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IMDbPro

Terry Windell(1956-2018)

  • Visual Effects
  • Art Department
  • Animation Department
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
With over 25 years of experience, the career of Terry Windell has run the gamut from live action director to 3D visual effects animation supervisor. He began his career at Lucasfilm's Industrial Light and Magic where he honed his skills as a visual effects designer/animator on the Academy Award® winning films, Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi, E.T., Poltergeist, and Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan. Windell's work so impressed Oscar® winning Visual Effects Supervisor Richard Edlund, he asked Windell to leave ILM to join him in building his new company, Boss Film Studios. While at Boss, Windell built, staffed, and co-supervised the animation department where his creative vision helped a number of films earn Academy Award® nominations, including Ghostbusters, 2010, and Poltergeist II. Also during his tenure at Boss, Windell launched his directing career, winning numerous awards for his commercials including: Clios, The Mobius, an Addie, Caddies, The New York Film Festival, and Billboard Magazine's prestigious "Spot of the Year." Recruited in 1996 by Quentin Tarantino's A Band Apart, Windell went on to become one of the industry's top commercial directors. Windell has directed, designed, and supervised the visual effects for over 120 commercials for many Fortune 500 clients including: United Airlines, Budweiser, Miller Lite, DHL, Chrysler-Jeep, Chevy Trucks, Buick, Toyota Racing, Harley Davidson, Dodge, Nintendo, Sears, HBO, and Ford. Windell's commercial work caught the eye of Paramount Pictures executive producers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga who invited him to direct episodes of the television series "Star Trek: Voyager." The two-hour movie special "Dark Frontier" was a highlight of the three seasons that Windell spent as a director on "Voyager." Other directing credits include "Star Trek: Enterprise," "Special Unit 2," and "Shipwreckers" for the Discovery Channel. Windell designed and directed an interactive 3D ride film installed as the featured attraction at the World of Coke theme park in Atlanta, as well as a 3D corporate film for Lockheed Martin. His vast experience in live action, visual effects, and a multitude of film and digital formats give him the creative and technical prowess needed to compete in the ever expanding world of 3D film. Windell is also a sought after lecturer at universities and film schools such as the American Film Institute, USC School of Cinema, The Art Center College of Design, Savannah College of Art and Design, He was the keynote speaker for the 2008 Poppy Jasper Film Festival. In addition, Windell is a member of the Director's Guild of America, the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences, and The Visual Effects Society. When his schedule permits, he teaches at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.
BornSeptember 18, 1956
DiedJuly 21, 2018(61)
BornSeptember 18, 1956
DiedJuly 21, 2018(61)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Add photos, demo reels

Known for

Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis in Ghostbusters (1984)
Ghostbusters
7.8
  • Visual Effects
  • 1984
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, Warwick Davis, David Prowse, Billy Dee Williams, Michael Carter, and Larry Ward in Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi
8.3
  • Visual Effects
  • 1983
Dolph Lundgren, Robert Duncan McNeill, and Courteney Cox in Masters of the Universe (1987)
Masters of the Universe
5.4
  • Visual Effects
  • 1987
2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984)
2010: The Year We Make Contact
6.7
  • Visual Effects
  • 1984

Credits

IMDbPro

Visual Effects



  • Peter Serafinowicz in The Tick (2016)
    The Tick
    7.4
    TV Series
    • visual effects supervisor
    • visual effects producer
    • 2016–2019
  • Jamie Bell in Turn: Washington's Spies (2014)
    Turn: Washington's Spies
    8.1
    TV Series
    • on-set visual effects supervisor
    • 2015
  • Wayward Pines (2015)
    Wayward Pines
    7.3
    TV Series
    • visual effects supervisor
    • 2015
  • Christopher Larkin, Devon Bostick, Eliza Taylor, Bob Morley, Marie Avgeropoulos, and Thomas McDonell in The 100 (2014)
    The 100
    7.5
    TV Series
    • visual effects supervisor
    • 2014
  • Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, and Robert Pattinson in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 (2012)
    The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2
    5.6
    • visual effects supervisor
    • 2012
  • Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, and Robert Pattinson in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 (2011)
    The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1
    5.0
    • visual effects supervisor
    • 2011
  • Nicole Kidman in The Stepford Wives (2004)
    The Stepford Wives
    5.4
    • visual effects designer: Tippett Studio
    • 2004
  • Earth Star Voyager (1988)
    Earth Star Voyager
    6.0
    Video
    • visual effects designer: Boss Film Corporation
    • 1988
  • Walt Disney in The Magical World of Disney (1954)
    The Magical World of Disney
    8.3
    TV Series
    • visual effects designer: Boss Film Corporation
    • 1988
  • Dolph Lundgren, Robert Duncan McNeill, and Courteney Cox in Masters of the Universe (1987)
    Masters of the Universe
    5.4
    • visual effects art director
    • 1987
  • Solarbabies (1986)
    Solarbabies
    4.8
    • visual effects art director
    • 1986
  • Lucy Deakins in The Boy Who Could Fly (1986)
    The Boy Who Could Fly
    6.6
    • animation supervisor: Boss Film Corporation
    • 1986
  • Heather O'Rourke in Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)
    Poltergeist II: The Other Side
    5.7
    • production illustrator: Boss Film Corporation
    • 1986
  • Dorothy Fielding in Fright Night (1985)
    Fright Night
    7.1
    • animation supervisor: Entertainment Effects Group, Los Angeles
    • 1985
  • 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984)
    2010: The Year We Make Contact
    6.7
    • animation supervisor: Entertainment Effects Group
    • 1984

Art Department



  • Lucille Bliss, Danny Goldman, Don Messick, and Alan Oppenheimer in The Smurfs (1981)
    The Smurfs
    7.2
    TV Series
    • storyboard artist
    • 1988
  • Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis in Ghostbusters (1984)
    Ghostbusters
    7.8
    • creature design consultant
    • 1984
  • The New Adventures of the Lone Ranger (1980)
    The New Adventures of the Lone Ranger
    7.3
    TV Series
    • storyboard artist
    • 1980–1982

Animation Department



  • Heavy Metal (1981)
    Heavy Metal
    6.6
    • background artist
    • layout artist (segment "Taarna", segments "Grimaldi", "Captain Sternn", "Taarna")
    • 1981
  • Spider-Woman (1979)
    Spider-Woman
    5.7
    TV Series
    • layout artist
    • 1979–1980

Personal details

  • Born
    • September 18, 1956
    • California, USA
  • Died
    • July 21, 2018

Did you know

  • Trivia
    Director Terry Windell signed with A Band Apart Commercials, Hollywood. Windell had been in the market since his last commercial roost, Marina del Rey, Calif.-based Boss Film Studios, closed in August 1995.

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