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During my tenure as the visual effects director for a large university, an international student of
mine came up to me one day after class and asked if I could list for her some classic effects films that she may not have had a chance to see while growing up in her home country. I
shared the list with all of my classes. To my surprise very few of my students, even those who grew up in the United States, had seen or even heard of half of the films on the list.
Presented here is that list. It is by no mean an exhaustive list and probably is missing a few
films, but it represents a sampling of motion pictures that anyone who wishes to enter into the visual effects field should see and study. The films included on this list are
significant for various reasons. Some are Oscar winners. Others employ innovative new techniques for their time. And others are on the list because they inspired new
generations of effects artists.
(It is assumed that you are already familiar with the Star Wars films so they are not listed.)
By the way, let me flat out tell you that if you plan to be an effects artist it is absolutely
imperative that you learn who Ray Harryhausen is and see as many of his films as possible. No excuses.
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