Amalgamated Dynamics, Inc. (ADI) is an American

special effects Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wo ...

company specializing in

animatronics Animatronics refers to mechatronic puppets. They are a modern variant of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films and in theme park attractions. It is a multidisciplinary field integrating puppetry, anatomy ...

and

prosthetic make-up A facial prosthetic or facial prosthesis is an artificial device used to change or adapt the outward appearance of a person's face or head. When used in the theatre, film or television industry, facial prosthetic makeup alters a person's normal f ...

, headquartered in

Chatsworth, California Chatsworth is a suburban neighborhood in the City of Los Angeles, California, in the San Fernando Valley. The area was home to Native Americans, some of whom left caves containing rock art. Chatsworth was explored and colonized by the Spanish b ...

. It was founded in 1988 by

Stan Winston Stanley Winston (April 7, 1946 – June 15, 2008) was an American television and film special make-up effects creator, best known for his work in the ''Terminator'' series, the first three '' Jurassic Park'' films, ''Aliens'', '' The Thing'', t ...

alumni

Tom Woodruff Jr. Tom Woodruff Jr. (born January 21, 1959) is an American actor, director, producer and special effects supervisor. He won an Academy Award for Best Special Effects for his work on the 1992 dark fantasy film ''Death Becomes Her''; that same year h ...

and Alec Gillis who hails from

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

. Notable work includes '' Death Becomes Her'', for which they won an

Academy Award for Best Visual Effects The Academy Award for Best Visual Effects is an Academy Award given for the best achievement in visual effects. History of the award The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first recognized the technical contributions of special effects ...

, ''

Starship Troopers ''Starship Troopers'' is a military science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. Written in a few weeks in reaction to the US suspending nuclear tests, the story was first published as a two-part serial in ''The Magazine of F ...

'', which was also nominated for an Oscar, and the practical creature effects seen in the ''Alien'' franchise from ''

Alien 3 ''Alien 3'' (stylized as ''A''LIEN³) is a 1992 American science fiction horror film directed by David Fincher and written by David Giler, Walter Hill, and Larry Ferguson, from a story by Vincent Ward. It stars Sigourney Weaver, reprising her ...

'' onward. Woodruff also portrays creatures in the films ADI works on, such as the

Alien Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...

. In 2013, Amalgamated Dynamics successfully ran a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

campaign to fund their independent horror film titled '' Harbinger Down'', which was directed by Gillis and produced by Woodruff Jr. The film was released in August 2015 and features exclusively practical creature effects. The impetus for the project began when ADI were frustrated that their practical effects for '' The Thing'', which tried to follow closely the ones featured in the original 1982 film, had been mostly digitally replaced with

computer-generated imagery Computer-generated imagery (CGI) is the use of computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, simulators, and visual effects in films, television programs, shorts, commercials, and videos. The image ...

by order of the studio. Oscar Winning FX Company Pushes Back Against Big Studios
/ref>

Filmography

1980s

* ''

Teen Witch ''Teen Witch'' is a 1989 American teen fantasy comedy film directed by Dorian Walker, written by Robin Menken and Vernon Zimmerman, and starring Robyn Lively and Zelda Rubinstein. Originally pitched as a female version of ''Teen Wolf'' (1985) ...

'' (1989)

1990s

* '' Tremors'' (1990) * '' The Grifters'' (1990) * ''

Point Break ''Point Break'' is a 1991 American action crime film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by W. Peter Iliff. It stars Patrick Swayze, Keanu Reeves, Lori Petty and Gary Busey. The film's title refers to the surfing term " point break", wher ...

'' (1991) * ''

'' (1992) * '' Death Becomes Her'' (1992) * '' Demolition Man'' (1993) * ''

Wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...

'' (1994) – animatronic designers: mechanical wolf * ''

The Santa Clause ''The Santa Clause'' is a 1994 American Christmas fantasy comedy film written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick, and directed by John Pasquin. The first installment in ''The Santa Clause'' franchise, it stars Tim Allen as Scott Calvin, an ordin ...

'' (1994) * ''

Mortal Kombat ''Mortal Kombat'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of video games originally developed by Midway Games in 1992. The development of the first game was originally based on an idea that Ed Boon and John Tobias had of making a ...

