Newly updated with Ryan Banfield from Stan Winston Studios and screenwriter and producer John Fasano with words on the man and his funeral.

Now updated with a report from Stan's Funeral today where eulogies were given by Spielberg, Schwarzenegger, Cameron and maybe even you.

Updated with thoughts from Stan Winston Productions' Brian Gilbert and a man named Evan Schiff who worked as an intern at Stan Winston Studios as a teenager!

Updated with one of Stan Winston Studios' ex-"foam runners" Lance Gilmer.

Updated with one of Stan's "Lifers" - Richard Landon...

Updated with J Alan Scott, one of the 4 Effects Supervisors at Stan Winston Studios.

Updated with a 20 year old personal photo sent in by a friend featuring Stan and a friend's newborn daughter, Molly, as well as comments from Harry Potter Creature Department's Nick Dudman, an ex-Stan Winston Studios Art Director named Aaron Sims, Randy from Action Figure Times, ex-employee Rebecca Himot and Tara Crocitto, one of Stan Winston Studios' VPs.

Now updated with thoughts from KNB's Greg Nicotero and Robert Kurtzman, Sideshow Collectibles' Scott Klauder and frequent collaborators Shannon Shea and Jim Charmatz.

Newly updated with comments from Sandy Collora and Weta's Richard Taylor.

Updated again with sentiments from producer John Watson, Alec Gillis, and Tom Woodruff.

Once more, updated with words from Fred Dekker, Stan Winston Studios' John Rosengrant (who had to work on T4 yesterday) and Josh Cragun, Stan's nephew.

Newly updated again with words from Rick Baker!

Newly updated below with words from Joe Dante!

Updated below with comments from Jon Favreau, Jonathan Liebesman and Frank Darabont!

Hey folks, Harry here... Incredibly I have never met Stan Winston. I have never spoken to Stan Winston. I've met just about everybody else in the Physical Effects world - but I have never had the honor to share time with Stan.

At 4am last night I received a text message on my phone: "Stan Winston Is Dead" - and it came from Director/Writer Michael Dougherty. I didn't see it, I was asleep. However, by the time I woke up - not only was Quint's story up, but I had 12 other emails from folks I know in the industry stating that Stan Winston was gone.

I called Quint to talk with him about it. Eric was upset that the mainstream press was obsessing over another rehab adventure - and felt that the mainstream press would never get this story right. He's been assembling comments from many of Stan's associates - but he asked me to reach out to Jim Cameron... Without a doubt, Stan's most iconic collaboration.

Jim just wrote me back - here's what he had to say:

Harry,

Thanks for doing what you're doing. You're right, the mainstream media won't get it. They don't understand the important stuff. They're too busy chasing young idiot celebrities around the rehab circuit.

Stan was a great man. I'm proud to have been his friend, and his collaborator on what for both of us, was some of our best work. We met in pre-production on Terminator in 1983, and quickly sized each other up as the kind of crazy son of a bitch that you wanted for a friend. We've stayed friends for over a quarter of a century, and would have been for much longer if he had not been cut down.

We've lost a great artist, a man who made a contribution to the cinema of the fantastic that will resound for a long long time. I don't need to list the indelible characters he and his team of artists brought to the screen. Readers of your site know them.

We all know Stan's work, the genius of his designs. But not even the fans necessarily know how great he was as a man. I mean a real man --- a man who knows that even though your artistic passion can rule your life, you still make time for your family and your friends. He was a good father, and he raised two great kids. His wife of 37 years, Karen, was with him in the beginning, helping him make plaster molds in their garage for low budget gigs on TV movies, and she was with him at the end.

He was a man of incredible humor. When I think of him I see him smiling, usually a goofy grin as he twists his glasses askew on his nose doing a Jerry Lewis impression. Never afraid to play the clown, because he knew his colleagues respected him. He lived life full throttle, in work and play. Like me he loved fast cars, and whenever one of us would get a new toy, the other had to drive it (a practice which was strained for few years after I skidded his brand new Porsche turbo, just off the boat from Stuttgart, into his garage and stopped a half inch from the back wall). We even went to formula racing school together. For the last ten years or so we rode motorcycles on Sundays with Arnold Schwarzenegger and some other friends, not every week but as many Sundays as we could. There was a comradeship that comes from starting out together, and never betraying the respect and trust of that friendship over the years, but always being there for each other, that the three of us have shared.

Stan and I founded Digital Domain together, and our friendship was never strained by being business partners. He always demonstrated incredible wisdom in business, because he knew people, and especially creative people. He inspired artists to pull together and work as a team, which is like herding cats, but it was perhaps his greatest talent. To lead by inspiration. His own team at Stan Winston Studios is the most stable in the business. His core guys have been with him literally since Terminator, 25 years. That's because they respected him so much, and because he made the work fun, even though it was hard. They would stay up all night busting their ass for him. They knew they would always be doing something cutting edge and challenging, and that he respected them enough to let them run with it. Though he could draw and sculpt as well as any of them, he never let his own talent eclipse theirs, because he knew that team building was the most important aspect of leadership. And that's what allowed them to create success after success for over two decades, and win 4 Oscars, among over 30 awards. A walk through Stan's studio gallery is a trip through the last two decades of fantasy cinema. Predators, Terminators, raptors, T-rexes, Edward Scissorhands himself and a hundred more. It hits you how great an impact he's had.

I spoke with Stan by phone Saturday morning, and apparently it was one of the last conversations he had. Incredibly, in retrospect, he was full of life, you'd never have known he was at death's door. We talked for a long time about all the fun times, and all the dragons we'd slain together. He said that once you've shown something is possible, everybody can do it. What was important was being first. Breaking new ground.

Well that's just what he did his whole career, and today's creature and character effects business uses the techniques he developed every single day. He inspired a generation of fantasy effects geeks, and his legacy will be found in their dreams up on the screens of the future, not just in the films he worked on directly.

I'm going to miss him, like I'd miss a brother. It's hard, almost unfathomable, to talk about him in the past tense. He was just one of those larger than life people that was so alive that you can't imagine them gone. But he is gone. I ask the fans to remember not just the work but the man.

Thanks for listening.

Jim out

Later tonight - Quint will be adding to this with comments from a good many associates - including Jon Favreau - and we're hoping to hear from Spielberg - as Stan's work with Steven is also legend. But while I never knew the man - I treasured his work. Check back later tonight for more.

Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. I have word out to half a dozen people now to add onto this tribute to the Great Stan Winston. Below you'll find three filmmakers whose lives were touched by Winston in either friendship, professional collaboration or both. Continue to check back. As we get more of these in we'll update it.

First up is Jon Favreau, who has worked with Winston twice as a director:

He was a giant. I was blessed to have known him. I worked with him on both Zathura and Iron Man. He was experienced and helped guide me while never losing his childlike enthusiasm. He was the king of integrating practical effects with CGI, never losing his relevance in an ever changing industry. I am proud to have worked with him and we were looking forward to future collaborations. I knew that he was struggling, but I had no idea that he would be gone so soon. Hollywood has lost a shining star.

Next we have Jonathan Liebesman who worked with Winston on DARKNESS FALLS, a troubled film from the beginning, but Winston acted like a life preserver keeping the young Liebesman afloat in the storm of that production. Here's his Jonathan Liebesman:

Hey Eric,

I guess I would just say that on my first film when I was a 25 year old first time director, Stan Winston would call me "boss". That nod of support fuelled me through any tough times on the movie. Whenever I'd go to his shop to visit the guys working on my film, Stan would always walk up to me and shake my hand to greet me with a "you like what you see, boss?". His attitude was so empowering to me. I was amazed that even if you weren't Cameron or Spielberg, a legend like Stan would treat you with the same respect he'd give those guys. They say to be careful when you meet someone you idolize because your idol always disappoint you. Not this time. Stan supported me and I will always be grateful to him and wish I could've worked with him one last time.

Jon

And the last one I have for you at this moment is Frank Darabont. I'll let Frank speak for himself:

I'm still reeling from the news. Losing Stan is a real blow for me, as I'm sure it is for a lot of people who loved his work. He was clearly a genius in his field. He and I talked about working together for years, but we never found the project to make it happen.

Stan was one of those people it was impossible not to like. I met him around the time of Eraser. Back then Schwarzenegger was always throwing these dinners at his restaurant in Santa Monica—lots of food, wine, and cigars. And because Stan and I were fans of each other’s work, we’d often wind up sitting together. We’d trade stories, talk movies, and laugh our asses off. Stan was a fantastic dinner companion, a real raconteur, and one of the most affable guys you'd ever meet. He was brimming with enthusiasm that was genuine. As revered an industry figure as he was, he was still basically the kid who loved movies and broke into the business for the magic of it, and he never let go of that attitude. Though the business itself can grind you down, it never jaded him or diminished his joy for the creative side of what we do. He simply loved movies too much to allow that. That impressed me enormously about him.

One of the blessings of being in movies is when you meet icons whose work you deeply admire and they turn out to be fantastic people. They’re the ones you’re honored to encounter along the way, the people who are kind and gracious and inspiring in addition to being superbly talented. They exhibit genuine humanity and touch your heart in various ways, and you foolishly figure they’ll always be around to get to know better as the years go on. But then they are taken far too soon, and you’re left with the deep and lasting regret of not having gotten to know them nearly as well as you’d wanted or expected to. I’ve met and lost a number of extraordinary people who fall into this category, among them Roddy McDowell, John Frankenheimer, Sidney Pollack, Dave Stevens, and John Alvin. Stan Winston now sadly joins my list.

The best way to sum up Stan is to share my best memory of him. I’ll never forget how excited and honored we both felt the day we participated in presenting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to our mutual childhood hero, Ray Harryhausen. Stan and I spent the afternoon on a “pinch-me-because-I-must-be-dreaming” high. We kept pulling each other aside and muttering things like: “Wow, can you believe we’re here? Can you believe we get to do this? Isn’t this the coolest thing ever?” In short, we spent the day geeking out like a couple of giddy kids. Whenever I think of Stan, I’ll think of his joy and his childlike enthusiasm that day.

Thanks to all that have come out and spoken up for Winston so far. If you had the chance to know the man or work with him, we'd love to hear from you. Director, effects, make-up, actor, producer, colleague, whomever. Of course I'd love to hear from Tom Woodruff and Alec Gillis, Schwarzenegger, John Carpenter (Stan worked with Bottin on THE THING), Joe Dante, Steven Spielberg and Tim Burton to name a few specifics, but honestly anybody who knew Stan and can offer his fans a glimpse at who he was, let us posthumously meet him as it were is what we're going for. Please email your thoughts to quint@aintitcool.com or harry@aintitcool.com and we'll include it in.

Like I said above, keep checking back for more insight into Stan Winston. We should have more coming in over the next few days, including a promised piece from MONSTER SQUAD director Fred Dekker.

Quint here. I'm hitting the sack for the night... I'll see what's in the inboxes when I wake in the morning (I've gotten word that Richard Taylor will contribute soon), but this just came in... words from Joe Dante on the late, great Stan Winston:

Although Stan was prematurely gray, he always exuded so much youthful enthusiasm that he never seemed much older than 20, making today's sad news all the harder to accept.

