Lars moisture farm

• Appeared in:
  
  I
  II
  III
  IV
  V
  VI
  CW

• Homeworld:
  Tatooine

• 

From the Movies

Located near the sleepy farming community of Anchorhead and within reasonable traveling distance to bustling Mos Eisley, the Lars homestead was indicative of the typical moisture farm found on Tatooine. Dotting the property were a number of moisture vaporators, devices designed to pull water vapor from the parched air. The resulting water was either stored in reservoirs for later resale, or directed underground to irrigate sheltered crops.

Like many Tatooine dwellings, most of the living area of the homestead was underground, to provide relief from the unbearable heat above. A central plaza dominated one of the pits, offering access to simple living chambers and storage facilities. Off to one side was a ramshackle garage, wherein the Lars family maintained their family speeder and young Luke Skywalker kept his T-16 skyhopper.

The homestead has been in the Lars family for generations. Cliegg Lars owned it, and with his wife Shmi and son Owen, worked hard to eke out a living from the harsh desert surroundings. Owen Lars and his wife Beru eventually inherited the farm and continued the tradition of hard work.

The Lars homestead was set ablaze by Imperial stormtroopers searching for the missing droids R2-D2 and C-3PO. These same Imperials also murdered Owen and Beru Lars, leaving their bodies to char in the fire.

From the Expanded Universe

Clusters of moisture farms have banded together into communities, uniting against the harsh elements and dangers of Tatooine. These farmers rely on each other for trade and protection. Their homes are far from the port cities, forcing the farmers to turn to Jawa scavengers for needed supplies.

At night, Owen Lars erected a security screen around his farm, a network of sensors that acted as an early warning of intruders. Sentry droids like 2X-3KPR monitored the perimeter, and were responsible for activating alarm sensors, security lighting and power fences.

When Luke Skywalker returned to Tatooine some time after the Battle of Yavin, he handed over the deed to the farm to a spice smuggler named Throgg, who later sold the farm to the Darklighters.

Behind the Scenes

The exteriors of the Lars Homestead were shot at two different locations in Tunisia for A New Hope. The subterranean courtyard area was actually the underground Hotel Sidi Driss in Matmata, while the surface dome was filmed near a small crater on the other side of the country. The production crew returned to these same exteriors after more than two decades for shooting the homestead sequences in Episode II.

The interior kitchen and garage scenes were originally shot on a soundstage in Elstree Studios. The same set had to be recreated in exacting detail in Fox Studios Australia for Episode II.