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Sidi Jemour Mosque

OVERVIEW

Site: Sidi Jemour Mosque complex

GPS: 33.831420, 10.748173

Location: Groa outskirts (Médenine Governorate) / Djerba island (Tunisia)

Description:
Ibadi coastal defense complex (16th century CE)
Decommissioned from at least 1975 up to 2014

Star Wars film:
Episode IV — A New Hope (1977)

Set construction start: 3 April 1976

Production: 4 April 1976

Star Wars locations | Film sets:
Anchorhead | main road
Anchorhead | Tosche Station (exterior)
Great Mesra Plateau | Mos Eisley perimeter

Leads on set:
Mark Hamill / Luke Skywalker
Garrick Hagon / Biggs Darklighter
Kathleen “Koo” Stark / Camie (Legends: Camie Marstrap Loneozner)
Anthony Forrest / The Fixer (Legends: Laze “Fixer” Loneozner)
Jack Purvis / robot
Kenny Baker / Artoo Detoo (R2-D2) — Note: Listed on the call sheet, but not featured in any footage

Scenes:
8 [Luke in landspeeder almost runs down a woman] <deleted> — Filmed: 4 April 1976
10 [Biggs and Luke look up into space] <deleted> — Filmed: 4 April 1976
16 [Biggs reveals to Luke that he’s going to join the rebellion] <deleted> — Filmed: 4 April 1976
Final cut: 0
Deleted: 3

Sequence:
Transition to Mos Eisley {plate} — Filmed: 4 April 1976
Final cut: 1
Deleted: 0

Record: Crews produced a total of 4 minutes and 11 seconds of screen time on the single day of filming at this site, more than any other Episode IV shoot day.

Omitted: None of the Tosche Station footage filmed at Sidi Jemour Mosque made the final cut.

Framed setting: Low camera angles predominantly facing north/east were used to create the inland Tosche Station visual, effectively hiding views of the Mediterranean (Gulf of Gabès) coastline surrounding the mosque.

Perimeter: Despite the introduction of CGI architecture in the Episode IV Special Edition (1997) that significantly altered the original footage used for the Mos Eisley perimeter transition sequence, this content remains the only imagery filmed at the mosque visible in the film.

Wrap: Final film site/production date for 1st unit Episode IV principal photography in Tunisia.

Accessibility: Very easy; flat terrain; paved roads; close proximity to airport; parking area (33.831601, 10.748108) directly at the site.

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Maguer Gorge

OVERVIEW

Site: Maguer Gorge

GPS: 34.036182, 8.280345

Location: Jebel Sidi Bouhlel, Dghoumès National Park (Tozeur Governorate) / Southwest Tunisia

Description: Geological formation (Campanian Age)

Star Wars films:
Episode IV — A New Hope (1977)
Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999)

Set construction start: 26 March 1976 / n/a

Production: 26, 28-31 March, ~5 April 1976 / ~25 July 1997 

Star Wars locations | Film sets:
Jundland Wastes | rock mesa canyon
Mos Espa podrace circuit | Canyon Dune Turn
Sluuce Canyon | desert wasteland bluff

Leads on set: Episode IV
Alec Guinness / Obi-Wan Kenobi
Mark Hamill / Luke Skywalker
Anthony Daniels / See Threepio (C-3PO)
Kenny Baker / Artoo Detoo (R2-D2)
Jack Purvis / head Jawa (Legends: Dathcha)
Peter Diamond (stunt supervisor) / Tusken Raider