Like many of us who began as monster kids, he was eternally excited to be part of the movie business, even after becoming one of the major names in his field.

I met Stan at Amblin when he was doing GOONIES, where he was providing a giant octopus that eventually got cut from the movie, and I admired his direction of PUMPKINHEAD, but we didn't really get the chance to work together until SMALL SOLDIERS, for which his studio provided most of the designs for the various living toys. The level of detail that went into the creation of these figures and their on-set animation was prodigious, and subject to lots of trial and error. How much was to be accomplished on-set and how much would be ceded to ILM's CGI artists was in constant flux. In the end the scale tilted more toward ILM than any of us had expected, but Stan and his guys were totally on board with whatever was best for the picture.

But that was Stan's ethos.

Whatever worked and made everybody look good.

One less artist and a major loss for all of us.

Rest in peace, Stan, with the knowledge you made a difference in the world you loved best.

Joe Dante

"Moriarty" here. I'm still reeling from this one myself. I had several opportunities to visit Stan's shop over the years, and that amazing showroom of his. I always found him to be charming and friendly and really welcoming as a person, and of course, he was a master artisan. I'm deeply moved by what Rick Baker sent us, one master's salute to another, and here it is for you guys:

Such sad news. I arrive in England after flying all of Sunday night, get to my hotel, go to bed, get up and go to work in the morning and find out that Stan Winston is gone.

I can't tell you how sad this makes me.

I just spoke with him a couple of weeks ago. I called to tell him how beautiful I thought his Iron Man was. I heard rumors that he was ill and spoke to him about that. He confirmed the fact that he had cancer but said, "Hey, I am still above ground".

We spoke about when I finished my work on in England about getting together and talking about the good old days.

Stan was bigger than life. The film industry is not going to be the same without Stan.

Stan took make-up effects out of the garage and made it a respectable business.

Stan was the first to make a nice clean beautiful shop for crew to work in. He treated his crew well, with respect and love.

My heart goes out to his family and his crew. I am sorry for their loss, his passing is a loss to us all.

It is hard to imagine the make-up effects industry without Stan. His presence will surely be missed.

I feel like it is the end of an era.

Quint back again, with three more pieces for this growing tribute to Stan Winston. We'll start with MONSTER SQUAD director Fred Dekker:

Imagine a world where you have no visual knowledge of the Terminator endoskeleton. What if you never saw the Alien Queen from Aliens? Take the T-Rex from Jurassic Park, and remove it from your memory banks. Johnny Depp as Edward Scissorhands? Gone. Not there. What kind of weird world would that be? My point is, this isn’t just fanboy stuff -- these are some of the most indelible, iconographic images in the history of motion pictures.

But putting that aside (and my belief that A.I. is one of the great achievements in all of genre cinema), my personal favorite Stan story was one night when we were shooting THE MONSTER SQUAD on the Warners backlot.

In the movie, there’s a tiny, throwaway shot that occurs right after Frankenstein's monster wallops Dracula and sends him flying onto a pointed metal cross. Except there was no walloping… and no "flying” either. It was all in the editing. There was a shot of Frank throwing a backhand -- then we see Drac "impaled". What I had storyboarded to sell it was a small, blink-if-you-miss-it, insert of the body actually hitting the cross. Any other director would have given it to the second unit.

But I was a newbie, and I had the entire first unit -- a full union crew standing by at 4:00 a.m. while Stan and I stood on a ladder with a Dracula dummy, literally THROWING it onto the cross with the camera three feet away. We’d throw it… and miss. Then try again. Close, but not quite. “This is it,” we’d say. “This is the one”. Then -- Doh! The dummy’s cape fell off.

In retrospect, here was a man who’s done every conceivable kind of screen makeup, from glamour to old-age stippling to werewolf appliances… an Oscar and Emmy winner who would later design and build not just fully articulated, human-sized animatronic robots, but fully articulated, literally DINOSAUR-sized robots. A virtuoso who worked with the biggest directors, created the biggest FX creatures, and worked on the biggest, most groundbreaking effects movies of all time.

But here’s what I remember: me and Stan, at four in the morning, throwing a dummy onto a spike just like when I was 12 years old in my backyard making 8mm movies with my friends. I’m sure the crew thought we were crazy. But man, the memory was worth it.

There's always been a part of me that stays a little kid at heart. And that night, I saw that part of him, too. He was having a ball – even without gazillion dollar robots...

My second favorite Stan memory is from not that long ago. We had a meeting on a project for which he and the boys would have built me some creatures. He talked about how his creations aren't effects, but actors -- actors giving performances. I loved that idea, and it was great to be back in the sandbox with him, spit-balling like the old days. But the producers and I weren't entirely on the same page. Whether Stan knew this, I don’t know. But after the meeting, he took me aside and quietly encouraged me to stick with my vision, no matter what. Don’t be steamrolled, he said. Don’t compromise. To me that’s Stan Winston in a nutshell: Do it right, or don't do it.

I’ll miss his creations and their "performances”… and I’ll miss that goofy, mischievous smile. I hope you’re in a better place, Stan. Because this one is a little worse without you.

Next up is John Rosengrant, from the set of TERMINATOR: SALVATION, a man who has worked with Stan since the first Terminator and had to continue working through news of his mentor's passing.

It's 3am here in New Mexico and I'm supervising Terminator 4 Salvation for Stan and just finished one of the toughest days in my life.It was extra tough not only that I lost my mentor, who taught me this business and great lessons in life, but we had to perform tonight. The old show biz saying" the show must go on" came true and the team and I had to make Stan proud....to bring our characters to life, and keep it all together.

I have been blessed to have worked for Stan for the last 25 years ,my first feature with Stan being the first Terminator.It has been an unbelievable opportunity, an incredible ride. It's a ride, we the team will continue, just as he wanted.Stan never lost his love for this business, always wanted to break that new ground ,give the audience what they had never seen before, and to the highest artistic standards.

As a person Stan was caring and generous. It breaks my heart that he is gone. The out pouring from the fans is very touching.... you all obviously loved him as much as we all did at Stan Winston Studio.We'll miss you Stan.

John

And then there's Josh Cagun, giving us our first look at Stan from inside the family. We'll continue posting these as long as we keep getting stories, so please keep checking back.

Heya Quint,

Many of you knew Stan Winston as an incredible artist. I knew him as Uncle Stan.

I was just reading through the various tributes to my uncle on your website, and I was impressed with the sheer number of people that felt compelled to express their grief and condolences. I just wish all of his fans could have had the chance to know him personally. We lost so much more than an astounding make-up artist and CGI Wizard, we lost one of the truly great men of our age.

I've known Stan was really sick for quite some time now, but the last time I saw him he was so full of life and love it seemed impossible that he really was sick. Now it seems impossible that he is gone. It was clear that he was in pain, but he hid it well, I think, so those around him wouldn't worry about him. That's just the kind of man he was.

I had the opportunity to speak with Stan, one on one, several times during my last visit to California, just the two of us cruising around the hills of Malibu in one or another of his fast cars. He drove like a maniac, of course, but if you knew him, you know there was no other option. Honestly, having Stan as an uncle never seemed real. Here was a man who was wildly succesful and famous. He was intimate friends with the whose who of Hollywood. He was lauded as the very best in his industry and he was an academy award winner. Despite all of that, he was one of the most genuine, humble, and sincere people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. During the last conversation I had with Stan, he expressed how thankful and grateful he was for his success. He was truly grateful he had been allowed to make a career doing something that he loved so much. I think we all appreciate the fact that Stan loved his work so much, because he truly was amazing at his craft. He touched lives the world over, giving people nightmares and inspiring them to become artists at the same time.

During that same conversation Stan spoke to me for the first and only time of his illness. He told me he had enjoyed his life, maybe a little too much, but the one thing he truly regretted was that his health was failing to the point where he knew he wouldn't be around too much longer. He so very badly wanted to see his grandchildren grow up, to be there with his wife and kids. It was painfully obvious how much Stan loved his family. It always has been. Despite the fame and fortune and the star on the hollywood walk of fame, Stan Winston was a family man first. He loved his family, and they loved him.

These words here do little justice to the great legacy that is Stan Winston, but hopefully the next time you watch a dinosaur smash a car, or see a terminator walking down the street, you will remember a man who loved his work, loved life, and loved his family. He will be missed.

With love,

Josh-

"Moriarty" here again with some more tributes that have shown up here at AICN. I'm not surprised to see how much affection there was out there for Stan and his work, and I'm so proud that we are able to offer this forum for members of the community to share their feelings and memories. Tributes are starting to pop up elsewhere, like McG's goodbye to him over at the TERMINATOR blog, but we've gotten in a few more that I wanted to share with you.

First up is John Watson, who shared a very particular professional experience with Stan. I'll let him explain:

From John Watson, writer/producer/partner in Trilogy.

Hi Harry,

Thank you so much for providing this forum for those who loved Stan to share their feelings and memories.

I am one of the too-few people who had the opportunity to work with Stan as a director. We collaborated on the under-appreciated ‘Adventures of A Gnome Named Gnorm’. For those of you who missed it – most of you? ;) – it’s a gloriously frivolous demonstration of Stan’s wonderful sense of humor and also his extraordinary talent. Gnorm is a beautifully realized character created by Stan and the brilliant folks at his shop. Almost all of these people are still working there, which as Jim pointed out is a testament to the loyalty he generated within his team. Gnorm is an irresistibly endearing creature, quite unlike his more famous and scarier brethren at the studio. His range of movement and the complex animation of his facial features were ground-breaking at the time – mid 80s, and it was a sadness to Stan that Gnorm wasn’t seen and appreciated by a larger audience.

Stan was working in Rome while we were developing the script and one of my fondest memories was breaking the story while exploring the Coliseum together. It was an incongruous environment in which to be imagineering this weird little fantasy film. As most of you know, working with Stan was always fun. His sense of humor was infectious and inspiring. He was rarely without a laugh and a smile even through the inevitable tensions of the production process. Barely a day went by without an excuse for that goofy thing with the glasses or his patented and painful smack to the gonads. He so enjoyed life, and life was always enjoyable in his presence.

The movie fell into that all-too-frequent trap of collapsing studios. Vestron financed the film and promptly went out of business before the film was set for release. At one of our many test screenings, Stan and I were sitting near the back and noticed that one section of the audience was especially enthusiastic and reacted wildly at all the right places. So we waited with extreme curiosity for the lights to come back on, to identify these wonderful Gnormophiles. As they exited past us we realized they were a school group of Downes Syndrome kids. Stan said to me: “See, we finally found our perfect demographic!” Then he cracked up.

Others have talked about Stan’s extraordinary devotion to his own family. I observed that too, as our friendship continued through the years since ‘Gnorm’ and our families became close. He was also extremely generous to my family. My boys have tons of special memories of him and of his warmth and kindness to them. I have two students at USC Film School who got the thrill of their lives when Stan personally gave them a tour of his studio. He was a giver.

