet (3.7 m) high, apart from the initial wide shot of the Walkers that was done by McQuarrie. To make the scene appear naturally lit, each Walker was separated from the other by a layer of scrim to make them seem further apart, and different diffused lights were applied to the models. About 10–12 months were spent to design, build, and test the sets and models, with another two months to film the scenes.

### Tauntaun

Up until January 1980, a shot of Luke riding his tauntaun mount on Hoth was intended to open Empire, but Lucas made a last-minute change to have the film open in space instead. Lucas also wanted a two-legged creature akin to a large rat, so Johnston and McQuarrie produced several designs: Johnston's was mammalian and covered in fur, and McQuarrie's was like a rat with human legs, which was deemed impractical. Various approaches were considered for realizing the creature, including using a person in a costume. On a July 1978 visit to ILM, Tippett saw their plans and agreed they would not work. He had sculpted a miniature tauntaun concept to use in stop-motion instead; a full-scale costume was used for close-ups. Tippett believed relying entirely on full-scale would make the effect obvious. McQuarrie and Johnston deferred to Tippett's core design thereafter. When Tippett moved to ILM in September, Lucas and McQuarrie were still refining the concept. Tippett's ideas included creatures akin to dragons, fleas, frogs, and horses. It was a collaborative process with Lucas, Kurtz, and Kershner providing input. Specifically, they wanted Tippett's design to be dirty and lived-in, instead of clean and manufactured, with a hairy head and talons.

Tippett's model was completed in September after he discovered leather from calves that had died in the womb of slaughtered cows. The material had very fine and small-napped hair that Tippett could separate from the leather in a water-soluble glue, and replace it with stretchy rubber, creating flexible, hairy skin. The Elstree crew urgently needed the design finalization in order to build the full-scale costume, so Tippett sent them a 12-inch sculpted mockup of this design. The design was returned with practical and aesthetic changes including a longer tail. Tippett said the final design, combining a llama head, kangaroo body, and ibex tusks, was essentially his but more mammalian.

A prototype armature, built by Berg and Amand, was cast in rubber and calf-hair for animation tests in February 1979. A more sophisticated armature was developed by Beswick and Amand out of aluminum to be lightweight. Amand built the upper torso to operate with ball-and-socket joints and Beswick built the lower body using a system of hinges. Ball-and-socket joints were more flexible but could drift from a set position or seize, requiring the puppet to be cut open to fix. Hinges were less flexible but offered smoother movement. Tippett said they used anything that would work. Only one final model that measured 16 inches tall was made and completed by August. A horse was chosen as its movement model because the tauntaun galloped; a horse and rider were photographed along Stinson Beach, California, to understand its gait and movement traits.

Tippett began animating the creature in January 1980. Attempts had been made earlier but needed revisions due to various technical issues that meant six-hour filming sessions were wasted. Twelve tauntaun shots were needed, including the opening aerial shot and the Rebel hangar. These shots were considered more difficult because filming against a bluescreen before the background was composited gave the animator no reference for where the scenery would be.

The shot combining the miniature with helicopter footage from Finse was one of the most difficult. The helicopter footage was filmed with a gyrostabilized Wescam, but from varying angles against a barren snowscape with few reference points. Sam Comstock calculated the correct viewing angle for the tauntaun in relation to every movement and angle of the live-action footage. Tippett animated the creature based on this analysis to add a gradual tilt. Comstock rephotographed Tippett's footage and created a zoom-in effect using an oxberry animation stand, gradually moving its camera toward the footage in small increments. This and the Finse footage were composited together for the final shot. Comstock estimated the calculations necessary took 65 hours to produce 10 seconds of footage. The shot of the tauntaun running into the Rebel hangar was also difficult. It was filmed on a black-and-white print stock on a darker background, which helped conceal the matte lines at the expense of being partially transparent. Muren noted in the original negative, this flaw resulted in the hangar lights shining through the creature; because it was a short segment, it was ignored. Several additional tauntaun scenes were cut for different reasons, including an elaborate clip of Han Solo riding it in the snow.

The 8-foot (2.4 m) tall full-scale tauntaun was built at Elstree's prop department. Two heads were constructed; one was articulated to move its neck, eyes, snort, and it simulated breathing via gas pipes fed into the head. The body had very limited mobility and could not walk. Muren believed it looked artificial because the eyes looked dead. The entire costume had to be flown out to Finse for filming.

