The Score

Stan Winston who stood out among his peers as the most influential special effects genius working in movies, has died at the age of 62. He had been battling cancer for seven years and eventually succumbed at his home on Sunday night. A spokeswoman for Stan Winston Studio said, in a statement released to the L.A. Times, “Stan died peacefully at home surrounded by family”.

To say that Stan has been a huge influence upon a generation of special effects workers, movie-makers and movie-goers the world over would be no exaggeration. A quick look at his CV reads like a list of all-time movie-geek favourites: Predator, Terminator, Aliens, Jurassic Park - all brought to life by Stan’s genius. It seemed that Stan spent most of his life breaking new ground - from his stunning model work on The Terminator to the incredible effects of T2 (for which he won two Oscars), the phenomenal alien star of Predator, the Queen herself from Aliens (another Oscar) and, of course, the heart-stopping, mind-boggling triumph that was Jurassic Park (yet another Oscar).

Despite the modern and seemingly unstoppable progression of CGI, Stan has worked solidly, vociferously defending the use of practical effects. His creations have fought blow-for-blow with modern CG-effects and often come out on top. At the time of his death, Stan was working on the lastest Terminator movie, Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins.

A true Hollywood great and a man that has brought joy, excitement and wonder into cinemas and living rooms the world over, Stan will be sorely missed by all who knew him and cherished his work.

Jim