Naberrie Family Reunion

Both actors shot the bulk of their scenes at Fox Studios Australia, where a stage was transformed into the quaint home of the Naberries. The scenes were completed in a day, and Karvan admits that she wandered to other stages that were transformed into a distant galaxy. "I visited the set where Susie Porter worked: the diner," she says. "It all looked pretty exciting. It's strange because there's bluescreen out the window, so it all really comes to life in post-production. I also had a look at the nightclub, which was great because one of my favorite scenes in the original Star Wars was when they go into that bar."

"We were all very nervous about what was required. I think," admits Blundell, recalling the first day of shooting. "George told us to treat it like a family party, and your daughter's come back. He gave us very simple and clear instructions, which just relaxed everybody and meant that the actors could play around with what they had to do, which I thought was fantastic."

"I was really impressed, considering how much he must have on his plate," says Karvan of Lucas. "I was impressed by how much time he had to give and how approachable he was and friendly and relaxed. He didn't seem like this kind of distracted, mad professor or anything. He was really in control, and calm, and lovely."

Blundell's involvement in Episode II lasted longer than Karvan's, as a very brief scene of him walking with Anakin outside the Naberrie family house necessitated a trip overseas. "I went to Lake Como, Italy, just for one scene that was cut, and I filled in for an actor, Oliver Ford Davies, who didn't arrive, who was in Tokyo doing a play. So, I stood in for him vocally, going to Caserta, and having a fantastic time. George said to me at the ending of shooting the last scenes at Caserta, 'was that worth an around-the-world ticket'?"

Other actors have described a sense of family both in front of and behind the camera -- not only is the story of the Skywalker clan unfolding on-screen, but there is a strong feeling of community among the film crew. "It's a big international production but much of the crew were Australian, and I'd worked with a lot of them before," says Karvan. "It wasn't that daunting to work on. It was really nice."

For the Naberrie actors -- Blundell, Karvan and Trisha Noble (who played Jobal) -- the feeling of family predated their involvement in Star Wars. "Trisha Noble had been a very famous singing star here as a teenager, and as a young person, I had been in awe of her, so it was a great privilege working with her," says Blundell. "And I recently played Claudia's father again in her very successful television series here called 'The Secret Life of Us.'"

"It was nice to have that actually come to fruition. Someone out there must really want us to play father and daughter," says Karvan. "I've known Graeme around the track since I was very, very young, because he knows my parents."

"There's very much a strong sense of community," concurs Blundell. "It's a much bigger community now than it was when I started 30 years ago, but you do tend to work with the same people at a certain level quite regularly across the years. Claudia is in fact a friend of my son, who's an actor, and as a 10-year old she came to dinner a few times. Her parents ran one of the most famous and insalubrious nightclubs in Sydney. There are all these interconnections that we share in this country, and that's something I like to celebrate."