When writer-director James Cameron first conceived of The Terminator, it was little more than a visceral image of a human cyborg emerging from a fire in its basic skeletal form. What it became was a modestly-budgeted blockbuster. To bring his image to life, Cameron engaged the services of Stan Winston - whose seasoned team of makeup and mechanical effects experts created the full-size robotic skeleton, as well as several lifelike representations of actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. For futuristic post-holocaust views of Los Angeles, plus contemporary pyrotechnics and stop-motion effects, the expertise and talents of Fantasy II were brought to bear. With minimal funds, but a wealth of creativity and enthusiasm, The Terminator's effects units helped transform Cameron's searing image into both a thrill-a-minute adventure and a major boxoffice event.

Article by Jennifer Benidt

Despite enormous popularity as a novel, twenty years would elapse before Frank Herbert's Dune would make the quantum leap from printed page to cinematic reality. The imposing challenge of adapting the widely-read cult classic - a saga rivaling the novel itself in epic proportion - would ultimately be met by writer-director David Lynch. In consort with cinematographer Freddie Francis, production designer Tony Masters, and a battery of high-powered effects supervisors including Carlo Rambaldi, Albert Whitlock, Barry Nolan, Kit West and Brian Smithies, Lynch would labor diligently for three-and-a-half years to bring his vision of Herbert's exotic work to life. From the worm-infested deserts of Arrakis to the murky decadence of Giedi Prime, Lynch and his production unit combineda wealth of experience with fresh innovation to weave the richly-textured tapestry of Dune.

Edited by Janine Pourroy and Don Shay