The light saber is one of the best sci-fi weapons ever, but how did the idea for it come about in Star Wars? George Lucas, actor Mark Hamill, and sound designer Ben Burtt discuss how the weapon was born.

This 15 minute documentary has been made available online for the first time, and it shows how Lucas recalls that Star Wars fights were influenced by films of the 40s. Burtt revealed that the sound of the saber comes from an old film projector idling.

Check out the documentary below: [YouTube via Verge]