Brian Johnson (born 29 June 1939 or 29 June 1940''Imagining Outer Space: European Astroculture in the Twentieth Century'') is a British designer and director of film and television special effects.

Life and career

Born Brian Johncock, he changed his surname to Johnson during the 1960s. Joining the team of special effects artist

Les Bowie Les Bowie (November 10, 1913 – January 27, 1979) was a Canadian-born special effects artist working mainly in Britain. Bowie began his career as a matte painter in 1946. His work found places in classic films such as ''Great Expectations'', '' ...

, Johnson started his career behind the scenes for Bowie Films on productions such as

On The Buses ''On the Buses'' is a British television sitcom that was broadcast on ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned three spin-off feature films and a stage version. Desp ...

, and for Hammer Films. He is known for his

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 ...

work on TV series including '' Thunderbirds'' (1965–66) and films including '' Alien'' (1979), for which he received the 1980 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (shared with

H. R. Giger Hans Ruedi Giger ( ; ; 5 February 1940 – 12 May 2014) was a Swiss artist best known for his airbrushed images that blended human physiques with machines, an art style known as " biomechanical". Giger later abandoned airbrush for pastels, mark ...

Carlo Rambaldi Carlo Rambaldi (September 15, 1925 – August 10, 2012) was an Italian special effects artist, winner of three Oscars: one Special Achievement Academy Award for Best Visual Effects in 1977 for the 1976 version of ''King Kong'' and two Acade ...

, Dennis Ayling and Nick Allder). Previously, he had built miniature spacecraft models for Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film '' 2001: A Space Odyssey''. Johnson's work on '' Space: 1999'' influenced the effects of the '' Star Wars'' films of the 1970s and 1980s. Impressed by his work, George Lucas visited Johnson during the production of the TV series to offer him the role of effects supervisor for the 1977 film. Having already been commissioned for the second series of ''Space: 1999'', Johnson was unable to accept at the time.Brian Johnson Interview, 1979
space1999.net. He worked on the sequel, ''

The Empire Strikes Back ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back'') is a 1980 American epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner from a screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, based on a stor ...

'' (1980), whose special effects were recognised in the form of a 1981 Special Achievement Academy Award (which Johnson shared with Richard Edlund,

Dennis Muren Dennis Muren, A.S.C (born November 1, 1946) is an American film visual effects artist and supervisor. He has worked on the films of George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and James Cameron, among others, and has won nine Oscars in total: eight for Be ...

and Bruce Nicholson).

Awards

Johnson has won

Academy Awards 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 both '' Alien'' (1979) and ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (1980). He was further nominated for an Academy Award for his work on ''

Dragonslayer A dragonslayer is a person or being that slays dragons. Dragonslayers and the creatures they hunt have been popular in traditional stories from around the world: they are a type of story classified as type 300 in the Aarne–Thompson classific ...

'' (1981). In addition, Johnson is the recipient of a Saturn Award for ''The Empire Strikes Back'' and a

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cer ...

for James Cameron's '' Aliens''.

Filmography

Special effects

* ''

Quatermass 2 ''Quatermass 2'' (retitled ''Enemy From Space'' in the United States and Canada) is a 1957 black-and-white British science fiction horror film drama from Hammer Film Productions. It was originally released in the UK as ''Quatermass II'' and was ...

'' (1957) (special effects assistant, uncredited) * ''

The Kiss of the Vampire ''The Kiss of the Vampire'' (also known as ''Kiss of Evil'' on American television) is a 1963 British vampire film made by the film studio Hammer Film Productions. The film was directed by Don Sharp and was written by producer Anthony Hi ...

'' (1963) (special effects assistant, uncredited) * '' Thunderbirds'' (TV series) (1965–66) (special effects director) * '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'' (1968) (special effects assistant, uncredited) * ''

Moon Zero Two ''Moon Zero Two'' is a 1969 British science fiction film from Hammer Films, directed by Roy Ward Baker, and starring James Olson, Catherine Schell, Warren Mitchell, and Adrienne Corri. The film takes place on the Moon in the year 2021. A for ...