Scenes: Episode IV
17 [Jawas neutralize R2-D2] — Filmed: 30 March 1976
18 [Jawas carry R2-D2 to sandcrawler] — Filmed: 30 March 1976
35 [Tusken Raiders spot Luke in landspeeder] — Filmed: 29 March 1976
37 [Luke and C-3PO find R2-D2] — Filmed: 26 March 1976
38 [Luke attacked by Tusken Raiders] — Filmed: 26, 29 March 1976
39 [Arrival of Ben Kenobi in canyon] — Filmed: 28-29 March 1976
40 [Luke finds injured C-3PO] — Filmed: 28 March 1976
B42 [Luke and Ben discover killed Jawas] — Filmed: 31 March 1976
E42 [Jawa bonfire] — Filmed: 31 March 1976
47 [View of Mos Eisley, “wretched hive of scum and villainy”] — Filmed: 29 March 1976
Final cut: 10
Deleted: 0

Back-projection: Episode IV 
Scene 34 [Luke spots fugitive R2-D2] <90% deleted> — Filmed: ~5 April 1976
Final cut: 0
Deleted: 1

Sequences: Episode I
Tusken Raider sniper point #1 (podrace / lap 1) — Filmed: ~25 July 1997
Tusken Raider sniper point #2 (podrace / lap 1 and lap 2) <lap 2 deleted> — Filmed: ~25 July 1997
Tusken Raider sniper point #3 (podrace / lap 1) — Filmed: ~25 July 1997
Tusken Raider sniper point #6 (podrace / lap 2 ) — Filmed: ~25 July 1997
Tusken Raider sniper point #7 and #8 (podrace / lap 2) <deleted> — Filmed: ~25 July 1997
Tusken Raider sniper point #9 and #10 (podrace / lap 2) <deleted> — Filmed: ~25 July 1997
Final cut: 4
Deleted: 3

Indiana Jones film:
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Production: 10 September 1980

Indiana Jones location | Film set:
Greek island | canyon near Geheimhaven

Leads on set: Raiders of the Lost Ark
Harrison Ford / Indiana Jones
Karen Allen / Marion Ravenwood
Paul Freeman / René Emile Belloq
Wolf Kahler / Colonel Herman Dietrich
Ronald Lacey / SS-Major Arnold Ernst Toht

Scene: Raiders of the Lost Ark
144 [Indy tracks Nazi procession, threatens ark with bazooka] — Filmed: 10 September 1980
Final cut: 1
Deleted: 0

Nickname: Popularly known as “Star Wars Canyon” due to its prolific use by Lucasfilm crews.

Aerial footage: Only Star Wars film site in Tunisia filmed from an aircraft as part of production. 

Native text: Arabic text graffiti appears in Episode IV on the canyon wall behind the parked landspeeder, inadvertently distinguishing Arabic as the first written text presented on fictional Tatooine.

Wrap: Final film site for Episode IV principal photography in Tunisia (2nd unit). 

Historic: First Star Wars prequels filming location in Tunisia.

Record: Only film site in Tunisia repurposed for three geographically distinct Star Wars locations on fictional Tatooine.

Television: Only film site in Tunisia to appear in a Star Wars franchise live-action series (The Mandalorian), featured as purchased third-party footage. 

Shared space: Indiana Jones filming areas overlap with the Star Wars footprint in the canyon, geographically pairing (1) the ark procession with C-3PO’’s post-Tusken attack recovery location, R2-D2’s alcove hideout, Luke’s landspeeder, Obi-Wan’s “Hello There!” introduction to Luke, and Tusken Raider podrace sniper point #1 as well as (2) Indy’s bazooka position with the Tusken Raider ambush boulders and Obi-Wan’s appearance point.

Cinematic overlap: Beyond the three Lucasfilm movies, canyon interior featured in three additional full-length films: The Little Prince (1974), The English Patient (1996), and Bent Keltoum (2001).

Accessibility: Very easy; foothills terrain; paved roads; parking area (34.032367, 8.282746) near the gorge entrance at the base of Jebel Sidi Bouhlel. Access to the western ridge summit requires moderate effort but no climbing expertise.

