Legacy Effects, LLC is an American visual effects studio specializing in creature design, prosthetic makeup, animatronics, and specialty suits. [1]
Founding partners Lindsay Macgowan, Shane Mahan, John Rosengrant, and Alan Scott supervised projects at Stan Winston Studio for over 20 years before Winston's death in 2008. [2] After his death they formed their own company, Legacy Effects, with their first film being 2012 (2009).
Their first film outside of the United States was the Indian film Enthiran (2010), which was used for prosthetic makeup and animatronics.
The feature films Legacy Effects has contributed practical effects to include Avatar , Iron Man 2 , Iron Man 3 , The Avengers , Avengers: Age of Ultron, Alice in Wonderland , Snow White and the Huntsman , Life of Pi , Thor , RoboCop , Pacific Rim , Enthiran , 2.0 and X-Men: Days of Future Past . [3] Legacy Effects also provided visual effects for films in the Terminator and Jurassic Park franchises, Terminator Genisys and Jurassic World . [4] [5]
Legacy contributed character design for films including Godzilla , John Carter , The Avengers , The Amazing Spider-Man , Cowboys & Aliens , The Hunger Games and Avatar .
Their work has garnered Best Visual Effects Academy Award nominations for Real Steel and Iron Man . [6] [7]
Legacy Effects has created visual and special effects for television shows such as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. , Colony , Agent Carter , Grey's Anatomy and The Big Bang Theory , and contributed work to over 900 commercials. Notable examples of their commercial work include Destiny, Halo, The Aflac Duck, Maxwell the Geico Pig, The KIA Hamsters, Lunchables' Platy the Platypus and Jackie the Jackalope, and the Jack Links Sasquatch campaigns.
Legacy created the iMut8r app, first released in October 2009. [8] A popular Halloween-themed photo manipulation app, iMut8r was named the iPhone App of the Week by Apple October 20, 2010. It is still regularly updated with new features.
Legacy Effects gained attention for a 9'9" (2.97m) cosplay robot that was unveiled at the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con. Created through a partnership between Wired magazine, YouTube and Stan Winston School, the robot was built by Legacy over a period of 24 days and interacted with Comic-Con attendees throughout the four-day event, operated by a combination of suit performer and radio controlled animatronics. [9]
For Comic-Con 2014, Legacy designed and built a 13'6" (4.11m) tall animatronic creature called Bodock the Giant Creature. [10] Created through a partnership with Stan Winston School, Stratasys, and Wired magazine, the Giant Creature involved two separate animatronic characters and nine puppeteers. [11] A majority of the hard surfaces were 3D printed by Stratasys. [12] The goal of both events was to celebrate and promote practical special effects.
Film | Year | Effects |
---|---|---|
Scared to Death | 2024 | Visual effects [13] |
Alien: Romulus | 2024 | Visual effects |
Indian 2 | 2024 | Special makeup effects |
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 | 2023 | Visual effects |
Avatar: The Way of Water | 2022 | Visual effects |
Black Adam | 2021 | Visual effects |
Nightmare Alley | 2021 | Visual effects |
Finch | 2021 | Visual effects |
Godzilla vs. Kong | 2021 | Visual effects |
Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin | 2021 | Visual effects |
Antlers | 2021 | Visual effects |
The Suicide Squad | 2021 | Visual effects |
Underwater | 2020 | Visual effects |
The True Adventures of Wolfboy | 2019 | Visual effects |
Dark Phoenix | 2019 | Visual effects |
Terminator: Dark Fate | 2019 | Visual effects |
Captain Marvel | 2019 | Visual effects |
Avengers: Endgame | 2019 | Visual effects |
The Mandalorian | 2019–present | Visual effects |
2.0 | 2018 | Prosthetics and Animatonics |
Avengers: Infinity War | 2018 | Visual effects |
Godzilla: King of the Monsters | 2018 | Visual effects |
Pacific Rim: Uprising | 2018 | Visual effects |
The Shape of Water | 2017 | Visual effects |
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul | 2017 | Animatronics |
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle | 2017 | Visual effects |
Power Rangers | 2017 | Visual effects |
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 | 2017 | Visual effects |
Spider-Man: Homecoming | 2017 | Visual effects |
Middle Man | 2016 | Visual effects |
Suicide Squad | 2016 | Visual effects |
Max Steel | 2016 | Visual effects |
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows | 2016 | Design and Models |
Alice Through the Looking Glass | 2016 | Visual effects |
Captain America: Civil War | 2016 | Visual effects |
X-Men: Apocalypse | 2016 | Visual effects |
The Jungle Book | 2016 | Visual effects |
