James Isaac
Born(1960-06-05)June 5, 1960
DiedMay 6, 2012(2012-05-06) (aged 51)
Occupation(s)Film director, producer, special effects
Years active1983–2012

James Isaac (June 5, 1960 – May 6, 2012) was an American film director and visual effects supervisor.

Career

James Isaac worked on David Cronenberg's films The Fly, Naked Lunch and eXistenz

James Isaac was born June 5, 1960.[1]

Isaac began work in film in the early 1980s creating the creatures in films such as Return of the Jedi and Gremlins.[2] He continued his work into the 1980s with Enemy Mine, House II: The Second Story and DeepStar Six.[2] He made his directorial debut on The Horror Show after the original director left the project a week into shooting.[2][3]

He also worked with director David Cronenberg on his films The Fly, Naked Lunch and eXistenz.[2] His other 1990s work included being a special effects supervisor for Chris Wales Inc. on Look Who's Talking Too and Virtuosity.[2] He returned to directing in the 2000s, working on Jason X, Skinwalkers and Pig Hunt.[2]

Isaac died of blood cancer on May 6, 2012.[1]

Select filmography

Title Year Credited as Notes Ref(s)
Director Special effects Other
Return of the Jedi 1983 Yes Credited as Creature tech. [4]
Gremlins 1984 Yes Credited as part of the Creature crew [5]
House II: The Second Story 1987 Yes Special effects coordinator [6]
The Kiss 1988 Yes Make-up crew [7]
Deepstar Six 1989 Yes Credited as Visual effects supervisor [8]
The Horror Show Yes [9][3]
Arachnophobia 1990 Yes [10]
Look Who's Talking Too Yes Credited as the Project Supervisor [11]
eXistenZ 1999 Yes Visual and special effects supervisor [12][13]
Jason X 2002 Yes Yes Executive producer [14][15][16]
Skinwalkers 2006 Yes [17]
Pig Hunt 2008 Yes Yes Co-producer; final film

References

  1. ^ a b Lentz III 2013, p. 138.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Lentz III 2013, p. 139.
  3. ^ a b Stine 2003, p. 152.
  4. ^ "Return of the Jedi (1983)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  5. ^ "Gremlins (1984)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  6. ^ "House II: The Second Story (1987)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  7. ^ "The Kiss (1988)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  8. ^ "Deepstar Six (1989)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  9. ^ Binion, Cavett. "The Horror Show (1989) - Trailers, Reviews, Synopsis, Showtimes and Cast - AllMovie". AllMovie. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  10. ^ "Arachnophobia (1990)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  11. ^ "Look Who's Talking Too (1990)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  12. ^ Stratton, David (February 17, 1999). "eXistenZ". Variety. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  13. ^ "eXistenZ". Collections Canada. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  14. ^ "Jason X (2002)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  15. ^ Grove, David (February 2005). Making Friday the 13th: The Legend of Camp Blood. United Kingdom: FAB Press. p. 212. ISBN 1903254310.
  16. ^ "Jason X". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on October 3, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  17. ^ "Skinwalkers (2007)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 18 December 2017.

Bibliography

  • Lentz III, Harris M. (2013). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2012. McFarland. ISBN 9781476603858.
  • Stine, Scott Aaron (2003). The Gorehound's Guide to Splatter Films of the 1980s. McFarland. ISBN 0786415320.

External links

Films directed by James Isaac
Authority control databases
Categories