Special Effects: An Oral History: Interviews with 38 Masters Spanning 100 Years

by Pascal Pinteau, Laurel Hirsch (Translator)

Spanning a century of film technology from the early innovations of George Méliès to the most recent Matrix films, a tribute to the use of illusion in movies features interviews with thirty-seven international special effects masters and more than 1,000 illustrations, in a volume complemented by a list of recommended DVD films. 15,000 first printing.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction

568 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Pascal Pinteau is a journalist, screenwriter, and special effects designer who has created special effects for commercials, TV shows, and theme parks. Since 1985, he has visited with special effects masters throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Australia.

Reviews

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was my gateway drug into film, special effects, modelmaking, a decade ago — which eventually led to a career in professional Industrial Design. It all started in my home-built R&D Kitchen (home garage) making Batman movie prop reproductions using RTV silicone & urethane resin molding and casting techniques (those were the days...). I used to buy the quarterly issues of another special effects magazine, and preferred this book much better as it seemed to be a collection of the best of the best. Terminator 2 and Predator from Stan Winston Studios (Legacy Effects) were legends of practical effects.

I still much rather prefer practical effects to the digital effects overrunning the film industry these days, along with the craft that goes along with it. The fact that the SFX team built a scale White House to blow up during the filming of Independence Day was just insane (ah the 90's, where all action movies had explosions). Buy this book if you want to pick the brains of some of the top artists, designers, and directors at work!

Christopher Armstrong
Author of The Maker’s Field Guide : The Definitive Guide to Making Anything

[A. Dia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book, this really opened my eyes to the behind the scenes of some of the most iconic film scenes and movie franchises in history. Highly recommended for movie buffs or those with an interest in the special effects industry!