501st founder Albin Johnson writes in to let fans know about the 501st Legion Rose Parade LEGO Diorama Project.
" In 2007 the Legion was proud to be invited by George Lucas to march for him in the Rose Bowl Parade. Over 200 of us were flown in from around the world to march before the world and prove that Star Wars fans can do a great job and celebrate the magic of the saga. With Jan 1 being the 6th anniversary I want to create something that captures the spirit of that event and celebrate the volunteers who participated. I thought a Lego diorama would be a lot of fun, and you can't spell "Legion" without "LEGO" :)
I've started a simple page where I'm tracking the progress of the project. My initial concept is a long street flanked by observation stands, three companies of figures including Stormtroopers, Desert Troopers, Snow Troopers, Biker Scouts, etc (as dictated by what actually marched in the parade) and perhaps a float with the hero characters we had at the parade. We would be inscribing the numbers of the members on the backs of the figures for a permanent record of who was there and where.
Visually this can be a powerful tribute and inspiration to see how it looked. We are shooting to have this completed to ship to Celebration Europe II in July, as Lucasfilm has expressed interest in having it there. It will be fun to have the kids see something in real-space that simulates so many troopers on the march. We plan on having a video of Star Warriors (documentary included in the SW blu ray set) playing next to the diorama as well hiding celebrity LEGO figures in the spectator stands and challenging the kids to see if they can find them in the crowd.
This is a completely grass-roots campaign by the fans and we need all the help we can get. Anyone who sponsors a trooper for $8 or donates a LEGO figure to the project gets their name on the Roster of Sponsors that will travel with the exhibit and be prominently displayed next to it. It's a chance for folks who have no idea what that would be like or who have seen it and admired it to finally be a part of it."