Shortly before the release of Episode III, international fans may have noticed several characters from their favorite faraway galaxy riding city street busses or waiting behind passengers at local transit stations. A virtual army of Jedi and Sith had apparently infiltrated cities abroad in a fantastic outdoor campaign lavished across city billboards, busses, transit stations, and more with Revenge of the Sith iconography.

Fans may recall a similar phenomenon occurring shortly before the release of Episodes I and II, where the prequel cast was introduced or featured in a stunning series of images designed to tease and intrigue passers-by. This latest set for Episode III has clearly turned up the heat in promoting the saga's final prequel, with an aggressively visual style designed to engage any viewer who happens to wander within eyeshot of them.

Working with New Wave Entertainment, a Los Angeles creative agency, Lucasfilm Marketing devised a set of six grabbing images for use abroad, where outdoor campaigning is an essential mode of messaging for advertisers. For Episode III, the messaging packed a double punch -- not only would the final prequel showcase more Jedi action than its predecessors, but would also feature the return of cinema's most iconic villain, Darth Vader.

"He's the guy everyone loves to hate," says Lucasfilm Director of Marketing Tom Warner, "so we knew we wanted to play him up in a big way." The Darth Vader poster artwork, which spearheads the image campaign, was specially designed exclusively for outdoor promotional use. Images culled from a Licensing shoot were initially used in the concept phase, but didn't seem to capture the essence of the Vader character that the team was after. "We didn't have a look that felt like he was being as active and intimidating as Darth Vader should be," explains Warner, "so we did a photo shoot down in L.A. for a day with the idea of him reaching out and coming at you with that hand in a clutch that everyone knows." As it happens, the Vader poster is also the only one of the six to feature a line of copy: "Rise Lord Vader". It's an undeniably, er, grabbing image, and turned out to be Warner's favorite. "I think it's a really cool impactful image, coupled with that line."

With the Vader artwork carrying the message of the Dark Lord's return, it was up to the remaining five to deliver another big Episode III plus: Jedi action. "We really wanted the creatives to be very active and feel like you're in the midst of the Jedi action," explains Warner. "They really feel like they're popping off the page, like they're coming out and at you. They make you feel like you're part of the fight, like you're in it." Yoda, Mace, Grievous, and a clone trooper all appear to engage the viewer, with locked sightlines and an implied sense of motion. Each features a color scheme weighted on one or two specific colors, lending greater impact when viewed from a distance.

The sixth and final image, the duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan on Mustafar, was included to tease up a confrontation that fans have been waiting to see for over two decades. "Anakin and Obi-Wan crossing lightsabers was very iconic of Star Wars and also to the core guys who've been talking about this duel for so long," says Warner. "We knew that to show an image of that would be very exciting." The explosive Mustafar background in this image was found to be so compelling that it was also inserted into the Darth Vader poster, combining the two stylistically.

Internationally, outdoor advertising is much more prevalent than in the U.S. One reason for this is that Star Wars fandom has remained very active in the U.S. over the years, so the need to re-familiarize the public to the extent that might be required in some international markets is not as profound. With almost 30 years of history, however, it would be a challenge to find any place on Earth that is wholly unfamiliar with the saga’s key players and events.

"What's great about Star Wars, and especially this film, is that people are already familiar with the characters," says Warner. Because of this familiarity, the Episode III outdoor campaign has been able to perform on a level that conveys both action and icon in a way that fans have found fresh and surprising. According to Warner, the set of six images comprising the Episode III campaign gives the public more than a simple introduction to Revenge of the Sith. "What this did was show them in ways they weren't expecting it."

Fans everywhere can currently add these distinctive images to their computer desktop by visiting the "Downloads: Wallpaper" link on the front page of starwars.com.