 Howie Weed, an ILM staffer who assisted in designing the Wampa  costume for the Special Edition, was cast as the Wampa for the film  after he was used as the model for the costume. As he is 6 feet  tall, the ice cave set for the re shoots was built with a height of  4 1/2 to 5 feet to create the illusion of the Wampa being closer to  8 or 9 feet in height.