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Ksar Ommarsia

OVERVIEW

Site: Ksar Ommarsia

GPS: 33.347444, 10.492121

Location: Médenine city center (Médenine Governorate) / Southeast Tunisia

Description: Amazigh fortified granary (early 19th century CE)

Star Wars film:
Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999)

Set construction start: Early July 1997

Production: 9 August 1997

Star Wars location | Film sets:
Mos Espa | Anakin Skywalker’s hovel (exterior)
Mos Espa | slave quarters street

Leads on set:
Liam Neeson / Qui-Gon Jinn
Jake Lloyd / Anakin Skywalker
Natalie Portman / Padmé Amidala Naberrie
Pernilla August / Shmi Skywalker
Dhruv Chanchani / Kitster (Legends: Kitster Chanchani Banai)
Warwick Davis / Wald

Scenes:
70 [They seek shelter from the sandstorm] — Filmed: 9 August 1997
104 [Anakin fights with Greedo] <deleted> — Filmed: 9 August 1997
107 [Anakin leaves Shmi and does not look back] — Filmed: 9 August 1997
Final cut: 2
Deleted: 1

Composited background ksar footage: 4 scenes
82 [The pod rises, the engines ignite] — Scene film site: Eriguet dunes | yardang field | Mos Espa slave quarters backyards set
88 [Probe droid searches] — Scene film site: Eriguet dunes | Mos Espa marketplace set
104 [Anakin fights with Greedo] <deleted> — Scene film site: Ksar Ommarsia
107 [Anakin leaves Shmi and does not look back] — Scene film site: Ksar Ommarsia

Ksour hub: Once home to the largest concentration of ksar architecture in Tunisia with approximately 25 ksour, Ksar Ommarsia and two adjacent ksour (Ksar Ouled Brahim and Ksar Lobbeira) are the only three remaining fortified granaries in the Médenine city center.

Pedestrian zone: The narrow ksar courtyard, a main walkway through the city center, is populated with roughly 120 ghorfas stacked up to three stories high and over 40 curvilinear concrete stairs leading to the upper-level storage chambers.

Historic: First-ever Star Wars franchise filming at a Tunisian ksar.

Decor: Crew covered the ksar courtyard stone floor with sand to depict the desert Tatooine climate, complementing the stand-alone moisture vaporator and extensive ghorfa set dressings removed after filming.

Background architecture: Post-production efforts utilized segmented plate content of three Ksar Ommarsia walls to create Mos Espa cityscape architecture in four of the five Episode I scenes containing composited background ksar footage.

Accessibility: Very easy; flat terrain; paved roads; street parking area (33.346872, 10.492660) directly off of Avenue 7 Novembre (C108) in front of the southeast wall of Ksar Ouled Brahim.

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Ksar Hadada

OVERVIEW

Site: Ksar Hadada (northwest corner area)

GPS: 33.100502, 10.313744

Location: Ksar Hadada village center (Tataouine Governorate) / Southeast Tunisia

Description: Amazigh fortified granary village (mid-19th century CE)

Repurposed: Hotel Ksar Hadada

Star Wars film:
Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999)

Set construction start: Early July 1997

Production: 10 August 1997

Star Wars location | Film sets:
Mos Espa | slave quarters backyards
Mos Espa | slave quarters street

Leads on set:
Liam Neeson / Qui-Gon Jinn
Natalie Portman / Padmé Amidala Naberrie
Pernilla August / Shmi Skywalker

Scenes:
80 [“There’s something about this boy”] — Filmed: 10 August 1997
81 [Qui-Gon and Shmi on porch discuss Anakin] — Filmed: 10 August 1997
A82 [Shmi standing alone on porch] — Filmed: 10 August 1997
85 [Padmé exits hovel at sunrise] <deleted> — Filmed: 10 August 1997
Final cut: 3
Deleted: 1

Composited background ksar footage: 1 scene 
85 [Padmé exits hovel at sunrise] <deleted> — Scene film site: Ksar Hadada

Recce: Only prequels film site in Tunisia to be initially scouted but not utilized for Episode IV. The mid-November 1975 recce explored the then-newly restored northwest corner of the site, presumably as a potential location for unrealized Mos Eisley slums street sequences.

