Star Wars: Episode VII buzz is already inescapable even though the movie, directed by J.J. Abrams, has only just begun shooting in Abu Dhabi. This is to be expected from what is perhaps the most popular sci-fi franchise to ever permeate the pop culture. But there was a time when the Star Wars universe was not so fully formed. It took the mind of George Lucas and a few other imaginations to populate a galaxy far, far away.

In the third episode of the Dailymotion/Mashable series That Was Me, the spotlight is on visual effects pioneer Phil Tippett. Tippett reveals how he created many of the classic Star Wars creatures, Robocop's ED-209 and many other stop-motion cinematic marvels.

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Image: DailyMotion/LucasFilm