Boss Film Studios

Boss Film Studios

Industry	Visual effects, CGI animation
Founded	1983
Defunct	1997
Headquarters	Marina Del Rey, CA
Key people	Richard Edlund

Boss Film Studios was a prominent American visual effects company, founded by visual effects veteran Richard Edlund after his departure from Industrial Light and Magic, producing visual effects for over thirty films from 1983 to 1997.^[1] Before that period Edlund had worked at ILM on films like Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and the original Star Wars trilogy (1977-1983).

History

Boss Film Studios (originally Boss Film Corporation) initially undertook two projects, Ghostbusters and 2010, simultaneously. In an effort to get the new venture set up quickly, Edlund acquired Douglas Trumbull's Entertainment Effects Group, taking over their Marina Del Rey facility.

Competition with ILM

Boss Film soon established itself as one of the largest competitors to ILM contributing to such projects as Die Hard, Poltergeist II, and Big Trouble in Little China.

Edlund and his team chose to compete with ILM technically, continuing EEG's preference for using 65mm film for the creation of their optical effects work. This provided potentially cleaner effects than ILM's VistaVision format due to its much larger negative area.

Boss Game Studios

Boss Film branched out into video game production through sister company Boss Game Studios. Boss Film also operated a commercial production company producing many television spots for products including Budweiser, Dodge, United Airlines, and DHL.

Closure

Boss Film announced it was closing its doors on August 26, 1997, citing the difficulties of sustaining an independent effects house within the competitive environment at the time.^[2]

Awards

• Nominated for Best Visual Effects Academy Award 1993 for Alien 3. The named nominees were Richard Edlund; Alec Gillis; Tom Woodruff Jr.; and George Gibbs.

• Nominated for Best Visual Effects Academy Award 1989 for Die Hard. The named nominees were Richard Edlund; Al Di Sarro; Brent Boates; and Thaine Morris.

• Nominated for Best Visual Effects Academy Award 1987 for Poltergeist II. The named nominees were Richard Edlund; John Bruno; Garry Waller; and Bill Neil.

• Boss Film was awarded a Scientific and Engineering Award from the AMPAS in 1987 for the design and development of a Zoom Aerial (ZAP) 65mm Optical Printer. Winners were Richard Edlund; Gene Whiteman; David Grafton; Mark West; Jerry Jeffress; and Robert Wilcox.

• Nominated for Best Visual Effects Academy Award in 1985 for 2010 (Richard Edlund; Neil Krepela; George Jenson; Mark Stetson) and Ghostbusters (Richard Edlund; John Bruno; Mark Vargo; Chuck Gaspar).

Notable Boss Film alumni

Facility location

13335 Maxella Avenue, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292

Filmography

1984

• Ghostbusters (credited as Effects Entertainment Group)
• 2010 (credited as Effects Entertainment Group)

1985

• Fright Night

1986

• Big Trouble in Little China
• Poltergeist II: The Other Side
• Solarbabies
• Legal Eagles
• The Boy Who Could Fly

1987

• Masters of the Universe
• The Monster Squad
• Date with an Angel
• Leonard Part 6

1988

• Switching Channels
• Die Hard
• Vibes
• Twins
• Big Top Pee-wee

1989

• Tales from the Crypt series opening

1990

• The Hunt for Red October
• Ghost
• Solar Crisis

1992

• Alien 3
• Batman Returns
• Far and Away

1993

• Cliffhanger
• Last Action Hero
• Journey to Technopia

1994

• True Lies
• Drop Zone
• The Scout
• The Specialist
• Demon Knight

1995

• Outbreak
• Species
• Waterworld
• Heat
• Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls

1996

• Multiplicity

1997

• Turbulence
• Air Force One
• Starship Troopers

1998

• Desperate Measures

References

External links

• Boss Film Studios at the Internet Movie Database