The Revenant | 2015 | Visual effects and Animatronics |
Terminator Genisys | 2015 | Visual effects and Animatronics |
Jurassic World | 2015 | Visual effects and Animatronics |
Avengers: Age Of Ultron | 2015 | Visual effects |
The Signal | 2014 | Visual effects |
Godzilla | 2014 | Visual effects |
Wish I Was Here | 2014 | Suit Design and Fabrication |
Project Almanac | 2014 | Specialty Props |
Captain America: The Winter Soldier | 2014 | Suit Design and Fabrication |
Muppets Most Wanted | 2014 | 80s Robot Design |
X-Men: Days of Future Past | 2014 | Suit Design and Fabrication, Makeup effects |
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | 2014 | Design and Models |
Grudge Match | 2014 | Specialty Puppets |
RoboCop | 2014 | Robocop Suit and Robotic effects |
Pacific Rim | 2013 | Pilot Suits and effects |
World War Z | 2013 | Character Design and Makeup effects |
Iron Man 3 | 2013 | Prosthetics and Suit effects |
Oblivion | 2013 | Specialty Costume Accessories |
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 | 2012 | Animatronic and Special make-up effects |
Life of Pi | 2012 | Replica and Animatronic Animals |
Total Recall | 2012 | Sinth Suits, Animatronics and Prosthetics |
The Bourne Legacy | 2012 | Animatronic effects |
Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn (web series) | 2012 | Suits and Weapons Design and Fabrication |
The Watch | 2012 | Animatronic effects |
The Amazing Spider-Man | 2012 | Lizard/Lizard Drone Character Designs and Prosthetic make-up |
Snow White and the Huntsman | 2012 | Specialty Costumes |
The Avengers | 2012 | Iron Man Suit and Practical effects |
The Hunger Games | 2012 | Mutation Character Design |
John Carter | 2012 | Character and Creature Design |
7aum Arivu | 2011 | Special effects |
The Muppets | 2011 | 80s Robot and Muppet Man Design |
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 | 2011 | Animatronic and Special make-up effects |
Real Steel | 2011 | Animatronic effects |
Cowboys & Aliens | 2011 | Alien Creature effects |
Thor | 2011 | Frost Giant Prosthetics and Suit effects |
I Am Number Four | 2011 | Creature Design |
Enthiran | 2010 | Animatronic effects and Prosthetic make-up |
Passion Play | 2010 | Animatronic effects |
Dinner for Schmucks | 2010 | Mechanical Vulture, Animatronic effects |
Iron Man 2 | 2010 | Suit Construction and Animatronics: Iron Man/Whiplash |
Alice In Wonderland | 2010 | Special make-up effects: Red Queen courtier characters creation and design |
Shutter Island | 2010 | Visual and make-up effects |
Avatar | 2009 | Character Design and Specialty Props Manufacturing (as Stan Winston Studio and Legacy Effects) |
2012 | 2009 | Animatronic effects |
Science fiction is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, mutants, interstellar travel, time travel, or other technologies. Science fiction films have often been used to focus on political or social issues, and to explore philosophical issues like the human condition.
Prosthetic makeup also known as special makeup effects or FX prosthesis, is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, molding and casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects. Prosthetics are used on stage and screen to create fantasy creatures, simulated injuries, or likenesses of other people.
An animatronic is a mechatronic puppet controlled by a machine to move in a fluent way. They are a modern variant of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films, video games and in theme park attractions.
Stanley Winston was an American television and film special make-up effects artist, best known for his work in the Terminator series, the first three Jurassic Park films, Aliens, The Thing, the first two Predator films, Inspector Gadget, Iron Man, and Edward Scissorhands. He won four Academy Awards for his work.
Enthiran (transl. Robot) is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language science fiction action film co-written and directed by S. Shankar. It is the first instalment in the Enthiran film series. The film stars Rajinikanth in the main dual lead role as a scientist and the robot he created. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa, Santhanam and Karunas play supporting roles. The soundtrack album and background score were composed by A. R. Rahman while the dialogues, cinematography, editing and art direction were handled by Madhan Karky, R. Rathnavelu, Anthony and Sabu Cyril respectively. The story revolves around the struggle of a scientist named Vaseegaran to control his sophisticated android robot named Chitti, after Chitti's software is upgraded to give it the ability to comprehend and exhibit human emotions. The project backfires when Chitti falls in love with Vaseegaran's girlfriend Sana, and is manipulated by Vaseegaran's mentor Bohra into becoming homicidal.
