The city of Santa Clarita hosted a screening of “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope” to celebrate Star Wars Day at Central Park on Monday evening.
The crowd was filled with Princess Leias, Darth Vaders, and Jedi to celebrate the franchise and its impact on what has become known as Star Wars Day: May 4, as in, “May the 4th be with you.”
Tim Sayre brought his fully functional R2-D2 robot that he and some friends have built over the past four years. He said his robot is partly wood, partly metal and 3D printed.
“You know, he’s good enough to come out and about, but I’ll always be adding more things. Like these little doors and arms that move. There’s a lot more of that to come. I just added hinges inside of his head,” Sayre said. “The next time you see him, hopefully those will open and close. So, I’ll be graduating to some animations and things instead of just controlling it all as I do it. I’ll be able to push one button and do like a little sequence.”
He began the project because he is a child of the 1970s and 1980s and said, “Who wouldn’t want R2-D2 in their house?”
When asked why he loves Star Wars so much, he said it is because of the fun adventure, and it is inspiring.
“You know, on any given day, you can probably find the character that you relate to in the story. You know, some days your Jabba the Hutt. Some days you’re Han Solo. Most days you’re R2D2, too,” Sayre said.
He said his favorite movie is “Episode 6 – Return of the Jedi.”
Laurene Weste, mayor of the city of Santa Clarita, was dressed up as Princess Leia. She said she was happy to see the community come to the event since this was the first time the city has done this.
“It’s the community we love, and they show us how much all of this means to them, and they show up, and they’re enjoying, bringing the kids and the dogs, and just getting out there and playing,” Weste said. “That’s what Santa Clarita is. And it makes us proud that we’re able to do this for them.”
Weste said her favorite movie is “Episode 4 – A New Hope.”
“And it was what intrigued us and brought us into this realm that we’ve never seen. We’d never experienced it. And it was really a passion play about good over evil, all the way through. And, you know, it’s a space soap opera,” Weste added.
Bruce, Sophia and Brandon Estrada came as a family, and all agreed that the movies are a form of escapism from reality.
“It’s just fun to just lose yourself because the world is a little tough right now, but Star Wars is a great escape,” Bruce said.
Sophia said watching the movies brings a form of childhood nostalgia that their parents experienced seeing it in the theater and that their “excitement bleeds into our generation.”
“And with like movies coming out in our generation, the sequels, while not the best, did rekindle that kind of Star Wars love. And I feel like it brings together a lot, a lot of people,” Sophia added.
Bruce and Sophia wore backpack-style “BD-1s” or droids that he made by hand using plastic and rubber bands.
Karina Sanchez was with her family, mentioning that Star Wars has been a part of her life because of her husband, Ernie, being a huge fan.
When asked why the franchise was so special to her family, she mentioned her daughter, Leia.
“I guess my daughter’s name. We named her after Princess Leia, because my son, my oldest. Since she was the girl, the only girl in the family, he’s like, ‘We got to name her Leia because she’ll be the princess,’” Sanchez said.
Before the movie started, the Saugus High School band performed some music, and people were able to play games like cornhole and volleyball.
However, once the movie began, the crowd was quiet and ready to hang out with C-3P0, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader in the park.