The child in Stan was always close to the surface and kids especially responded to him. He made it tough on all of us in his last years with his insistence on us keeping the secret of his illness, but we understood and respected his reasons. I am so grateful for the times we shared and the treasured memories.

John Watson

Next up are two of the most difficult to write, I'm sure. Tom Woodruff and Alec Gillis are renowned make-up artists in their own right now, but they started their careers under the guidance of Stan, and I'm sure this was like losing family for them. They wrote us separately, so let's hear from Tom first:

Quint,

There is a feeling of sadness and loss that grows with each obituary and every posting. Having never expected to see the word "gone" next to Stan Winston's name, the shock of his passing becomes more profound each day.

The lucky ones don't always die first. I was lucky. Stan picked me out of a crowd based on a portfolio that showed more promise than accomplishment and my relationship with John Rosengrant and Shane Mahan (one that continues to this day although the passage of time between visits is far too great). From the very beginning, Stan touched me as an artist and a friend and soon became a father-turned-mentor.

He was an artist, passionate about his craft and his family and sharing his sense of humor. He was generous with credit, presenting us on stage, his crew, to the audience of the Saturn Awards as the artists behind the success of Terminatoras he accepted what was to become a long list of awards. He was generous with his experience and knowledge. And he was generous with devotion and camaraderie as he'd stand next to your table at the best restaurant in town, his hands in your salad for a laugh.

When Alec and I stepped away from under his shadow, it was the beginning of a career that Stan himself helped to propel. He turned Gale Hurd toward us on Tremors and also stood up for our getting the contracts on Death Becomes Her and Alien3. It is a shadow that continues to touch our lives.

The outpouring of emotion here shows that Stan has touched so many more people than just those of us lucky enough to know him and to work in movies. It feels unreal and as if something has been forever changed - The day the music died.

His name and legacy will live on. God bless you, Stan Winston.

And now, here's Alec to close us out for this update:

Hi Quint and Harry,

Thanks so much for the invitation to share our thoughts on Stan. Tom and I haven't been much of a presence on AICN in the past, in fact I had the chance to shake Harry's hand after a long flight once and my introversion got the better of me. Times like this remind me how short life is, and that we might not get a second chance just to take a moment. For that reason I'm impressed with AICN and the fan reaction to Stan's passing.

This is a surreal time for us friends and fans of Stan. I keep thinking of CITIZEN KANE as we all reconstruct who Stan was from our own perspectives. All points of view are accurate, even if limited. I was only part of his team for a few short years, but I took away a lifetime of lessons.

I met Stan in '84 through Cameron, with whom I'd worked at Roger Corman's. I was sitting in my tiny room in Mar Vista and Stan himself called. He was all business when he explained that Jim had recommended me. I was all nerves when I told him I had turn turn him down because I had just taken work on FRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH PART IV. The call was brief, but I managed to wrangle an appointment to show my portfolio anyway. I also got the name of the movie. Something called TERMINATOR.

By the time ALIENS rolled around I was a fixture at Stan's studio and reveling in the opportunities he generously gave. It was an incredible period that I don't think we fully appreciated. There was Shane Mahan, John Rosengrant, Richard Landon, Shannon Shea, Rick Lazzarini, Tom Woodruff and myself making up the core of Stan's crew, and screwing around like goofy brothers. INVADERS FROM MARS, ALIENS, PREDATOR, PUMPKINHEAD, LEVIATHAN, MONSTER SQUAD, AMAZING STORIES all were done inside of three years.

People assume that what we learned from Stan was "the business". That's partly true, but we also learned "life". Stan was a father figure to all of us young dopes who were too immature or cocky or insecure to really be considered professionals or even adults, but Stan saw something in us he could guide and develop.

Here are some quotes from Stan re: "the business", as near accurate as I can remember:

"You keep taking chances, pushing the envelope. You can only fail."

"Everybody wants to do their best. You just gotta give them the chance."

On no longer being hands on: "I used to work with clay to get results. Now people are my clay."

On the competition: "I love my competitors! They make me do my best. Thank God for Rick Baker!"

One being the best: "Nobody's ever really on top. There's always another movie about to come out to bump you back down, keep you humble!"

"Other people may do better work than me, but nobody has more fun!"

On Oscars: "You can't do it for the awards. They're just bowling trophies."

Written inside every employee Christmas card: "Don't tell the others, but you're my favorite!"

On Tom and I: "The things that make you valuable to me are the same things that will pull you away from me." (I didn't know what he meant at the time.)

When it came to the life lessons, Stan, ever the family man, never held back advice. He was sometimes annoying, usually correct, and always honest. At age 25, I was on the verge of breaking up with my then girlfriend. The relationship was at the tipping point. It was time to either move to the next phase or call it quits. Into this very personal internal debate boldly stepped Stan Winston.

We were invited to a party at he and Karen's beautiful house in the valley. (First time I'd seen a bidet, and squirted it all over the ceiling. Never told him that.) When I introduced him to my girlfriend he started rocking an invisible infant and humming "Rock-A-Bye-Baby". I winced at his lack of subtlety, and he slugged me on the shoulder and said, "Are you crazy? Marry her, you idiot!" We got engaged in London while on ALIENS and this year will be our 22nd anniversary.

My 9 year old daughter, youngest of four, cried yesterday when she found out Stan wouldn't see the get well card she colored for him.

He was the best boss I ever had. In an era of flat salaries, crazy hours and toxic work environments, he urged us to go home at a sensible time ("You're no good to me tomorrow if you're dead on your feet."), paid O.T. and made sure his shop passed OSHA inspections. He'd shrug off our thanks by saying that "happy workers are more productive than unhappy ones." Wisdom, kindness and humility all at once.

He urged us all to buy houses and gave us the jobs to afford them, offered 401ks, had cakes at every employee's birthday and gave Christmas bonuses. We put up a basketball hoop at his house for his son's birthday, his kids helped around the shop, and we'd all laugh as he'd mock grovel at the feet of his mentor, famed Disney makeup artist Bob Schiffer.

All you folks are right. All your impressions of the man and his work are correct. He had his detractors, and in some way they are right too. Nobody's perfect. But no matter what you thought of him, he helped all of us in the practical Creature / Makeup effects industry tremendously. Not just by hiring us, but through his tireless promotion of the art which made his name synonymous with "Creature Effects" and gave the world an appreciation of what we do.

We lesser accomplished artists rose to heights by riding his slipstream. He always said, "You have to fight for everything in this business." Fight he did. No one gained more ground than Stan. Whenever ADI reached an impasse with a studio lawyer, we'd simply ask for the same deal they gave Stan on his last film. At that, you could hear sphincters creak and teeth grind. Favored nations with Stan was favorable indeed.

To moviegoers he gave a pantheon of characters unlike any other since or hence. To the fans of "real" effects, he pushed back against the digital onslaught, even while co-founding Digital Domain. He knew that CG was a means to an end to be utilized as a tool, not to supplant the movie or knock the viewer out of the reality of the story.

I'm only one of many who came through Stan's studio, (sprung from Zeus' head, I guess) so I shouldn't go on too long. I didn't intend to, but hey, it's cathartic. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to share my limited point of view of my mentor, our mentor.

And damned if he didn't leave us on Father's Day.

Here's one last quote. I once asked him if he was afraid of death:

"Nah. Life is such an adventure, I figure death will be too."

All the best to Stan's wonderful family, his friends, his fans.

We'll miss him.

alec gillis

Quint here again. I have two new stories about Stan Winston for you. First up is Sandy Collora, who worked with Stan on the effects side and directed the well known fan film BATMAN: DEAD END. Here are his thoughts on Mr. Winston:

Hey guys,

Sandy Collora here.

Stan Winston was a very special man to me. He gave me my first job in this business when I was a mere 18 years old.

I've had the good fortune to have had worked at his studio on such films as "Leviathan", "Alien Nation", and "Predator 2". I also was very lucky to work with Stan personally on designing and developing creatures for some of his personal pet projects. The talented people I met and worked with there, taught me so much and the time I spent at Stan Winston Studios was instrumental in shaping the creative person I am today. Through Stan's talent, humor, and "tough love" approach to what he did, he inspired me voluminously to pursue my efforts not only as an artist, but a director as well.

I remember, on "Leviathan" I got in a pretty major car wreck and he came to see me in the hospital. He was a great guy and always made time when my parents were in town, to show them around the shop and let my little brother play with the Terminator endoskeleton's fingers... Weird, I remember that like it was yesterday, but it was 20 years ago... Wow.

I'm sad he's gone. I'm sad I can never go to him for advice anymore, and I'm sad he'll never see my first feature film, which in many ways, he inspired... Of Stan I can say this; His contributions to this industry and the art of special effects cannot be measured, but his contributions to the people he's mentored, inspired, and lives he's touched, are even greater still.

You're an Icon, Stan. One of a kind... You will be missed.

SC

Next up is Richard Taylor, another champion of practical effects work who leads Weta Workshop and some of the best designers, sculptors, artists and model-builders in the world. I asked him for an anecdote about Stan and this is what he had:

Hi Eric

Here is my little story about Stan.

Tania and I wanted to make a trip to LA to meet some of the people responsible for the effects work on many Hollywood movies. We wrote letters to a number of Workshops and very kindly the guys at KNB, Rick Baker and Steve Johnson invited us to visit. We wrote to Stan Winston’s and also got a favourable reply inviting us in to look around. We made our way to the States and on the morning of the visit to Stan’s facility we arrived early filled with expectation and excitement. Sadly though, on presenting ourselves to the reception desk we were told that due to confidentialities on a new project we would be unable to now have the tour as promised. We were disappointed but understood the changing nature surrounding this issue.

We got chatting to the receptionist who asked us where we were from, what we did and what we were working on. By total chance as we made our last answer, which was the fact that we were about to embark on the (failed 1996) remake of King Kong with Peter Jackson, Stan happened to walk past the reception area. He overheard this snippet of conversation and graciously welcomed us into his facility with open arms. We spent the next two hours in Stan’s company getting a personal tour of all of his facilities, meeting all the people we had only known through Cinefex magazine articles and getting to see an amazing array of stuff. I found the visit to be immensely inspiring – as were our visits to the other facilities we were so lucky to have had a look inside.

At the end of our tour Stan kindly offered to show us his showreel and it was reassuring to see that he struggled with exactly the same thing we all do in our own facilities – he attempted to do the simple task of rolling his showreel for us only to discover that someone had been messing around with the audio visual equipment and turned the whole thing to custard. Stan was deeply apologetic but very thankful when finally the thing kicked in and we were able to sit together and watch this wonderful reel.

This was the only time we met Stan but it was a wonderful few hours spent with a very enthusiastic individual that treated us as peers and was very giving with his time and knowledge.

From all at the Weta Workshop in Wellington, New Zealand we send our deepest sympathy to Stan’s family and all the team at Stan Winston Studios.

