Costume man feels the force (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)

Costume man feels the force

12:32pm Friday 11th April 2008 in

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A Twickenham costume maker is at the centre of a multi-million pound court case battling against the force of blockbuster film maker George Lucas for the rights to reproduce Star Wars costumes he provided for the original film.

American courts ruled against Andrew Ainsworth, 59, who runs Shepperton Design Studios on Twickenham Green, in a case in 2006.

The courts found Mr Ainsworth guilty of copyright infringement, unfair competition and trademark infringement in reusing the original moulds to reproduce and sell Stormtrooper masks to the public, and awarded Mr Lucas's company Lucasfilm $20m (£10.1m) in damages.

Mr Ainsworth's British residency and his inability to pay the galactic sum meant the court order has to be enforced at the British High Court. He is now countersuing the US company for a share of its £6billion merchandising profits since the 1977 film.

At the High Court this week, two full-size Stormtrooper mannequins stood in the left aisle angled to face the judge and on the front row were six originals and replica helmets also facing the judge, including Stormtroopers, Tusken raiders and Rebel pilots.

Representing Lucasfilm, Michael Bloch QC opened the case by saying: "We are not simply dealing with costumery.

"The process is crucial, but it also involved artistry and considerable team work."

Paintings of the Stormtrooper masks by Oscar-winning costume designer John Mollo were the focus of the battle over artistic rights as Mr Ainsworth claims that he did not see the paintings, though in a statement read out in court he admits that his final moulds could have been "influenced by discussions" with Mr Mollo.

During the defence's presentation, Judge Mr Justice Mann suggested the two sides agree to bridge some of the colossal gap of fortunes between Lucasfilm and Mr Ainsworth's Twickenham shop by "cutting down the scope of the litigation where the facts are similar for each helmet.

"Thus making it shorter and cheaper from Mr Ainsworth's point of view."

Mr Ainsworth claims on his website sdsprops.com: "For the first time ever, you can own an exclusive 1:1 collectable replica of the original movie helmets.

"Each helmet is hand-made by the original prop-makers using the original 1976 movie moulds."

The case continues.