A long time ago, in a bedroom

far far away

Brycen McGowan had been sharing a room with his older sister for nearly six years. When his family had the opportunity to build a new bedroom in a home expansion project, Peter (Brycen’s dad) immediately hatched an idea to create something-out of this world: The Ultimate Star Wars Bedroom.

Several years earlier (in a galaxy far, far away) PlainJoe Studios had a unique opportunity to create a concept design Lucas Film on what would have been a permenant Star Wars environmental experience. While those concepts never made it off the page, Peter dug them out and started dreaming about a different use than originally intended.

From the start, he knew his dream was at a different level than his budget. With a materials budget of around $450, he enlisted the help of a team of creative friends to see exactly what was realistic. (No, we’re not missing any zeroes. Four hundred and fifty. Period.)

The new bedroom would be reminiscent of a specific scene from Star Wars: A New Hope. It is that moment the viewer gets their first look at the Millennium Falcon in the hangar at Mos Eisley… That piece of junk? It’s the iconic ship that helped launch a global franchise. (You’ve got goosebumps, don’t you?)

The concept: a Mos Eisley space port with a large scale bed, functional desk and incorporated reading lounge.

The lounge: a reflection of the Millennium Falcon cockpit that an adult can fit into comfortably.

The bed: At the core, a loft bed design made from 2×6’s Peter used himself while in college.

The desk: inspired from the upper wing from an A-Wing Fighter – designated to be a functional desk and book shelf.

The materials: Peter spent a year gathering items (e.g., home fans, trashcans, lids and standard PVC pipe) to make it all happen.

The build: 3 weeks for the core of the bed and surrounding room elements (an initial materials budget of $250). Then 3 months for placing “found” items and the “aging and graining” process and installation of a star field projector for the ceiling and a pneumatic strut-supported ladder (another $200).

The team: Johnny Davis, Robin Larsen, Kirk Langsea and Andy Chang from PlainJoe Studios. Kyle Gritters, Paul Grange and Jerry Tolka from Storyland Studios and Apparent Studios. Special friends who kicked things up a notch: Dick Schmidt, Conan Head and Featured Disney Artist, Dave Avanzino.

When you take a father and son who love Star Wars, a group of gifted friends willing to test a custom idea and just enough creative juice to tackle the challenge-anything is possible. And, in the end, the magic touched everyone. The team completed their mission, shared the Star Wars Universe (on budget) and Brycen doesn’t have to share a room with his sister anymore. Projects like these give everyone the chance to strengthen their chops balancing big dreams with creative problem solving and modest budgets. That just might be more magical than a Lucas Film.

Trashcans were used to build the engine and the household fans were installed to cool the bed space and eliminate the need for a ceiling mounted fan. Rail mounted sliding “blast doors” were added as window coverings and a custom paint job on the shelving system and walls completed the look and feel of the room.

Check out this 360 video of the room with your own VR Headset.

Also seen on: The Huffington Post, Nerdist, Geek.com, Bored Panda, DeMilked, My Modern Met, 9Gag, Geekologie, Screen Rant

Find more of our epic themed environments at Storyland Studios.