Christian Colquhoun is a mechanical designer who has navigated his career into toy design, prop design and construction, special effects, mechanical effects makeup, and miniatures for motion pictures, television, and other forms of media, working for Mattel, Boss Film, Stetson Visual Services, New Deal Studios, Industrial Model and Design, and Stan Winston Studios.
Jim Henson's Creature Shop is a special/visual effects company founded in 1979 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets. The company is based in Hollywood, California, United States.
Shane Patrick Mahan is an American special effects creator, creature designer, puppeteer and producer known for his work at Stan Winston Studio and its successor, Legacy Effects. His film credits include The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day; Aliens; Predator and Predator 2; The Lost World: Jurassic Park; Iron Man, Iron Man 2 and Iron Man 3; Pacific Rim and The Shape of Water.
Stephen Rosenbaum is an American visual effects artist and supervisor, and has worked on numerous movie, tv and music productions, including six that have won Academy Awards. He has been nominated three times for an Academy Award and two times for a BAFTA Award. He has won both awards twice for his contributions on Forrest Gump and Avatar, and has played artist and supervisor roles on such pioneering films as Jurassic Park, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The Abyss, X2: X-Men United, Death Becomes Her, Contact and The Perfect Storm.
Amalgamated Dynamics, Inc. (ADI) is an American visual effects company specializing in animatronics and prosthetic make-up, headquartered in Chatsworth, California. It was founded in 1988 by Stan Winston alumni Tom Woodruff Jr. and Alec Gillis, who hails from Phoenix, Arizona. Notable work includes Death Becomes Her, for which they won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Starship Troopers, which was also nominated for an Academy Award, and the practical creature effects seen in the Alien franchise from Alien 3 onward. Woodruff also portrays creatures in the films ADI works on, such as the Alien.
Mike Elizalde is a Mexican-American special make-up effects artist. He was nominated at the 81st Academy Awards in the category of Best Makeup for his work on the film Hellboy II: The Golden Army. His nomination was shared with Thomas Floutz.
Steve Johnson is an American special effects artist whose career has spanned more than thirty years. His work has appeared in over 200 films, countless television shows, theme parks, commercials, and music videos. Some of his best-known creations include Slimer for Ghostbusters (1984), the alien seductress Sil for Species (1995), Robin Williams's robotics for Bicentennial Man (1999), and Doctor Octopus's arms for Spider-Man 2 (2004).
Creature suits are realistic costumes used to disguise a performer as an animal, monster, or other being. They are used in film, television, or as costumed characters in live events. Unlike mascots, they are often made with a high degree of realism. In contrast with prosthetic makeup, which is applied to an actor's skin, the wearer is not normally visible outside their movements controlling the costume, although in some cases, part of the wearer's body is still visible.
Paul Warren is a British actor. He is best known for playing characters wearing heavy prosthetic makeup and/or creature suits, most notably in Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in films and television series such as Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), Andor (2022), and The Marvels (2023).
Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout! is an accelerated drop tower dark ride attraction at the Disney California Adventure park at the Disneyland Resort. Based on the namesake characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it depicts Rocket recruiting guests to attempt to free the remaining Guardians of the Galaxy from display within the Collector's fortress.
Richard Alonzo is a make-up artist. Known for his work on critically acclaimed films, The Sixth Sense (1999), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), Iron Man (2008), Avatar (2009) and Star Trek Beyond (2016) for which he received a nomination for Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling at 89th Academy Awards with Joel Harlow.
Jurassic Park, later also referred to as Jurassic World, is an American science fiction adventure media franchise. It focuses on the cloning of dinosaurs through ancient DNA, extracted from mosquitoes that have been fossilized in amber. The franchise explores the ethics of cloning and genetic engineering, and the morals behind de-extinction.
Tony Stark has worn different versions of the Iron Man armor throughout the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). He has also built armor for James Rhodes, the Iron Spider suit for Peter Parker, and Pepper Potts' Rescue armor.
Rexy is the colloquial nickname for a fictional Tyrannosaurus that appears throughout the Jurassic Park franchise. It first appeared in Michael Crichton's 1990 novel Jurassic Park, and made it onscreen debut in the 1993 film adaptation, directed by Steven Spielberg. It returns in the 2015 film Jurassic World and its sequels, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) and Jurassic World Dominion (2022).