Douglas Trumbull(1942-2022)

Producer
Director
Visual Effects

A 'Cine-ramic' rollercoaster ride through the rise, fall and rebirth of projected film.

Play trailer2:02

Splice Here: A Projected Odyssey (2022)

Legendary filmmaker and visual effects pioneer, Douglas Trumbull, was one of the Special Photographic Effects Supervisors for 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). He went on to become the Visual Effects Supervisor for such classics as Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), and Blade Runner (1982), each of which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Visual Effects.

Mr. Trumbull directed Silent Running (1972), Brainstorm (1983), Back to the Future... The Ride (1991) and numerous other special format films.

He is the recipient of an Academy Award in the area of Scientific and Technical Achievement, as well as the International Monitor Award and American Society of Cinematographers' Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding contributions in the field of filmmaking. Douglas is currently involved in the evolution of visual effects using virtual digital sets and electronic cinematography.

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Nominated for 3 Oscars
- 17 wins & 12 nominations total

Photos8

Douglas Trumbull in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Bruce Dern and Douglas Trumbull in Silent Running (1972)

Known for:

Blade Runner

8.1

Visual Effects

1982

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

6.4

Visual Effects

1979

Silent Running

6.6

Producer(uncredited)

1972

Brainstorm

6.4

Producer

1983

Credits

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IMDbPro

Producer

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot
- executive producer
- 2018
In Search of the Obelisk
- producer
- Short
- 1993
To Dream of Roses
- executive producer
- Short
- 1990
Brainstorm
- producer
- 1983
The Starlost: Deception
- executive producer
- TV Movie
- 1980
The Starlost
- producer
- executive producer
- TV Series
- 1973–1974
Silent Running
- producer (uncredited)
- 1972

Director

Golden Eyes
- Director
- Short
- 2011
Theater of Time
- Director
- Short
- 1993
Luxor Live
- Director
- Short
- 1993
In Search of the Obelisk
- Director
- Short
- 1993
Back to the Future... The Ride
- Director
- Video
- 1991
Leonardo's Dream
- Director
- Short
- 1989
Tour of the Universe
- Director
- Short
- 1985
Let's Go
- Director
- Short
- 1985
New Magic
- Director
- Short
- 1983
Big Ball
- Director
- Short
- 1983
Brainstorm
- Director
- 1983
Night of Dreams
- Director
- Short
- 1978
Silent Running
- Director
- 1972

Visual Effects

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot
- visual effects
- 2018
The Tree of Life
- visual effects consultant
- 2011
Blade Runner
- special photographic effects supervisor
- 1982
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
- special photographic effects director
- 1979
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
- special photographic effects
- 1977
The Starlost
- visual effects (uncredited)
- TV Series
- 1973
Silent Running
- special photographic effects
- 1972
The Andromeda Strain
- special photographic effects
- 1971
Candy
- opening and closing sequences
- 1968
2001: A Space Odyssey
- special photographic effects supervisor
- 1968
To the Moon and Beyond
- special photographic effects
- Short
- 1964

Videos2

Trailer 2:02

Official trailer

Trailer 2:07

Chesley Bonestell: A Brush with the Future (Trailer)

Personal details

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Alternative name
- Doug Trumbull
Born
- April 8, 1942
- Los Angeles, California, USA
Died
- February 7, 2022
- Albany, New York, USA(mesothelioma)
Spouses
Other works
Directed and largely wrote "Back to the Future: The Ride" for Steven Spielberg and Universal Studios Theme Parks.
Publicity listings

Did you know

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Trivia
Stanley Kubrick hired Trumbull to work on 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) after seeing a documentary Trumbull worked on for the 1964 World's Fair, To the Moon and Beyond (1964).

Quotes
I had to personally make a life decision many years ago when Natalie Wood died under very suspicious circumstances during the making of Brainstorm (1983). I just had to stop. I had been a writer-director all my life, and I decided it wasn't for me because I was put through a really challenging personal experience. I do not think the story has ever been told. I don't know the story myself, but I know what my experience was. I decided to leave the movie business.