Dennis Muren: The Man With the Most Oscars Alive
Well, this is wild: today’s conversation is with an absolute effects legend … 9-time Academy Award winner, Dennis Muren.
This is honestly a dream come true and our conversation did not disappoint: from the landmark achievements of original trilogy’s space battles, the Temple of Doom‘s mine car chase, Willow‘s morphing, Terminator 2‘s liquid metal and more … we dive into so much of Mr. Muren’s incredible career.
From Star Tours to the prequels to the future of CG and movies, I feel very fortunate to have been able to talk to him. I hope you all enjoy hearing his stories and experiences (and I hope you were able to tell that I was smiling so hard the entire time).
TyRuben Ellingson: Art Director for A New Hope (Special Edition), Jurassic Park
TyRuben Ellingson is an exceptional Visual Effects Art Director who has worked on a ton of projects, including Star Wars: A New Hope (Special Edition).
Whether breaking his arm on Jurassic Park or drawing floating Jabbas, we dive into his story and career … and what George Lucas really said in that first Special Edition meeting. (He also goes on the record about his involvement, or lack thereof, on Greedo shooting first.)
From working with Guillermo del Toro and James Cameron to Tron 3 and Neil Blomkamp’s Alien 5, he tells such inspiring stories about his career and his journey.
His website with more of his designs and projects is definitely worth a vist: alieninsect.com
Craig Barron: Academy Award-Winning VFX Arist and Film Historian
As an incredibly special Thanksgiving treat, today I am talking to Academy Award winner Craig Barron, who not only worked on The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, but has been a visual effects pioneer for decades, beginning with his start at Industrial Light & Magic as an 18 year old.
From portraying Darth Vader to working with David Fincher, we go through as much of his filmography as possible, as well as the incredible work he is doing for the preservation of film history.
Matthew Reinhart Returns: Bringing the Star Wars Galaxy to a Pop-Up Book
Today we’re talking to paper engineer and the pop-up master himself, Matthew Reinhart, who returns to the show after our live chat for Episode 38, to talk all about his latest book from Insight Editions … STAR WARS: THE ULTIMATE POP-UP GALAXY.
Even Talking Bay 94 producer Jason gets out on the mic to help me ask the big questions all about design and Easter Eggs in his work.
I would like to reiterate, that we were not joking about helping operate his Jabba cosplay at Celebration Anaheim.
Of course, thank you as well to Eric Chang at Insight Editions for being such a huge supporter of this show and helping to coordinate this interview. The incredible THE ULTIMATE POP-UP GALAXY is in stores now and really is a perfect holiday gift for all ages. Not just saying that.
Paul Dini / Stephen Langford: Legendary Writer of Batman: The Animated Series, as well as Ewoks and Droids
For those who do not know, my day job is as VP of Marketing for FANGORIA (the horror movie magazine and production studio). And, as part of that job, I interviewed Paul Dini (BATMAN:THE ANIMATED SERIES) and Stephen Langford (FAMILY MATTERS), who both scripted one of the episodes of Shudder’s CREEPSHOW.
But, of course, I had to ask them about EWOKS and DROIDS. Dini was an associate producer on both, as well as writer, and Langford was a writer and collaborator (including, non-chronologically, the final episode of EWOKS: “Malani the Warrior”.)
They both were great sports about the curveball question and I thought I would clip it out as a special Sunday bonus episode for TB94. Enjoy!
Bill Hargreaves: Designer of IG-88, EV-9D9, Probe Droids, Mynocks and B'omarr Monks
Today we are talking to prop maker and droid creator, Bill Hargreaves. From EV-9D9 and probots to B’omarr monks and mynocks … to, of course, IG-88, we go through his start working on Alien all the way to his tortuous coat hanger creation for Raiders of the Lost Ark.
I want to stress here: the coat hanger story is a masterpiece.
Again, a huge thank you to Zack McGinnis and Galactic Productions for coordinating this. Go to GalacticProductionsEvents.com to check out when Mr. Hargreaves will be coming to a town near you.
Phil Tippett: The Legendary VFX Artist, on the Cantina, AT-ATs and the Rancor
Today is the 50th episode of TALKING BAY 94 and, to celebrate accordingly, we’re talking to one of my heroes, one of the people who has been at the very top of the list to have on this show from the very beginning … two time Academy Award winner, the legend: Phil Tippett.
From the Cantina reshoots to the Dejarik chess table to the AT-AT stop motion to the ILM Return of the Jedi creature shop, Mr. Tippett was one of the driving forces of, not only the Star Wars world we know and love, but also the visual effects landscape as a whole.
It is really an honor to have him on the show. I haven’t stopped smiling since. It was literally a dream come true.
Be sure to visit MadGodMovie.com for information on how to watch his latest project and be sure to seek out Mad Dreams and Monsters, the new documentary about him, coming soon.
It’s been fifty episodes and I am so grateful to you all for the listens, support and love. This has been an incredible journey with you all and, really, we’re just getting started.
Angus MacInnes: In the Cockpit with Gold Leader ("Dutch" Vander)
I’m talking to Angus MacInnes, who played Dutch Vander in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. You might know him better as Gold Leader.
We go through some fascinating stories about being on the set of Rollerball, his experience with the Canadian actors that populated the original trilogy, working with George Lucas and Stanley Kubrick, and (of course) his triumphant return in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Again, a huge thank you to Zack McGinnis and Galactic Productions for coordinating this. Go to GalacticProductionsEvents.com to check out when Mr. MacInnes will be coming to a town near you.
Juan-Luis Sanchez: Bringing Yoda to Digital Life in Attack of the Clones
Today I’m talking to Juan-Luis Sanchez, visual effects artist who worked on clothing, digital stand-ins and so much more for Star Wars: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith.
From working at Industrial Light and Magic to trying his hand at the sound stages, Mr. Sanchez’s time in the VFX industry is full of incredible stories and equally incredible passion.
(He also stood in for Count Dooku’s hands … so just buckle in for a fascinating conversation.)
For more information about his work, both visual effects and not, head to www.juanluis.com or follow him on Twitter at @juanluissays. Next week, we’re talking to Gold Leader …
Alan Harris: The Man Behind Bossk, Boba Fett, Han Solo in Carbonite
Alan Harris is perhaps most famous for portraying one of the most iconic aliens in Star Wars: the fearsome bounty hunter Bossk, in The Empire Strikes Back.
However, he had roles in each of the Original Trilogy, as well as returned to the saga briefly, two decades later, to appear in The Phantom Menace. From being the first person to wear a Boba Fett costume (now the famous white “Prototype Fett“) to becoming the mold for Han Solo in Carbonite, Mr. Harris’ contributions to the saga are both so surprising and so important.
Thank you to Zachery McGinnis from Galactic Productions for coordinating this interview. Check out his website for the latest appearances and celebrity autographs: http://www.galacticproductionsevents.com/