## Dagobah

Initially planned for the destroyed Stage 3, the Dagobah set was built on the Star Wars stage. Fourteen weeks were originally allocated for its construction, but since filming was significantly overscheduled alongside rising production costs, it had to be completed in seven, requiring the crew to work overtime on nights and weekends. The set was 65 feet (20 m) by 45 feet (14 m) by 3 feet (0.91 m), and was constructed on a raised steel frame from 112 short tons (100 long tons) of plaster laden with 48,000 metres (52,000 yd) of scrim, which included about 24 trees that weighed 4–5 short tons (3.6–4.5 long tons) each, with cutout trees inserted in-between for detail. The trees (designed by McQuarrie) were based on those found in Louisiana swamps. He depicted them as immense petrified trees with roots exposed by years of local activity; the roots were designed to look like muscular but sinuous insect legs. The set included an artificial river and a 3-foot (0.91 m) deep lake; the water became stagnant after weeks of filming. To enhance the realism, the set was covered in mud and flora, and the artificial trees were generally fixed in position and shot around. The set's scale was big enough that Luke's full-scale X-Wing ship could be partially submerged on the lakeshore. The whole area was surrounded by a 450-foot (140 m) wide, 44-foot (13 m) tall backdrop. Artificial smoke was used for fog and mist.

Snakes, such as anacondas, pythons, boa constrictors, and kingsnakes, were used on the set, but they attracted spiders, insects, and birds. A scene in which Hamill grabs a snake to symbolize his struggle with the dark side of the Force was cut after the snake bit him following several takes. The use of an alligator was planned—the trainers put it on Hamill's lap without warning—but the idea was dropped. Ralston stop-motion animated some birds built by Tippett.

For the scene in which Luke decapitates a vision of Vader, a specially rigged mannequin was used. A mold of Hamill's face was made for when Vader's mask explodes open to reveal Luke's own. Guinness filmed his scene on Stage 4 against a black velvet backing in early September 1979; he was done in two hours. A combination of matte background and some foreground water, smoke, and a miniature X-Wing were used to depict Luke's craft almost fully submerged in the bog. The full-scale craft was raised on a block and tackle pulley system by two crewmen to depict Yoda raising the ship with the Force. A water hose was affixed above to add a dripping water effect. The final scene of Luke leaving was important to Kershner, and he wanted to heighten the emotion with lighting and wind effects. He was limited in what he could change because it had already been determined how Obi-Wan would later be composited into the scene. It took about 17 takes, more than any other scene he had done.

### Yoda

The Yoda character appeared in the film's original draft, described as a diminutive, frog-like creature called Minch Yoda. Various drafts refined the character—alternately named "the Critter", Minch, Buffy, and simply Yoda—from a slimy, repulsive creature to a small blue one; the character's long life and wisdom were consistent. Lucas's early outline described him as "Buffy very old—three or four thousand years. Kiber crystal in sword? Buffy shows Luke? Buffy the guardian. 'Feel not think.'" Johnston developed hundreds of designs, giving the character long legs or a furry body, from which Lucas picked out ideas to pursue. Around July 1978, design work was transferred to McQuarrie. He wanted a more ascetic design, as he believed Johnston's work made the character puffy and lack bone structure. The final design was described as a mixture of a leprechaun, troll, and a gnome. Kershner said "At first I thought Yoda should be eight or nine feet tall with a big beard, like an oversized Moses", but it was deemed cliché.

Bringing the character to life was difficult: using forced perspective on adults or little people to make them seem smaller was considered, but building big enough sets for the technique was too restrictive. Children were not considered to be disciplined enough to deal with the strenuous production, and Kershner said there was no "great" little person actor. Stop motion would have made him look like a cartoon, contemporary animatronics were not sophisticated enough, and the concept of using a monkey was dismissed by Freeborn who had learned during his work on A Space Odyssey (1968) that the animals tended to tear off costumes and prosthetics. Lucas spoke to his friend, puppeteer Jim Henson of The Muppets, who was busy on another project but recommended his co-puppeteer Frank Oz. Oz was hired as a puppeteer and his vocal performance was intended to be dubbed over, but Lucas believed that a voice actor could not match Oz's mannerisms with the puppet.

Stuart Freeborn, who had made many alien masks for Star Wars, was asked to create a design for Yoda before Lucas left for the United States later that day. Freeborn had a sculpture of his own head which he modified by adding wrinkles to the forehead to indicate wisdom, and eyes reminiscent of Albert Einstein to indicate intelligence. He considered adding a mustache but thought it would look strange, so he created the shape of one on the sculpture's lip; Lucas was happy with the result. Freeborn built clay sculptures and practice models to try out different facial features until a final design was decided upon. Wendy Froud, from Henson's company, helped Freeborn develop the physical puppet. A cast was made of Oz's arm to get the internal sizing right. Cables, hydraulics, electronics, and springs were used in Yoda's construction, as well as handmade silk for his clothes.

Work continued on the puppet up to the first morning of filming in August 1979. Oz recounted playing with the head during its construction and accidentally cracking it. Oz's puppetry controlled Yoda's mouth, brow, and palette. He was assisted by puppeteers Kathryn Mullen, David Barclay, and Froud in controlling aspects such as ears or a hand. Filming just a few lines of Yoda dialogue could take hours to ensure his movements were as desired. Kershner called it the film's greatest effect. Puppeteer Deep Roy walked on his knees in a Yoda costume for distant shots.

