Tantive IV Diorama (built 2005)

Some of my dioramas have certain, coincidental reasons why they were made.
The reason of the Tantive IV diorama was a cheap outlet of the "Rebel Fleet Trooper- Tantive IV Defender" at Woolworth. I bought for around 2,00 € each a big deal of them. First, I built the "Yavin Ceremonial"-diorama, where some of them took their positions at the honourable formation. Later, I built the Tantive IV diorama; about I now want to tell you:
First, as always when I build a diorama, I built the corpus from wood. But this corpus - against all dioramas I built before - the front and the topside, I built also in wood, not acryl-glass, what I normally use, because the spectators should look through the doors into the diorama. For that, I cut 4 holes into the left side part and into the front part. In about 2/3 of the distance between front and back- wall, I set an additional wall
which should separate the part "Leia's Secret Plans" from the "Tantive IV Defence" part. In that wall, I made 3 holes.
From a flexible tube and electro tubes (both 15mm in diameter), I molded the typical doors. With 0,5mm polystyrene, I made the round floor, roof and sidewalls. Because it became a closed room, I had to make a possibility to mount everything.
Therefore, the front part of the diorama can be moved away and connected with the diorama through two wooden 4-edge profiles.
The wall-boxes, I made also from polystyrene and stuck it at the wall. Then, this part of the diorama was painted. After that, the walls got stickers with buttons, etc. on it.
Finally, the Rebel Fleet Trooper were individualized with different colour moustaches and screwed into the diorama. Ideal is here the way the figures are made, as they both stand perfect and also in kneeing position.
The Rebel Fleet Trooper can now be seen through the side-door, through which the Stormtrooper invaded the Tantive IV. So you see into the gun-mouth of the Rebel Blasters. :

Below the roof-plate, I mounted a 50cm long neon-lamp, which is covered with a Plexiglas, which is stuck with transparent paper, so the neon-lamp makes light but its shape cannot be seen.

Now, the rear part of the diorama I made. Here, I used the super website of Frank D. Lorio, a Canadian, who made a terrific website, where you can download decals and such things for dioramas. And all for free! Important for him is only that everybody uses his backgroundpics, decals, and so on, puts a hint at the diorama and a further website, that the artwork is from him.
So, with this hint, I follow his demand. The URL is: www.niubniubsuniverse.com

There, you get the door-arks; the tubes, catwalks and finally a real good report how Frank did his artwork for his own diorama.
I didn't use all one-to-one from Frank and modified some things.
Beside this, my diorama has the "Tantive IV Defence" part, which Frank doesn't have.

So, I built the door-arks from polystyrene, also the catwalks. Then I stuck with pictures from Frank. I drilled the holes and put silver painted drinking-pipes into it.
4 Acryl deco-balls, diameter of 8cm, I opened and had so 8 domes, which I connected with 5cm high paper role rings, which had the same diameter. Then, I also painted them silver. After that I built from polystyrene a rack, where I mounted the domes. I mounted little lamps, which make a thin and indirect light. In a corner, which nobody can look into, I mounted a transformator for the lamps and the neon-tube.
Floor, roof, sidewalls and back-wall were black painted.
Then, I mounted Leia and R2-D2. For Leia, I choose the "hooded" version.

For larger images click the pictures.

© Thomas Riedel 2005