Tataouine: Only Star Wars film site located in the Tunisian region of Tataouine, the orthographic inspiration for renaming the desert planet of Utapau to Tatooine in the Episode IV fourth draft (1 January 1976).

Template: Film site north courtyard—not used for filming—matched with other northwest corner elements replicated to construct the Mos Espa slave quarters backyards set (Mos Espa small set) in the Eriguet dunes north of Nefta (Tozeur Governorate).

Café: Northeast corner of Café Salon de Thé (local business) visible in film footage.

Background architecture: Post-production efforts utilized segmented plate content of the Ksar Hadada northwest corner porch to create Mos Espa cityscape architecture in one of the five Episode I scenes containing composited background ksar footage.

Wrap: Final film site/production date for 1st unit Episode I principal photography in Tunisia.

Accessibility: Very easy; foothills terrain; paved roads; parking area (33.100161, 10.313664) directly at the site entrance.

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Hotel Sidi Idriss

OVERVIEW

Site: Hotel Sidi Idriss (pit 2)

GPS: 33.542564, 9.967038

Location: Matmata al-Qadimal (Gabès Governorate) / Southeast Tunisia

Description: Subterranean dwelling (ca. late 17th century CE)

Star Wars films:
Episode IV — A New Hope (1977)
Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002)

Set construction start: Mid-February 1976 / early August 2000

Production: 1 April 1976 / 11 September 2000

Star Wars location | Film set:
Great Chott Salt Flats | Lars Homestead (interior)

Leads on set: Episode IV
Mark Hamill / Luke Skywalker
Phil Brown / Owen Lars
Shelagh Fraser / Beru Lars
Jack Purvis / robot

Leads on set: Episode II
Hayden Christensen / Anakin Skywalker
Natalie  Portman / Padmé Amidala Naberrie
Anthony Daniels / See Threepio (C-3PO)
Jack Thompson / Cliegg Lars
Joel Edgerton / Owen Lars
Bonnie Maree Piesse / Beru Whitesun

Scenes: Episode IV
26 [Purchase of C-3PO and R2-D2] Filmed: 1 April 1976
A28 [Lars Homestead—dining room] — Filmed: 1 April 1976
A28A [Lars Homestead—dining room] <deleted> — Filmed: 1 April 1976
32 [Owen looking for Luke at homestead] — Filmed: 1 April 1976
Final cut: 3
Deleted: 1    

Scenes: Episode II
90 [Anakin meets the Lars family] — Filmed: 11 September 2000
92 [They discuss Shmi’s fate] — Filmed: 11 September 2000
101 [Padmé pacing in the courtyard] <deleted> — Filmed: 11 September 2000
Final cut: 2
Deleted: 1

Blueprint: Spatial proximity of pits 1-3 at Hotel Sidi Idriss loosely mirrors the three-pit layout of the Lars Homestead exterior set constructed on the Chott el-Djerid salt flats, located 265 km to the west.

Mural: Ceiling  artwork in the film site cave used for the Lars Homestead dining room set (pit 2/cave 9) was created in approximately 1968, the year the multi-pit Hotel Sidi Idriss opened for business.

Beru’s kitchen: The lateral tunnel connecting pit 1 to pit 2 (constructed in 1967/1968) paired with the adjoining steps leading into pit 2/cave 9 were collectively used as the template for the Episode IV Lars Homestead kitchen set (EMI-Elstree Studios). No kitchen interior scenes for either film were shot in Matmata.

Tandem: George Lucas and Anthony Daniels were the only cast/crew members to be in Matmata for the two production days across both films. Daniels was a bystander above pit 2 at the site during Episode IV production.

The End: Final Star Wars franchise filming location/activity in Tunisia (Episode II).

Accessibility: Very easy; foothills terrain; paved roads; parking area (33.542746, 9.967312) directly at the hotel entrance.

