Go Behind the Scenes of 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' With These Sweet Instagram Snaps

Jordan Zakarin
·Writer
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Kylo Ren and Finn battle in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ (Dan Mindel/Instagram)

With Star Wars: The Force Awakens still smashing box office records, it’s unlikely that we’ll be seeing the monster blockbuster on home video anytime soon. That means no behind-the-scenes features, which leaves Star Wars fans scrambling for any sort of extra insights into the making of the film. Luckily, the film’s cinematographer Dan Mindel is offering up some productions photos on his Instagram.

The veteran director of photography, who has worked on all but one of director J.J. Abrams’ films since 2006′s Mission: Impossible III, has begun uploading some sumptuous pics from the epic Force Awakens production. The coolest one so far is the shot of Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and Finn (John Boyega) battling in the climax of the film; perhaps the most interesting part of the photo is not the actual swordplay (and the awesome glowing lightsabers), but the revelation that the snowy planet that became the Starkiller base was built on a sound stage.

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(Dan Mindel/Instagram)

Another great photo, shown above, features Chewbacca standing behind the monitor, looking at another scene; we can’t quite tell what he’s watching, but we’re guessing that he’s reviewing some footage to make sure he looked col and his fur was brushed just right.

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(Dan Mindel/Instagram)

This photo will break your child’s heart, as it reveals that BB-8 is actually manipulated by remote controls. Don’t worry, he’s still got a mind of his own, as you can tell by this revealing interview we did with the droid ahead of The Force Awaken’s release.

Related: Sneak Peek at Disney’s ‘Star Wars’ Rose Parade Float

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(Dan Mindel/Instagram)

Meanwhile, Captain Phasma got precious little screen time in The Force Awakens, but we still appreciate any close-ups of her chrome-dome helmet.

Related: Mind-Blowing 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Concept Art, From Kira to the Jedi Killer

Mindel has photos from many other film shoots on his feed, including this shot featuring the late Leonard Nimoy during his work on the recent Star Trek movies.

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Watch our rich and varied collection of ‘Star Wars’ videos below:

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