KYODO NEWS - Sep 12, 2017 - 14:11 | Arts, All

A folding screen painted in ink featuring main characters of the Star Wars movie was unveiled Tuesday at Byodoin, a Buddhist temple on UNESCO's World Heritage list in Kyoto Prefecture, ahead of the release of the latest episode in December.

The movie's famous robot characters R2-D2 and C-3PO as well as villain Kylo Ren were painted on the screen by Masayuki Kojo, 39, a local painter.

Rian Johnson, director of the new release "The Last Jedi," praised the painting as amazingly beautiful at a ceremony held at the temple in Uji, south of Kyoto.

A traditional Japanese comedy play "Kyogen" inspired by the movie was also performed at the event.

The folding screen will be displayed at a tourist center in the city of Uji.