Richard Taylor

Weta Workshop

Quint here once more with a few more thoughts, this time from KNB's Greg Nicotero and Bob Kurtzman. We also have words from Sideshow Collectibe's Scott Klauder as well as a man named Shannon Shea who worked with Stan on many projects and Jim Charmatz who is still at Stan Winston Studios and works as a concept designer. Nicotero is up first:

I moved to Los Angeles in 1985, immediately after wrapping production on DAY OF THE DEAD. The 1st film I was hired on was INVADERS FROM MARS at Stan Winston Studios. Since he was shooting ALIENS at the same time, they had a substantial crew working 7 days a week. My first walk through of the shop had displays from TERMINATOR, artwork from THE THING and designs from ALIENS adorning the walls. I was thrilled to see such amazing work up close and personal and was struck by the talented artists that Stan attracted. He was a tireless showman and his studio was truly inspirational.

It was here that I met people that would change my life. Shannon Shea, Gino Crognale, to name a few. The caliber of artists that were cultivate by Stan are countless….Steve Wang, Matt Rose, Mike Trcic, Dave Nelson, of course Howard Berger and Bob Kurtzman who eventually became my partners. Stan took make-up effects and creature work to a whole new level, employing make-up, animatronics and puppet technology at the height of its popularity. It was this blend of techniques that I feel contributed dramatically to the crossover between various effects techniques even today with practical and digital creature work….always fool the audience…keep them guessing. The work in JURASSIC PARK literally floored me….cutting from this amazing full size T Rex to a walking digital creature in 1 shot was sheer genius. Stan’s imagination and vision have left a legacy that will continue to inspire film makers AND film goers for decades to come.

Greg Nicotero

That was from the N of KNB. Now we hear from the K:

I had the great pleasure and privilege of working with the Stan early in my career on Predator, Aliens, and Invaders from Mars. Stan was an incredibly generous person, family man, and artist who gave me the opportunity, at a very young age, to learn from him and the talented team at Stan Winston Studio. His creations inspired not only me, but a generation of artists. He was a true master of movie magic and he will never be forgotten.

Robert Kurtzman

Next is Scott Klauder from Sideshow Collectibles who worked with Stan Winston to bring some of his creations to the collectibles market. You might remember that amazing Pumpkinhead they put out a couple years back. Here's Mr. Klauder's words about Stan:

I had the honor of meeting Stan twice, and wrote something that I thought
I'd share.

For those unfamiliar, Sideshow Collectibles and Stan Winston Studios have
enjoyed a relationship of bringing some of the most incredible collectibles
to life for over 5 years now. To create a collectible of a movie icon is one
thing, but when the masters for that item are developed by the actual
effects company that worked on the film, well then, we're talking magic.

I met Stan Winston on two occasions, once when I accompanied our
Creative Director, Tom Gilliland, to Stan's shop. We were picking up the
masters for the Pumpkinhead maquette. To tell you the truth, I was
intimidated at first. I mean, these guys had created some of the creatures
that got me into this business. For me to walk through those doors and, not
only see all of that but then to be greeted with a hand shake and a smile by
the man responsible for it all, let's just say I was speechless.

The man treated me as though he had known me for years. He was polite,
attentive, and most of all proud. Proud of the world that he had built
around him. Proud of the people he had surrounded himself with. Proud of
what he had dedicated every day of his life to for close to 40 years! I was
a 1 year old when Stan established Stan Winston Studio, and here he was
shaking my hand.

The second time I saw him was at San Diego Comic Con in 2007. He came
by while we were setting up, again with a handshake and a smile. As he
gushed over one of our Iron Man pieces, he began to tell us about his
excitement and enthusiasm over working on the movie. When he was told that
Sideshow was licensed to make product for the movie, Stan simply said "Well,
what are we waiting for!" and the 1/1 Iron Man bust was born.

His love and enthusiasm for the industry, the art, and the people around
him is inspiring. I will miss him, and I will cherish the few minutes I got
to spend with him, this master of monsters, this creator of worlds, this
architect of icons, Stan Winston.

Scott Klauder
Production Manager
Sideshow Collectibles

Next is a guy named Jim Charmatz, a concept designer at Stan Winston Studios.

Guys,

I wanted to thank you for the tribute you set up for Stan. It has enabled many of the people in his life to express the most wonderful sentiments about him and is giving us all a place to read these collected works. I'm not asking you to post this as my name is not known like the many already there, but as Alec Gillis wrote, it's cathartic.

I started working for Stan on March 21, 1994 (the day he won the Oscar for Jurassic Park) and I never worked for any other effects house since. Like he did for so many others, Stan saw my potential from the first days of my employment and he immediately took advantage. He had an incredible knack for seeing the strengths in people, no matter how hidden, and developing them. When computers became a viable tool for design, he encouraged many of us to embrace the 3D arts and learn the latest software to achieve the best results...all on his time. Stan gave me the opportunity to build a solid career cultivated from a vast variety of skills that, had it not been for him, I might not have ever had the chance to develop. For that, I am eternally grateful. During my 14yrs with Stan I've worked as a mold maker, sculptor, painter, and designer and feel very lucky that I was able to work intimately with him on so many projects through the years. The project I feel most fortunate to have worked on was not movie, but his book "The Winston Effect," for which Stan trusted me to art direct.

I am proud to say I worked for Stan Winston, not just because of the mark he made on cinematic history, but more importantly because of Stan, the man... and my relationship with him. He accepted me into his talented extended “family" all the while sharing his wonderful, goofy sense of humor, true kindness and wisdom that was often profound.

It's hard to believe he's gone but we'll move forward and do our best to carry on the Winston name with the same quality of work that we always strove for with Stan at the helm.

Jim Charmatz
Conceptual Designer
Stan Winston Studio

Finally for this round of updates is Shannon Shea. I met Shannon on the set of The Mist and he is, without a doubt, a superior geek. He is like us and exactly how we'd be if we got to work on these movies. I remember fondly our pow-wow in the misty parking lot... sitting around bullshitting about sci-fi and fantasy films with Shannon, the KNB crew and the awesome KNB designed and executed spider maquette. One of the films my friend Kraken and I hounded Shea about was Predator. He talks a bit about working with Mr. Winston on that film below. I hope you enjoy it

Hey guys -

Sorry this has taken so long to write, but I've been on set for DRAG ME TO HELL working strange hours. Strange hours that have only become more difficult coping with the loss of not just a friend, but a father figure for myself and many that worked for many years at his studio.

I've been reading all of the heartfelt and insightful posts that have been written by colleagues and friends and I'm not sure what more can be said without just sounding redundant.

Stan hired me in 1985 with only three previous projects under my belt as a mold maker on ALIENS. During that time, Stan employed not just his "lifers" (a term that none of us liked), but Kevin Yagher, Tony Gardner, Howard Berger, Robert Kurtzman, Rick Lazzarini, Dave Nelson, Brian Penikas, and Everett Burrell all of whom broke out and formed their own make up effects companies.

As you can see, Stan was the well-spring. He was the source. He was the inspiration and the model. Stan's fair business practices and unwavering pursuit of excellence was only surpassed by his stubborn belief that nothing was impossible.

During MONSTER SQUAD, Joel Silver, John McTiernan and Beau Marx came to the shop with a quandary. They had been filming a movie in Puerto Vallarta and their monster was not meeting their expectations. Putting the film on hold and listening to the counsel of their leading man, Arnold Schwarzenegger , they had come to Stan to bail them out. The project was PREDATOR and the task that lay ahead was enormous. It didn't matter that his core team was still finishing MONSTER SQUAD. It didn't matter that we had weeks to not just provide something to film, but having to surpass what had already been provided. None of that mattered. Stan knew, he just knew that we could do it and it would be fantastic.

I'll say this now 22 years later. None of us knew that the PREDATOR would become an icon. A symbol synonymous with Stan and the studio at that time. We were too busy getting the work done at break neck speed.

Stan was at the top of his game on that show. No longer shooting in the resort location of Puerto Vallarta, we, instead filmed the reshoots in the jungles of Palenque. I cannot stress this enough - it was a real jungle. Our first night there, we were driven up the side of a mountain to meet with John McTiernan at company wrap.

John had a glass of scotch in his hand and led us on a tour of where the fight between Arnold and the Predator would happen. As production shut down, so did the lights and we found ourselves in a Mexican jungle with just the ambient light of the moon to show the way. Then came the bats. McTiernan continued his blocking with us as bats zipped passed our heads. Stan finally convinced John that we should head back to base camp and as we ascended a hill, Shane Mahan plucked a long reed of grass and started flicking it past Stan's ears. "F-ing BATS!" Stan cried as we headed back to camp unaware of the practical joke.

But that was Stan. He wanted us to have fun. He encouraged us to immerse ourselves in the experiences of being on location in distant lands. If it wasn't worth laughing it wasn't worth doing. Upon our return to the United States, Stan gave me my Blue Cross health insurance papers - his way of saying that I was part of his permanent team. He adopted me and had called me "his last son".

One of the last times I saw Stan was at a San Diego Comic convention. I was with my daughter and friends and saw Stan across the room. To those outside of his studio, few believed that Stan LOVED Jerry Lewis and LOVED imitating him. I caught his eye and in my best Lewis voice yelled "LADY!" In a flash, Stan cocked his glasses on his face and launched into his Jerry Lewis schtick repeating "Lady! LAAA-DY!" at the top of his lungs surrounded by his fans.

There are too many stories, too much history, too many people, too many projects, too many emotions for me to effectively attempt to portray someone who had become a surrogate father to me.

When I was completing my tenure at his studio, Stan pulled me aside and told me that not only would the studio be okay without me, but I would be okay without the studio. Like so many others, I moved on professionally, but not without learning profound lessons that would effect the way I work and live to this day.

Shannon Shea

Quint here again. I have a big batch of updates to this Stan Winston tribute from many of his colleagues. I can't tell you the outpouring of affection I've been receiving from the readers about the man. He meant a lot to many of us and thanks to those who have contributed so far we've been allowed to get to know him a little.

To further that, I'm going to kick off this round of updates with a picture of Stan, nearly 20 years old, cradling a friend's newborn daughter, Molly:

That look on his face... we've heard it described a dozen times so far. Happiness and goofiness mixed. Here's the letter from the mother:

The baby that Stan is holding in that photo is Molly Shea, my daughter...well, as far as I know.
You see, Stan and Karen were among the first to hold our newborn girl. Our parents were still in our native New Orleans so the surrogate Winston parents showed up months before her birth grandparents would arrive.

And yes, what an expression he has on his face! When I told Stan that we were going to name her Molly, he threatened to fire me. That was until he held her and told us that she was a perfect little Molly.

Matt, Debbie, sorry for the confusion!

Shannon Shea

Let's start with Nick Dudman, one of the creators of the Harry Potter Creature department in London.

Hi Harry,
I was lucky enough to meet Stan on a couple of occasions: once when he was in England prepping "Aliens", and once when I worked on "Interview with the Vampire" in New Orleans. I wish I had known him better.

He was a wide-eyed, over excited gentleman, and it was a pleasure to meet an icon who actually lived up to the image I had of him.

