This is an update to the article published yesterday – eBay: “Original” Star Wars Jawa Sandcrawler & Statistical Authentication? – in reference to a Star Wars Jawa Sandcrawler model listed on eBay that is marketed as “FROM ORIGINAL 1976 STAR WARS and “ONLY PRE-PRODUCTION MODEL IN EXISTANCE!”. The prior article includes archives of the current auction listing as well as the auction listing from the same seller for the same item from earlier in the year. Also documented are facts, photographs, and information from key Star Wars publications to compare with this piece and in contrast to the marketing claims.
The eBay seller listed three “scenarios”, with probability percentages as to the invented provenance:
Best case scenario: My percentage estimate that this is the case: 25% It really was used in still and pre production shots of the original 1976 Star Wars movie.
Next case: My percentage estimate that this is the case: 70% It was made by Joel Diepenbrock as a precursor, practice if you will of the larger 3 ft motorized model used in the movie.
Worst case: My percentage estimate that this is the case: 5% It was suggested to me by a collector that this is a fan built model, simply built after the movie came out.
As I stated in the original article, based on the information and my research, my assessment was the following:
Getting back to the seller scenarios (“25%”, “70%” and “5%”), based on the facts, it is possible that all three scenarios, as devised by the seller, are incorrect.
If the attribution on the display card is correct, it is possible that this model was built by professional model maker Robert Dienpenbrock, who now owns BobCat Studios – but not as employed by ILM for the production, Star Wars: A New Hope – but in the context of a hobbyist pursuit
Immediately after publishing the article, I sent an e-mail to Mr. Diepenbrock, with a link to the article, asking if he could share information in regards to this model, in the event he was the Robert (not Joel) Diepenbrock who built the model in question, as noted on the card on display with the piece in the photos. I have corresponded with Mr. Diepenbrock, and he has given me permission to publish his original e-mail response to bring clairty to the model and the claims made in the eBay auction:
Dear Jason,
I was intrigued by your e-mail and the attached blog. I am in fact the Robert Diepenbrock in question. I was never a Joel Diepenbrock.
I worked as a model maker at Industrial Light & Magic Company in 1982. My primary assignment was Star Trek II the Wrath of Kahn. I built the smaller Reliant model, and the Planet Regula surface model used in primary miniature effects photography. I also assisted in construction of the large Reliant model and revising the existing Star Trek I Space Station model into the Regula I Space Station. I applied the battle blast effects to the existing large Star Trek I Enterprise model.
While at ILM I also assisted in the lighting on the E.T. The Extraterrestrial Spaceship and some minor work on Poltergiest.
The small Reliant model used in filming Star Trek II I made while at ILM recently was recently auctioned for around $24,000.
I am the builder of the Star Wars Jawa Sand Crawler model in question. It is not a pilot model for the movie Star Wars as speculated. It is is very accurate replica of the actual Jawa Sand Crawler model which I had seen while working at ILM and from drawings and photographs of the original model. The metal armature mentioned is the same type of construction we used in the motion control models we built at ILM. I also installed a similar lighting system to the models I built while at Lucasfilm.
This would be a fine addition to a Star Wars enthusiast’s collection as it is probably the only model of it’s kind built by an ex-ILM model maker. However it is not a pilot model for Star Wars movie and there is no connection to Star Wars or any other ILM or Lucasfilm project, other than the fact that I once worked at ILM.
After leaving ILM I pursued a directing career. I returned to model making for the films The FIfth Element, where I modeled the Mondeshewan Starship and the Federal Battle Cruiser, and Starship Troopers where I modeled the various Roger Young Class Starships and the docking bay.
I currently reside in Arizona, where I co-own an advertising agency. I occasionally make models and miniatures on commission. If you have any clients that would be interested in a replica based on a particular movie model have them contact me.
Robert Diepenbrock
I thank Mr. Diepenbrock for taking the time to share his first hand information about the model, and allowing me to update the original article so that the history of the piece can be documented publicly as a reference point in the event it is marketed for sale in a way that is contrary to the facts.
Jason De Bord