The clock strikes 8pm. Dozens of people wearing outlandish costumes and waving LED glow sticks gather in a park in front of Songshan Station in Taipei. An energetic voice suddenly pierces through the night sky, before a stocky man runs through the crowd toward a platform, upon which he stands and begins to make a speech.
If you think this sounds like a cult, you're not far off. This was a "saber meetup" of some of Taiwan's most hardcore "Star Wars" fans, organized by Taiwan's most famous lightsaber craftsman, Tsai Jung-chou, (蔡榮洲), better known to his fans as Makoto.
A few hours before the event, CNA caught up with the master craftsman himself in his workshop in New Taipei's Xizhi District, to find out more about the career that's created a cult following in Taiwan and abroad.
He explained that his main motivation to create his own lightsaber was that as a "Star Wars" fan, the official ones just weren't quite hitting the mark. "Since you can't get the bang for your buck, you might as well just build it yourself," he said.
"Officially licensed lightsabers are marketed as toys, so they don't glow brightly enough and they're also not that durable," Makoto said, adding, "my sabers glow brightly and are very sturdy."
Humble Beginnings
Makoto said that although crafting LED lightsabers became his full-time job around ten years ago after he officially registered his workshop as a business, he actually started producing them back in the 2000s.
Back then, he was just a college student who had recently made the big decision to switch his major from mechanical engineering to electro-optical engineering.
Initially, he struggled to spark a following. "I uploaded a video called 'My LED lightsaber' to YouTube. At that time the platform was overrun with lightsaber videos made with after effects, and lots of people thought my video was just one of those," Makoto explained.
But, unfazed by the naysayers, Makoto did not give up. He continued uploading more and more videos showcasing his craft, which first led to curiosity... and finally orders.
"They were not disappointed," Makoto said of his customers, adding that rave reviews quickly began rolling in.
Makoto said it was this initial wave of support that really kickstarted his saber career.
"My version of a lightsaber actually became popular overseas before it caught on in Taiwan," he added.
When asked what had motivated him to switch his major from mechanical engineering to electro-optical engineering, Makoto explained that it was mainly because of his desire to build lightsabers, real lightsabers, just like the ones seen in the "Star Wars" movies.
He was not joking.
And so, after graduating, he began his first job as a laser engineer, which he had accepted in the hope that it would aid his research into how to create a real-life lightsaber.
But after spending eight years in the business and studying numerous academic papers, he finally realized that building a real one was just not possible with today's technology.
To do so, Makoto explained, he would have to make major scientific breakthroughs, the sort that would change the course of human history, like the invention of the steam engine or the internet.
Taking the Leap
But this realization did little to dampen his ambition, and after years spent developing his lightsaber business into a successful side hustle, he finally made the leap, and quit his job. Producing lightsabers was now officially his full-time gig.
When asked if the transition was worthwhile, Makoto said that despite the steep initial learning curve, it had all been worth it, because he was now making three times as much as he did as a laser engineer and had customers from more than 40 countries.
But for Makoto, it is not really about the money. Despite making a name for himself among other lightsaber enthusiasts, he said, as a one-man band, there's no plan to scale up production.
After all, this is his passion. It is fair to say he does not see it as a traditional job, and he intends to keep it that way.
"What I enjoy is the process of building a lightsaber and the look on a customer's face when they receive it, much more so than making money," he explained.
The Main Mission
Even when he is not working, Makoto manages to lean into his "Star Wars" passion. This year, he embarked on a special mission. The goal? To gift all of the actors attending this year's "Star Wars Celebration" in London one of his handcrafted lightsabers. Makoto said his main draw was the chance to meet again with Hayden Christensen, who portrayed Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader in the franchise.
So, armed with a suitcase stuffed with lightsabers and kitted out in a t-shirt that had a photo of him and Christensen taken at the Tokyo 2022 Comic Con on it, he set off to London.
His quest was complicated by a new rule that required attendees to be empty-handed when taking photos with actors, for security reasons. But luckily, the new regulations only applied to photo sessions, not autograph sessions, leaving a narrow window of time for him to fulfill his mission.
Excitedly, Makoto recounted how after handing Christensen the lightsaber, not only did the actor remember him from the last time they met, he was also so impressed with the gift and the enthusiasm that he gave him a pile of autographed photos, and convinced fellow actor Ian McDiarmid to take part in a photoshoot of the three of them posing with lightsabers.
Makoto also succeeded in handing them out to other well-known actors, including Mads Mikkelsen (Galen Erso) and Giancarlo Esposito (Moff Gideon). Esposito was so impressed with the gift, he shared a video of him posing with it to social media.
From left: Ian McDiarmid, Makoto Tsai, and Hayden Christensen cross blades at this year's Star Wars Celebration in London. Photo courtesy of Makoto Tsai
Living the Dream
Despite being delighted with the responses, Makoto said he still had one unfulfilled wish... to gift each actor an accurate replica of the lightsaber they used in the franchise instead of just a generic model; an idea he had not had time to transform into reality before the "Star Wars Celebration" in London.
This has helped him figure out his next goal: to attend the next "Star Wars" event in Tokyo 2025, armed with newly crafted lightsabers for the actors he worships.
"I want to make it memorable for them, so they know it is because of them that the 'Star Wars' movies are awesome," Makoto said.
When asked what his ultimate life goal was, Makoto said it was to die building lightsabers.
"Imagine taking your last breath just after you finished putting together a lightsaber, wouldn't that be poetic."
Again, he was not joking.
But apart from that one wish, it is fair to say that Makoto is living the dream.
"There are more and more 'Star Wars' fans and more and more people organizing events across Taiwan. That's all I've ever wanted."