Oz controlled the Yoda puppet from beneath the set's steel frame. Hamill could not hear Oz through the set; earpieces were used to let them hear each other but the signal was unreliable. In the end, Hamill rehearsed with a speaker to get his timing right and performed his scenes without Yoda speaking. Hamill found his Dagobah scenes taxing because he was not acting with another person. To raise his morale, Oz surprised him with a performance by Miss Piggy who complained about having to work in this "dump". Hamill said only Kurtz and Kershner were not laughing because they did not want to lose any time filming. Once Oz left for a prior commitment, Hamill redid some scenes while replicating his positions in the existing Yoda footage.

## Other locations

### Bespin

The Cloud City of Bespin was originally conceived for Star Wars and intended to be an Imperial prison. McQuarrie designed the city with rounded buildings because he believed if they were square they would look like the "Black Tower" at Universal City, California. He described the city as similar to his own work on Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), but also took inspiration from The Wizard of Oz (1939) and Radio Ranch (1940). Reynolds took over and designed the city interiors with a more crystalline shape because the round "Jell-O mold" forms McQuarrie wanted to use were deemed expensive and too difficult to build.

A lack of time meant a Cloud City miniature was discarded in favor of combining paintings, cut-out pieces, and 3D foreground elements. Edlund wanted a miniature and believed the matte ruined the illusion. The background sky footage was filmed by Johnson with an Astrovision camera from a Learjet. Kershner described the Millennium Falcon landing on the city as one of the most difficult effects. The scale landing platform and a large Falcon model from Star Wars were filmed from 64 feet (20 m) away to get the correct perspective and combined with a matte painting city by McQuarrie; Van Vliet animated the landing rockets.

Filming on the Cloud City sets began April 6, 1979. The duel between Darth Vader and Luke began filming in July on Stage 1. Animating lightsabers for the fight was deemed more difficult than doing the same on Star Wars. On the latter, the weapons had been covered in front-project material that could be animated later, but for Empire they knew they would be animated and so did not use the material. This made it difficult for the animators to plot the animation, especially when the sabers are moved around fast. Stunt double Bob Anderson stood in for David Prowse in the fight scene. Items were thrown at Hamill to represent Vader manipulating objects with the Force. A wood and metal "missile" was fired from an air cannon at the window behind Hamill to shatter it, risking real injury. The special effects team assumed all the glass would shatter away from him. His stunt double Colin Skeaping ran at the window, turned and performed a backward somersault to create the impression of Luke being sucked out. Vader's confession to being Luke's father on the reactor gantry was filmed about 30 feet (9.1 m) to 40 feet (12 m) off the ground, with mattresses placed on top of cardboard boxes to cushion Hamill's fall. Hamill described the most terrifying stunt as walking along the nine-inch wide platform to evade Vader. He fell only once but was able to roll on landing to avoid harm. McQuarrie painted the gantry background.

When Luke is hanging from an antenna beneath the city, Hamill was suspended by a thin safety wire about 40 feet (12 m) up. Ralston animated wide shots of Luke in the same position. The scene of Luke receiving a prosthetic hand following the duel was re-written by Kershner to show it reacting to stimuli. He believed it was important the audience knew the hand was not numb when Luke put his arm around Leia at the end.

### Asteroid escape

The Millennium Falcon escape through an asteroid field was produced using miniatures. It was simplified from the original concept because test footage appeared too confusing and distracted from the action. Although some asteroids were built, Ralston suspended some potatoes on sticks for additional space rocks as it was difficult to tell during the fast pace. The scene is a composite of about twenty different objects, including the Falcon, TIE fighter ships, and individual meteors. Altogether, 100 pieces of film were used when accounting for aspects such as backgrounds and shadows.

A 30-foot (9.1 m) diameter meteor was built by Johnston, Pangrazio, and Chris Anderson, to house the space slug. Beswick built the slug using an aluminum armature with a spring on the jaws. It was designed to work as a hand puppet. Tippett designed and built its outside and it was puppeteered by Berg. The scene took about 50 takes over the course of a week. A larger-scale interior of the creature was made with a mechanized jaw to detail the Falcon's escape from its innards. Howie Hammerman's burps were recorded for the slug's voice.

## Ships, robots, and costumes

### Ships

The full-scale Millennium Falcon, designed by Reynolds, measured 65 feet (20 m) in diameter and 80 feet (24 m) long, weighing 23 tons. Star Wars used a half-scale Falcon, but it was left exposed to the weather since filming and was unsalvageable. The full-scale version was constructed in 16 separable sections made from steel and wood so that it would be more durable, re-usable, and easier to take apart for storage. Each of the Falcon's feet housed compressed-air hoverboards, allowing it to be moved around. The construction was outsourced to Marcon Fabrications in Pembrokeshire and took about three months. The cockpit was designed and built larger than the original's to provide more space for the cast. Lucas was unhappy about this because the original was designed to resemble that of a jet fighter or rocket ship. Even so, the conditions were still cramped for the actors, and after long hours of filming Ford began sawing the wooden console in half in frustration.

