Richard Edlund, ASC (born December 6, 1940) is an American visual effects artist and inventor. He was a founding member of Industrial Light & Magic, having already founded Pignose amplifiers, and later co-founded Boss Film Studios and DuMonde VFX. He has won four Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects (1978, Star Wars; 1982, Raiders of the Lost Ark), as well as two Special Achievement Awards, two Scientific and Technical Awards, and the Medal of Commendation. He is also a BAFTA and Emmy Award recipient.
Richard Edlund | |
|---|---|
 Edlund at an exhibition of his photographs | |
| Born | December 6, 1940 Fargo, North Dakota, U.S. |
| Alma mater | USC School of Cinematic Arts |
| Occupation | Visual effects artist |
| Organization | |
| Known for | Co-founding ILM and Boss Film Studios; pioneering opticals & motion control photography |
| Notable work | |
| Spouse | Rita Kogan (m. 1993; died 2019) |
| Awards | See awards |
| Website | www |
Life and career
editEdlund was born in Fargo, North Dakota and raised in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. After first joining the United States Navy, he developed an interest in experimental film and attended the USC School of Cinematic Arts in the late 1960s. On the strength of a couple of short films, he was picked by John Dykstra to work as first cameraman at the embryonic Industrial Light & Magic on the production on Star Wars for which he shared an Academy Award.
Edlund continued to work with Dykstra on Battlestar Galactica but was invited back by George Lucas to work on The Empire Strikes Back. Edlund's considerable technical challenge on this film was to optically composite miniatures against a white background resulting in a second Academy Award. Edlund also did distinguished work for Lucas and ILM on Raiders of the Lost Ark and Poltergeist.
In 1983, following the completion of Return of the Jedi, Edlund set up his own effects company, Boss Films, whose credits include Ghostbusters, Big Trouble in Little China, Die Hard, The Hunt for Red October, Cliffhanger, Outbreak and Air Force One. Boss Film Studios was one of the first traditional effects houses that successfully transitioned from "tangible world" visual effects, to computer generated imagery, with many notable CGI artists beginning their careers at Boss.
Aside from film-work, Edlund also developed and manufactured the Pignose portable-style guitar amplifier (co-designed by Wayne Kimball).[1] He is a Governor of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a founder of the Academy's visual effects branch and is chair of the Branch Executive Committee, also chairman of the Academy’s Science and Technology Council. He also serves as board member of the Visual Effects Society and on the board of directors of the American Society of Cinematographers.[2]
Edlund was married to Rita Kogan, the only daughter of entrepreneur Michael Kogan,[3] before her death in 2019.[4]
Filmography
editFilm
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Contribution | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Star Trek | 'The Companion' design | Episode: "Metamorphosis" |
| 1978 | Battlestar Galactica | Director of photography: VFX unit | Episodes: "Saga of a Star World Parts 1, 2, 3" Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement - Creative Technical Crafts |
| 1988 | The Magical World of Disney | VFX producer | Episode: "Earth Star Voyager: Part 1" |
| 1989-95 | Tales from the Crypt | Producer | 5 episodes:
|
| 2003 | Angels in America | VFX supervisor | Miniseries; 4 episodes Nominated- Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special |
Awards and honors
edit| Institution | Category | Year | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Award | Best Visual Effects | 1978 | Star Wars | Won |
| Special Achievement Award | 1981 | The Empire Strikes Back | Won | |
| Scientific and Technical Award | 1982 | The Empire Strikes Back[a] | Won | |
| Best Visual Effects | Raiders of the Lost Ark | Won | ||
| 1983 | Poltergeist | Nominated | ||
| Special Achievement Award | 1984 | Return of the Jedi | Won | |
| Best Visual Effects | 1985 | Ghostbusters | Nominated | |
| 2010: The Year We Make Contact | Nominated | |||
| 1987 | Poltergeist II: The Other Side | Nominated | ||
| Scientific and Technical Award | Poltergeist II: The Other Side[b] | Won | ||
| Best Visual Effects | 1989 | Die Hard | Nominated | |
| 1993 | Alien 3 | Nominated | ||
| Medal of Commendation | 2007 | — | Won | |
| American Society of Cinematographers | President's Award | 2008 | — | Won |
| BAFTA Award | Best Special Visual Effects | 1983 | Poltergeist | Won |
| 1984 | Return of the Jedi | Won | ||
| 1985 | Ghostbusters | Nominated | ||
| 1993 | Alien 3 | Nominated | ||
| Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Individual Achievement - Creative Technical Crafts | 1979 | Battlestar Galactica ("Saga of a Star World") | Won |
| Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special | 2004 | Angels in America | Nominated | |
| Saturn Award | Best Special Effects | 1981 | The Empire Strikes Back | Won |
| 1982 | Raiders of the Lost Ark | Won | ||
| 1984 | Return of the Jedi | Won | ||
| 1985 | 2010: The Year We Make Contact | Nominated | ||
| 1986 | Fright Night | Nominated | ||
| 1987 | Poltergeist II: The Other Side | Nominated | ||
| 1988 | Masters of the Universe | Nominated | ||
| 1991 | Ghost | Nominated | ||
| 1993 | Alien 3 | Nominated | ||
| 1994 | Solar Crisis | Nominated | ||
| 1996 | Species | Nominated | ||
| Sitges Film Festival | Best Special Effects | 1995 | Won | |
| Visual Effects Society | VES Fellowship | 2012 | — | Won |
| Lifetime Achievement Award | 2013 | — | Won |
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ Pignose History, Pignose company website
- ^ "Richard Edlund, ASC - About". www.richardedlund.com. Retrieved May 25, 2022.
- ^ "Thanks a Million, DARE Donors". Los Angeles Times. April 22, 1993. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
- ^ "Estate of Late Space Invaders Heiress Lists Three Brentwood Ranches". Variety. July 5, 2019. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
External links
edit
Media related to Richard Edlund at Wikimedia Commons- Richard Edlund at IMDb
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