Stan Winston 1946 - 2008

STAN WINSTON

1946 – 2008



F/x master Stan Winston dies

Work included 'Jurassic Park,' 'Terminator', 'Iron Man', 'Alien', 'Predator'

By DAVID S. COHEN FROM VARIETY


Stan Winston, one of the great names in special effects, has died at age 62.

The Oscar-winning visual effects artist died at his home Sunday evening surrounded by family after a seven-year struggle with multiple myeloma, according to a representative from Stan Winston Studio.

Winston won visual effects Oscars for 1986's "Aliens, "1992's "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" and 1993's "Jurassic Park," for which he created animatronic dinosaurs that complimented the film's digitally-animated creatures. "Iron Man" visual effects supervisor John Nelson "Stan was the man when it came to making those kind of prosthetic effects, he was the guy. If you look at the litany of other good people in the business, they tend to be people who worked for Stan."

Stan Winston Studios did the practical Iron Man suit for this year's Marvel/Paramount blockbuster but Winston himself was not actively involved on set.

For decades, Winston's robotic/animatronic creatures were the best in the industry and his prosthetic makeup was among the best available.

"It was a perfect compliment to the stuff thwat we were doing," said Dennis Muren, who supervised the digital effects on "Jurassic Park."

"His creatures would work with the actors and when you put the two together the audience was confused, and sometimes we were too, about who had done what."

But Stan had always said it shouldn't be all one or all the other, it should be a combination of the two."

Eric Roth, executive director of the Visual Effects Society said "It's a big loss. Our industry has lost one of its giants, someone who has had a tremendous impact on helping tell stories with the use of effects."

The conference room at Winston's Van Nuys studio was long one of the most effective sales tools any effects company could hope for, with life-sized creatures including the original "Alien," the lunching out of the walls toward the conference table on all sides.

Winston is survived by his wife, Karen; a son, daughter, brother and four grandchildren.

From...First Showing.net