For the Hoth Rebel speeder interiors, the British crew shot live-action cockpit scenes in front of a bluescreen so that an image could be composited later by ILM depicting approaching Walkers. To enhance the effect, Finse helicopter footage was used with several small Walkers matted in to create the appearance of vast distances without a substantially large set. Model shop workers Mike Fulmer and Charles Bailey fabricated several 1–2 inch Walkers from resin or metal when more detail and articulation were required. Luke's point-of-view shot as his speeder crashes was a combination of stop motion up to the point of impact and live-action thereafter. A sled with a plexiglass front slid down a luge into snow to complete the effect. External shots of speeders were miniatures filmed in motion control and composited into the footage. The build of the speeders was outsourced to Ogle Design Limited because of time constraints.

Vader's Star Destroyer, the Executor, was 6 feet (1.8 m) long, had between 150,000 and 250,000 lights installed, and cost around \$42,000. The quantity of lights required a long exposure per frame shot, and the footage had to be reshot after review because it had illuminated the sawdust floating in the air. The interior bridge was built as a half-set and visually mirrored to appear as a larger area, looking out onto McQuarrie's matte starscape. Additional ship models included the 8-foot (2.4 m) to 10-foot (3.0 m) Star Destroyer (costing \$50,000), Boba Fett's ship Slave 1 (\$15,000), and the 18-inch diameter Millennium Falcon (\$10,000). The Falcon model was about 2 feet (0.61 m) long and lighter than the Star Wars version, making it easier to manipulate. The Rebel ship in which Luke and Leia end the film was added late in development.

### Robots

Johnson led the refinement of the R2-D2 costume. Eight R2-D2s were built in total; five of them were outsourced to the White Horse Toy Company in Oxfordshire, who formed them in fiberglass instead of aluminum to be lighter, and one was made to be waterproof. While the exterior shell was built at White Horse, the mechanisms were outsourced to a separate company. The remote-controlled units had a honeycomb-like epoxy and polyurethane core that made them tough but light, weighing about 32 pounds. One unit was used for experimentation. Their control mechanisms were built by Andrew Kelly.

Two units were built for Kenny Baker to sit inside and control; he used a radio to hear what was going on outside the units. He had a seat harness and more advanced controls, which allowed him to move forward and backward and move the head around without touching the hot electronics. They also had a remote-controlled third leg that could be raised or lowered. Andrew Daniels's C-3PO outfit was reduced to 11 parts from 20, making it lighter and smoothing out any sharp edges. The IG-88 bounty hunter robot was constructed and puppeteered by Bill Hargreaves.

The Imperial probe droid was designed by McQuarrie and improved by Johnston. The London team built a full-scale 8-foot (2.4 m) version at Elstree and planned to ship it to ILM for filming, but Lucas wanted to film it against snow so it was sent to Finse instead. The radio-controlled droid had lights and moving appendages, and appeared to float by being moved along tracks concealed in the snow. Amand animated the miniature version, which he found difficult due to its many moving parts.

To film its explosive landing on Hoth, eight sticks of dynamite were positioned on the glacier to capture the shot as the sun rose over the horizon. The filming crew had to wait for the weather to clear at the right time, and three to four cameras were positioned about half a mile away using telephoto lenses. The demolitions expert in charge accidentally knocked the battery pack out of his radio and did not receive the message to detonate the explosives; producer Jim Bloom had to run up the hill to speak to him, but the weather had shifted and they decided to detonate and capture the scenery as it was. The explosion was larger than expected, as the quantity of dynamite was overestimated due to the dampening effect of the snow.

### Costumes and characters

The bounty hunter Boba Fett originated from an early idea for a force of super Stormtroopers, advanced combat troopers. McQuarrie and Johnston worked on his early designs, and gave him all-white armor and a poncho inspired by the Man with No Name from A Fistful of Dollars (1964). The costume was built by multiple people and modeled by editor Duwayne Dunham in June 1978. The all-white color scheme did not have the look they wanted, and when demonstrating the wrist-mounted flamethrower, Dunham's arm caught on fire from a propane leak. Johnston painted the armor to make it appear as if it was assembled from scavenged parts, and added trophies to represent Fett's victories. The suit also had a jet pack filled with carbon dioxide. Fett's actor, Jeremy Bulloch, did not audition for the role; he was hired because the costume fit him. It was uncomfortable and top-heavy, making it difficult to maintain his balance, and the mask often steamed up.

The Chewbacca costume, made of yak wool and mohair, weighed 15 pounds. Peter Mayhew had to carry an additional 35 pounds on his back for scenes where he holds C-3PO's broken body. Working in the high heat on sets sometimes approaching 90 °F (32 °C), Mayhew fell ill and was given a few days off to recover. There was no extensive casting for the Emperor. Clive Revill provided the character's voice while Marjorie Eaton physically portrayed the Emperor in test footage. The footage was unsatisfactory, and she was replaced by Elaine Baker in a full mask, created by Baker's husband Rick, that had the eyes blacked out. Chimpanzee eyes superimposed over the mask's, cat eyes, and assistant accountant Laura Crockett's eyes were also considered.

