Alec Gillis, AVP

Academy Award-winning special effects artist, Alec Gillis has created some of the most memorable effects ever seen on the big screen. Together with his partner, Tom Woodruff, Jr., they are responsible for making Meryl Streep's head turn backwards in Death Becomes Her; fabricating Tim Allen's plump belly in The Santa Clause I & II; creating the enormous bugs in Starship Troopers; fashioning John Travolta's giant angel wings in Michael; designing and modifying the changing looks of the alien in the last four Alien movie installments including the much anticipated, AVP (Alien Vs. Predator). Together, Gillis and Woodruff have authored the book, AVP: The Creature Effects of ADI which provides an inside look at all of the effects used in the movie.

Born in Phoenix, Arizona and raised in Orange County, California, Gillis was already an avid fan of fantasy and science fiction movies before his tenth birthday. Influenced by films such as Planet Of The Apes, King Kong, and Jason and the Argonauts, Gillis began making his own amateur movies. At thirteen years old, he decided that creating creatures for Hollywood would be his career and spent much of his teen years experimenting and tinkering with various special effects in his mother's garage.  

Gillis' first professional job was in 1980 on Roger Corman's low budget space-epic, Battle Beyond The Stars. There he worked with many other talented industry newcomers, most notably director James Cameron (Aliens, Titanic), and producer Gale Anne Hurd ( Aliens, The Abyss, Tremors ). He went on to attend UCLA's esteemed film school and, after graduation, began working for some of the industry's top names in make-up effects, most notably Stan Winston (Aliens, Predator, Alien Nation).   As one of Winston's closest associates, Gillis had the opportunity to hone his skills as a creature designer, sculptor and supervisor.  

In 1988, Gillis teamed up with another of Winston's character designer, Tom Woodruff, Jr., to form AMALGAMATED DYNAMICS, INC. (ADI). The company, which is dedicated to the highest standards of quality in animatronics and special make-up, quickly became known as one of the major character effects studios in the business. Their work gathered numerous accolades and awards including the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for the Meryl Streep/Goldie Hawn feature Death Becomes Her. They have also earned Oscar nominations for Starship Troopers and Alien 3.

Other feature films Gillis has worked on include Scary Movie 3, Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2, Looney Tunes Back in ActionThe Santa Clause 2, Panic Room, Evolution, Bedazzled, The Nutty Professor 2, Cast Away, Wonder Boys, The X-Files (feature), Mortal Kombat, The Grifters and Tremors .

His television credits include directing segments of Beyond Belief , and creating and writing a comedy pilot for USA TV called Roadhogs. He also created an animatronic gorilla that was used in the series Chicago Hope, Seven Days and Beyond Belief. He also designed an animatronic deer for the television movie, The Yearling, fashioned numerous prosthetic body parts and make-up for Tales from the Crypt and Monsters and produced the animatronic lead character for the series What a Dummy .

Gillis, who is a member of the Directors Guild of America, the Writers Guild of America, and the Screen Actors Guild, continues to be personally involved in the performances of the characters as well. Whether directing a team of puppeteers, or personally operating a panel of controls, he makes each of the creature/animal movements appear as natural and realistic as possible. With Gillis at the controls and Woodruff in the elaborate costume, the twosome have worked together on the performances in such feature films as The Hollow Man, Alien Resurrection, Alien 3, AVP, Jumanji , The X-Files feature and more.

In between effect-oriented productions, Gillis continues to write and develop projects with Woodruff using ADI as an umbrella under which their own film productions can eventually grow.  

Gillis currently resides in Los Angeles, with his wife Alaine and their four kids.