‘Star Wars’ Camera Fetches Record $625K At Auction

COMMENTS (23)

• George Lucas is planning to modify this camera several times in the near future.

  Comment by Han Shot First — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 2:09pm PST  Reply to this post

  • Hahahaha, bravo!

    Comment by Episode IV-V-VI — Monday December 12, 2011 @ 8:57am PST  Reply to this post

• I didn’t know that Panavision ever sold any of it’s Cameras or lenses. I wonder how Debbie Reynolds ended up with it?

  Comment by MrBee — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 2:37pm PST  Reply to this post

  • This is NOT the first privately owned Panavision camera. Panavision one day said, “if it has dust on it, scrap it.” Martin Hill happened to be in the right place at the right time and picked up scores of them. Including cameras that shot “Lawrence of Arabia” and many many other films. I had a chance to buy the 2001 camera a month ago. Not sure how long Martin has had these cameras, but it has been easily several years. http://www.historicmoviecameras.com

    Comment by Tim — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 5:19pm PST  Reply to this post

• nerd!

  Comment by Wookie — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 2:58pm PST  Reply to this post

• And I’ll keep buying it even after the camera screams NOOOOOOOOOO at the end of the third magazine.

  Comment by BK — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 3:17pm PST  Reply to this post

• This was NOT Debbie’s camera. She only put her face to it. The cameras was owned and restored by Mark Mervis. I’ve seen the camera many of times and Mark had used it on many of his indie films. He restored it from scratch. And when I mean scratch, I mean scratch. The original owner from North Carolina had it as a piece of junk and Mark restored it to it’s beautiful condition. No, I’m not Mark, but a former protege.

  Comment by Film Dude — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 3:35pm PST  Reply to this post

• Has anyone other than Lucas been able to squeeze this much value out of a single franchise?

  Comment by Chris — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 3:36pm PST  Reply to this post

• You are correct, Panavision does not sell its cameras. However, Mark owned the PSR which he obtained from the collector in NC. It was part of a deal for other junk that he obtained from Panavision’s previous owners. Another Panavision camera, I recall is or was owned by an Asian guy. Sorry, that was not politically correct, but I do not recall his name. Any other Panavision camera in one’s possession is stolen.

  Comment by Film Dude — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 3:40pm PST  Reply to this post

• It’s a shame this fine camera only captured half the movie Lucas wanted to make. According to him.

  Comment by casting couch — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 3:48pm PST  Reply to this post

  • This old film camera captured much more visual information, than the digital cameras that Lucas used on the two prequels, “Attack of the Clones” and “Revenge of the Sith”.

    The old badly mishandled film negative, captured the equivalent of between 4k and 5k. The digital cameras Lucas used in the prequels was limited to 1080 pixels. You could still use that 34 year old camera today.

    Comment by Joe Brown — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 4:38pm PST  Reply to this post

    • You’d have to rent the hell out of it to earn back the value, and even then what are the odds anyone would rent only one of these for a budgeted film that could afford to use it? This is either a museum piece or someone’s trophy now.

      Comment by Chyll Will — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 5:25pm PST  Reply to this post

      • I think Joe was speaking hypothetically…

        Comment by Biff Johnson — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 6:49pm PST  Reply to this post

• She didn’t have it back then. I helped load this camera on the trailer to be shipped to her auction, back in early Oct.

  Comment by Tim — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 5:17pm PST  Reply to this post

• I wonder what other films used this camera, and the history behind it during it’s service at Panavision.

  Comment by Herb Finn — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 7:15pm PST  Reply to this post

• Taco Bell commercial.

  Comment by Burke Dennings — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 9:34pm PST  Reply to this post

• I have a hard time believing they only used one camera to film Star Wars. I never worked on a feature, especially one doing so many effect shots that only used one camera. Would it be worth $625,000 as only ‘one of’ the cameras that shot Star Wars?

  Comment by Stuart — Monday December 5, 2011 @ 9:52pm PST  Reply to this post

• I hope they’re not expecting similar prices for the rest of their film cameras, when they go up for sale soon.

  Comment by jim sheedy — Tuesday December 6, 2011 @ 12:26am PST  Reply to this post

• I think they could get $ 338.97 for the camera from Ishtar

  They must make payroll somehow.

  Comment by mike — Tuesday December 6, 2011 @ 11:51am PST  Reply to this post

• It was ONE of the cameras used on Star Wars. But the one we are speaking about in this thread happens to be pictured with the man himself, documented with matching serial number on the movement inside the camera, plate etc., which makes it what it is.

  Comment by Film Dude — Tuesday December 6, 2011 @ 3:23pm PST  Reply to this post

• Too bad it wasn’t NIB.

  Comment by mcgrimus — Wednesday December 7, 2011 @ 9:13am PST  Reply to this post

• Look at the size of that thing!

  Comment by Wedge Antilles — Wednesday December 7, 2011 @ 1:34pm PST  Reply to this post

• I love the Star Wars behind-the-scenes footage where they’re using noisy 1940s Mitchell NCs.

  The modified Nikon used on Temple of Doom sold at the recent Kerner Optical auction was a steal compared to this, and a lot easier to store.

  Comment by Tim — Wednesday December 7, 2011 @ 3:23pm PST  Reply to this post