George Melies: The Grandfather of Special effects (bio)
When we see special effects today we think of groundbreaking innovations that were never done before, however, this is only partly true. There is no denying the special effect achievements in films such as “King Kong” (1931), Jurassic Park (1993), Star Wars(1977), and 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). From the dawn of cinema, many special effects propelled cinema further into the future. Credit can be given to the various films and filmmakers for their revolutionary breakthroughs in carefully crafting and evolving this art form with the use of special effects. But if any films or filmmakers have had a greater influence on modern-day special effects that honor goes to George Melies, “The Grandfather of special effects”, and his film “A Trip To The Moon” (1902), considered to be the world’s first sci-fi film ever!
Melies essentially wrote The Book on “Special effects.” Pioneering the fundamentals rules of what cinema is and what it could be. Melies showed us, film is just an optical illusion that manipulates time and space into a carefully crafted narrative by the visionary also known as the filmmaker or director. This art form changed the way we experience movies and how they resonate with us. “The Grandfather of special effects” was the first filmmaker to experiment with making illusion seem like a reality, his reality which was manipulated with his own…
