A real crowd-pleaser is the Jedi Training Academy, now underway throughout the day in Hall G. A staple of the Star Wars Weekends events in Walt Disney World, the academy consists of a seasoned Jedi instructor running young Padawan through a series of lightsaber drills, including a face-off against the evil Darth Vader. Can these kids avoid the temptation of the dark side?

The huge printed Star Wars backdrops are a great way to hone your directorial chops. Also, they’re an easy to point-to answer for when the talent asks, “What’s my motivation?”

Fans who saunter into the Lucasfilm Archives Exhibit today (room 403B) will find a rare batch of models, props and costumes stretching all the way back to the formative years of the Star Wars saga. Han’s Hoth coat is here (finally putting to rest the long-debated blue coat/brown coat question) as well as the full Fett (Boba) armor, Luke’s severed Vader’s head from his Dagobah cave confrontation, a collection of Padme dresses, Vader helmets, lightsabers, and lots more.

A rare treat is the handful of early concept models fashioned by Colin Cantwell back in 1975/76, when the familiar designs we’re all used to were not yet fully realized — don’t miss the saucer-shaped landspeeder and the battleship-inspired Star Destroyer (at the time, I called the “mystery” model a possible windmill or the like — these were actually the power capacitors from the Imperial bunker in Jedi). Here’s a few rare glimpses before the show during set-up.

Looking? Found someone you have I would say hmmm?

…we’re on the way to LA, see you real soon!