When I set up the Harry Potter Creature department, running crews of 50 to 120 at a time, I remembered my tour of his shop, and especially the atmosphere there. Stan provided his gifted artists with a wonderful environment, he actively helped them give their best...I took that with me, you are only as good as your crew, they are your hands and your eyes; treat them well. (Tho' James Cameron is absolutely correct- it is like herding cats...pedigree cats). His contribution to our craft is colossal; he set a wonderful standard making a worldwide network of artists all try to outdo themselves and him. The former happened a lot, the latter rarely if ever. We should never forget the standards he set.

From Hogwarts, to one of this world's only real wizards: Thank you Stan, for paving the way. We miss you.

Nick Dudman

Next up is Aaron Sims, who worked closely with Mr. Winston for AI:

Stan Winston was a visionary. I began working for him in late 2000, and during my first week there the film AI started development. I was responsible for several of the robot concepts, and Stan asked me to do a few of them using a new 3D animation program that I had been using. Until that time, all of my designs were done with pen and paper or Photoshop; I hadn’t considered designing anything using animation software, but Stan encouraged me to do it. After the first few designs, all of us – Stan, myself, and Steven Spielberg – were taken aback by this new way of looking at concept art. Stan knew the next wave when he saw it, and soon thereafter he asked me to lead his new digital animation department. It was a real honor to have him entrust me with that responsibility, and I’ll always be grateful to him for that. He was a real pioneer in this industry, and I’m so thankful and fortunate to have had him as a mentor and friend. He will be greatly missed.

Aaron Sims
The Aaron Sims Company

Next up we have Randy from Action Figure Times:

Quint,

This tribute is a wonderful idea and I'm glad that AICN is fronting it. I'm glad I'm not the only one stunned by his sudden death.

Editing and writing Action Figure Times for so many years now, I’ve been fortunate enough meet a lot of varied and different people. From porn stars to playmates, artists of all types that work in pen & ink to clay & foam to mouse & computer, I’ve met many amazing people. But you don’t meet many Academy-Award winners and you sure don’t forget a four-time Academy Award winner.

I was lucky to meet and talk with Stan a couple of times in the early millennium, mostly involving his work with Stan Winston Toys. Some at comic shops, Comic Con or even at his studio. What many others who have worked with him have said about him is true. He was affable, always upbeat and treated everyone as if they were old friends come to visit. But his influence came to me more from the “house” he built more rather than anything else.

When I first moved to California in the early 90’s, I was working minimum wage for a toy store (you know-the one with the dyslexic letter in its name!) in the San Fernando Valley and without a car. During my time there walking the aisles, I noted guys coming in checking on toys wearing a cool Stan Winston FX t-shirt. Over time, I found out that his effects house was only one street over! After helping one of the guys get a much needed Christmas toy for his son, he asked if I wanted something for my trouble.

“Yeah, a job a Stan’s,” I responded. He chucked and said “How ‘bout a t-shirt and a tour of the place?” Score! It was another few months before he made good but it was worth the wait.

So on a hot afternoon in July, I got to visit a non-descript, set of industrial buildings. But there on the ground was a reserved parking sign… for Stan Winston. After going through a very paranoid receptionist and signing my life away, I got into the place proper. This when they were working on CONGO as well as doing work trying to win a gig for a BIG monster film (I STILL can’t say it but A)they didn’t do the film and B)I’m sure the Japanese are quite happy that he didn’t!). The place was packed with people working hard and making some incredible stuff.

But what I remember most is the Meeting Room. If you ever saw his special effects show on AMC during the 90’s or read his book, “The Winston Effect”, you know what room I’m talking about. But for me that first time in, I’ve always thought of it as the “Holy S—t!” Room! That’s all I could think because the walls were jammed with Winston’s work. The stuff of legend.

A T-800 Endoskeleton. Damaged Arnold Terminator. Predator. Pumpkinhead. A full-size Velociraptor. A full-size Queen Alien Head. Edward Scissorhands. A full-size T-Rex Head. The monsters of MONSTER SQUAD.

True Icons of Film. These were representative of some of my most influential movies, the ones that made me want to be a part of film-making, to write scripts, to go to film school, to move three thousand miles to California. And they were there, stilled life waiting for the call of "Action!"

The Dream of Film in physical form.

If you don’t get inspired by all that creativity in one room, then you shouldn’t be film fan. But I felt that inspiration, that energy... and I’m sure Stan knew that effect would be there.

So after many years, I’m still out here chasing the Dream of Film. Why?

Because the Dream of Film can be real.

People like Stan Winston brought it to life.

You left us too soon, Stan. You still had more people to inspire.

See you on the other side.

Randy of AFTimes
aka Andrew Gaughen

Next we have Rebecca Himot who used to work for Stan. The Christmas Party story told below really had an affect on me:

Quint,

I’m a nobody, so if you guys don’t want to print this letter I totally understand. But I figured I’d share just the same.

When I was 12, I sat in the theater as the credits of Edward Scissorhands rolled, waiting for that vital piece of information. Stan’s credit came up and I turned to my mother and said “I am going to work for that man.” She laughed at me but I was never so serious about anything.

Lacking the essential talents and skills, I figured an office job would be my best bet. So 10 years later, I managed to secure just that. I had that same fear everyone else did, that my hero would never be able to live up to my expectations. But boy, was I wrong. Stan was every inch the hero, and always shined the light on those around him. Every day that Stan was in the building, he’d do his “rounds.” And every day, he’d come in to my office and thank me for my hard work. He was the kind of guy you wanted to hang out with, with a mischievous and childlike streak that made you feel like you were in on some private joke. I think one of the most telling moments of my short time there was during a production meeting, when Stan was literally twitching in his seat… and after a while he confessed that his new video game had arrived and he wanted to get back to it as soon as possible.

It was a tight year, projects were getting delayed and I got swept up in a round of unfortunate lay-offs. Stan reminded me that I was still expected at the Christmas party that year. And at that party, he handed me my gift, gave me a hug and whispered in my ear: “I’m so sorry. I promise I’ll do everything I can to get you back to work.” It didn’t work out, but I would never forget his words or his kindness. Stan believed, and it made you want to believe, too. He was genuine, brilliant, and passionate. The world is forever better and brighter for his having been in it.

Rebecca Himot

And last up for this round is Tara Crocitto who worked herself up the ranks at Stan Winston Studios over the years and ended up one of the VPs of the company.

Hi Harry,

Thank you for this opportunity. I had the privilege of working with Stan for just over 11 years. My stint there was initially a temp position. Truth be it known, it was a glorified front office clerk/office manager and after working my way ‘up the ranks’ an assistant to Stan and ultimately one of five v.p.s at his Studio. It is a woman’s take, if you will. So here is the chick flick, the soft side and what I was so blessed to have been a part of:

I moved to Los Angeles from New York. I was signed with a bi-costal employment agency of sorts. They were sending me out on a job call. I had no idea where I was going or what the job was. Only that they were sending me on an interview for an office management position, somewhere in Van Nuys, California. That alone was odd because I had no idea where the heck that was!

After cruising up and down the street lost and I should say a little bit frantic, because I was told to be on time. This was imperative to this particular and potential employer. I desperately looked for the address. I finally recognized the numbers to the building I had been searching for. They were impeccably framed by thousands of manicured leaves of ivy, which covered the entire front side of the building.

I walked into what appeared to be a warehouse, confused and a bit concerned. Upon entering I was approached by a kind hearted girl who was answering phones, handing cash out of a metal box; to a man with a long list of things to do, all while, writing my name down on a ‘sign in’ sheet of paper, clipped to a board. She told me to have a seat as “Stan” would be with me in a just a moment.

I sat in a chair, looking around the lobby and couldn’t help but notice this HUGE black- bug/creature standing on a tall pedal stool and peering into my soul. Now, mind you, I am a New York girl. I’m thinking… I am pretty tough. I have seen some big ass bugs, rats and all kinds of creatures of the night, but where the hell am I? I resign myself to ‘this must be a management position for an exterminating company or something.’

Suddenly, without any warning, a man falls down and entire flight of stairs screaming “Lady…Lady!” I jump up out of my chair to help him only to see his glasses are now askew across one side of his face and he is hysterically laughing (on the inside). He smiles at me and to himself. He recognizes how concerned I appear and says “Hi, I’m Stan Winston.” By this point, I’m thinking, is this guy for real? Just then, an innocent whispering of a giggle signals me. I glance up. A top the landing stands a beautiful blonde haired woman. Her eyes are big and bright and her smile sets everything strait… the joke was on me. Stan then said, as only a man who deeply loves can, “This is my wife, Karen.” In his brief first encounter with me and in his very clear yet subtle way, Stan shared two of the most important things in the world to him: His wife Karen and the value of laughter. “Come on,” he said, “I’ll show you around the shop.” “Around where?” I thought… Where the heck am I?

As we walked down a hall and into a corridor there were photographs of what seemed to be designs of other creatures, bugs and just scary looking stuff, framed along the walls. Finally, I asked, “What do you do here?” As if choreographed and in synch to the rhythm of his words and without missing a beat, Stan made a swooping gesture of his arm to his hand, as he opened the door and said, “I create characters.”

I walked through the door, all the while Stan was watching, looking for a reaction. It was clear, pretty early on, Stan loved the joy and awe his work could bring to people. HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, I thought. Santa’s workshop wasn’t at the North Poll at all! It was right the heck here in Van Nuys California! And as if that wasn’t enough, there were cool Santa helpers too!

Santa’s helpers ended up becoming some of the greatest surrogate brothers and sisters a lost girl could ever hope for: Shane, John, Shannon, Crash, Richard, Chris, Paul, Gwidge, Adam, Len, Stiles, Mike, Alan, Dave, Rob, Jinky, Bill, Lindsay, Sean, Greg, Chuck, Pat, Rich H, Beth, Eileen, Karen, Lyndel, Katie, Kimberly, Mitsiko, Nathalie … The list goes on and was altered over the many years. Some came and went. Some came and stayed. And some were born there and will never go. But the one thing that was constant… we were family. They were brothers and sisters. Stan was an exceptional father to his two amazing children Matt and Debbie, but somehow he still found time to be a father to each one of his quasi ‘adopted’ family members. And there you have it. Yet, another of Stan’s absolutes: strong family, strong unit, a team, a bond, a trust.

In short, I realized fairly quickly (because he told me so, just about every day), he deemed these guys “the greatest artists in the world”. They worked with him and for him day and night. He honored that. He took care of them. These were the days of Edward Scissorhands, Terminator II, Batman Returns, and The Jurassic Park Franchise. Stan had more than a discerning eye. He had a discerning heart. Stan knew how to spot passion. He and it were drawn to one another and those who had it were drawn to him. Likewise, he knew discipline.

There were laugh till you cry moments and work till the sun came up the next morning days. Moments in time so incredibly unbelievable, most people would think it impossible, made up and exaggerated. But I was blessed to be there and can tell you it was real. He was real and will always live on in those memories and the screens that show them.