'' (1995) * ''

Jumanji ''Jumanji'' is a 1995 American fantasy adventure film directed by Joe Johnston from a screenplay by Jonathan Hensleigh, Greg Taylor, and Jim Strain. Loosely based on Chris Van Allsburg's picture book of the same name, the film is the first ...

'' (1995) * '' Tremors 2: Aftershocks'' (1996) * '' Mars Attacks!'' (1996) * ''

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

'' (1996) * ''

Alien Resurrection ''Alien Resurrection'' is a 1997 American science fiction horror film, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, written by Joss Whedon, and starring Sigourney Weaver and Winona Ryder. It is the fourth installment of the ''Alien'' franchise, and wa ...

'' (1997) * ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

'' (1998) * ''

My Favorite Martian ''My Favorite Martian'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 29, 1963, to May 1, 1966, for 107 episodes. The show stars Ray Walston as "Uncle Martin" (the Martian) and Bill Bixby as Tim O'Hara. The first two seasons, totalin ...

'' (1999) * ''

The Astronaut's Wife ''The Astronaut's Wife'' is a 1999 American science fiction thriller film directed and written by Rand Ravich. It stars Johnny Depp and Charlize Theron. The film was released on August 27, 1999. It received negative reviews from critics and was ...

'' (1999) * ''

Bats Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bir ...

'' (1999)

2000s

* '' Nutty Professor II: The Klumps'' (2000) * ''

Hollow Man Hollow may refer to: Natural phenomena *Hollow, a low, wooded area, such as a copse *Hollow (landform), a small vee-shaped, riverine type of valley *Tree hollow, a void in a branch or trunk, which may provide habitat for animals Places *Sleepy H ...

'' (2000) * '' Bedazzled'' (2000) * ''

The 6th Day ''The 6th Day'' is a 2000 American science fiction action film directed by Roger Spottiswoode and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tony Goldwyn, Michael Rapaport, and Robert Duvall. In the film, a family man of the future is illegally cloned ...

'' (2000) * ''

Cast Away ''Cast Away'' is a 2000 American survival drama film directed and produced by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, and Nick Searcy. Hanks plays a FedEx troubleshooter stranded on an uninhabited island after his plane crashes in ...

'' (2000) * ''

Evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

'' (2001) * '' Bubble Boy'' (2001) * '' Tremors 3: Back to Perfection'' (2001) * ''

John Q John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

'' (2002) * ''

Panic Room ''Panic Room'' is a 2002 American thriller film directed by David Fincher. The film stars Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart as a mother and daughter whose new home is invaded by burglars, played by Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoaka ...

'' (2002) * ''

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the Si ...

'' (2002) * ''

The Santa Clause 2 ''The Santa Clause 2'' is a 2002 American Christmas comedy film directed by Michael Lembeck in his directorial debut. It is a sequel to '' The Santa Clause'' (1994) and the second installment in ''The Santa Clause'' franchise. All of the princip ...

'' (2002) * '' Scary Movie 3'' (2003) * '' Looney Tunes: Back in Action'' (2003) * ''

Spider-Man 2 ''Spider-Man 2'' is a 2004 American superhero film directed by Sam Raimi and written by Alvin Sargent from a story by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar and Michael Chabon. Based on the fictional Marvel Comics character of the same name, it is the ...

'' (2004) * ''

Alien vs. Predator ''Alien vs. Predator'' (also known as ''Aliens versus Predator'' and ''AVP'') is a science-fiction action horror media franchise created by comic book writers Randy Stradley and Chris Warner. The series is a crossover between, and part of, t ...

'' (2004) * '' Elektra'' (2005) * ''

Stealth Stealth may refer to: Military * Stealth technology, technology used to conceal ships, aircraft, and missiles ** Stealth aircraft, aircraft which use stealth technology **Stealth ground vehicle, ground vehicles which use stealth technology ** St ...

'' (2005) * '' Failure to Launch'' (2006) * ''

All the King's Men ''All the King's Men'' is a 1946 novel by Robert Penn Warren. The novel tells the story of charismatic populist governor Willie Stark and his political machinations in the Depression-era Deep South. It was inspired by the real-life story of U ...

