Jurassic Park movie poster, 1993, Universal Studios
Indelible Influence
As a pioneer in special effects, Ray Harryhausen certainly crossed a frontier, changing filmmaking forever.
Harryhausen's impact on future directors points to his lasting legacy. Among others, Tim Burton, James Cameron, Peter Jackson, John Landis, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and Guillermo del Toro all credit Ray Harryhausen with lighting a fire in them, sparking their passion for creating some of the most epic films of all time.
The Lord of the Rings: the Fellowship of the Ring movie poster, 2001, Warner Bros.
"In 1996, while I was building up a computer visual effects facility in Wellington, New Zealand, I still wanted more than anything to make a movie just like the films that inspired me throughout my life. I wanted to make my ‘Jason’, or my ‘Sinbad’… The Lord of the Rings is my ‘Ray Harryhausen movie’. Without that life-long love of his wondrous images and storytelling, it would never have been made – not by me at least."
~ Peter Jackson (The Artiface)
"My early exposure to all the leviathans of the Saturday matinee creature features inspired me, when I grew up, to make Jurassic Park. And the artist magician who breathed life into clay figures and wire armatures and made us, as kids, happily fear for our lives, was the dean of special effects, Ray Harryhausen. He inspired generations."
~ Steven Spielberg (Bristol Museums)
Star Wars movie poster, 1977, Disney
"Without Ray Harryhausen, there would likely have been no Star Wars."
~ George Lucas (Star Wars)
"I think all of us who are practitioners in the arts of science fiction and fantasy movies now all feel that we're standing on the shoulders of a giant. If not for Ray's contribution to the collective dreamscape, we wouldn't be who we are."
~ James Cameron (Twitter)
Avatar: The Way of Water movie poster, 2022, Disney
The Twilight Zone movie poster, 1983, Warner Bros.
The Nightmare Before Christmas movie poster, 1993, Disney
Pan's Labyrinth movie poster, 2006, Warner Bros.
Oscar-award-winning director, Pete Docter, included an 'Easter Egg' tribute to Harryhausen in his popular movie, Monsters, Inc. The exclusive restaurant in the film was named after the Special Effects Artist.
Harryhausen's restaraunt in Monster's Inc., 2001, Pixar
Not only were directors fond of Harryhausen’s work, though. Celebrated actor Tom Hanks claimed Jason and the Argonauts as the greatest movie of all time.
Harryhausen with Tom Hanks, 1992 Academy Awards, Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation
"His pioneering efforts were always in support of fantasy. So when we were making a film about monsters … we thought, what a better way to make a slightly obscure tribute to this guy?"
~ Pete Docter (Animated Views)
"Some people say Casablanca or Citizen Kane…I say Jason and the Argonauts is the greatest film ever made."
~ Tom Hanks (Cinema Scholars)
"I feel like he was kind of a father to all of us. In the beginning of the skeleton fight from Jason and the Argonauts, the teeth of the Hydra are thrown into the ground, and the skeletons spring out. That was Ray for all of us. We all popped up out of the ground from Ray's magic. We owe him a huge debt of gratitude for a lifetime of wonder that he helped us instill in all of us."
~ Hal Hickel, (Star Wars)
Jason and the Argonauts skeletons emerging, Columbia Pictures
Harryhausen speaks on how he would like to be remembered.
Audio from YouTube
Ray Harryhausen immortalized in bronze, Variety, Getty Images
"Ray, we owe you more than we can ever really express, based on all of the roads you pioneered and built from dirt, into a super highway of eventual digital technology."
~ Steven Spielberg
Fans have his work ingrained in their minds. It's hard to imagine the world of movies without Ray Harryhausen, but there’s a risk that people will forget Ray. Fortunately, we will never have to experience such a void of entertainment, as his films and collections live on forever through the Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
"Ray set up the [Ray and Diana Harryhausen] Foundation as a charity in the hope that future generations would take an interest in his films, and learn from his techniques."
~ Connor Heaney, Collections Manager for the Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation (Heaney)
Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation logo, © The Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation
"It is estimated that there are in excess of 50,000 items in the collection, including original armatured models, hard rubber stand-in models, armatures, original moulds, original artwork, original miniatures, stills, negatives, original equipment, paperwork, screenplays, various test and dailies footage, books and many influences, such as paintings and lithographs by Gustav Dore, John Martin and Willis O’Brien. During Ray’s almost 93 years, it is remarkable and fortunate that he rarely threw anything away, which is why the collection is near complete and contains so much original material."
~ The Ray and Diana Harryhasuen Foundation (Scottish charity No. SC001419)
Ray Harryhausen, a trailblazer, launched audiences across the frontier of imagination with his innovative technique. Dynamation proved worthy of taking people on the adventure of a lifetime and left an indelible influence on the world of movie-making. Thank you, Ray Harryhausen!
Ray Harryhausen with his models, Mark Mawston
"In the end I simply used my imagination..."
~ Ray Harryhausen (Ray Harryhausen: An Animated Life 275)