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Eriguet dunes
(Mos Espa set area)

OVERVIEW

Site: Eriguet dune system

GPS: 33.994316, 7.842731

Location: Dune landscape south of Chott el-Gharsa (Tozeur Governorate) / Southwest Tunisia

Description: Salt-saturated barchanoid dunes (quartz/gypsum sands)

Star Wars films:
Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999)
Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002)

Set construction start: Early May 1997 / early August 2000

Production: Late July to mid-August 1997 / 10 September 2000

Star Wars locations | Film sets:
Mos Espa | marketplace
Mos Espa podrace circuit | Grand Arena — grandstand
Mos Espa podrace circuit | Grand Arena — pit area
Mos Espa podrace circuit | Grand Arena — starting grid
Mos Espa podrace circuit | Grand Arena — viewing platform

Leads on set: Episode I
Liam Neeson / Qui-Gon Jinn
Jake Lloyd / Anakin Skywalker
Natalie Portman / Padmé Amidala Naberrie
Dhruv Chanchani / Kitster (Legends: Kitster Chanchani Banai)
Pernilla August / Shmi Skywalker
Margaret Towner / Jira
Kenny Baker / R2-D2
Ahmed Best / Jar Jar Binks
Warwick Davis / Wald
Danny Wagner / Mawhonic

Leads on set: Episode II
Hayden Christensen / Anakin Skywalker
Natalie Portman / Padmé Amidala Naberrie
Andy Secombe (voice actor) / Watto

Scenes: Episode I
61 [The odd little group walks down the street] Filmed: 2 August 1997
62 [“We’ll try one of the smaller dealers”] Filmed: 2 August 1997
64 [They move thru the yard picking parts] Filmed: 2,7 August 1997
66 [They find a quiet spot & consider a solution] Filmed: 28 July 1997
67 [Sebulba confronts Jar Jar, Anakin steps in] Filmed: 29 July, 6 August 1997
69 [Anakin stops at Jira’s fruit stand] Filmed: 28 July 1997
76 [Sandstorm engulfs the town] Filmed: 7 August 1997
78 [The storm passed. Padmé doesn’t approve of plan] Filmed: 2 August 1997
88 [Probe droid searches] Filmed: 6 August 1997
91 [The pilots bow to Jabba] Filmed: 5-6 August 1997
92 [Final preparations for the pod race] Filmed: 5 August 1997
93 [Group prepares to watch race, Shmi looks nervously to Qui-Gon] Filmed: 1 August 1997
94 [Pods shoot forward. Anakin’s engines finally ignite] Filmed: 6 August 1997
100 [They celebrate Anakin’s victory] Filmed: 6 August 1997
109 [Qui-Gon cuts probe droid as they leave Jira] <deleted> Filmed: 2 August 1997
Final cut: 14
Deleted: 1

Sequences: Episode I
Grandstand reactions (podrace) — 40 sequences — Filmed: 4-5 August 1997
Pit area reactions (podrace) — 13 sequences — Filmed: 1 August 1997
Viewing platform reactions (podrace) — 16 sequences — Filmed: 1 August 1997
Final cut: 60
Deleted: 9

Scenes: Episode II
80 [Encounter at Watto’s shop] — Filmed: 10 September 2000
97 [Anakin talks to the Jawas] <reshoot> Filmed: 10 September 2000
Final cut: 2
Deleted: 0

Star Wars city: Cinematographic advances backed by a massive film budget drove the decision to construct Mos Espa cityscape and podrace arena set elements in the Tunisian Eriguet dunes for Star Wars prequels production.

Historic: First Star Wars prequels completed scene location filmed in Tunisia (Mos Espa set).

Undercover: Small team of German journalists representing Cinema Zeitschrift acquired unsanctioned aerial photographs from a hot-air balloon in early August 1997 of Episode I filming activity, providing unique primary source locational documentation for the Eriguet dunes film sites. 