## Sound

To collect over 1,000 sounds needed for Empire, Ben Burtt and Randy Thom spent months traveling around the United States to record various activities. Sprocket Systems, the new sound department, was given \$25,000 to complete their work, including \$1,000 to build a 160-channel matrix switch pay and \$5,000 in travel expenses. The sounds were generally recorded on Nagra quarter-inch machines that were just above consumer-quality equipment.

For Dagobah sounds, Burtt recorded sounds at a zoo that included general animal noises, gulls and other shorebirds, sea lions, dolphins, and raccoons in a bathtub; the bird sounds, when slowed down, created "spooky howls". A pump at a water treatment plant and walking in wet mud also contributed to the bog planet atmosphere. For the Walkers, the sound of metallic shears cutting metal and metallic stamping machines were used to create a "rhythmic" marching sound. Burtt added a squeaking knee joint using a dumpster bin lid. Other sounds included Burtt rolling his car down a hill with the engine turned off to record wind for Hoth, and sounds at the White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, for the Hoth battle. The tauntaun is the down-pitched sound of an Asian sea otter.

Other sounds included a Boeing 707 jet recorded at the Oshkosh Airshow that represented the snowspeeders, and a World War II B-17 bomber. The electronic window mechanism in a Cadillac Eldorado was used for C-3PO's walking sounds, and metal wires being pulled were used to emulate a blaster. Thom went to two steel factories in California to obtain sounds for the torture room doors, and at the San Geronimo water facility he recorded doors, air hoses, hisses, squeaks, and pumps. Burtt also borrowed laboratory machine sounds from Ken Strickfaden that were used in Frankenstein (1931). Foghorn sounds from San Francisco Bay were mixed into the ambient noise of the Cloud City. About three months were spent on sound mixing.

## Reception and legacy

On its release, film critics praised the special effects, including Joy Gould Boyum who called lauded them as "breathtaking", Arthur Knight said they were "ingenious", and Gary Arnold called them visually dazzling. Jim Harwood wrote they were let down only by the competence of those in the original, which had been emulated by other films, lessening the impact of Empire's. Charles Champlin appreciated the effects were used to enhance scenes instead of being the focus. The Chicago Tribune's Gene Siskel said the non-human characters, including the robots and Chewbacca, remained the most lovable creatures, with the Yoda character being the film's highlight. Knight, Gould Boyum, and Arnold thought Yoda to be incredibly lifelike; Arnold considered his expressions so realistic that they believed an actor's face had been composited onto the puppet. Canby said the human cast was bland and non-descript, and even the robot characters offered diminishing enjoyment, but Yoda was a success when used sparingly.

At the 1981 Academy Awards, The Empire Strikes Back won the award for Best Sound (Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker, and Peter Sutton) and the Special Achievement Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren, and Bruce Nicholson). The film also received a nomination for Best Art Direction (Norman Reynolds, Leslie Dilley, Harry Lange, Alan Tomkins, and Michael Ford). At the 34th British Academy Film Awards the film received two nominations: Best Sound (Sutton, Varney, and Burtt) and Best Production Design (Reynolds). At the 8th Saturn Awards, Empire received the award for Best Special Effects (Johnson and Edlund).

In the years since its release, The Empire Strikes Back remains an enduringly popular piece of cinema. Among other things it is considered groundbreaking for its special effects. Writing for CNN, Brian Lowry said that without the "groundwork laid by one of the best sequels ever, [the Star Wars franchise] wouldn't be the force that it is now". Yoda is also considered an iconic and enduringly popular character.


Harold Oliver (Australian footballer)

William Harold Oliver (12 August 1891 – 15 November 1958) was an Australian rules footballer. Harold Oliver was a key player to some of South Australian football's most successful teams. He starred in South Australia's victorious 1911 Australian football championship along with Port Adelaide's 1914 "Invincibles" team. After being close to retiring from the game after World War I, he returned to captain both Port Adelaide to the 1921 SAFL premiership and South Australia in a game against Western Australia. His reputation as an early exponent of the spectacular mark—along with his general skill at playing the game—saw him regarded as one of the best players South Australia has produced.

## Early life in Waukaringa (1891–1895)

Cornish immigrants James Oliver and Sarah Mill settled in the gold-mining town of Waukaringa in the late 1870s. It was common for Cornish people, where mining was a key industry, to move to Australia and use their knowledge to attempt a better life as the economy in Cornwall was waning.

In 1887, whilst working on the New Alma and Victoria goldmine, James lost parts of his right hand's fingers and thumb whilst holding a dynamite cap that accidentally detonated. Waukaringa raised over £20 (\$2,334 in 2020 dollars) to help James in his recovery.

On 12 August 1891, Harold Oliver was born. Harold had eleven siblings. During Harold's childhood in the 1890s, Waukaringa was home to around 600 people.

