John Knoll
Also Known As: not available
Biography: John Knoll (born October 6, 1962) is an American visual effects supervisor and chief creative officer (CCO) at Industrial Light & Magic(ILM). One of the original creators of Adobe Photoshop (along with his brother, Thomas Knoll), he has also worked as a visual effects supervisor on the Star Wars prequels and the 1997 special editions of the original trilogy. He also served as ILM's visual effects supervisor for Star Trek Generations and Star Trek: First Contact, as well as the Pirates of the Caribbean series. Along with Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Allen Hall, Knoll and the trio's work on Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest earned them the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Knoll has been praised by directors James Cameron, Gore Verbinski, Guillermo del Toro, and Brad Bird. Del Toro, who worked with Knoll for the first time on Pacific Rim, stated, "He basically has the heart of a kid and the mind of a scientist, and that's a great combination." Knoll was also the inventor of Knoll Light Factory, a lens flare-generating software inspired by his work at Industrial Light and Magic. He was the Computer Graphics Project Designer on The Abyss, an achievement which earned ILM its tenth Oscar, and worked on two Star Trek episodes: Star Trek: The Next Generation's pilot episode ("Encounter at Farpoint") and the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Explorers". Knoll had a cameo appearance in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace as a fighter pilot who helped pitch the story of Rogue One, a feature film set in the Star Wars series, for which he also worked as writer and executive producer. John Knoll reflected on his work with George Lucas on the Star Wars prequel trilogy: "I still feel like I owe George a lot to have been given that opportunity. On those three films, I feel like I got a whole career's worth of experience packed into eight years. George never constricted his thinking to what he knew for sure the tools were capable of; his attitude was, "Yeah, well, I'm writing what I want to see, so you guys will figure it out." I loved that he would constantly throw those challenges out with the confidence [that] you guys will figure it out. That was great." In 2016, John Knoll and his brother Thomas were inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum. At the 2019 Oscars, John and his brother Thomas were awarded a Scientific and Engineering Award for the original architecture, design and development of Photoshop. Description above from the Wikipedia article John Knoll, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Department: Visual Effects
Place of Birth: Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Adult: No
Birthday: October 06, 1962
Age: 62 years old
Gender: Male
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Known For:
An Epic At Sea: The Making of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Overview: Behind the scenes documentary of the making of Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, featuring behind the scenes footage, interviews with Cast and crew and revives some previously unknown background information.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2003-12-02
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A Final Cut for Orson: 40 Years in the Making
Overview: A glimpse behind the scenes into the complicated process of recovering and completing Orson Welles' final film The Other Side of the Wind.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2018-09-01
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Mission: Impossible
Overview: When Ethan Hunt, the leader of a crack espionage team whose perilous operation has gone awry with no explanation, discovers that a mole has penetrated the CIA, he's surprised to learn that he's the prime suspect. To clear his name, Hunt now must ferret out the real double agent and, in the process, even the score.
Genres: Adventure Action Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1996-05-22
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Side by Side
Overview: Since the invention of cinema, the standard format for recording moving images has been film. Over the past two decades, a new form of digital filmmaking has emerged, creating a groundbreaking evolution in the medium. Keanu Reeves explores the development of cinema and the impact of digital filmmaking via in-depth interviews with Hollywood masters, such as James Cameron, David Fincher, David Lynch, Christopher Nolan, Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Steven Soderbergh, and many more.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2012-08-19
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State of the Art: The Pre-Visualization of 'Episode II'
Overview: Documentary breaking down the planning of the film's set pieces particularly the aerial car chase, conveyor-belt fight and climactic Clone War battle.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2002-11-12
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From Puppets to Pixels: Digital Characters in 'Episode II'
Overview: For Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), there were to be many more visual effects than in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999). This documentary shows many VFX meetings between George Lucas and ILM. Many of these meetings focus around the creation of a completely digital Yoda, used for the first time in the Star Wars films.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2002-11-12
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Industrial Light & Magic: Creating the Impossible
Overview: Leslie Iwerks' documentary takes audiences behind the scenes at ILM with in depth interviews with some of the company's top talent and showcases never before seen footage highlighting many of their pioneering milestones. From creating the first ever computer generated character in a feature film to the latest advancements in visual effects for film franchises like Transformers and Iron Man, ILM has created some of the most memorable movie moments in recent history.
Genres: Documentary TV Movie
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2010-11-12
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The Digital Artistry of Pacific Rim
Overview: Set the large tasks of putting life into the 2D artistic renderings Gillaume created. See how ILM craftsmen put life into the inspired digital creatures.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2013-10-15
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From Star Wars to Star Wars: The Story of Industrial Light & Magic
Overview: The incredible evolution of George Lucas' special effects dream factory, including an inside look at "Star Wars: Episode One - The Phantom Menace."
Genres: Documentary Science Fiction
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1999-06-15
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Star Wars: Within a Minute - The Making of Episode III
Overview: This documentary offers a glimpse into all the people, departments, and work that went into creating the film, specifically, the fight between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Featured on the 2-Disc DVD for Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2005-11-01
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The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
Overview: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2017-04-04
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Star Wars : La Révolution Visuelle
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Genres: Documentary
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 2020-05-04
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Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Overview: Anakin Skywalker, a young slave strong with the Force, is discovered on Tatooine. Meanwhile, the evil Sith have returned, enacting their plot for revenge against the Jedi.
Genres: Adventure Action Science Fiction
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1999-05-19
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Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Overview: The evil Darth Sidious enacts his final plan for unlimited power – and the heroic Jedi Anakin Skywalker must choose a side.
Genres: Adventure Action Science Fiction
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2005-05-17
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No Feat But What We Make: 'Terminator 2' and the Rise of Digital Effects
Overview: A look at the digital effects in Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2003-06-03
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