Aircraft parts: Nine full-sized podracers (engine/cockpit: 18 pieces total) paired with four podracer cut-outs (engine only) populated the Mos Espa arena starting grid area.

Large set: Mos Espa set, hub for all Star Wars prequels filming activity in the Eriguet dunes, is also known as the “Mos Espa large set,” distinguishing this preserved Star Wars site from the now-buried “Mos Espa small set” constructed circa 600 meters to the northeast beyond a prominent barchanoid dune.

Djerban influence: Core elements of Djerban architecture (Amazigh/Ibadi Islamic blended style) shaped the “Tatooine” design of all 25 structures featured in the Mos Espa set, defined by (1) simplistic domes, (2) barrel-vaulted roofs, and (3) weight-bearing external buttresses.

Surrounding sets: Episode I footage incorporated three additional filming locations in direct vicinity of the Mos Espa set: (1) grandstand set, (2) starting grid set, and (3) viewing platform set.

Accessibility: Very easy; desert terrain; paved roads lead directly to the Mos Espa set; 4×4 vehicle advantageous, but not necessary to explore surrounding Mos Espa arena viewing platform, grandstand, and starting grid areas; unrestricted parking.

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Amghar Mosque

OVERVIEW

Site: Amghar Mosque

GPS: 33.740849, 10.734973

Location: Ajim outskirts (Médenine Governorate) / Djerba island (Tunisia)

Description:
Ibadi coastal defense mosque (10th century CE)
Decommissioned religious site (since at least 1975)

Star Wars film:
Episode IV — A New Hope (1977)

Set construction: n/a

Production: 4 April 1976

Star Wars location | Film set:
Jundland Wastes | Obi-Wan Kenobi’s house (exterior)

Leads on set: n/a

Sequence:
Transition to Obi-Wan Kenobi’s house {plate} — Filmed: 4 April 1976
Final cut: 1
Deleted: 0

Plate: Only Star Wars film site in Tunisia filmed strictly as a plate (no actors), augmented in post-production with a composited landspeeder.

Framed setting: Cropped footage was filmed at low camera angles from at least two different vantage points to create the inland Jundland Wastes visual, hiding views of the Mediterranean (Gulf of Gabès) coastline surrounding the mosque.

Unscheduled: Last-minute 2nd unit location shoot (absent from call sheet records) filmed on the last day of 1st unit Episode IV principal photography in Tunisia at nearby Sidi Jemour Mosque.

Replaced: Episode IV Special Edition (1997) replaced Amghar Mosque footage with a cliffside CGI-enhanced miniature, relegating on-screen discovery of “Old Ben’s” original Tatooine dwelling to pre-1997 archived copies.

Invader: Paris-based French artist Invader attached the Obi-Wan mosaic to the mosque south wall in November 2019 as part of a 15-day project to install 58 pre-made “space invader” mosaics around Djerba island.

Accessibility: Very easy; flat terrain; paved roads; parking area (33.740961, 10.735124) directly at the site.

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Ajim

OVERVIEW

Site: Ajim neighborhood (Al-Hunit Mosque district)

GPS: 33.723964, 10.750016

Location: Ajim city center (Médenine Governorate) / Djerba island (Tunisia)

Description: Bakery (abandoned) plaza two side streets 

Star Wars film:
Episode IV — A New Hope (1977)

Set construction start: Mid-February 1976

Production: 2-3 April 1976

Star Wars location | Film sets:
Mos Eisley | Cantina (exterior)
Mos Eisley | Docking Bay 94 alley
Mos Eisley | plaza
Mos Eisley | stormtrooper checkpoint

Leads on set:
Alec  Guinness / Obi-Wan Kenobi
Mark Hamill / Luke Skywalker
Anthony Daniels / See Threepio (C-3PO)
Kenny Baker / Artoo Detoo (R2-D2)
Anthony Forrest / stormtrooper patrol lead
Jack Purvis / robot
Peter Diamond (stunt supervisor) / cantina patron

