| Jim Rygiel |
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| Born |
(1955-02-17) February 17, 1955
Kenosha, Wisconsin |
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| Occupation |
Visual effects supervisor |
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Jim Rygiel (born February 17, 1955) is a visual effects supervisor. He has worked on major feature films since 1984, including The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and Godzilla.
Early life
Rygiel was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin to parents of Polish descent. His father was employed at American Motors in Kenosha.
Rygiel attended St. Joseph Catholic High School in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. In 1980, he received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Otis Parsons School of Design (now called Otis College of Art and Design).
Career
Pacific Electric Pictures
Starting his career in 1980, Jim joined Pacific Electric Pictures, one of the earliest companies to employ computer animation for the advertising and film markets.
Digital Productions
In 1983, Jim's work took him to Digital Productions where he began work on The Last Starfighter (1984), a film notable for its pioneering use of digital imaging in place of models. While at Digital Productions, Jim's commercial work was nominated for numerous awards, winning a prestigious CLIO award for the introduction of the Sony Walkman.
Pacific Data Images and Metrolight
From 1987 to 1989, Jim supervised numerous projects while at visual effects companies Pacific Data Images (PDI) and Metrolight.
Boss Film Studios
In 1989, Jim was asked to form and head a computer animation department at Boss Film Studios. This department of one grew to over 75 animators and 100 support staff within a little more than a year, winning several awards, including a CLIO Award for the Geo Prism automobile commercial. While at Boss, Jim supervised many feature films, both as Digital Effects Supervisor and Visual Effects Supervisor.
His credits there include Starship Troopers, Species, Outbreak, Air Force One, The Scout, The Last Action Hero, Cliffhanger, Batman Returns, Alien III, and Ghost.
Post-Boss Films career
After Boss Films closure he went on to supervise The Parent Trap, Star Trek: Insurrection, Anna and the King, and 102 Dalmatians.
Awards and nominations
In 2002, Jim received the American Film Institute's first AFI Digital Effects Artist of the Year award, the Academy Award and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts award for Best Visual Effects for his work on The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Jim is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as well as the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, and The British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
External links
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| | 1963-1980 |
- Emil Kosa, Jr. (1963)
- Peter Ellenshaw, Eustace Lycett, and Hamilton Luske (1964)
- John Stears (1965)
- Art Cruickshank (1966)
- L. B. Abbott (1967)
- Stanley Kubrick (1968)
- Robbie Robertson (1969)
- L. B. Abbott and A. D. Flowers (1970)
- Alan Maley, Eustace Lycett, Danny Lee (1971)
- L. B. Abbott and A. D. Flowers (1972)
- no award given (1973)
- Frank Brendel, Glen Robinson, and Albert Whitlock (1974)
- Glen Robinson and Albert Whitlock (1975)
- Carlo Rambaldi, Glen Robinson, and Frank Van der Veer (1976)
- John Stears, John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Grant McCune, and Robert Blalack (1977)
- Les Bowie, Colin Chilvers, Denys Coop, Roy Field, Derek Meddings, and Zoran Perisic (1978)
- H. R. Giger, Carlo Rambaldi, Brian Johnson, Nick Allder, and Dennis Ayling (1979)
- Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren, Bruce Nicholson (1980)
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| | 1981-2000 |
- Richard Edlund, Kit West, Bruce Nicholson, and Joe Johnston (1981)
- Carlo Rambaldi, Dennis Muren, and Kenneth F. Smith (1982)
- Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren, Ken Ralston, and Phil Tippett (1983)
- Dennis Muren, Michael J. McAlister, Lorne Peterson, and George Gibbs (1984)
- Ken Ralston, Ralph McQuarrie, Scott Farrar, and David Berry (1985)
- Robert Skotak, Stan Winston, John Richardson, and Suzanne Benson (1986)
- Dennis Muren, William George, Harley Jessup, and Kenneth F. Smith (1987)
- Ken Ralston, Richard Williams, Edward Jones, and George Gibbs (1988)
- John Bruno, Dennis Muren, Hoyt Yeatman, and Dennis Skotak (1989)
- Eric Brevig, Rob Bottin, Tim McGovern, and Alex Funke (1990)
- Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Gene Warren, Jr., and Robert Skotak (1991)
- Ken Ralston, Doug Chiang, Doug Smythe, and Tom Woodruff, Jr. (1992)
- Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Phil Tippett, and Michael Lantieri (1993)
- Ken Ralston, George Murphy, Stephen Rosenbaum, and Allen Rall (1994)
- Scott E. Anderson, Charles Gibson, Neal Scanlan, and John Cox (1995)
- Volker Engel, Douglas Smith, Clay Pinney, and Joe Viskocil (1996)
- Robert Legato, Mark Lasoff, Thomas L. Fisher, Michael Kanfer (1997)
- Joel Hynek, Nicholas Brooks, Stuart Robinson, and Kevin Mack (1998)
- John Gaeta, Janek Sirrs, Steve Courtley, and Jon Thum (1999)
- John Nelson, Neil Corbould, Tim Burke, and Rob Harvey (2000)
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| | 2001-2020 |
- Jim Rygiel, Randall William Cook, Richard Taylor, Mark Stetson (2001)
- Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook, and Alex Funke (2002)
- Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook, and Alex Funke (2003)
- John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara, and John Frazier (2004)
- Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, and Richard Taylor (2005)
- John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson, and Allen Hall (2006)
- Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris, and Trevor Wood (2007)
- Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, and Craig Barron (2008)
- Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham, and Andrew R. Jones (2009)
- Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley, and Peter Bebb (2010)
- Robert Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossmann, and Alex Henning (2011)
- Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan de Boer, and Donald R. Elliott (2012)
- Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, Dave Shirk, and Neil Corbould (2013)
- Paul Franklin, Andrew Lockley, Ian Hunter, and Scott R. Fisher (2014)
- Mark Williams Ardington, Sara Bennett, Paul Norris, and Andrew Whitehurst (2015)
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