Items directly traceable to the production of Star Wars movies are exceedingly rare and this R2-D2 storyboard from The Empire Strikes Back is no exception. Drawn by conceptual artist Joe Johnston, who worked closely with Ralph McQuarrie during the genesis of the original trilogy movies, this storyboard depicts R2-D2 in the back of Luke's X-Wing during the voyage from Hoth to Dagobah to track down the mysterious Yoda. Unfortunately relatively few R2-D2 storyboards have come surfaced over the years although there is a companion piece to this image in a private collection in the U.K.

The actual storyboard art is ink with shading in pencil (it is important to note this is an actual hand-drawn image and not a production-used photocopy like so many of the Return of the Jedi storyboards which have surfaced). The "stars" in the background are actually small particles of splattered paint, most likely White-Out or a similar type of product. There is some paint overspray present above the image but it is virtually impossible to see because of the white background. The scene description is typed and is cut and pasted below the image. Each corner has four small pin holes attesting to it's use by being tacked on walls and removed for camera repositioning ideas. The text, which may be difficult to see, reads:

Shot No: HE-23 Scene No. 233A Page 218
Description: Side view of Artoo
Elements: Eng. F.G. (probably meaning "engine foreground")
Stars

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