Shane Patrick Mahan (born September 22, 1964) is an American

special effects Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wo ...

creator, creature designer, puppeteer and producer known for his work at

Stan Winston Studio Stanley Winston (April 7, 1946 – June 15, 2008) was an American television and film special make-up effects creator, best known for his work in the ''Terminator'' series, the first three ''Jurassic Park'' films, ''Aliens'', '' The Thing'', th ...

and its successor,

Legacy Effects Legacy Effects, LLC is an American special effects studio specializing in creature design, prosthetic makeup, animatronics, and specialty suits. History Founding partners Lindsay Macgowan, Shane Mahan, John Rosengrant, and Alan Scott supervised pr ...

. His film credits include '' The Terminator'' and '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day''; '' Aliens''; ''

Predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...

'' and ''

Predator 2 ''Predator 2'' is a 1990 American science fiction action film written by brothers Jim and John Thomas, directed by Stephen Hopkins, and starring Danny Glover, Gary Busey, Ruben Blades, María Conchita Alonso, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Peter Hall ...

''; '' The Lost World: Jurassic Park''; '' Iron Man'', ''

Iron Man 2 ''Iron Man 2'' is a 2010 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Iron Man. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures, it is the sequel to '' Iron Man'' (2008) and the third film in the Marvel ...

'' and ''

Iron Man 3 ''Iron Man 3'' (titled onscreen as ''Iron Man Three'') is a 2013 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to ''Ir ...

''; '' Pacific Rim'' and ''

The Shape of Water ''The Shape of Water'' is a 2017 romantic fantasy film directed by Guillermo del Toro and written by del Toro and Vanessa Taylor. It stars Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Octavia Spencer ...

''. Personal.

Background

Mahan was born and raised in

Greenville, Michigan Greenville is a city in Montcalm County of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,816 at the 2020 census. History Greenville is named after its founder, John Green, who settled in the wilderness of the southwest part of Montcalm Cou ...

. After graduating from Greenville High School in 1981 he left for Hollywood. His first job was with Stan Winston Studios as a crew member working on '' The Terminator'' in 1983. There he worked as a creature effects supervisor. After Stan winston's passing he formed Legacy effects with three partners who were also his former colleagues at Stan Winston studios and this has now become the Leading VFX company in Hollywood Mahan and his design team made the special suits worn by

Robert Downey Jr. Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor and producer. His career has been characterized by critical and popular success in his youth, followed by a period of substance abuse and legal troubles, before a resurgence of ...

in the film '' Iron Man''. They also designed the suit for Iron Man which was ten feet tall, weighed 800lbs and required 5 operators to puppeteer. Besides several other nominations, Mahan and his team were nominated for the 2008

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

for 'Best Achievement in Visual Effects' for '' Iron Man''. The team was hired as concept artists by James Cameron for his film ''

Avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appeara ...

''. This was special for Mahan as his first special effects credits were for the film '' The Terminator''. Mahan worked for Stan Winston Studios until the death of Stan Winston in 2008 when he and three other veterans of the company, Lindsay MacGowan, J. Alan Scott and John Rosengrant, incorporated

, a character design, make-up and animatronic studio, so named in honor of the late Winston's legacy and lifelong achievements. He lives in Los Angeles.

Partial filmography

Movie special effects

Other special effects

;Puppeteer *''

A Gnome Named Gnorm ''A Gnome Named Gnorm'' (also known in some markets as ''Upworld'') is a 1990 fantasy buddy comedy film directed by Stan Winston and written by Pen Densham and John Watson. The film stars Anthony Michael Hall, Jerry Orbach and Claudia Christian ...

'' (1990) *''

'' (1990) *'' Jurassic Park'' (1993) *'' T2 3-D: Battle Across Time'' (1996) *'' The Lost World: Jurassic Park'' (1997) *''

Inspector Gadget ''Inspector Gadget'' is a media franchise that began in 1983 with the DIC Entertainment animated television series '' Inspector Gadget''. Since the original series, there have been many spin-offs based on the show, including additional animated ...

'' (1999) *''

What Lies Beneath ''What Lies Beneath'' is a 2000 American supernatural horror thriller film directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer as a couple who live in a haunted house. It was the first film by Zemeckis' production comp ...

'' (2000) *''

Because of Winn-Dixie ''Because of Winn-Dixie'' is a 2000 children's novel written by Kate DiCamillo. It was adapted as a 2005 family film directed by Wayne Wang, produced by Walden Media and Twentieth Century Fox, and starring AnnaSophia Robb as Opal Buloni.

'' (2005) *'' Zathura: A Space Adventure'' (2005) *''

Eight Below ''Eight Below'' is a 2006 American survival drama film, a remake based on the 1983 Japanese film ''Antarctica'' by Toshirô Ishidô, Koreyoshi Kurahara, Tatsuo Nogami and Susumu Saji. It was produced by Patrick Crowley and David Hoberman, direc ...

'' (2006) ;Make-up *''

Chiller A chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid coolant via a vapor-compression, adsorption refrigeration, or absorption refrigeration cycles. This liquid can then be circulated through a heat exchanger to cool equipment, or another p ...

'' (1985) (TV) *''

Batman Returns ''Batman Returns'' is a 1992 American superhero film directed by Tim Burton and written by Daniel Waters. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is the sequel to ''Batman'' (1989) and the second installment in the 1989–1997 ''Batman ...

'' (1992) *'' The Island of Dr. Moreau'' (1996) *'' Wrong Turn'' (2003) *''

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

'' (2005) *''

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

'' (2005) *'' Zathura: A Space Adventure'' (2005) * ''

Fur Fur is a thick growth of hair that covers the skin of mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an insulating blanket t ...

'' (2006)

Awards & nominations

, - , 1997 , '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'' ,

Saturn Award for Best Make-Up The Saturn Award for Best Make-up is one of the annual awards given by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The Saturn Awards, which are the oldest film-specialized awards to reward science fiction, fantasy, and horror achie ...

, , - , 2002 , '' The Day the World Ended'' , Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Award for Best Special Makeup Effects , , - , 2002 , '' How to Make a Monster'' , Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Award for Best Special Makeup Effects , , - , 2002 , '' Mermaid Chronicles Part 1: She Creature'' , Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Award for Best Special Makeup Effects , , - , 2008 , '' Iron Man'' , Satellite Award Best Visual Effect , , - , 2008 , '' Iron Man'' ,

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for Best Achievement in Visual Effects , , - , 2009 , '' Iron Man'' ,

BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects This is a list of winners and nominees for the BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects for each year. This award is for special effects and visual effects and recognises achievement in both of these crafts. The British Academy of Film and Tele ...

, , - , 2009 , '' Iron Man'' ,

Saturn Award for Best Special Effects The Saturn Award for Best Special / Visual Effects is one of the annual awards given by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The Saturn Awards, which are the oldest film-specialized awards to reward science fiction, fantasy, ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mahan, Shane 1964 births American costume designers American make-up artists Living people People from Greenville, Michigan Special effects people