It always struck me as incredible how Stan could handpick a group of people, knowing they would make a great overall team, despite their different backgrounds, personalities, strengths and weaknesses. Simply put, Stan was instinctively perceptive. He did what so few do. He trusted his gut. It was a very special and magical time, with a magical man who knew it was more important to believe than to wish. He would say “your perception is reality…believe.”

Eleven years after working with Stan, I left… Oh, who am I kidding? He fired my ass. After all, how much of me could he bare? But, I walked from Stan’s Studio wiser than most people get to be in 10 lifetimes.

I am no longer a lost girl. I can tell the world I knew a great man, he and both his families were able to teach me some of the greatest lessons I’ve come to know, because Stan believed in some basic but strong principles: Laugh, and the world will laugh with you. Be disciplined and hold yourself to a higher standard than anybody expects of you. However you accomplish it, be a part of a family. Dream. If you can imagine it, it can be accomplished. Perception is reality. And above all Love…it is the only thing you take with you.

Thank you Stan

I’ll love you always…

Tara

Hey folks, Harry here with the latest tribute to Stan. Here ya go...

Hello guys,

Thank you first of all for allowing a forum for those of us that were close to Stan to share our thoughts and memories of him.

I will always remember one time in the jungles of Costa Rica, when we were filming “Congo”. Our crew was tired and wet. Stan came into our tent with a child of one of the producers or actors or crew, I don’t remember who’s child she was. He asked us to do a show and tell of “Amy” and the other animatronic gorilla heads for her. We were to “fire up” the servo driven heads and move around the eyes and brows, make the lips snarl, smile and roar, like we had done for countless others over the previous months. Weeks of long shoot days had made us cynical and tired, we grumbled to ourselves as we set up for the show and tell. I listened to him talking to the little girl as we worked. He told her that “she was a very lucky little girl, because not many people in the world had a chance to see what he was about to show her”. While the memory of the show and tell faded with the years, the memory of that statement and the joy that he brought to that little girl has stayed with me for years. She giggled with wide eyes when we made the gorillas come to life. Stan showed off his creations like the showman that he was, with joy and pride. He loved sharing his work and his art and he loved how making his creations come to life could amaze and inspire people. He joked how he “didn’t do anything anymore”, that his crew did all the work and that he was going to take all the credit for it anyway. But he never did, he always gave us credit.

I had the extreme good fortune to sit with Stan last week before he died. He had been very ill and been weakened by the disease that was ravaging his body, but he had recently left the hospital in good spirits and was enjoying being home with his family. He hadn’t been taking visitors, but was having a good day, so Lindsay Macgowan and I went to see him. We sat with him and talked about the studio, the crew, our most recent projects, our upcoming ones, and our soon to be new partnership with him. He was excited to hear about the shop, and the work and the industry in general. He had recently seen Iron Man in the theater. He was very proud of the work we had done on that film and was so happy that it was such a good film. It would end up being the last film he went to. He was his old self that day. The same Stan, lively and joking with us. The same Stan that you’ve read about in everyone else’s letters. After a while the room fell quiet. The only noise was the hum of his dialysis machine and the quiet din of the Laker game playing on the TV in the background. Not wanting to overstay our welcome, we stood up. “Well, we better let you get some rest Stan” we said. Stan looked at us and replied “Why don’t you hang for a while?” We sat with Stan that night for over five hours, talking about anything and everything, from old friends to his real estate conquests. With tear filled eyes we read to him some of the get well letters that others had sent him, even one from his dear friend Dick Smith. The outpouring of support was uplifting for him. He shared with us his philosophies of home and family and how it was everyone’s duty to cherish their families. It was a touching time for Lindsay and I to laugh and talk with him. In all my years with Stan, I don’t remember ever talking with him for so long.

That was the last time I saw Stan. I will cherish those hours with him most of all. His words from the jungles of Costa Rica from so many years ago echo in my mind. While “Not many people in the world” got to work with Stan, millions have been affected by him and have been inspired by him and the characters he created and the films that he worked on. I feel lucky, like that little child in Costa Rica, that I was one of the fortunate few that had a chance to see into his world, to share the creative process with him and to be directly inspired by him. Very few people in the world get to make a living doing what they truly love to do. Stan did, and he inspired all of those around him to also do what they truly love to do, to live their dream jobs and to live their dream lives. Stan always encouraged everyone to push to excel, to not be afraid to fail and to strive for perfection. He took jobs not knowing how on earth he was going to finish them, but he always had the confidence that together, as a team, as a family, we would figure it out. We always did. Thank you Stan.

J Alan Scott
Animatronic Effects Supervisor
Stan Winston Studio

Hey folks, Harry here... THis one is from Richard Landon - a lifer at Stan Winston Studio...

Hello all,

This is really difficult to write, but I feel the need to add to all the wonderful things already said about the passing of Stan Winston. I am one of the three lucky three guys Stan always referred to as his "Lifers". Some didn't like the term because it felt like an exclusion because no matter how long they worked there - they couldn't make it into that old phrase of his. Funny enough - we jokingly referred to it as something that sounded more like a prison term. We said sometimes "that will teach us to do a good job - yikes!" The truth is that it was just another term of endearment Stan used for us. He had a lot of offbeat ways of showing his affections - a quick tap in the groin, playing with your food if you weren't looking, shouting Jerry Lewis impersonations as the right time to make you jump out of your skin. But all were in kindness and with a familial affection. He was a father figure, a mentor, a friend and a darn good boss. I truly am blessed for having known him and for being close enough to Karen, Matt , and Debbie to be invited to weddings, and even build fun little "G-job" gadgets for his cars and for the house that he thought up and didn't exist in the commercial world.

I have tons of memories and anecdotes to keep me smiling through the initial pain of losing Stan - ask anyone at the shop because I have been telling lots of them in the last week. I got to travel the world with Stan and share a lot with him in places like Italy, Mexico, Costa Rica, Canada, we got to visit England twice! He even opened his house to me when I couldn't find a place to stay in London right away the first time (we were working long hours from the beginning on Aliens). He understood that I didn't want to be stuck in a hotel. He also probably understood that we had come a long way from home and that was my first really big location shoot. He understood a lot of things. His training was in acting and Makeup, but he would come up with the most fantastic mechanical ideas. Even though he said "I don't know how you are going to build what I want" - I beg to differ. He knew exactly what was the right thing in any design. The T-Rex telemetry deice was his idea - now a standard, but new for its time. He also had me prototype an actor-driven makeup device that was a very personal idea and I was proud when he said I had it right. Sculptural form, mechanical design, color and finish, he got all of it. The industry has lost an all encompassing visionary who happened to be a great person too.

I don't want to ramble on so I will close by saying "Thank You" for letting his Studio family, real family, and huge list of friends say goodbye to him this way. It means a lot - but he meant a lot to us all in so many ways. He went way too soon, but if the sign of a great entertainer is to "leave 'em wanting more" he certainly did.

Goodbye Stan - we love you,

Richard Landon

Quint back again. We have a new insight from one of Stan's ex-foam runners, Lance Gilmer. These Stan Winston Studios' Christmas Parties are starting to become things of legend. Just wait until you read what Mr. Gilmer and all the other employees got that... well, wait to be extremely jealous!

Dear Quint:

I was a foam runner for Stan from 1995-1998 and I'd like to share with you a recollection to possibly post...

In June of 1995, John Rosengrant and Stan had the courage to hire a kid who only had about 10 months experience in the special makeup effects field. I didn't have a lot to offer except a burgeoning interest in running foam (creating the skins/prosthetics that go over puppets and actors). For about three years, we worked long and hard and each day I learned something new. From "The Island of Dr. Moreau" to "The Relic", "The Ghost and the Darkness" and even "Lost World: Jurassic Park" (which was THE HIGHLIGHT for me, having seen the first "Jurassic Park" umpteen times and reading all about the effects work, Stan's work in particular), I never dreamed I'd be working for and with so many talented artists and technicians.

I remember Stan's generosity above all. His Christmas parties and gifts are something I still cherish in my heart and I'll never let go of that excellent TERMINATOR ENDOSKULL he gave out Christmas 1996--it was a casting from the original "Terminator" skull, all chromed and tricked out with eyes that light up. It's the envy of my two boys and they'll never get it. NEVER!

Stan would stop by the foam room from time to time and when I told him my wife and I were thinking of buying a house, he told me to do it and ASAP. He gave me advice on real estate, what to look for in a house, how to bargain with the seller--all that stuff. We bought that house 12 years ago and, man, am I glad I listened to him (and my wife). It's worth a lot more than we paid for it, even in today's economic climate.

Towards the end of the summer of 1998, there was an unfortunate need to do a layoff and sadly, I was a part of that. But what a ride. I had studio medical benefits for my family, an employer-matching 401k, vacation/sick time--all the perks we all seem to take for granted, but this kind of generosity, frankly, is unheard of in that field. I was extremely sorry to leave.

Since those days, I've transitioned to post production, making DVDs, but not one day has gone by that I don't think of my time there. I was a very young man when I walked into that place and when I left, I like to think I matured.

I attribute all of this to Stan and the fine folks at his studio. I thank each and every one of them for that unique experience. Not a lot of people can say they've worked for Stan Winston.

I have, and I'm all the better for it.

Thanks for letting me ramble,

Lance Gilmer
Former Foam Runner
Stan Winston Studio c. 1995-1998

Quint here with another pair of tributes to the late, great Stan Winston. We start with Brian Gilbert who worked with Stan closely on the film production side of his career. Here's what he has to say:

Quint and Harry,

Eleven years ago I had just left a job with a high-profile production company and was exhausted by stress and anxiety caused by working in that company's caustic environment. I started to convince myself that the film business might not be for me because the work was no longer fun and I really started to dislike movies, which was the biggest shame.

It was around that time that I received a call from one of the agents who represented Stan. She was a friend beyond our business relationship, was aware that I was feeling burnt out and knew that I had no interest in interviewing for jobs at that point. When she mentioned an opportunity with one of her agency's clients I immediately shut her down. She asked me to keep quiet, let her tell me who it was and then hang up if I was so inclined but she insisted that I hear her out. I'm glad I did because she told me that Stan was going to start a production company and, I think before she even finished her sentence, I started screaming "Set it up!!" into the receiver. I'm a geek and, if nothing else, I wanted a chance to meet Stan because he was someone whose work I greatly admired... and I thought I might get a chance to peek at his famous conference room where the collected works of the studio were exhibited.

The conference room was better than I expected and so was the meeting. I couldn't believe that a guy who, to me was a larger-than-life figure, could be such a nice person. I was fortunate to have had the privilege of helping Stan to establish Stan Winston Productions and to work along side him for ten-and-a-half-years. Stan always referred to those who were in his employ as his children and we would regularly hear him tell us that he loved each of us like a father. Coming from many people, this couldn't possibly sound sincere but you knew absolutely that it was true when you heard it coming from Stan.

Like a good father, he was a great mentor, imparted profound wisdom, allowed individual inspiration and creativity to flourish, was a strong disciplinarian when necessary and took a personal interest in each of his employees. A Mark Twain quote summed up Stan's management philosophy perfectly: "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great." He made us all feel great. There were things that I was able to do and experience that wouldn't have been possible were I employed elsewhere and these experiences made me like my work and helped me to regain my love of movies.

