The costume pageant was a great showcase of fans' dedication and creativity. Warwick Davis presented this event, which was divided in two categories: under 16 and over 16. The judges were creature shop supervisors from Ep. III, Dave and Lou Elsey and costume designer John Mollo.
In the under 16 category there was a great clone trooper outfit and a parade of cute little Jedi, princesses and bounty hunters. While some had definite star quality - there was an Obi-Wan Kenobi who even perfected the Jedi Master's fighting stance -, some nearly ran off the stage, making it a little difficult to take good photos!
This category's prizes were given out by Ray Park and the winners were:
3rd: Yoda - this toddler in a Yoda outfit stole the show. If the huge smile on his little face is anything to go by, Star Wars will still be going strong another 30 years from now!
2nd: Boba Fett - This was a good costume, almost entirely handmade. The judging panel definitely gave points for care and effort.
1st: Lego Darth Vader - Yes, you read it right. This young boy's costume was Darth Vader as a Lego figurine! A definite win for creativity.
The adult category (over 16) had some amazing costumes ranging from Jedi Knights to Expanded Universe characters. There were many women in the pageant, and I don't mean just Amidalas: there was Aayla Secura, Shaak Ti, a slave girl from Jabba's palace, Mon Mothma and a very realistic Asajj Ventress.
There were some great moments of unexpected humor in the pageant: somehow Warwick Davis' cue cards got mixed and all the costume descriptions started coming out wrong. There would be a Jedi on stage, in somber brown robes, and Warwick was describing flower embroidery? Everybody was laughing, including the contestants, and Warwick just made it the pageant's running gag!
The awards were given out by Jeremy Bulloch, who was very nice and took the time to speak to each winner about his/her costume. The winners were:
3rd: Hoth Han Solo with Tauntaun - This outfit must be seen to be believed, check out the photos! A brilliant idea, very well executed.
2nd: Amidala Senate Gown (Episode II) - This was indeed the most accurate of the Amidalas, up to the flawless hairdo. The costume was well tailored and showed great craftsmanship. Also, her serene regal pose rivalled Natalie Portman's!
1st: Wookiee - Upon taking the stage, this Wookie turned out to be bald? He also revealed that he'd nearly fainted from heat exhaustion earlier that day! That's what you get for impersonating a walking carpet.