--- description: Gary Tomkins recently spoke about what it was like working under director J.J. Abrams and how Star Wars series creates nostalgia. title: This Moment Shows Why J.J. Abrams Is Directing 'Star Wars' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc6a4a18070e71d67/69887385bc6cfce8f53daa29/j-j-abrams-star-wars-props.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # This Moment Shows Why J.J. Abrams Is Directing _The Force Awakens_ by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 7, 2015 12:00 PM CUT  The new improved Rebel XWing Fighter on display inside the 'Star Wars The Force Awakens' exhibit on Day One of Disney's 2015 Star Wars Celebration held at the Anaheim Convention Center on April 16, 2015 in Anaheim, California. The new improved Rebel XWing Fighter on display inside the 'Star Wars The Force Awakens' exhibit on Day One of Disney's 2015 Star Wars Celebration held at the Anaheim Convention Center on April 16, 2015 in Anaheim, California.Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 7, 2015 12:00 PM CUT Gary Tomkins, the art director for _Star Wars: The Force Awakens_, has been involved with the galaxy far, far away almost his entire life. In fact, he is one of the only people to have been a part of all three trilogies of the franchise, having also worked in the art department for _The Empire Strikes Back_ and as a draftsman for _The Phantom Menace._ Tomkins recently [spoke to TIME](http://time.com/4134371/how-j-j-abrams-brought-back-star-wars/ "undefined") about what it was like working under director J.J. Abrams and how the nature of the _Star Wars_ series creates nostalgia: “What is lovely with J.J. is — I mean obviously so many of us have grown up with Star Wars, me maybe particularly more literally than a lot of millions of people across the world, but we’ve all played with _Star Wars_ toys on the bedroom carpet and you know, we’ve all done that. Even J.J., on one of the first days that we showed him an X-wing, we were talking to him about it and talking about various technical details and he said, ‘Hey, just give me a minute. I’ve got my own X-wing here, this is so cool.’ And suddenly the little boy in him, the eight-year-old boy came out because he was standing there next to a X-wing. I think that’s what _Star Wars_ does to people. I think the word iconic is very overused these days, but something like a X-wing is an iconic piece, and for a director to be presented with what essentially is a toy box of X-wings, of TIE fighters, of all of these things — it’s a privilege for us to be able to give it to them and I think its a great thrill for them to actually have it at their disposal and hopefully come up with some fantastic shots.” **Read next:** * [Here’s How Adam Driver Learned to Master the Dark Side](http://time.com/4129579/adam-driver-masters-dark-side-star-wars-the-force-awakens/?xid=tcoshare "undefined") * [Gwendoline Christie on Why Her _Star Wars_ Costume Is a ‘Step Forward’ for Women](http://time.com/4129483/gwendoline-christie-star-wars-the-force-awakens-captain-phasma-costume/ "undefined") * [The 10 Most Fascinating _Star Wars: The Force Awakens_ Fan Theories](http://time.com/4116403/star-wars-force-awakens-fan-theories/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4133280/star-wars-the-force-awakens-jj-abrams-props/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4133280/star-wars-the-force-awakens-jj-abrams-props/"},"headline":"This Moment Shows Why J.J. 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