The biggest effect Stan had on me though had to do with temperament. In certain situations in which emotions ran high with people we were dealing with and some times even between us, I had a tendency to let my anger get the best of me. By imparting lessons from his past, in which anger and knee-jerk responses had gotten him in trouble he demonstrated how silly this was, without making me feel silly. He would then approach these situations by mining their humor, dissipating hostility and making everyone leave the room with smiles on their faces or, sometimes, doubled over with laughter. Mark Twain had another quote germane to Stan: "Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away and a sunny spirit takes their place." This quote defines the guiding principal by which Stan dealt with people. The reason it was effective was because it was never a device used to manipulate anyone, it's just that he truly wanted the people around him to be happy. I learned this profoundly important lesson from a truly important man.

Brian Gilbert

And now we have man by the name of Evan Schiff who interned with Stan back in his teenage days.

Quint-

I just saw the link to the tribute on IMDb and wanted to say thanks for posting everyone's stories. Stan had such a strong personality and such a charismatic character, that while reading all of these anecdotes about Stan, I can only confirm and support that this is the Stan Winston I had the pleasure of working for as well.

I first started as an intern at Stan Winston Studio when I was 17, between my junior and senior years of high school, and as you can imagine, this was no ordinary internship. At the end of the summer, Stan stopped by to see a project I had been working on, and then offered me a job. I couldn't take it, still owing a year of high school back in Syracuse, but in that intervening year Stan wrote me a letter of recommendation that helped me get into USC's film school, and 10 days after I graduated high school I flew out to LA and started working there for real.

I stayed there for five amazing years, working whenever I could outside of class and for a year after I graduated. It was the most incredible job to have, and to have it while in college studying film was something for which I always felt extremely lucky. Like so many people have said before me, Stan created a place where you were really encouraged to explore different avenues and try on multiple hats. Over my time there I worked as their systems administrator, occasionally helped out in Electronics, and ultimately ended as the studio's Avid editor. Stan had crafted this incredibly open environment, and it really was one big, generous family.

I owe quite a bit to Stan and the wonderful people he hired to work with him. Stan's letter of recommendation and the job he offered me was my start in the industry, and it was there where I learned so much from him about storytelling and creating believable characters. Ultimately, it was my work there that allowed me to get into the Editors Guild and start the next part of my career, and I did so with bittersweet feelings of leaving a place I loved working at so much. His encouragement and understanding, his charisma, and the distinct look of pride he gave you when he was happy with your work, are all qualities that instilled an utmost sense of loyalty and amity among those who worked for him.

Although I am currently working in London, my thoughts and sympathies this past week have been nowhere else but with the Winston family, in all senses of the word.

Thank you, Stan.

--Evan Schiff

Quint here again with a few words regarding Stan's funeral held today. Of all the tributes we've run here, for some reason reading the lyrics to the amazing Beatles song and knowing it was the last thing Stan heard as well as the last thing that played at his funeral... I've always thought Golden Slumbers was a haunting song, but it really hit me dead center.

I didn't know the man, but I wish I could have been there to pay my respects. It looks like AICN was represented in a very unexpected, but heartfelt way. Read on for the details.

Harry,

This might very well be the coolest news in the history of Aint It Cool News, although it may be considered more of a swansong to the amazing tribute to Stan Winston that has been ongoing on the site. I was in attendance at Stan Winston's funeral at the Los Angeles Hillside Memorial Park this Sunday. The service was truly wonderful. As we all know by now, Stan was all about family and friends and you could truly feel the love through the 100 plus degree weather. Stan's brother, uncle, son, and stepson all gave beautiful eulogies as did Stan's friends and colleagues Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Steven Spielberg.

The stories they told reinforced all the things you've read on the tribute page. But it is Jim Cameron's eulogy that really deserves mention here. Everyone in attendance knew Stan well enough that they might have been too close to fully realize the impact Stan made on the people whom he had never even met. There must have been countless stories that Jim could have told, but instead he read aloud actual usernames and comments from the talkback of the AICN tribute. Jim quoted Gatsbys West Egg Omlet, DrRavenwood, SoylentMean, GavinVanDraven, and on and on. And while I can't remember every username (sorry), it doesn't even matter, because it seamed an almost arbitrary decision which comments he read. He was really reading every single one of you're comments. Jim Cameron is a geek when it comes to cinema and so was his dear friend Stan Winston, and in that moment Jim made sure that the presence of every film geek in the world was felt at Stan the Man's funeral. Ain't it cool? I shall end with the last words that were heard at his funeral. They were also the last that Stan Winston heard as he lay at home with those he loved the most:

Once there was a way to get back homeward
Once there was a way to get back home
Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby

Golden slumbers fill your eyes
Smiles awake you when you rise
Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby

Once there was a way to get back homeward
Once there was a way to get back home
Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby

And in the end
The love you take
Is equal to the love you make

Jamie Landau

Quint here. We have a couple more, including another person who attended Mr. Winston's funeral today. Let's get to them:

Hello Harry,

I am a current Effects Technician at Stan Winston Studio. I was wondering if you could add these words to the Stan Winston Tribute page I understand that since there is a sourced article involved you may have to make edits ect. I feel that it is really important that people learn from Stan"The Man"Winston" himself:

Stan Winston: Who he was...

I have been struggling pretty hard to find the right words to describe Stan Winston. The first day I was hired into the studio was the most exciting day of my life. I walked into the mold department and I began work on Iron Man. As I walked around the studio the first day working on molds I could already feel the magic unfolding all around me. Seeing the Iron Man suit in maquette form in the model department, I knew then that I was very lucky, and that the film was going to be a hit! Since then I have been blessed with innovating creating crystal skulls, molding the Iron Monger, assembling terminators, fabricating business suit aliens, creating a 30 foot squid, a car that emerges from asphalt for ecological change, a robot that turns into a boy, and a grand battle of a war of future past for Halo. If thats not a magical feeling I don't know what else is . Thank you for allowing me to create
magic! I was searching around today and read this great candid interview with him from last year. In short he describes himself and all the attributes about him that are so amazing. He exposes a mentality that most artists should strive to embrace and follow. I will forever be in his debt and will dedicate the rest of my life to sharing his mentality with others.I have taken the liberty to repost the arcticle below:

Thank you Stan for your wisdom you will forever be remembered!

Ryan Banfield
Stan Winston Studio Mold Shop
2007-Present

Interview with Stan Winston
4-time Oscar winner and legendary visual effects wizard Stan Winston, with a career that spans nearly four decades, talks about his career, more respect for animators, compares practical and digital and what it takes to be a successful artist.

April, 8th, 2007, by Raffael Dickreuter, Bradley Gabe

1.

How do you feel about seeing the finished book that summarizes your career?

The book has actually been a highlight of my career. For years people have been asking me what is my favorite project, what is my
favorite movie that I have done? I always say I don't have a favorite. The projects are like my children: I love them all. But, I must say that the book has been my favorite project because it's about the body of work. It's about all the people that have been involved. It's not a book about Stan Winston; it's a book about Stan Winston Studio. It's a book about all the people that have been a part of this history - of really spectacular and iconic effects - that I can say, humbly, that I am very thrilled and feel very blessed that I have been a part of… that I was a common denominator…that was done by hundreds of wonderfully brilliant minds… they are all represented in the book. And that is why I love the book. It is my favorite project. It took over a year in developing it and 35 years or more in the content that is in the book. I think it was beautifully done. It tells the story and the history. It's beautifully written by Jody Duncan and it
really has an artistic layout. Jim Charmatz and Paul Mejias, from the studio, had a lot do with it. The book publishers also did a brilliant job with it. I am very, very proud of it and I hope it inspired many people. I hope it inspires people to know that so much has been done in the field and so much that yet can be done with the right imagination and the right drive.

2.

What are some character traits that helped you become so successful in this business, besides obviously being just talented?

It might sound very trite and very true, but I believe my success is due to my love and respect of other artists…my ability to collaborate and work with other artists and not believe that I am the only one that knows the answer. I have been successful because I surrounded myself with very talented and very bright people, and I have always said
that I am very comfortable with being the dumbest one in the room. I am not going to say I don't believe I am not a good artist because I do. I believe that I have a good eye and a great vision. I am a great fan and love movies but I believe very strongly in all people around me and I know that the collaboration in movies is what makes them work; not an individual. I love people. I am a fan of artists and I walk in here every day and look at the stuff you are looking at here and I go, ‘Wow! This is the coolest thing I have ever seen!’ And I can say that and be humble because I didn't do it. I was one detail…one part of it and I am thrilled that I was a part of it, but I am not going to say ‘Look at what I did.’ I am going to say ‘Wow! Look at what was done by all these great artists!’ There are these wonderful actors, wonderful directors that work under this roof…all these creative minds and how cool it is to be among them to be one of
them and to know it's not about me, it's about all the people around me.

3. In an industry where many people jump from job to job it stays in contrast to many people who stayed at Stan Winston Studio for a long time, why is that?

The answer to the question why people have been here for so long is kind of folded into the reality of my success…it's love. We care about one another. We support one another. We don't compete with one another. We inspire one another. Once you are married it's hard to divorce unless there is a very good reason and you want a growing family. For me this business is about the people as much it is about the work, and then work becomes wonderful because the character that you see that works so great is not one that this guy did, it's one that all these guys did. It's the one that they did…the one
that the team put together. And one man is not nearly as strong as a team. There is nobody out there…not one human being out there in the world who can outdo what this team can do because it becomes bigger and stronger, and that's why people hang around because it's family.

4.

What is your opinion of the ongoing industry shift from practical to all digital effects?

Ultimately, any new technology, if used properly, should be embraced; however, I think it's very important for people to realize what happens whenever a new technology is introduced. I think it's a wonderful new tool to be able to use digital tools to help create magic. But, the secret is creating magic….and you don't create magic by your audience knowing how you did your trick. The downfall is when too much digital is used. When an audience walks into what I call a "live action
movie." I am not talking about a digitally animated movie because that is an animated film and that's an art form. “Toy Story,” “Shrek,” and “Nemo” are wonderful and could not be better. They are great stories and told in a particular art form. But when digital is used in a live action movie, people should not be aware that it's digital animation. It must be magic. The only way to make it invisible is not to make it all digital; mix it up. To have live action and digital so that from cut to cut, from moment to moment, you are not aware of what you are looking at. And then it's magic and it's a brilliant tool. Unfortunately it's only a few filmmakers…there are only a handful of brilliant filmmakers who know how to dazzle you and trick your mind and allow you to believe you are seeing something that is real and that you don't know how it was done because it doesn't look like digital…and it couldn't be done live because they couldn't
possibly do that with puppets…it couldn't be done with animatronics and it also couldn't be digital because once you no longer know how it's done as an audience then you are watching a movie. You are watching what is happening and it is magic. And anything that helps us do the magic is a good thing. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of great magicians out there and they don't know how to use the tools and so the magic is gone. So, instead of going to see a movie and seeing magic you end up seeing technology and that's a downfall.