Scenes:
48 [Ben: “These are not the droids you’re looking for”] — Filmed: 2 April 1976
49 [In Luke’s landspeeder, they approach cantina] — Filmed: 3 April 1976
ZA50 [Droids in front of cantina] — Filmed: 3 April 1976
A50 [Ben tells Luke he’ll have to sell his landspeeder] Filmed: 3 April 1976
59 [Mos Eisley: stormtroopers watch Millennium Falcon blast off] —  Filmed: 2 April 1976
Final cut: 5
Deleted: 0

Party: Cast/crew celebrated Alec Guinness’ 62nd birthday on set in Ajim (2 April 1976). 

Architecture: Djerban architecture (Amazigh/Ibadi Islamic blended style)—the combination of (1) simplistic domes, (2) barrel-vaulted roofs, and (3) weight-bearing external buttresses that directly shaped “Tatooine” design—is readily visible in Ajim, both inside the small city and on menzel complexes in rural outskirts.

Mos Eisley: Crews added set dressings to a now-abandoned bakery (cantina exterior) with a domed side section on Avenue Abou el Kacem Chabbi, an adjoining rectangular plaza (landspeeder and pedestrian traffic) once lined to the north and south with domed grain storage ghorfas, and two intersecting side streets (stormtrooper patrol activity focused on Rue Habib Thameur) just north of the plaza to create the Mos Eisley film site area in Ajim.

Spaceship: The “roller” machine used to make sandcrawler tracks at the Lars Homestead set on the Chott el-Djerid salt flats was repurposed as the elongated tail of the unnamed crashed spaceship (not the Dowager Queen) constructed to cover a large tree (since removed) near the cantina set and city buildings in the background, particularly the Ajim Primary School complex.

Jerba prop: Two shaggy-haired, fiberglass/latex skin beast-of-burden “jerbas” (named after Djerba island; call sheet: “cow with pack and saddle”) were positioned close to the cantina set faux entrance.

Stormtroopers: Anthony Forrest, sunburned from Djerban beachfront lounging while waiting to film Tosche Station scenes at Sidi Jemour Mosque after the Ajim location shoot, was cast last-minute as the the ranking stormtrooper (joining six local Tunisian stormtroopers on set) to fill the need for an English-speaking patrol lead at the security checkpoint to fluidly interact with the Jedi mind trick dialogue.

Torn pants: For the last C-3PO activity filmed in Tunisia, Anthony Daniels’ shuffle in scene 49 from the parked landspeeder toward the cantina set faux entrance was hampered by a visible split down the seat of his pants.

Controversy: Removing the “orange blob” visible under Luke’s motorized landspeeder while driving across the plaza (created by smearing vaseline on the camera lens in Ajim to disguise the landspeeder wheels) and expanding the overall vision of Mos Eisley (hindered by location shoot realities in Ajim) were key factors that prompted The Star Wars Trilogy Special Edition revisions decades later, sparking the enduring “original version” debate coupled with the #ReleaseTheOriginalTrilogy campaign. 

Cantina: Identified in screenplay versions either as the “spaceport cantina” or “Mos Eisley cantina,” the term “Chalmun’s Cantina” (not a screenplay reference) was first introduced in the roleplaying sourcebook Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley (1993).

Modernization: Community-wide construction/improvement projects in addition to ownership neglect have altered, replaced, or left derelict almost all film site reference points in the Ajim neighborhood.

Invader: Paris-based French artist Invader in November 2019 attached the stormtrooper mosaic to the abandoned bakery exterior (on the northern face under the dome where crews constructed the cantina set faux entrance) as part of a 15-day project to install 58 pre-made “space invader” mosaics around Djerba island.

Accessibility: Very easy; flat terrain; paved roads; parking area (33.723813, 10.750087) directly at the site.