Watch Star Wars Fan Film Filmaker Select Winner TK-436 Director's Cut

Star Wars intentionally made the foot soldiers of the Empire, the Stormtroopers, into nameless, faceless drones. The idea was to have these people who weren't people; so hopelessly fanatic and willing to follow the path of the dark side, they weren't meant for fans to relate to... and then they did anyway.

With organizations like the 501st, a charitable fan group that builds their own armor and other costumes to dress up for events, hospital visits, and much more, plus novels, games, comics, and fan films that put the fan under the helmet of a 'trooper, it's clear that Stormtroopers have resonated in a way George Lucas never expected (or, likely, intended). That's evident in this year's Filmmaker Select award winner at the Star Wars Fan Film Awards, TK-436: A Stormtrooper Story. The film has now been re-released in a 12-minute long director's cut (the fan films had to be cut to 5 minutes or less for submission) after winning the award.

"The gritty tale of an Imperial stormtrooper who is forced to confront his past in the heat of a battle," is what the official description reads, but the story directed by Samtubia & Samgoma Edwards is much more than that. Looking at the journey of a Stormtrooper who was just a young recruit that wanted to be a hero and wound up on the wrong side of several major Star Wars moments gives another level of humanity to these once-faceless drones, after Star Wars: The Force Awakens ripped off that particular band-aid by making a Stormtrooper a lead character in that film.

For fans of the novels, this fan film is probably the closest we'll get to a Lost Stars film anytime soon (even if roles are reversed).

Check out the Director's Cut above, and the full list of winners (with their five minute cuts) of this year's Star Wars fan film awards at this link.