5.

What is the advantage of still doing it practical, what is there that digital can't do?

What digital can't do is help the performance of an actor or the visual understanding of a director. I started out as an actor; I have directed films, have produced films and have worked behind the scenes. As an actor I can tell
you…because my son is an actor, a very successful one, some of my closest friends have been some of the most brilliant actors in the business; from Rod Steiger to Anthony Hopkins….any great actor will tell you that fifty percent of acting is reacting. And, the greatest actors will tell you that they give their best performance when they are acting with another good actor. I firmly believe what is good about movies is a good story and the storytellers in that story are the actors. The better the performance of the actor the more you are going to like that movie. So, it's important to give actors the tools that they need to create the best character they possibly can. Imagine telling another actor that he is performing against another actor that is not there. Pretend that this is the guy - this spot you are looking at - and give me your best performance. It is impossible. So if you buy that actors and their performances are important to movie making
and storytelling, and if you buy that actors give better performances when they have other actors to react to , then you must, with common sense, understand that if you can do it live and give the actor something to react to…if you can create the dinosaur, if you can create the creature and it's there on set with the director and you are going to do that, then you are going to raise the level of the performance of the actor. You can't do that digitally. You must do that with a live performance. You must bring that character to life on set. It's a disservice to actors and ignorance to the craft to think that an actor can do it as well with as without someone to react to.

6.You were fighting to get more respect for make-up artists, including having an Oscar category established.

Do you think we are at a time where digital animators should get more respect, in
the same vein?

Absolutely. I believe very strongly that if you are a part of creating a character, the performance of a character, you need to be treated the same as anyone else who is a key person for creating a performance. That's why puppeteers are part of SAG (Screen Actors Guild), they are considered actors. They go onto the set under the banner of screen actors because they are creating the performance of a character on the set. Actors who are creating the vocal performance get residuals for the voices. If there is a lead animator for that character, then he is creating that performance. Now, I am not talking about every aspect. There are hundreds of people involved in the creation of an animated character when it gets down to the lighting, compositing etc.; but, the performance, the animation, the lead performing animator…absolutely. We should fight for them to get the recognition as they are creating a performance. If the
performance is performance capture then it is the actor who created the performance that needs to be credited with the performance. In today’s world we have to understand that many performances are created with optical performance capture as was Gollum in “Lord of the Rings.” That performance should be credited to the actor who created it, Andy Serkis, as any other actor. I don't know what Andy's situation was - if he gets residuals or not - but he should….I can’t imagine he wouldn’t. He created a performance. And I would say the same thing if the performance was created by an animator… same thing….if the performance is created by a puppeteer…same thing. Who ever creates the performance. Not all of the digital technicians, not all of the puppet technicians, but the performing deserve to be treated as what they are, performing actors.

7.

With advances
in technology will it change the way we tell stories with creatures?

The way we are going with storytelling with creatures is the same way since the beginning of movies. Nothing is new. Don't for a second think that it is different today than it was 50 years ago. It's only our imagination. The difference is that the stories that we have imagined and the stories that were told in the 30's, 40's and 50's are told technically more believable today than they were then because of our advancements in technology; not in story telling. In the days of 1933…in the days of “King Kong”...I don't believe the story of the new “King Kong” beats the story of the original “King Kong.” It was there and everything that was magical about it was there: a giant gorilla and dinosaurs. In 1933 the technology was not where it is today; but, the imagination was there. It's all about imagination and it's all about storytelling. The story existed,
the imagination existed, and they figured out how to do it for that time…good enough, and better than any audience had seen. The audience was in awe at what was done with stop-motion animation and one big mechanical hand - that was your animatronics - and one big head with stop-motion animation. Today it's digital animation. Today the robotics and animatronics are more advanced and do much more than they could have in 1933, but it was being done back then. The story was being told and we will continue to tell the stories in the future, and the technology will continue to improve and we will be able to do more with animation than we did yesterday. We will be able to do more with animatronics and robotics than we did yesterday, but we can't do more with storytelling. You can just imagine how to tell stories in a more interesting way…how have we not seen it told? And that is the imagination of the writer and that does not rely on technology. All the
writer needs to know is what the writer already knew in 1933…that you are writing. You don't worry about how they will get it done. Let the technical people figure that out. Write the story. I hope that writers in the future can write with the same vivid imagination that the writers in the 30's wrote with; not worrying about it because now we have the technology. I haven't seen a movie better than '”The Wizard of Oz,'” more creative, more magical. I haven't seen a movie of its genre that affected me more than the original “King Kong.” I have seen a few movies through history that have affected me as much, because the stories were vibrant and new and wow! Stories like the first “Planet of the Apes” and “Lord of the Rings,” which was a brilliant book by Tolkien. Great stories you know and they continue as long as we have wonderful imaginations and with wonderful writers we will always have that. We all have those wonderful movies to
make, and we will make them in ways people have not seen them because we will continue to develop technically. Because as humans we are constantly challenging ourselves to do what we haven't done…to push forward. In the future we will see more, but not necessarily better.

8.

Which invention would help to get to the next step?

There are many things. I am presently collaborating and have been for a few years with MIT on artificial intelligence. The character's name is Leonardo and it is truly an artificial intelligence. There is technology that is being developed that allows this character to be a true A.I. So he can hear, see, and learn, etc. Imagine if you will (and if you followed what I said about an actor about acting and reacting) one of the most difficult things in the animatronic world and the live action world is eye contact. When you
have puppeteers that are actually creating the eye movement, head and neck movement, and body movement of an artificial character and there is an actor on the set, it is almost impossible to follow eye contact. The best thing for an actor is to look at a character and have eye contact as you and I are having right now. Imagine if that dinosaur or artificial character is on the set…if you move he follows you and looks at you no matter what…it will freak you out. With that creature’s performance you will believe much more that the character truly is there. It will raise the bar of the performance of the actor because what he is acting at is looking right at him. So if I can, in fact, use the technology that is being developed at MIT and have my animatronic characters have eyes that actually see and track and look directly at the actor, and the actor can look directly at what it is and be that organic on set, it is going to raise the bar. So, you are
constantly looking at your characters to have more reality…to be more organic, to be able to do more of what a live character could do…and the more we do that, the better everything becomes. The more photo-realistic the digital world can be, the better it's going to be for the audience. The more finesse there can be with it, so it doesn't have to be as expensive as it is, the better it can be. Always look at what to improve and all these things can improve to be able to create a digital performance and have it done more efficiently. To have it be live and on the set rather than having it all done in post production would be a great advantage to a director and that what is being worked on right now. For a director to actually see what the digital performance is…what the character looks like on set in real time….those concepts are being developed today and you will see a movie using those concepts soon, but, unfortunately, I don't have the liberty
to be able to talk about it right now.

9.What is your advice to aspiring artists who, upon entering the field get sucked into the digital world right away.

It's very important for people who move into the digital world to realize that computers are tools and they are not more than tools…that they are paint brushes…that they are sculpting and character creating tools. What a person going into the field has to realize is that they have to know much more than how to use a computer. They have to understand story, performances and the basics of art. They have to understand you have to know how to draw with a pencil before you even know how to draw with a computer. You need to know how to sculpt with a block of clay before you start sculpting with a computer. You need to feel it…know how to perform. You need to feel performance. You need to feel what
an actor feels. You need to know everything there is to know about story telling…from the story, to an actor's performance, to what that character looks like and how that character performs in every aspect of art. So, you must be a proficient artist... and when I say a proficient artist, I mean in every field, and then learning programs on the computer is about how to use that tool to help you be the artist that you already are. That you know how to draw…that you know how to sculpt…that you know how to paint…how to act, and how to tell a story, and then learn how to use that computer to do all those things that you know how to do and not to think that the computer will do it for you.

And here's screenwriter and producer John Fasano's thoughts on the man and his funeral today.

Quint:

I came home from Stan's funeral today and I had to share some of my thoughts about this great man.
We worked on three projects together. SHAOLIN, a film idea we sold to Disney with Stan as Producer and myself as the writer, Two years we pitched a TV series based on the young Adult novels Prowlers, and Stan's company stepped in to make us a new monster for DARKNESS FALLS which I produced and wrote.

I always thought that Stan's particular genius was understanding the film business better than any of the other make-up FX men. He understood that we work in a cult of personality. Stan wanted to be an actor, he was comfortable "pitching" to a room full of people, which a lot of talented artists don't have the aptitude for. While many make-up men created cool sounding company names, Stan tied the shop to his own. Some saw "Stan Winston Studios" as a sort of ego trip, but it was not that, it was, as I said, genius. Because while Stan and his crews created movie magic, they also created a brand name. I would go into studio meetings with executives that didn't know whether ALIEN QUEEN was animated or a Japanese Bonraku puppet, but they knew who to get if they needed something -- "Stan Winston." Toy lines, Don Post Mask lines, Stan was always looking for ways to expand the scope of the Studio's work. He was one of the most driven men I've ever met out here, and still had the sheer joy of a kid that the others who worked with him have cited.

In the midst of one meeting at his house in Malibu, I praised him for his ability to deal with the incredible egos you find out here . He told me his real genius was "making the producer think HE was the genius. Whenever they praise my work, I tell them I couldn't have done it without them. How I was inspired by their idea." And he was. Stan took extraordinary pleasure in creating the characters directors and writers envisioned.

And he took pleasure in his fabled ego. When I first met him at the shop, years ago, before I was in the Hollywood scene, he told me, "It's your honor to meet me." He had just finished bringing to life the MONSTER SQUAD characters for my Junior High pen pal and then hero Fred Dekker, and he was right! I hired Bernie Casey for ANOTHER 48 HRS because he had been in GARGOYLES! When Stan started to produce his own films, we met often to kick ideas around. Once, when we knew each other better, I asked if I could see the Michael Jackson Video GHOSTS he directed. Stan asked me how much money I had in my wallet. He told me he'd show me if I gave him the money. I did, he pocketed the cash, and then said he'd decide when I could see it.

So, yeah, he loved to play off the "ego" claims, but he also loved what he did. I was in his office when the Variety story broke that Fox was going to do FANTASTIC FOUR. He got the then head of the studio on the phone and shouted, "I'm doing this movie! I have to do the fantastic four! I have to make the Thing!!" He wanted to take a shot at the Thing, a character he'd loved in the comic books. I would have liked to see that.

But above all, while I waited my turn to shovel earth into his grave today, I thought about my time with the man.

I remembered that through the various projects we worked on, through much of that time, the ugly disease that was going to claim his life had already reared its ugly head. The Stan that sat with me, joked with me, talked about how proud he was of his kids, who shopped for JUST the right color of Ferrari, who pitched the vacuous TV execs with me -- KNEW what was happening to him. And never let on. He hadn't accepted it - he was fighting it -- and he went on with his work with his incredible zeal -- I scan my memories for any sign of weakness. None.

THAT is the thing I will take away from Stan Winston. He showed me how to be a man.

Thanks for your time.

John Fasano