On 23 February 1895, James left Waukaringa, taking his family to Broken Hill. The Adelaide Observer noted his departure from the town, saying: "Mr Oliver left Waukaringa today. He was one of the oldest residents, and most respected."

Today, Waukaringa is a ghost town.

## Broken Hill years (1895–1908)

When Harold Oliver was five, his family moved to the New South Wales mining town of Broken Hill.

Oliver started playing football in Broken Hill for a junior team called the South Imperials. In 1908, his last year living in Broken Hill, he debuted for the South Broken Hill Football Club in the Broken Hill Football League at the age of 17.

## Lyrup Football Club (1909)

In 1909, Harold Oliver moved to Lyrup, South Australia, and started a farm growing fruit. During this time, he captained the Lyrup football team, which had previously not won a game. In 1909, with the assistance of his brother, Harold helped the Lyrup football club win the local riverland league premiership. Oliver was awarded the Lyrup Football Club best-and-fairest award at the end of the riverland season.

After the season, Lyrup traveled to Mildura, where they lost twice to the home team. The Mildura Cultivator praised Oliver's marking and kicking, reporting that it was as good as anyone who had played at the ground. An umpire at the game from Melbourne told Harold that he would be welcome in Melbourne to play football if he wanted to. At the end of 1909, Oliver was contemplating moving to Queensland to join his sister in the state; however, two friends, the Musgrave brothers, who played for West Suburbans in Adelaide, suggested he come down and visit.

## Port Adelaide Football Club (1910–1922)

When Oliver arrived in Adelaide, he started playing for West Suburbans and immediately began to draw attention from the two largest South Australian Football League (SAFL) clubs, Norwood and Port Adelaide. South Australian businessman Edwin T. Smith was sending Oliver letters asking him to come train with Norwood, whilst John Woolard, then captain of Port Adelaide—who, like Oliver, grew up in Broken Hill—was also enquiring about his services. Before Oliver made his debut with Port Adelaide, he was lined up with a job shovelling furnace waste. Disgruntled, he spoke to the Musgrave brothers' father, who suggested he approach West Torrens and train with them, to which Oliver agreed. Port Adelaide secretary James Hodge prevented this move, however, as Oliver had signed a contract with him shortly beforehand. To placate Oliver, Hodge later took Oliver out on a fishing trip to resolve the feud and found him a better job.

### Debut for Port Adelaide

Harold Oliver was listed to make his debut for the club in the first round of the 1910 SAFL season. Such was Oliver's enthusiasm to make his debut that he arrived at the Adelaide Train Station in his full playing uniform. However, due to the death of King Edward VII, the first round of SAFL matches were postponed as a sign of respect. Oliver eventually made his senior debut for Port Adelaide on 25 June 1910 in a win against North Adelaide at Jubilee Oval. Port Adelaide would win the SAFL premiership in Oliver's debut season and would subsequently contest the 1910 Championship of Australia in a match against Victorian Football League (VFL) premiers Collingwood. Harold Oliver kicked 5 goals in the match, helping Port Adelaide defeat Collingwood and claim national honours. In 1910, Oliver also made the journey with Port Adelaide to Western Australia to play a series of matches. This was the first trip by an eastern state club to play football in Western Australia. Harold Oliver was awarded a gold medal by Port Adelaide for being the best junior of the 1910 season for the club.

Harold Oliver was a member of the South Australian state team that won the 1911 Interstate Carnival, defeating the Victorian side 11.11 (77) to 5.4 (34). Players in the 1911 South Australian team included Bert Renfrey (captain), Vic Cumberland, Richard Head, Tom Leahy, and Dave Low, along with Port Adelaide players Sampson Hosking, Angelo Congear, and Frank Hansen. During Round 2 of the 1911 SAFL season, Oliver kicked 7 goals against North Adelaide in what was his twelfth game for Port Adelaide. At the end of the 1911 SAFL season, Harold Oliver was awarded his first Port Adelaide Best and Fairest in just his second year at the club. During an end of year dinner for the Port Adelaide Football Club players and officials, the then vice president of the club, Dr Alexander Benson, declared that "Oliver should have gained the Magarey Medal", which was instead won by Harold Cumberland. Dr Benson's position was supported by readers of The Sport, an upstart Adelaide newspaper, whose readers voted more than 6:1 that Oliver had a better season than Cumberland.

He kicked 28 goals in the 1912 SAFL season. During a game against Norwood at Norwood Oval, Oliver got into a fight with Ed Edwards of Norwood, with both players reported by umpire Dollman. As a result, both Oliver and Edwards were suspended, thereby meaning the Magarey Medal favourite would be disqualified from winning the award. Despite this, he would be awarded his second consecutive Port Adelaide Best and Fairest at the end of the 1912 SAFL season . Oliver polled first in the club's best and fairest for almost every round and won the award by over 500 votes. The Register, a local Adelaide newspaper, said regarding the Magarey Medal that "While giving full credit to the winner, however, it is only fair to state that had not Oliver (the brilliant young Port Adelaide player) been disqualified through a regrettable occurrence in a match at Norwood he would undoubtedly have been the medallist this time. He stands out conspicuously."

