Douglas Trumbull

Douglas Trumbull was a visionary master of visual effects, whose work both changed the industry standard and stood the test of time for decades to come. Trumbull first gained acclaim for with his groundbreaking work on Stanley Kubrick's Oscar-winning sci-fi epic, "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968). He went on to perform similar chores on the adaptation of Michael Crichton's "The Andromeda Strain" (1971) before being handed the directing reigns of the cult space adventure "Silent Running" (1972). After creating stunning imagery for Steven Spielberg's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" (1977) and "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979), Trumbull proved instrumental in crafting the look of the futuristic masterpiece "Blade Runner" (1982) for director Ridley Scott. Trumbull's second directorial effort, the intriguing techno-thriller "Brainstorm" (1983), was nearly shelved by the studio after star Natalie Wood drowned just prior to the film's completion. Frustrated by the constraints of the industry, he left Hollywood to focus on work for several popular theme park attractions, including Universal Studio's "Back to the Future... The Ride" and other immersive entertainment experiences using his innovative Showscan film-projection technology. Offering Trumbull a creative freedom he had not enjoyed since his days with Kubrick, director Terrence Malick brought him back nearly 30 years later to consult on his sweeping examination of humanity, "The Tree of Life" (2011). In 2018, he participated in a documentsary about his work, "Trumbull Land" (2018). Douglas Trumbull died on February 7, 2022 in Albany, NY at the age of 79.