Special Effects: An Oral History--Interviews with 37 Masters Spanning 100 Years [Paperback]

Pascal Pinteau (Author), Laurel Hirsch (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2005

Spanning a century of film technology from the early innovations of George M li s 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 printin

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Pinteau is in awe of special effects, and rightfully so: the ability to use animation, animatronics, makeup, modelmaking and computer trickery is both an art and a science. His book has an artful modesty in discussing the medium; by interspersing his own observations on the history of special effects with interviews with 37 masters of the craft, Pinteau gives a thorough, insightful history that is never overblown and always intelligent. Pinteau, a journalist, screenwriter and special effects designer, covers the dawn of special effects, noting that the art of projection first appeared some 3,000 years ago in the Far East, with the earliest performances of shadow theater; he continues on all the way through to today's marvels, which include the façade of the New York, New York Hotel in Las Vegas, with its recreation of a miniature city skyline. Pinteau's insightful interviews shed light on small-screen grand illusions, too, and the book's amazing photographs depict such fascinating metamorphoses as Marlon Brando's in The Godfather (he wore dental prosthetics to create jowls) and makeup tests for The Exorcist. Among Pinteau's interview subjects are Sylvain Chomet (Les Triplettes de Belleville), Mark Coulier (Harry Potter), Richard Taylor (The Lord of the Rings), Martin Bower (Alien), Roy E. Disney and Jim Henson.
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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.

Product Details

• Paperback: 568 pages
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams (January 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810955911
• ISBN-13: 978-0810955912
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 8 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #440,930 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book about SFX for everyone, May 18, 2005

By 

David Valma - See all my reviews

This review is from: Special Effects: An Oral History--Interviews with 37 Masters Spanning 100 Years (Paperback)

If you like special effects, you'll have a blast reading this book which was obviously written to please movie fans of all ages. A previous review onAmazon said "good, but not the best" and went on praising another book,which is in fact a very technical reference book for special effects pros or film students. I think it is a bit unfair to criticize a book because it is different from what you expected. "Special effects: an oral history" is not a dictionary. It is entertaining and fun to read precisely because it is not a boring catalog of techniques, props and apparatus. It manages to tell the history of special effects as a human adventure, involving many wonderful artists and also explain clearly how they've created miracles in movies, animated feature films or in TV series and theme parks rides (special chapters devoted to animation, makeup, television and theme parks effects, are each over 100 pages long, which is great, since all other FX books I've read so far are devoted to movies only) . Famous special effects geniuses like Ray Harryhausen, Stan Winston, John Dykstra, John Lasseter (and many others) tell great anecdotes about their work and about their creativity. You can buy this book, you won't be disappointed and your kids will love it from the first page to the end! And the 1500 photos and illustrations are simply stunning!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful work..., December 10, 2004

By 

PioneerBoy (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Special Effects: An Oral History--Interviews with 37 Masters Spanning 100 Years (Paperback)

Anyone even slighty interested in this subject will like this book - end of story. From Stan Winstons 'Terminator' to Nimba Creations full size animatronic Tyrannosaurus Rex, this is a cracking book filled with great photos that is the best of it's type.

It covers everything from the beginning of filmmaking right up to present day and leaves nothing out, hence the vast 600 page count; this thing is thicker than a phone book!!

No complaints, it's a wonderful piece of work.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mind Bending Eye Candy, September 23, 2005

By 

Joe Soundtrack (Berkeley, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Special Effects: An Oral History--Interviews with 37 Masters Spanning 100 Years (Paperback)

As a charter subscriber to Cinefex magazine, the 25-year industry bible for visual effects, I'm no stranger to this topic. But flipping through Pinteau's book yielded some exciting revelations and mostly, It did not disappoint. The book promises interviews with masters "spanning 100 years" although it skews pretty heavily to the past decade (not a surprise). But I bought it for the pictures and they made it worth the time and money. The pics are well-chosen and even familiar old films are illustrated with scenes seen less often. I also like the durable hard/soft cover---because I'll be picking this one up frequently.