For the 1913 season, Oliver was appointed vice captain of Port Adelaide alongside the new club captain, John Londrigan, who had just come from the Adelaide University Football Club after that club's failed attempt to gain entry into the SAFL. During August, Harold Oliver married Blanche Downer from Lyrup. Port Adelaide won the 1913 SAFL premiership by defeating North Adelaide in the 1913 SAFL Grand Final in front of 22,000 spectators at Adelaide Oval. Oliver and Port Adelaide went on to win the 1913 Championship of Australia by defeating VFL premier Fitzroy.

In 1914, Harold Oliver played every game for the year. He was part of Port Adelaide's undefeated 1914 team that held North Adelaide to a single goal in the 1914 SAFL Grand Final and defeated VFL premiers Carlton in the 1914 Championship of Australia match at the Adelaide Oval. A game played between Port Adelaide and a composite team of the best SAFL players was held in the post-season, with Port Adelaide coming out as the victors. Harold Oliver captained Port Adelaide that day and was awarded a trophy as best on ground with arguably the best players of the competition taking to the field on that day.

### War years in Berri and the Patriotic League

During World War I, Harold Oliver returned to Berri to maintain his farm. One of his close friends, William Powell, sent him a letter during his time serving that included a short paragraph describing how Australian soldiers were discussing his prowess and that others were exclaiming "Oliver!" whilst playing the Australian game.

Due to the war, the SAFA suspended its competition from 1916 through to 1918. Despite this official suspension, a group of South Australian clubs decided to form their own league in 1916, and the money generated would be put toward the war effort. The Railways Football Club was one of the clubs that participated in this competition and managed to attract Harold Oliver to be the club's captain. Unfortunately for the Railways, Oliver would only play one game for the Railways, and he would instead return to Berri to focus on his farm. Later in the season, Oliver returned to Port Adelaide to play a few games for the club, which was also partaking in the Patriotic League. Port Adelaide would end up winning the 1916 South Australian Patriotic League Grand Final by defeating West Torrens 7.11 (53) to 1.13 (19). Harold Oliver played for Port Adelaide during the game and kicked a goal.

After World War I, Harold Oliver had chosen to retire from league football for the upcoming 1919 SAFL season. Towards the close of the 1919 SAFL season, Port Adelaide had successfully qualified for finals, finishing the minor round fourth. In a bid to increase their chances of September success, Port Adelaide put a call out to Oliver to play in the club's final against West Torrens to which he accepted. Unfortunately, Oliver was out of touch due to not having played during the year, and thus Port Adelaide was eliminated from the year's finals.

### Return to football, captain of Port Adelaide and South Australia

In 1920, keen supporters of the Port Adelaide Football Club, headed by Mr. Swain, collectively raised £77.13.8 (\$5,554 in 2020 terms) and bought Harold a Rover 3.5hp motor-cycle so he could make his commute of over 200 km to and from Berri, where he eventually settled on his own property as a fruit grower during the 1920 season. During the 1921 season, Oliver served his sole season as Port Adelaide captain. During August, Oliver would be designated captain of the South Australian state team during a trip to Western Australia for a state football carnival along with Victoria. Oliver would become sick during the trip and would miss the game against Victoria but would manage to play a game as captain of South Australia against Western Australia a few days later. Upon returning to Adelaide for the remainder of the season, he would lead the club to the 1921 SAFL premiership, defeating Norwood by 8 points in the 1921 SAFL Grand Final in front of 34,800 spectators at the Adelaide Oval. This would be Oliver's fourth and final premiership with Port Adelaide.

In 1922, after playing only 5 league matches for the season, his career at Port Adelaide finally came to an end due to commitments to his farm at Berri and disputes regarding game compensation. His contract termination meant he was paid £76 of £100 pounds for the season.

## Return to Riverland football (1923–1932)

When Harold Oliver retired from league football, he returned to his fruit farm to settle with his wife Blanche in the South Australian Riverland town of Berri. He became captain-coach of the Berri Football Club in 1923.

During a match for Berri-Barmera in 1925, a drunken spectator by the name of John Purcell who, after previously shouting abuse at Oliver, went onto the playing field just before half-time and punched Harold in the jaw with a glancing blow. Oliver retaliated and punched Purcell in self-defence, as he was intimidated by Purcell, who was a "big" man. Purcell later died with meningitis, and Oliver was subsequently arrested. At Oliver's court hearing, the Jury retired for only five minutes and returned a verdict of "not guilty".