'' (2006) * '' The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause'' (2006) * ''

Wild Hogs ''Wild Hogs'' is a 2007 American biker road comedy film directed by Walt Becker and starring Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy. It was released nationwide in the United States and Canada on March 2, 2007. It was the la ...

'' (2007) * ''

Spider-Man 3 ''Spider-Man 3'' is a 2007 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. It was directed by Sam Raimi from a screenplay by Raimi, his older brother Ivan and Alvin Sargent. It is the final installment in Raimi's ...

'' (2007) * '' Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem'' (2007) * '' The Incredible Hulk'' (2008) * '' Lonely Street'' (2009) * '' Race to Witch Mountain'' (2009) * '' Dragonball: Evolution'' (2009) * '' X-Men Origins: Wolverine'' (2009) * ''

G-Force The gravitational force equivalent, or, more commonly, g-force, is a measurement of the type of force per unit mass – typically acceleration – that causes a perception of weight, with a g-force of 1 g (not gram in mass measur ...

'' (2009) * '' Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant'' (2009) * '' Old Dogs'' (2009)

2010s

* ''

Skyline A skyline is the outline or shape viewed near the horizon. It can be created by a city’s overall structure, or by human intervention in a rural setting, or in nature that is formed where the sky meets buildings or the land. City skylin ...

'' (2010) * ''

Beastly ''Beastly'' is a 2007 novel by Alex Flinn. It is a retelling of the fairytale ''Beauty and the Beast'' set in modern-day New York City from the view of the beast. Flinn researched many versions of the ''Beauty and the Beast'' story to write her b ...

'' (2011) * '' X-Men: First Class'' (2011) * ''

Zookeeper A zookeeper, sometimes referred as animal keeper, is a person who manages zoo animals that are kept in captivity for conservation or to be displayed to the public.Hurwitz, Jane. Choosing a Career in Animal Care (World of Work). New York: Rosen Gr ...

'' (2011) * '' The Thing'' (2011) * ''

Beautiful Wave ''Beautiful Wave'' is a 2012 adventure coming-of-age drama film. The film was directed by David Mueller. Plot New Yorker late-teen Nicole (Aimee Teegarden) visits her estranged grandmother (Patricia Richardson) in Santa Cruz, California for the s ...

'' (2012) * '' Odd Thomas'' (2013) * ''

Grown Ups 2 ''Grown Ups 2'' is a 2013 American comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Adam Sandler, Fred Wolf, and Tim Herlihy, and produced by Sandler and Jack Giarraputo. It is a sequel to the 2010 film '' Grown Ups''. The film stars Sandler ...

'' (2013) * '' Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters'' (2013) * ''

Ender's Game ''Ender's Game'' is a 1985 military science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. Set at an unspecified date in Earth's future, the novel presents an imperiled humankind after two conflicts with an insectoid alien species they ...

'' (2013) * ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film '' Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produ ...

'' (2014) * ''

Kids vs Monsters ''Kids vs Monsters'' is a 2015 American fantasy comedy film that was directed by Sultan Saeed Al Darmaki and is his directorial debut. The film was released on video on demand on September 29, 2015. Synopsis The film centers around six children ...

'' (2015) * '' Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials'' (2015) * '' Harbinger Down'' (2015) * ''Fire City: End of Days'' (2015) * '' Rakka'' (2017) * '' It'' (2017) * '' Sorry to Bother You'' (2018) * '' The Predator'' (2018) * '' Godzilla: King of the Monsters'' (2019)

2020s

* ''

Guest House A guest house (also guesthouse) is a kind of lodging. In some parts of the world (such as the Caribbean), guest houses are a type of inexpensive hotel-like lodging. In others, it is a private home that has been converted for the exclusive use ...

'' (2020) * ''

Godzilla vs. Kong ''Godzilla vs. Kong'' is a 2021 American monster film directed by Adam Wingard. A sequel to '' Kong: Skull Island'' (2017) and '' Godzilla: King of the Monsters'' (2019); it is the fourth film in Legendary Pictures' MonsterVerse, the 36th fil ...

'' (2021) * ''

Prey Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

'' (2022) * ''

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

'' (2022)

References

External links

* {{official, url=http://www.studioadi.com/ Special effects companies Best Visual Effects Academy Award winners Entertainment companies established in 1988 Privately held companies based in California