'' (1969) (special effects assistant, uncredited) * ''

Taste the Blood of Dracula ''Taste the Blood of Dracula'' is a 1970 British supernatural horror film produced by Hammer Film Productions. Directed by Peter Sasdy from a script by Anthony Hinds, it is the fifth installment in Hammer's '' Dracula'' series, and the fourth ...

'' (1970) (special effects) (as Brian Johncock) * ''

When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth ''When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth'' (titled ''When Dinosaurs Ruled the World'' in the U.K.) is a 1970 British prehistoric dinosaur film from Hammer Films, written and directed by Val Guest, and starring Victoria Vetri. It was produced by Aida Yo ...

'' (1970) (special effects) (as Brian Johncock) * '' A Clockwork Orange'' (1971) (special effects assistant, uncredited) * '' Space: 1999'' (TV series) (special effects—24 episodes, 1975–76; special effects director—24 episodes, 1976–78; special effects designer—18 episodes, 1976–78; special effect designer—6 episodes, 1976) * ''

The Day After Tomorrow ''The Day After Tomorrow'' is a 2004 American science fiction disaster film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Roland Emmerich. Based on the 1999 book '' The Coming Global Superstorm'' by Art Bell and Whitley Strieber, the film stars De ...

'' (TV pilot, 1975) (special effects designer) * ''

The Medusa Touch ''The Medusa Touch'' is a 1973 novel by Peter Van Greenaway, which was adapted fairly faithfully into a feature film in 1978. The novel tells the story of a radically disenchanted novelist with highly destructive telekinetic powers. ''The Med ...

'' (1978) (special effects supervisor) * '' Revenge of the Pink Panther'' (1978) (special effects) * '' Alien'' (1979) (special effects supervisor) * ''

'' (1980) (special effects supervisor) * ''

'' (1981) (supervisor of special mechanical effects) * ''

The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...

'' (1983) (special effects supervisor) * ''

The NeverEnding Story ''The Neverending Story'' (german: Die unendliche Geschichte) is a fantasy novel by German writer Michael Ende, published in 1979. The first English translation, by Ralph Manheim, was published in 1983. The novel was later adapted into several ...

'' (1984) (director of special effects) * ''

Spies Like Us ''Spies Like Us'' is a 1985 American spy comedy film directed by John Landis, and starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Steve Forrest and Donna Dixon. The film presents the comic adventures of two novice intelligence agents sent to the Soviet Un ...

'' (1985) (special effects supervisor) * '' Aliens'' (1986) (special effects) * ''

Slipstream A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or mustard) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving fluid, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is churning. The term sli ...

'' (1989) (special effects) * ''

Dragonheart ''Dragonheart'' (stylized as ''DragonHeart'') is a 1996 fantasy adventure film directed by Rob Cohen and written by Charles Edward Pogue based on a story created by him and Patrick Read Johnson. The film stars Dennis Quaid, David Thewlis, ...

'' (1996) (micro-light coordinator) * ''

Space Truckers ''Space Truckers'' is a 1996 comic science fiction film directed by Stuart Gordon and starring Dennis Hopper, Stephen Dorff, Debi Mazar and Charles Dance. It was filmed at Ardmore Studios, County Wicklow, Ireland. The story concerns John Canyon ...

'' (1996) (special effects supervisor) * ''

Dream Street Dream Street were an American pop music, pop boy band that was formed in 1999 by Louis Baldonieri and Brian Lukow. The band disbanded in 2002 following a legal dispute between parents of the band members and the band's managers. History The ...

'' (1999) (director)

Director

* '' Scragg 'n' Bones'' (2006)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Brian 1939 births Best Visual Effects Academy Award winners Best Visual Effects BAFTA Award winners British film directors Living people People from Surrey Miniature model-makers Special Achievement Academy Award winners