Berri Football Club replanted a new oval in 1927, and Harold Oliver worked as a groundskeeper. During that year, Oliver recommended Berri footballer John Wade to his old club Port Adelaide. Wade would successfully go on to play in Port Adelaide's 1928 premiership. In 1929, at the age of 38, Oliver had kicked 21 goals from the opening three games for the Upper Murray Association football team and averaged more than 10 goals at the club's Berri home ground for the season. He played his last-ever football game in 1931 when his club won the Upper Murray Association premiership by defeating Barmera. During the match, he kicked six goals from six shots at goal. Oliver coached Berri to premierships in 1937 and 1938. During the 1938 post-season, Oliver organised an exhibition match between Berri and his old club Port Adelaide.

## Personal life

Harold Oliver married Blanche Downer of Lyrup on 19 July 1913. He had three children: Beryl, James and Joyce.

In his retirement, Oliver lived in Cowandilla. He died on 15 November 1958, aged 67. The only club representatives at his funeral were Bob McLean and Charles Darwent, leading to the former to say in his book 100 Years with the Magpies that "There is a very true saying, when referring to the champions, that they are peacock's feathers today and feather dusters tomorrow ... How the mighty fall!".

## Legacy

Harold Oliver is often considered one of the best South Australian players never to win the Magarey Medal. This is partially the result of the medal not being awarded for several years during World War I while the SAFL competition was suspended, along with being ineligible in 1912.

### Spectacular mark

Within South Australia at the time, he was unanimously considered the best exponent of the spectacular high-flying mark. In 1935, Australian cricket umpire George Hele, whilst writing for The Sporting Globe in Melbourne, described Harold Oliver as the "[Roy] Cazaly of South Australia". When former South Adelaide champion Steve McKee was reminiscing about Oliver's debut in 1910, he wrote that "Harold Oliver, a highflier equal in skill to [Phil] Matson, but more certain in his leaping, burst like a meteor into the football firmament in that year."

### Interstate reputation

The aforementioned Phil Matson, East Perth premiership player and coach, regarded Harold Oliver as the best centreman he had met during his football career. Tom Outridge Sr, winner of the inaugural Sandover Medal, said that one of his outstanding memories was of Harold Oliver, stating that when he was a boy he was "taken by his father to see Port play at Kalgoorlie in 1913. The memory of Oliver's brilliant game is as vivid in my mind today as it was when I left the ground that day. He was a wonderful player." After the 1911 Adelaide Carnival, Ralph Robertson praised the performance of Oliver. When retired Tasmanian footballer Charlie Goddard travelled to watch his son play for Tasmania at the 1914 Sydney Carnival, he stated how he was enraptured by Harold Oliver's play, saying he was "the noblest roman of them all".

### Local reputation

Tom Leahy, Magarey Medalist and captain of North Adelaide, once stated after a game at Alberton Oval that "North Adelaide would certainly have won had Port not possessed a superman in Oliver." Vic Richardson, captain of the Sturt Football Club and Australian cricket team, described Harold Oliver as being "The finest all-round exponent of Australian football in my playing and watching experience of it".

`Charlie Checkett, long serving curator of the Adelaide Oval, considered Harold Oliver "The greatest footballer this state [South Australia] has produced". When James Matthews, captain of North Adelaide and South Australian cricketer, was asked in 1951, four decades after he retired, who he thought was the finest all-round Australian rules footballer, he stated Harold Oliver. In 1965, a publication covering 100 years of South Australian football written by Charles Knuckey included the state's all-time team; Harold Oliver was allocated the position of centre half-forward.`

### Port Adelaide reputation

Angelo Congear, whose career completely overlapped with Oliver, said that "As an all-round player, Harold Oliver is my pick. In his prime he played a wonderfully clever game anywhere. He is also the fairest player it has been my pleasure to play with." In 1924 after 40 years of involvement with training footballers Jack McGargill, former Port Adelaide head trainer, described Harold Oliver as "the finest footballer the state has produced". In 1948, Arthur Swain, the club's former chairman who had been associated with the club for 44 years at the time, stated that "Harold Oliver was the greatest footballer I have ever seen in my life", thereby ranking him ahead of the recently retired Bob Quinn. A section of the 1951 PAFC Annual Report paid tribute to Harold Oliver by stating that he "was a champion in any position on the field, being an outstanding high mark and a magnificent kick. He played with conspicuous brilliance in many interstate matches and will rank amongst the really great players of all time." Albert Tomlin, who played with Port Adelaide from 1888 to 1894, considered Harold Oliver to be Port Adelaide's best-ever player and the best all-rounder anywhere, alongside Tom MacKenzie.

### Honours

Oliver was one of the first 18 inaugural members of Port Adelaide's Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2001, Harold Oliver was named in the Port Adelaide Football Club's greatest team of all time, placed on the half-forward flank. In 2002, Harold Oliver was inducted into the South Australian Football Hall of Fame. In 2020, the Adelaide Advertiser ranked Port Adelaide's best 50 players, with Harold Oliver coming in at number 11.

Australian rules footballer

Australian rules footballers from South Australia

Port Adelaide Football Club (SANFL) players

Port Adelaide Football Club players (all competitions)

South Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees